The Europeans | European news, politics and culture
Non-boring podcasts about Europe.
Thu, April 03, 2025
Rockets, recipes and Le Pen(itentiary)
Marine Le Pen has been banned from running for the French presidency after this week's bombshell court ruling finding her guilty in a huge embezzlement case. But does she have any chance of a comeback? And could the far-right win the presidency without her? This week we're discussing the earthquake in French politics, as well as Europe's space ambitions. Plus, a delightful interview with Greek podcaster and hungry man Thom Ntinas, about what ancient Europeans ate. Thom is the host of The Delicious Legacy podcast. Find it here , or wherever you're listening to this. Thanks for listening. After some rather troubling financial news this week, this independent podcast needs your support more than ever. If you enjoy our work, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting us. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast! This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus , the leading radio network for EU news. This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: @forkranger on Instagram and ' How Stockholm Stuck ' from Radiolab. 00:33 Damn clocks 03:43 Good Week: Marine Le Pen's enemies 20:36 Bad Week (?): The Spectrum rocket launch 33:59 Interview: Thom Ntinas on what the Ancients ate 46:27 The Inspiration Station: @forkranger and 'How Stockholm Stuck' 49:55 Happy Ending: The best place to lose your wallet Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 27, 2025
How would Europe's €800 billion defence plan actually work?
Europe is set to spend an eye-wateringly huge amount of money on building up its militaries over the next few years, after That Guy In The White House signalled he's no longer that interested in helping us defend ourselves against Russia. But where is all this money supposed to come from? And does it matter if some countries are more enthusiastic about this plan than others? This week we call defence expert Marina Henke to figure out what this spending bonanza actually involves. We're also talking about a Czech-led plan to save Radio Free Europe from Trump's cuts, and why ChatGPT falsely accused a Norwegian man of murder. Marina is a professor of international Relations at the Hertie School in Berlin and director of the Centre for International Security. You can watch the full version of her interview here on our YouTube channel and follow her on Bluesky here . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast! This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus , the leading radio network for EU news. This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' And Then We Danced ' and The Bittersweet Life . Other resources for this week's episode 'Trump’s decision to cut Radio Free Europe comes at a great cost to democracy' - Muhammad Tahir, editorial for MSNBC, March 24, 2025 https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-voice-of-america-radio-free-europe-rcna197367 'Malfunction: the Hungarian Radio (Silence) on Chernobyl' - Archivum, April 26, 2021 https://www.archivum.org/entries/blog/malfunction-the-hungarian-radio-silence-on-chernobyl 'EU privacy body weighs in on some tricky GenAI lawfulness questions' - TechCrunch, December 18, 2024 https://techcrunch.com/2024/12/18/eu-privacy-body-weighs-in-on-some-tricky-genai-lawfulness-questions/ The EU's White Paper for European De
Thu, March 20, 2025
Should Canada join the EU?
Europe and Canada have a lot in common, from their headaches over Donald Trump to a shared belief in welfare states. If Australia can be a part of Eurovision, is there anything stopping us from welcoming our Canadian friends into the EU?! This week we talk to Stanley Pignal, The Economist's semi-Canadian Brussels bureau chief, about what would be in it for both sides. We're also looking at the escalating political crisis in Bosnia, and the places in Europe where you're likely to live the longest. You can read Stanley's article about the case for Canadian EU membership here and find his Charlemagne column on European politics here . He posts on Bluesky here . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast! This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus , the leading radio network for EU news. This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' The Agency ' and writing a letter to a Russian political prisoner via OVD-Info (an initiative discovered via this essay in The Dial by Francesca Mastruzzo). Other resources for this week's episode 'The Economics Show' podcast by the Financial Times: 'Can societies age gracefully?' - January 13, 2025 https://www.ft.com/content/8ce0571d-06f0-40de-8579-4446d1fb07f3 'The EU needs a proactive approach in Bosnia' - editorial in Politico Europe by Arminka Helić, March 17, 2025 https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-bosnia-western-balkans-europe-war-bih-crisis-serbia/ 00:34 Spring Is Real 02:50 Good Week: Europeans are living longer 15:00 Bad Week: Bosnia and Herzegovina 28:54 Interview: Stanley Pignal on the case for Canadian EU membership 45:38 The Inspiration Station: The Agency and letters to Russian political prisoners 50:46 Happy Ending: Germany's economy could be wurst Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barn
Thu, March 13, 2025
Putin's African antics, the death of Skype, and a Eurovision c-bomb
Thousands of kilometres from the devastating war it's been waging in Ukraine, Russia has involved itself in a swathe of other conflicts that attract much less attention: in Africa. Why? This week we speak to Beverly Ochieng, a self-described Wagner Group stalker, about what Russia is playing at. We're also talking about a foul-mouthed (?) Eurovision controversy, and why none of the world's big bad tech giants come from Europe. Beverly is a senior analyst for francophone Africa at Control Risks and a senior associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. You can follow her here on Bluesky and here on Mastodon. Check out our full conversation with Beverly on our YouTube channel . Thanks so much for listening. If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast! This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus , the leading radio network for EU news. This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: Codenames and The Economist's Glass Ceiling Index . Other resources for this week's episode European Alternatives - euro-companies making all kinds of digital products: https://european-alternatives.eu/ Jitsi, the great Zoom alternative created by a swing-dancing Erasmus student: https://jitsi.org/ 'The Brussels Effect: How the European Union Rules the World' by Anu Bradford: https://academic.oup.com/book/36491 Fact-check: Does the EU really buy 80% of its weapons from overseas? (No, no it doesn't.) Bluesky thread by The Economist's Stanley Pignal, March 9, 2025: https://bsky.app/profile/spignal.bsky.social/post/3ljxd4r4cos25 Miriana Conte - Kant (‘Singing’); National Final Performance, Eurovision Song Contest 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qNK1tt6L5k 00:33 Smellovision and feminist babies 03:32 Bad Week: Skype 25:19 Good Week: Language prudes 37:39 Interview: Beverly Ochieng on Russia's African antics 53:40 The Inspiration
Tue, March 11, 2025
Big news for The Europeans!
Producers Katz and Wojciech join Katy and Dominic to share a couple of nuggets of exciting news for The Europeans. You can find out all about our new partners at Euranet Plus, a network of radio stations across Europe, here . And you can read all about our crowdfunded mini-series 'Who Does It Best?' — and contribute, if you'd like! — here . Maja and Uršula's show, Šala za starše, can be found here and you can find Jasmin's work here . Thanks so much for listening. If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 27, 2025
Germany's elections: should we freak out or not?
Germany just staged one of Europe's most crucial elections this year. The results are simultaneously shocking and not-shocking: shocking because the far-right made huge gains; not shocking because they are likely to deliver a coalition between the country's two legacy mainstream parties. So, to what extent should we be freaking out right now? In this election special, we ring up Germanysplainer extraordinaire Tarik Abou-Chadi to unpack that question. Plus, we speak to the writer and activist Emilia Roig about what it feels like to be a long-term immigrant in Germany right now — and how to think about the fightback. Tarik is a professor of European politics at the University of Oxford. You can follow him on Bluesky here . You can find out more about Emilia's work here and follow her on Instagram here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 03:50 Tarik Abou-Chadi untangles the German election results for us 27:34 Emilia Roig on how to think about the fight against the far-right YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 20, 2025
Euro-defence, euro-booze and euro-TV
This week, the great transatlantic break-up. How can we make sense of the seismic shift in Europe's relationship with the US since Trump took power? What does it mean for Ukraine, and Europe's ability to defend itself from Russia? As a palate-cleanser, we're also hearing all the secrets of the international TV trade. Why do people in so many countries end up watching national versions of the same reality and game shows? Jean Chalaby joins us to explain how this fascinating industry works. Plus, Europe's changing relationship with booze. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . Jean is a professor of international communication at City University London, and the author of The Format Age . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' Prezidentka ' and ' The Taste of Things ' ('La Passion de Dodin Bouffant'). Other resources for this week's episode 'I Really Believe That Time Has Come: The Armed Forces of Europe Must Be Created – Speech by the President at the Munich Security Conference' - Website of the Ukrainian Presidency, February 15, 2025 https://www.president.gov.ua/en/news/viryu-sho-cej-chas-nastav-neobhidno-stvoriti-zbrojni-sili-ye-96089 'Vance uses half-truths to lecture a European audience well aware of the threat of authoritarian rule' - CNN, February 14, 2025 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/14/world/vances-speech-upsets-european-leaders-intl-latam/index.html 'Alcohol labels should warn of cancer risk, says new WHO/Europe report' - World Health Organization, February 14, 2025 https://www.who.int/europe/news-room/14-02-2025-alcohol-labels-should-warn-of-cancer-risk--says-new-who-europe-report 'Secret love lives of crickets revealed' - The Slovenia Times, February 14, 2025 https://sloveniatimes.com/42509/secret-love-life-of-crickets-revealed Producers: Morgan Childs and Katy Lee Mixing
Thu, February 13, 2025
Dark skies, cheap shopping and an EU laser show
Nocturnal tourism is supposedly one of the big travel trends of 2025, and from star-gazing to truffle-hunting, there are plenty of places in Europe to do it. But where is this craving for darkness coming from? This week we speak to Anna Levin, author of two beautiful books about the impact of artificial light on the world around us, about why Europe's night skies deserve much better protection. We're also talking about the Baltic countries' move to cut their electrical cords with Russia, and the EU's attempt to tackle our cheap Chinese shopping addiction. Anna is the author of 'Incandescent' and 'Dark Skies'. You can find out more about her work here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' The Day of the Jackal ' and 'Italia Express' from Radiooooo . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . Other resources for this week's episode 'Baltic Energy Independence Day' aka the amazing EU laser show - European Commission livestream, February 8, 2025 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeU829DcoKQ&t=24s 'EU toolbox for safe and sustainable e-commerce' aka the EU's proposed crackdown on cheap shopping websites, February 5, 2025 https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/e-commerce-communication-comprehensive-eu-toolbox-safe-and-sustainable-e-commerce DarkSky International: All international Dark Sky Places https://darksky.org/what-we-do/international-dark-sky-places/all-places '"Must-have genre" for uncertain times: why spy thrillers have taken over TV' - The Guardian, February 2, 2025 https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2025/feb/02/spy-thrillers-television-must-have-genre-uncertain-world 'Beavers build planned dams in protected landscape area, while local officials still seeking permits' - Radio Prague International, January 31, 2025 <a href='https://english.radio.cz/beavers-build-planned-dams-protected-landscape-area-while-local-offic
Thu, January 30, 2025
Butterflies and bullied protesters
Europe's rarest butterfly lives on the outskirts of a single town in North Macedonia. So why is it possible to find specimens of this incredibly endangered animal for sale online for 30 euros? This week we speak to Kiril Arsovski Przo , one of the scientists behind an investigation into this troubling legal loophole. We're also talking about the farcical election in Belarus and Britain's crackdown on climate protesters. You can watch 'Nature for Sale' here and read more about the investigation here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: 'Earnest Cole: Lost and Found' and 'Murder Mindfully' (Achtsam Morden) . Other resources for this week's episode 'Hope for our rarest UK bat' - Bat Conservation Trust, January 27, 2025 https://www.bats.org.uk/news/2025/01/hope-for-our-rarest-uk-bat Zeno Siemens and Jacco Prantl - 'Learning to listen with Gordon Hempton' https://soundcloud.com/thecorrespondent/zeno-siemens-and-jacco-prantl-learning-to-listen-with-gordon-hempton Invisibilia - 'The Last Sound' https://open.spotify.com/episode/2vPX641oHRo1vetDVl7CeH?si=qu4otcOPTeS4hGyimw5Snw Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 00:23 Cold dips and the future of memory culture 04:27 Good Week: Aleksandr Lukashenko 12:08 Bad Week: Freedom to protest in the UK 32:11 Interview: Kiril Arsovski Przo on the legal loophole threatening Europe's most endangered butterfly 47:31 The Inspiration Station: 'Earnest Cole: Lost and Found' and 'Murder Mindfully' (Achtsam Morden) 50:59 Happy Ending: Company for the world's loneliest bat Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | <a href='mailto:hello@e
Thu, January 23, 2025
The world needs more drag cows
In an otherwise miserable week, this podcast is delighted to bring you a joyful interview with a drag cow. At least, an interview with the person behind the cow: the Swiss artist, performer and animal rights activist Daniel Hellmann. We chat to Daniel about why he decided to channel his campaigning side into something so wonderfully silly. We're also talking about a trigger-happy Croatian politician and Ursula von der Leyen's return from hospital. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . You can follow Soya the Cow here and find out more about Daniel's work here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' The Outrun ', Danish spruce cookbook ' Mad med gran ', and European TikTok. Other resources for this episode 'Što društvo može napraviti da spriječi porast nasilja?' (What can society do to prevent the rise in violence?') - HRT, January 16, 2025 https://vijesti.hrt.hr/hrvatska/otvoreno-659-11963849 'A Brit Explains Wagatha Christie To An American' - Bustle, October 19, 2023 https://www.bustle.com/entertainment/wagatha-christie-explained-by-a-brit-to-an-american Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 00:23 An (attempted) orange-man free zone 03:08 Good Week: Ursula von der Leyen 10:32 Bad Week: Croatia's government 21:40 Interview: Daniel Hellmann (Soya the Cow) on the case for joyful activism 39:05 The Inspiration Station: 'The Outrun', 'Mad men gran', and European TikTok 44:23 Happy Ending: A social network making a good decision, for once?! Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, January 16, 2025
Russia's gas games
There's been a weird loophole in the war in Ukraine up until now. Nearly three years after Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine was still being paid to transport Russian gas for sale to Europe, all while Moscow continued to kill its people. What does the end of this strange deal mean? This week we ring up energy expert Szymon Kardaś to ask how Putin's regime might seek to use the new situation to his advantage, and to what extent Europe has really managed to wean itself off Russian fossil fuels. We're also talking about the new challenge to Serbia's President Aleksandar Vučić, and whether or not it's a good idea to eat your Christmas tree. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . Szymon is a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and an assistant professor at the University of Warsaw . You can read his tweets here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: The European Journalism Centre's Journalism Innovation Podcast and ' Beyond the Wall ' by Katja Hoyer. Other resources for this episode Ghent city hall's guide to reducing post-holiday waste — now with added disclaimer: https://stad.gent/nl/groen-milieu/nieuws-evenementen/na-de-feestdagen-wat-met-de-restjes#je-kerstboom 'Sweden says Christmas tree needles safe to eat — after Belgian warning'. AFP / France 24, January 8, 2025 https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20250108-sweden-says-christmas-tree-needles-safe-to-eat-after-belgian-warning Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 00:22 Polish apple facts, and some amazing news 05:05 Bad Week: Aleksandar Vučić 17:02 Good week: Adventurous chefs 26:44 Interview: Szymon Kardaś on what the Russia-Ukraine gas pipeline shutdown means for Europe 42:31 The Inspiration Station: The European Journalism Centre's Journalism Innovation Podcast, and 'Beyond the Wall' 46:12 Happy Ending: From Thiberville to Thiberville, with love <
Thu, January 09, 2025
Democratic salami and boiling frogs
Between Elon Musk's meddling and Romania's election rollercoaster, the state of Europe's democracies feels a little scary at the start of 2025. This week we talk to Tom Theuns, author of a new book about Europe's failure to stop the slow slide towards autocracy so far and what we can do to fix it. Tom is a senior assistant professor of political theory and European politics at Leiden University. You can find out all about his book, 'Protecting Democracy in Europe', here , and follow him on Bluesky here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' My Favourite Cake ' and ' La Chimera '. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work in 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here . We're also crowdfunding our new series, 'Who Does It Best?', which will delve into the most imaginative policies around Europe. We're 96% of the way there! You can find out all about our plans for the series, and help us start making it, at https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast . Other resources for this episode: Double Dutch on Instagram and TikTok Ada Colau's amazing Instagram post Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 00:23 The headwinds of 2025 02:48 Bad Week: Fireworks 11:50 Good Week: Greenland's pro-independence movement 22:31 Interview: Tom Theuns on protecting Europe's democracies 38:01 The Inspiration Station: 'My Favourite Cake' and 'La Chimera' 43:13 Happy Ending: Ada Colau's amazing Instagram post Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, December 11, 2024
Cold water, warm hearts
As the winter chill sets in, throngs of Europeans are heading each week to the nearest pond, lake or coastline to dunk themselves voluntarily in freezing cold water. Cold swimming has centuries of history on this continent, but why do it? This week we're delving into the science of why it makes us feel good — but also why it helps so many people through difficult times, with the help of Katharina Smets, audio maker and proud member of Antwerp's biggest cold plunge club. We're also talking about the Vatican's Christmas tree drama and a festive inflation-busting policy in Greece. This final episode of the year was recorded live in front of an audience of our supporters. Thank you for listening to The Europeans in 2024! If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work into 2025. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of the show at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), and even gift a donation to a super fan of The Europeans here . We're also crowdfunding our new series, 'Who Does It Best?', which will delve into the most imaginative policies around Europe. We're 80% of the way there! You can find out all about our plans for the series, and help us start making it, at https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast . You can follow Katharina on Instagram here and learn more about the Deurnese IJsberen here . The BBC article Dominic mentioned on the environmental impact of Christmas trees can be found here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'The Bee Sting' by Paul Murray and Jazz Station in Brussels . Listeners' other recommendations: - ' Opinci '. Irina says: 'A wonderful 20-minute animation about the story of a Romanian man who in 1910 attempted to circumnavigate the world on foot. It's beautiful and I think you would really enjoy it.' - Frederik recommends ' Schwarze Früchte ' from Germany's ARD. 'It's about growing up queer and black.' - ' Somebody Somewhere ' - 'Really worth watching,' says Juliette. - Owen recommends his new book of poetry, ' Nature Is Real And So Am I '. 'It’s about my relationship with the four seasons of natural landscape around me on the Isle of Ma
Thu, December 05, 2024
The manosphere, the 'TikTok messiah', and 132 hamsters
We've got a heady mix of Romanian politics, online misogyny and animal-based chaos for you this week. Friend of the show Andrei Popoviciu joins us to explain why his dad and many other voters backed the TikTok-fuelled campaign of far-right Romanian presidential candidate Călin Georgescu. And we ring up three young people from Greece, Ireland and Lithuania to ask: what's it like being part of a generation that's increasingly divided over whether feminism is a good thing? Plus, hamsters. Lots of hamsters. This week's interview with Siloé Musoke, Goda Skiotytė and Chris Ntonis was produced in collaboration with the European Institute for Gender Equality . You can find out all about the Gender Equality Forum 2024, and sign up to attend online, here . You can follow Andrei on Twitter here and Bluesky here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of the show at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available), and even gift a donation to a super fan of The Europeans here ! We're also crowdfunding our new series for 2025, 'Who Does It Best?', which will delve into the most imaginative policies around Europe. We're three-quarters of the way there! You can find out all about our plans for the series, and help us start making it, at https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: ' Nature Manifesto ' by Björk and Aleph; lohikeitto . Other resources for this episode Anna Sale - 'Let's Talk About Hard Things 'Capturados hamsters que pararam avião da TAP' - Correio da Manhã, November 18, 2024 (video at the bottom) Producers: Morgan Childs and Katz Laszlo Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina 00:23 Which country's got quiet, boring politics right now? 02:42 Good Week, Romania, Bad Week, Romania 20:52 Interview: Siloé Musoke, Goda Skiotytė and Chris Ntonis on the rising divide over feminism in young Europeans 46:08 The Inspiration Station: 'Nature Manifesto' by Björk and Aleph at the Centre Pompidou; lohikeitto 50:53 Hap
Thu, November 28, 2024
Has Donald Tusk fixed Poland?
It's been a year since Donald Tusk took power, filling liberals and progressives in Poland with hope as eight years of rightwing populist rule came to an end. But how much has Tusk's coalition really improved things? This week Dominika Lasota of Wschód , an increasingly influential force that has been holding Tusk's government to account, joins us to discuss what still needs to change. We're also talking about Ursula von der Leyen's new squad, and why you might no longer need your passport for trips to Romania or Bulgaria. It's seven years today since we published the first episode of The Europeans! If you'd like to send us a little birthday present, we'd love it if you'd consider funding our work. We're crowdfunding a new mini-series at https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast , and you can also support the weekly running of The Europeans via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/europeanspodcast . Thank you so much to everyone who makes our independent European journalism possible. This week's Inspiration Station offerings: The World In Maps and My Voice, My Choice . Other resources for this episode: David Gilmour - Rattle That Lock (Official Music Video) ' Schengen in Sights, EU and Frontex Overlook Violent Bulgarian Pushbacks ' - Balkan Insight, February 26, 2024 00:22 Dominic's SNCF jingle trauma 04:02 Bad Week: The European left 15:09 Good Week: Romania and Bulgaria's Schengen bid 28:07 Interview: Dominika Lasota on one year of Donald Tusk's government in Poland 49:29 The Inspiration Station: The World In Maps and My Voice, My Choice 53:46 Happy Ending: Dominic's Barcelona metro challenge Producers: Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 21, 2024
The perils of standing up to Iran from Europe
From Turkey to France and the UK, Iranians who've challenged the regime at home have often sought safety in Europe. But how safe are these dissidents, really? This week we speak to Fariba Nawa, host of 'Lethal Dissent', a fascinating new podcast series that investigates Iran's efforts to silence those in exile on European soil and beyond. We're also talking about Denmark's remarkable mass rewilding plan, and Slovakia's nationalist crackdown on the use of Hungarian and other minority languages. You can find 'Lethal Dissent' wherever you're listening to this. It was produced by the team at slow journalism podcast On Spec . We're crowdfunding a new series! You can find out all about it in the special announcement on our feed, as well as on the crowdfunding page itself: https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast . You can also support the weekly running of The Europeans via Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/europeanspodcast . Thank you so much to everyone who makes our independent European journalism possible. This week's Inspiration Station offerings: Bluesky (here's the Sky Follower Bridge ) and 'Metrokosmos' on Arte . 00:23 Hot and fresh in your ear canals 04:52 Good Week: Denmark's huge rewilding plan 11:28 Bad Week: Slovakia's Hungarian minority 24:15 Interview: Fariba Nawa on Iran's hunting of its citizens abroad 40:09 The Inspiration Station: Bluesky and 'Metrokosmos' 45:32 Happy Ending: Granny's revenge on the phone scammers Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Bluesky | Mastodon | Threads | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 14, 2024
A special announcement from The Europeans
Producers Katz and Wojciech join Katy and Dominic for a very special announcement from The Europeans. We’re incredibly excited to make this series for you. Please help us turn it into a reality! Sign up to support this project here: https://4fund.com/z/europeanspodcast Got ideas for places we need to go or people we need to interview for this series? Email us at hello@europeanspodcast.com . Thank you, as always, for listening. Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 07, 2024
Spain's floods, Moldova's election, and what the kids of Europe are watching
The world may be transfixed by the US election results, but this was a huge week for news on this side of the Atlantic too. This week we're trying to make sense of the cataclysmic floods in Spain, and talking about another presidential election with major consequences — the one in Moldova. Plus, a much-needed palate-cleanser: we're delving into a fascinating report into what European children are watching, and what grown-up film producers can do to make better stuff for kids. Anne Schultka is the project manager of KIDS Regio , which campaigns for the children's film industry in Europe. Rikke Flodin is a partner at PUBLIKUM . You can download the report, 'European Children's Film in Focus', here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: ' Kapsalon Romy ' ('Romy’s Salon') and ' Leto kada sam naucila da letim ' ('How I Learned To Fly'). Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Other resources for this episode: 'Valencian president downplayed floods while Spain’s rivers rose' - Politico Europe, November 1, 2024 https://www.politico.eu/article/spain-valencia-floods-death-toll-carlos-mazon/ 'Pumpkin paddling season: Kasterlee's giant pumpkin regatta' - DW News, October 28, 2024 https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2701632486675304 00:22 A non-US election podcast 04:48 Bad Week: Spain's floods 24:39 Good Week: Maia Sandu 37:26 Interview: Anna Schultka and Rikke Flodin on what the kids of Europe are watching 55:00 The Inspiration Station: 'Romy's Salon' and 'How I Learned To Fly' 58:19 Happy Ending: Belgium's pumpkin kayak race Producers: Morgan Childs and Katz Laszlo Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter
Thu, October 31, 2024
Is this the end of Georgia's European dream?
Georgia's pro-Russian ruling party claims to have won last weekend's election — a fraudulent election, according to a mounting pile of evidence. A country that was once on the path to EU membership is now veering much closer to the Kremlin. Is there any hope left? We ring Anna Gvarishvili, Tbilisi-based journalist and head of the Investigative Media Lab , to unpack what just happened and what might happen next. We're also discussing two suitably scary topics in this Halloween episode: France's money problems, and the noxious substances spewing out of your gas cooker. This episode was recorded before Wednesday's devastating floods in Spain. You can donate to the Cruz Roja (Spanish Red Cross) relief efforts here . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). If you're short on cash but still want to support us, it would be amazing if you could leave us five juicy stars, as Dominic put it, on Pocket Casts: https://pocketcasts.com/ratings . This week's Inspiration Station picks: fave dei morti (recipe here ) and the Swiss video game Mundaun . Other resources for this episode Search Engine: 'Why is it so hard to tax billionaires? (Part 1)', October 18, 2024 https://www.searchengine.show/listen/search-engine-1/why-is-it-so-hard-to-tax-billionaires-part-1 'They will protest ketchup': Hugh Vuillier's Europe Letter newsletter, October 3, 2024 https://hughvuillier.substack.com/p/french-budget-not-good Universitat Jaume I's study on the health impact of gas stoves, October 28, 2024 https://repositori.uji.es/items/156fbd65-070d-4ca4-9856-9415513d505f 00:23 It's Halloween, but we won't be talking about He Who Must Not Be Named 02:15 Good Week: French efforts to tax the super-rich 16:42 Bad Week: Gas stove fans 24:55 Please rate us on Pocket Casts! 26:06 Interview: Anna Gvarishvili on Georgia's elections 43:26 The Inspiration Station: Fave dei morti and 'Mundaun' 46:08 Happy Ending (?): Norway's teen social media ban Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram |<a href='https://bsky.ap
Thu, October 24, 2024
Naughty, naughty Switzerland
Wine fraud, migration policy and climate litigation: there's something for everyone this week. Back in April, Switzerland's government lost a groundbreaking European court case and was ordered to rewrite its climate policy. Has it actually done that? No, no it has not. We speak to Geneva-based climate lawyer Seb Duyck about whether Switzerland can be forced to change its tune. We're also talking about offshore migrant detention centres, a full-bodied fraud case and the latest sign that AI is coming for podcasters' jobs. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Seb is a senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law . You can follow him on Twitter here . You can listen to our award-winning 2023 episode about the KlimaSeniorinnen case, 'The Biggest Climate Case That Ever Was', here and find the follow-up interview with Molly Quell here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Swimming in the Dark' by Tomasz Jędrowski, translated by Robert Sudół; 'World Without End' by Christophe Blain and Jean-Marc Jancovici, translated by Edward Gauvin. Other resources for this episode: Ursula von der Leyen's letter to EU leaders on migration, October 14, 2024 https://www.politico.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/15/October-2024-EUCO-Migration-letter.pdf 'What is refugee rentierism? An explainer'. The New Humanitarian, August 14, 2024 https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/2024/08/14/what-refugee-rentierism-explainer 00:22 Katy's parents made a podcast 06:18 Good Week: Pedro Sánchez 19:48 Bad Week: Rich wine-drinkers 29:14 Interview: Seb Duyck on Switzerland's failed response to the KlimaSeniorinnen ruling 46:26 Inspiration Station: 'Swimming In The Dark' and 'World Without End' 51:02 Happy Ending: Luka Modrić, an inspiration for all people in their late thirties Producers: Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram
Thu, October 17, 2024
Russia's mysterious sabotage campaign
Arson, vandalism, attacks on NATO vehicles: around Europe, mysterious acts of sabotage have been multiplying. And there's a pattern: the perpetrators were recruited on Telegram via accounts linked to Russian agencies. This week, we hear from Marta Vunš about how she and other journalists went undercover to figure out how this recruitment actually works. We're also asking whether Germany's nausea-inducing opera deserves its scandalised headlines, and why France has been low-key obsessed with a treasure hunt for the past three decades. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. "‘Make a Molotov Cocktail’: How Europeans Are Recruited Through Telegram to Commit Sabotage, Arson, and Murder". You can read the investigation by Delfi, Der Standard, Paper Trail Media and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project here . This week's Inspiration Station offering, sponsored by the European Cultural Foundation : Liquid Becomings . Other resources for this episode: Trailer: SANCTA | Staatsoper Stuttgart Talk Eastern Europe: Spies, sabotage and Russia-West relations 00:22 The week EU politics got spicy 03:22 Bad Week: Unwell opera-goers 13:54 Good Week: France's mystery treasure-hunt winner 24:38 Interview: Marta Vunš on Russia's shady Telegram recruitment 38:46 The Inspiration Station - The European Cultural Foundation presents: Liquid Becomings 42:45 Happy Ending: Phew! Art saved from the garbage can Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 03, 2024
Using grandma to make people cry about climate change
Why is it so hard to talk about climate change in a way that actually makes us... feel something? This week, our producer Katz Laszlo talks to an Icelandic writer who manages against the odds to do just that: Andri Snær Magnason, author of — among many other things — the hit memoir 'On Time And Water'. We're also talking about the German politician alleged to have hired Belarusian political prisoners, and the extraordinary bounceback of Mediterranean turtles. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can find out more about Andri's work here and watch Emergence Magazine's documentary, 'The Last Ice Age', here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'When I Lived In Modern Times' by Linda Grant and ' Kneecap '. Other resources for this episode 'Finance minister responds to book VAT backlash, cuts the rate on books' - The Slovak Spectator , 26/09/2024 '«Onion is tasty». Political prisoners work on an onion plantation owned by AfD MP Jörg Dornau' - Reform News , 24/09/2024 'Hanna' - The Europeans , 02/06/2022 'Germany’s far right loves one migrant group: Russian Germans' - Politico Europe , 29/09/24 'Cruinniú na nÓg 2024 - The Spark ' - Creative Ireland 'How Germany outfitted half a million balconies with solar panels' - Canary Media , 27/09/2024 00:22 Good job, Slovakia! 02:42 Good Week: Mediterranean turtles 12:38 Bad Week: Jörg Dornau 24:03 Interview: Andri Snær Magnason on how to talk about climate change in a way that makes people Actually Feel Something 44:12 The Inspiration Station: 'When I Lived In Mode
Thu, September 26, 2024
What do the European Union and Barbie have in common?
Are European leaders living in a Barbie-like dreamworld? This week, the idealised fantasy of the EU versus its awkward reality. Far from being a continent of grateful europhiles, a lot of people feel apathetic about the European project at best. Paweł Zerka joins us to discuss why non-white, young and Eastern Europeans feel especially left out of the EU, and what we can do to fix this. We're also joined by Deutsche Welle's Kate Laycock for a special guest edition of Good Week, Bad Week! We discuss how victory was snatched from the AfD in last weekend's state elections in Brandenburg, as well as the backlash against tax hikes on books in both Slovakia and the Netherlands. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can read Paweł's report here . The European Sentiment Compass is a joint initiative of the European Council on Foreign Relations and the European Cultural Foundation . Kate is the presenter of DW's Inside Europe . You'll be able to catch Katy and Dominic on the show next week! Inspiration Station offerings: 'What language does your inner child speak?' - The First 1,000 Days 'How Libraries Thrive' - you can read the whole book online here Other resources for this episode: 'German far-right AfD song calls for deporting millions - DW News 'Elderly Romanian woman used amber nugget worth over $1 million as a doorstop for decades' - El País 00:22 Insure yourselves, people! 04:07 Good Week: Dietmar Woidke (Special edition with Kate Laycock from Deutsche Welle) 12:24 Bad Week: Book-lovers in Slovakia and the Netherlands 22:00 Interview: Paweł Zerka on the Barbie-like European Union 39:13 The Inspiration Station: 'The First 1,000 Days' and 'How Libraries Thrive' 43:45 Happy Ending: The world's fanciest door-stop? Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksi
Thu, September 19, 2024
Mussolini, testicles, and the Schengen zone
Last week we brought you geopolitics, this week we're bringing you testicles. Why has male contraception remained such an underground idea, despite decades of research? We speak to Paul Labourie, one of a growing number of men (in the francophone world at least) who are turning to DIY contraception devices to take on more of the responsibility in their relationships. We're also talking about the crackdown on Germany's borders and a surprise move by Mussolini's granddaughter. Paul is a journalist and photographer based in Brussels. You can find his website here and follow him on Instagram here . You can read Paul's article about heat-based contraception for VICE Belgium here and find out more about Samuel Flambard's workshops here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: ' Another Round ' and 'The Gullspång Miracle' (available here via the BBC and here via DR ). Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:23 Not sponsored by any kind of nasal irrigation device 03:02 Good Week: Standing up to the far-right in Italy 09:50 Bad Week: The Schengen Zone 21:19 Interview: Paul Labourie's primer on thermal contraception 35:19 The Inspiration Station: 'Another Round' and 'The Gullspång Miracle' 38:38 Happy ending: Fewer screens, more desserts Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 12, 2024
Swedish authorities say it's fine if you listen to this podcast
We're back from our summer break! Rym Momtaz, the new editor-in-chief of the Strategic Europe blog, is here to catch us up on the main political developments we missed over the summer, from Ukraine to France. We're also talking about Sweden's suggestions for cutting kids' screen time, and a possible crackdown on outrageous concert ticket prices. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Strategic Europe is a blog from the Carnegie Europe think-tank. You can find it here , and follow Rym on Twitter here . This week's Inspiration Station picks: 'Evenings and Weekends' by Oisín McKenna and 'Berlin' by Andris Kuprišs, translated by Ian Gwin. Other resources for this episode: 'A Different Way to Look at Screen Time' - ParentData, April 2024 If you're feeling brave, you can download Mario Draghi's competitiveness report here . If you're short on time because you're contributing to European productivity, you can read his summary here . Waldrapteam, the conservationists working with the northern bald ibis, can be found on Instagram here . You can follow their progress here . 03:10 Bad Week: Ticketmaster 14:23 Good Week: Swedish kids 26:40 Interview: Rym Momtaz catches us up on the main European political developments of the summer 47:44 The Inspiration Station: 'Evenings and Weekends' by Oisín McKenna; 'Berlin' by Andris Kuprišs 50:24 Happy Ending: The return of the northern bald ibis Producers: Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | <a href='https://www.threads.net/@europea
Thu, August 15, 2024
This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: Kinga
This week, we're re-releasing another of our all-time favourite episodes to entertain your ears during our summer break. First aired in 2022, it's a story from our long-running series, 'This Is What A Generation Sounds Like', and it takes us to Georgia. Thanks for listening! We'll be back in September. If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Kinga Goc Mixing, mastering and sound design: Wojciech Oleksiak Editorial support: Katz Laszlo, Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer Music by Casletila. Theme music by Jim Barne You can find a beautiful visual version of this podcast, produced by our friends at Are We Europe, here . This series was co-produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation . Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, August 08, 2024
This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: Sara
We're away on our summer break until September, but this week and next week we're re-releasing two of our favourite episodes from The Europeans' award-winning series, 'This Is What A Generation Sounds Like. This week, a story that spans three generations of women: Sara, her mother, and her grandmother. In their collective lifetimes, Albania entered a communist dictatorship; the regime fell; and then there was a transition. And through it all, there was a dish: trahana. This episode first aired in 2021. You can find a beautiful visual version of this podcast, produced by our friends at Are We Europe, here . This series was co-produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation . Producers: Katz Laszlo and Sara Assistant producer: Priyanka Shankar Editor: Katy Lee Sound design: Katz Laszlo Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer, Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Era e Feminise, by Elina Duni; Song of Emigration, by Women’s Choir from Permet; Tana, by Saziso; Ka Nje mot e gjysem viti, by Elina Duni Quartet; Jonuzi Me Shoket by Vaome Kaba; Ballerina by Yehezkel Raz; Mëmëdheu by the Peter Pan Quartet; Jim Barne. SFX from Freesound.org. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, August 01, 2024
A Q&A with The Europeans
It’s our first ever Q&A episode! Katy, Dominic, Katz and Wojciech answer listeners’ questions – from how we make the show, to the episodes we’d make if we were gazillionaires. We’ve saved a couple of our answers for supporters of the podcast. If you’d like to hear them, we’d love it if you could send a few bucks our way at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). Thanks so much to everyone who makes our show possible by helping us cover our production costs! You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producer: Katz Laszlo Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 18, 2024
'Luca'
One Hungarian family. One piece of land. Two very different visions. This is the final episode in our long-running series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation . You can find the other episodes in the series here . Thanks, as ever, to the listeners who support this podcast so that we can keep making it. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producers: Katz Laszlo and Luca Borsos Sound design: Katz Laszlo Editors: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Odú , 777, Fa Lenni and O , by Deva ; Palinka , by Mónika Lakatos and Hangok Cigány ; Zenebuddhizmus by Akkezdat Phiai ; Marsh Warbler by Cosmo Sheldrake ; Arcade Ride by Vens Adams ; BlueDot Sessions and of course our theme music by Jim Barne . SFX from Freesound.org Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | Bluesky hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 11, 2024
What happens after France's surprise swing to the left?
A surprise left-wing election win? In Europe? In 2024? This week, we turn to our resident Parisian journalist to try to get our heads around what just happened in France, as well as what might happen next. We’re also looking at the other big left-wing winners of the week: the UK Labour Party. What might their new government mean for Britain’s relationship with Europe? Plus, Barcelona’s anti-tourist revolt and what may be the world’s toughest crackdown on Airbnb. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Inspiration Station picks: BBC Assignment: 'Germany's AI detectives' and The Europeans on YouTube . Other resources: 'El malestar por el turismo masivo se traslada a las calles de Barcelona' - La Vanguardia , July 6, 2024 'Quelle coalition ? Composez votre majorité absolue avec notre simulateur de coalitions exclusif' - Le Grand Continent , July 7, 2024 00:22 The return of human co-host Dominic Kraemer 03:51 Good Week: Britain's relationship with the EU 15:02 Bad Week: Tourists in Barcelona 28:16 Interview: Katy on France's surprise election results and what might happen next 48:33 Isolation Inspiration: 'Germany's AI detectives' and The Europeans on YouTube 51:24 Happy Ending: Climate-resilient cacao Producers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | Bluesky hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 04, 2024
Why is European cinema so different from Hollywood?
Fewer expensive car chases, more moody shots and ambiguous endings: movies made in Europe are often very different from those made in the US. But Europe's more arty film output isn't just a product of our culture — it has a lot to do with how the industry is financed. This week, we're asking: why is European cinema the way it is, and should we be trying to change it? Plus, producer Wojciech Oleksiak joins Katy to discuss Europe's latest far-right alliance and why Kaja Kallas may be glad to be stepping down as Estonia's prime minister. This episode was supported by KIDS Regio . Thanks so much to project manager Anne Schultka for joining us, along with Tamara Kolarić , assistant professor in social sciences at SALIS, Dublin City University. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Inspiration Station picks: Euro 2024 and Search Engine: 'Why didn't Chris and Dan get into Berghain?' Parts 1 and 2 Other resources: 'The Hungarian presidency: Let the games begin' - Politico Europe , June 25, 2024 00:22 Hot in Warsaw, even hotter in Paris 02:45 Good Week: Kaja Kallas (and her replacement) 12:40 Bad Week: The Mainstream 26:05 Interview: Anne Schultka and Tamara Kolarić on how money shapes Europe's film industry 43:56 The Inspiration Station: Something called 'football', and Search Engine: 'Why didn't Chris and Dan get into Berghain?' Parts 1 and 2 48:58 Happy Ending: Dominic's holiday voice note Producers: Morgan Childs and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
Thu, June 27, 2024
Pigeon murders, the nature restoration law, and Scandinavian family therapy
Enough politics: we’ve got a nature-themed episode for you this week. Producer Katz Laszlo joins Katy to explain how Austria’s environment minister went rogue to save the EU’s hugely important nature restoration law; we’re also talking about the German town that just voted to kill all its pigeons. And in the human world: the podcast that brings Scandinavians together in their own languages. Hilde Sandvik takes us behind the scenes of ‘Norsken, svensken og dansken’, a show described as family therapy for neighbouring nations. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Hilde is one of the board members of NORD 55 , an initiative seeking to build public debate in the Nordic region. You can listen to ‘Norsken, svensken og dansken’ here via NRK. This week’s Inspiration Station picks: Garden to Grill and ‘ Midsummer Night ’. Other resources: ‘Pigeon problems: German town votes to have birds killed, outraging animal rights’ activists’ - Euronews , July 12, 2024 ‘How do we survive the media apocalypse?’ - Search Engine , March 15, 2024 00:22 Summer plunges and untranslatable words 04:19 Good Week: Europe's plants and animals 16:17 Bad Week: The pigeons of Limburg 28:43 Interview: Hilde Sandvik on creating Scandinavia's cross-border, multilingual podcast 41:03 The Inspiration Station: 'Garden to Grill' and 'Midsummer Night' 44:52 Happy Ending: Wild times for Windy Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | <a href='https://mastodon.social/@europe
Thu, June 20, 2024
The most confusing elections of all time?
The far-right surged but the centre held; somehow the two are true at once. Nearly 100 members of the new European Parliament have yet to tell us which political family they’ll be joining. And as for who’s actually going to be running the EU’s institutions for the next five years – right now, it’s anyone’s guess. How can we make sense of these European elections? Alberto Alemmano joins us to help decipher a momentous, and very confusing, moment in Europe’s democracy. Alberto is a professor of EU law at HEC in Paris and the College of Europe. You can follow him on Twitter here . We’ve got a new look! Check out our beautiful new website, designed by the wonderful RTiiiKA , at europeanspodcast.com . This week’s Inspiration Station offerings: ‘ Untold: Power for Sale ’ and ‘ Under Paris ’. You can check out ‘Mixed Signals’, the new podcast from Semafor, here . This special episode was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Culture of Solidarity Fund , powered by the European Cultural Foundation in collaboration with Allianz Foundation and the Evens Foundation . You can check out the #CulturalDealEU campaign here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee Producer: Katy Lee Sound design, mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Editorial support: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Blue Dot Sessions Sound effects: Freesound.org Artwork: RTiiiKA Instagram | Threads | Twitter
Thu, June 06, 2024
Why give a damn about the European elections?
They’re the second biggest elections on Earth. For the next four days, 373 million people are eligible to take part in the vote for the European Parliament. And yet in most EU countries, the prevailing mood is… ‘meh’. This week, we take on the challenge of convincing you that these elections are anything but meh, with the help of one of our favourite explainers of all things EU, Beatriz Ríos. You can follow Beatriz on Twitter here and find Politico Europe’s guide on how to vote here . This special episode was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Culture of Solidarity Fund , powered by the European Cultural Foundation in collaboration with Allianz Foundation and the Evens Foundation . You can check out the #CulturalDealEU campaign here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee Producer: Katy Lee Sound design, mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Editorial support: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Blue Dot Sessions Sound effects: Freesound.org ( JoeDeshon ) Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | Bluesky | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Fri, May 31, 2024
The Big-Agri Bully Boys
Protests by angry farmers have swept across Europe this year. But from country to country, powerful groups have taken these protests over and changed their agenda. Who are these people, and what are they up to? This is a special episode produced in collaboration with investigative journalists from Lighthouse Reports and media partners across Europe. This podcast was made possible by our generous Patreon supporters. If you enjoy our work, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Read the articles published as part of this investigation: ‘Farmers protest, who gains?’ - Lighthouse Reports https://www.lighthousereports.com/investigation/farmers-protest-who-gains/ ‘Bauernschlaue Lobbyisten’ - Taz https://taz.de/Doppeltes-Spiel-des-Agrarverbandes/!6009938/ ‘Le lobbying agricole de la FNSEA à la loupe’ - Splann! https://splann.org/lobby-agricole-fnsea/ Reporters: Wojciech Oleksiak, Thin Lei Win, Marianne Kerfriden, Silvia Lazzaris, Elena DeBre and Emmanuel Freudenthal Producer: Wojciech Oleksiak Editor: Katz Laszlo Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee Sound design, scoring, mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne, BlueDot Sessions Sound effects: Freesound.org ( miastodzwiekow , Cosmopolight , Quistard ) Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | Bluesky | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 16, 2024
What's more endangered: wolves or Eurovision?
This week, the high drama of both European wolf policy and the Eurovision Song Contest. Wolves have made a huge comeback in Europe in recent years. How can we coexist peacefully with these hungry carnivores? We speak to the social scientist Hanna Pettersson about how humans are living alongside predators in Spain and Sweden. Plus, all the controversy from the most chaotic Eurovision in history, and why Catalans just voted to boot out their separatist government after a decade in power. Hanna is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of York . You can listen to her interview with The Conversation here . This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: ' The Regime ' and this accompanying episode of 'Cautionary Tales'; ' There's Still Tomorrow '. 'Lost On Me' was translated into English by Leah Janeczko . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Other resources for this episode: 'Why did Ireland give Israel 10 points at the Eurovision?' - RTE Aitor Hernández-Morales on the Catalan elections 00:22 Europe needs a new continent-wide public holiday 02:38 Bad Week: The European Broadcasting Union 20:35 Good Week: Catalonia's Socialists 30:03 Interview: Hanna Pettersson on living with Europe's wolves 44:45 The Inspiration Station: The Regime and There's Still Tomorrow 49:28 Happy Ending: A pioneering law in Belgium Producers: Morgan Childs and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | <a
S1 Enull · Thu, May 09, 2024
Can food labels make us healthier?
Across a fair chunk of Europe, we've grown used to seeing little traffic light symbols on our food packets that supposedly rate the healthiness of our food. But why might Dominic's chamomile tea get a Nutri-Score rating of C, when a diet cola gets an A? And does Giorgia Meloni have a point in claiming that the ratings are biased against Italians? This week we ring up Alie de Boer, an expert on all things food labelling, to demystify the Nutri-Score system once and for all. We're also talking about why Georgia's at a crossroads between Russia and the EU, and why it's such a scary moment in German politics. Alie is an assistant professor of nutrition and food law at Maastricht University's Venlo campus. You can watch her excellent video about Nutri-Score here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: Marina Abramović's new exhibition and Desert Island Discs interview ; Gugelhupf . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Other resources for this episode: 'Is Georgian Dream Digging Its Own Grave?' - Transitions, May 2024 https://tol.org/client/article/is-georgian-dream-digging-its-own-grave.html 'Are right-wing populists more likely to justify political violence?' - European Consortium for Political Research, March 2024 https://ejpr.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1475-6765.12668?af=R 'How Italian "food nationalism" has blocked Nutri-Score nutrition labelling system in Europe' - Mediapart, January 2024 https://www.mediapart.fr/en/journal/international/060124/how-italian-food-nationalism-has-blocked-nutri-score-nutrition-labelling-system-europe 00:23 A delicious, digestible bowl of European news 02:52 Good week: Georgia's brave protesters 09:43 Bad week: German democracy 21:10 Interview: Alie de Boer on how those Nutri-Score labels on your food actually work 37:51 The Inspiration Station: Marina A
S1 E1 · Thu, April 25, 2024
The regime that ended with a song
It’s the only revolution in world history (that we know of) that began with a Eurovision song. This week, Portugal marks 50 years since the Carnation Revolution ended decades of dictatorship. We speak to Alex Fernandes, author of a new accessible history of the revolution, about the day that changed everything. We’re also talking about the UK’s missed opportunity to give an entire generation fun memories (and skills, but mostly fun memories) and Milan's ice cream uproar. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/the-regime-that-ended-with-a-song Alex’s book, ‘The Carnation Revolution: The Day Portugal’s Dictatorship Fell’ is out now. You can find him on Twitter here and read his article on the music of the revolution here . Inspiration Station offerings: ‘E Depois Do Adeus’ by Paulo de Carvalho ; Grândola, Vila Morena by José Afonso and MARO on tour . Bonus entry: the ‘Feat. NATURE’ playlist . Other resources for this episode: ‘What is behind the UK’s labour shortage?’ - UK in a Changing Europe, February 2024 ‘Percentage of businesses experiencing a shortage of workers in the United Kingdom in 2023, by industry sector’ - Statista, November 2023 ‘Nature is an artist! Inside AKQA’s design for mammoth Spotify and UN project, Sounds Right’ - It’s Nice That, April 2024 Instagram | <a href='https://www.threads.net/@europeanspod
S1 E1 · Thu, April 18, 2024
Why the Swiss women’s climate victory is such a big deal
A group of Swiss women, all aged 64 and over, made history last week by winning the first ever climate case heard by the European Court of Human Rights. But what does their victory mean for climate policy across Europe? We ring up international courts reporter Molly Quell to find out. We're also talking about an artistic sense-of-humour failure, a Swedish app controversy, and why Polish kids are particularly big fans of the new government. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/why-the-swiss-womens-climate-victory-is-such-a-big-deal You can find Molly on Twitter here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York)' - tickets for London's Criterion Theatre ; 'Two Strangers' cast recording ; the 'Goulash' newsletter . Producer: Katz Laszlo Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
S1 E1 · Sun, April 14, 2024
The biggest climate case that ever was
We are re-airing one of our all time favourite episodes following this week's landmark verdict on the biggest climate case that ever was: KlimaSeniorinnen vs. Switzerland. We reported on the case in depth last year, shortly after the hearing. And now, the court rules: KlimaSeniorinnen win! We usually see young people as the face of climate activism. In this episode, we find out how 2,000 Swiss women, all over the age of 65, took their government to court in a case that could change climate laws across Europe. And along the way, we figure out once and for all how the European Court of Human Rights actually works. This is a special episode made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation, one of several podcasts we're making about sustainability with their support. Stay tuned to hear more. You can find out more about the KlimaSeniorinnen here. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/the-biggest-climate-case-that-ever-was Reporter and producer: Katz Laszlo Editor: Katy Lee Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak Sound design, mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music by Jim Barne, Epidemic Sound and Blue Dot Sessions Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
S1 E1 · Thu, April 11, 2024
Nepo great-great-great-grand-babies
We all know this continent has major issues with social mobility. But having a rich ancestor from *six centuries ago* shouldn't make it more likely that you're rich today... should it? This week we speak to Guglielmo Barone, one of the economists behind some fascinating research into this question in Florence. We're also talking about Ursula von der Leyen's 'jobs for the boys' scandal and the road to a shared European cycling policy. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/nepo-great-great-great-grand-babies Guglielmo is a professor of economics at the University of Bologna . You can find his study on intergenerational mobility in Florence here , and an article he co-wrote about the research here . This week's recommendations: 'Today in Focus - Should the UK stop arming Israel?' and 'Have You Heard George's Podcast - Francophone Pt. 1' . Other resources for this episode: Social mobility in Europe across generations - EU Science Hub Intergenerational mobility in the UK - Institute for Fiscal Studies ' What is the point of inheritance tax?' - The New Statesman ' <a href='https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/von-der-leyen-accused-of-playing-favourite-over-eu-smes-en
S1 E1 · Thu, April 04, 2024
Less Beyoncé, more bouzouki
This week, music and politics collide. We're talking about Greece's plan to enforce quotas for Greek-language lyrics on the radio, and the racist backlash against Aya Nakamura's rumoured booking for the Paris Olympics. Plus, a great interview with Politico's senior climate reporter Zia Weise about the EU's once-trumpeted nature restoration law. Can the EU still claim to be a world leader when it comes to going green? FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/less-beyonce-more-bouzouki You can find Zia on Twitter here and read her reporting here . The soundtrack to this week's episode: ' Doggy ' by Aya Nakamura; ' Zari ' by Marina Satti; ' White Foxes ' by Susanne Sundfør. Also recommended this week: ' Smoke Sauna Sisterhood ' and Utrecht's fish doorbell . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Velkommen til The Europeans podcast! 02:23 Good Week: Aya Nakamura 10:35 Bad Week: The plan for Greek-language radio quotas 22:38 Interview: Zia Weise on the EU's nature restoration law 35:15 The Inspiration Station: Susanne Sundfør and 'Smoke Sauna Sisterhood' 38:43 Happy Ending: Utrecht's fish doorbell Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
S1 E1 · Thu, March 28, 2024
Small Ex-Soviet Satellite State My Ass
This week, we're heading to a small country with a big bold foreign policy. Czechia, aka the Czech Republic, has won international praise by negotiating a desperately-needed ammunition deal for Ukraine. Why did it succeed where others have failed? And why is its government so much less scared of China than most others in Europe? We ring up Jakub Janda, Czech security expert and author of a certain viral tweet, to find out. We're also talking about a glimmer of hope for some of Italy's rainbow families, and the scandal rocking Finnish journalism. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Jakub is the director of the European Values Center for Security Policy . You can find him on Twitter here . Resources for this episode: European Tree of the Year https://www.treeoftheyear.org/ Aamulehti's apology for Matti Kuusela's dabblings in fiction https://www.aamulehti.fi/uutiset/art-2000010312503.html Jakub's viral tweet https://twitter.com/_jakubjanda/status/1769350483695522197?s=46&t=yPKV1bu1u0kKSIiRrTkIXg 00:22 Once more with feeling 03:19 Good Week: Padua's rainbow families 09:35 Bad Week: When fact meets fiction in Finland 19:52 Interview: Jakub Janda on 'small ex-Soviet satellite states' and Czechia's bold foreign policy 36:51 Inspiration Station: A tree scandal special edition 41:14 Happy Ending: Germany's extra-relaxed Easter Monday Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
S1 E1 · Thu, March 14, 2024
The Portuguese Constitution Is Delicious
Scandal-hit Socialists, a surging far-right, and winners that no one can get excited about — Portugal has just delivered some of this year's trickiest European election results. This week, we ring Politico reporter Aitor Hernández-Morales to untangle the situation. We're also talking about how ChatGPT could speed up Albania's EU membership bid, and Denmark's attempt to fix its horrible gender inequality (when it comes to statues at least). FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/the-portuguese-constitution-is-delicious Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can follow Aitor on Twitter here . This week's Inspiration Station picks: 'Europapa' by Joost Klein ; 'Don't Drink the Milk' Other resources for this episode: 'People in Albania are tired of Brussels' lip service' https://respublica.edu.mk/blog-en/politics/people-in-albania-are-tired-of-brussels-lip-service/?lang=en 'Albania to speed up EU accession using ChatGPT' https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/albania-to-speed-up-eu-accession-using-chatgpt/ 'Irish voters reject bid to rewrite constitution’s view of women and family' https://www.politico.eu/article/irish-voters-reject-bid-to-rewrite-constitutions-view-women-family/ 'Five reasons why the Yes side failed and the No campaign won the day' https://www.irishtimes.com/politics/2024/03/09/how-the-government-lost-and-the-no-side-won-the-care-and-family-referendums/ 00:22 Fresh and fruity 01:56 Bad Week: Human translators 11:00 Good Week: Denmark steps up on statues 35:28 The Inspiration Station: 'Europapa' and 'Don't Drink The Milk' 4
S1 E1 · Thu, March 07, 2024
YOLO, Swiss pensioners
This week: two referendums and some dodgy criminal reforms. We're talking about Swiss voters' decision to treat themselves to bigger pensions, and Slovakia's battle to stop cronyism under populist prime minister Robert Fico. And ahead of Ireland's vote on International Women's Day, the historian Caitríona Beaumont joins us to ask: why, according to the Irish constitution, is a woman's place still in the home? You can follow Cait on Twitter here and read her article for The Conversation about the 'woman in the home' clause here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: this Swiss study on the power of live music ; Dominic on tour , and the studio cast recording of 'Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York)' . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Other resources for this episode: Cultural Deal for Europe: An Open Letter Ahead of the EP Elections https://culturalfoundation.eu/stories/cultural-deal-for-europe-open-letter-ep-elections/ 'Nederland Europees kampioen zitten': TNO https://www.tno.nl/nl/newsroom/2024/02/nederland-europees-kampioen-zitten/ Eurobarometer's 2022 report on physical activity across Europe: https://europa.eu/eurobarometer/surveys/detail/2668 IMPACT newsletter https://lesglorieuses.fr/les-newsletters/impact-eng/ Abortion in Europe - Deutsche Welle documentary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSB6oCza2k8 00:22 Are you sitting comfortably? 03:33 Bad Week: Robert Fico 12:38 Good Week: Swiss pensioners 21:40 Interview: Caitríona Beaumont on Ireland's sexist constitution 38:35 The I
S1 E1 · Thu, February 29, 2024
Army Boots
In February 2022, as Russian tanks rolled across the border, the writer and historian Olesya Khromeychuk told us the story of the boots she had bought for her brother, serving at the front in eastern Ukraine. This week, we're sharing her story again. Olesya's book, ' The Death of a Soldier Told by His Sister ', is available in print and as an audiobook. You can find her on Twitter here . Sound design, mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/army-boots-feb-2024 Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 22, 2024
Orbán’s biggest crisis?
Hungary has seen its biggest anti-government protests in years over the past couple of weeks. But just how dangerous is this moment for Viktor Orbán? This week our favourite Hungarysplainer Viktória Serdült joins us to decipher the scandal that has shaken his government. We're also talking about the legalisation of gay marriage in Greece (finally!) and a Dutch court case that could have far-reaching consequences for the war in Gaza. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/orbans-biggest-crisis Viktória is a journalist at hvg.hu . You can find her on Twitter here and her article about Hungary's EU elections can be found here in EUObserver . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Navalny' and 'Lost on Me' (Niente di vero) by Veronica Raimo. The Dutch court ruling can be found here and Euronews' piece on European military supplies to Israel can be found here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Spending *most* of the week reading about Europe 02:29 Good Week: Gay marriage is now legal in Greece 07:47 Bad Week: European defence companies? 17:01 Interview: Viktória Serdült on Hungary's pardoning scandal 32:33 The Inspiration Station: 'Lost on Me' by Veronica Raimo and 'Navalny' 36:33 Happy Ending: Why kids monkey around Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | hello@
Thu, February 15, 2024
Two Parallel Polands
Poland's rightwing populists are finally out of power. But what happens now? This week, our producer Wojciech Oleksiak and Warsaw-based journalist Claudia Ciobanu join us to explain why restoring Polish democracy is easier said than done. We're also talking about Finland's elections and the EU's much-criticised migration plan. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/two-parallel-polands Claudia is the Poland correspondent for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. You can find her reporting here and she's on Twitter here . Investigate Europe's reporting on how France and the Netherlands lobbied for child border detentions can be found here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: ' Bitch ' by Lucy Cooke and Sanremo 2024 . Bonus entry for Amsterdammers, via Producer Katz: Felipe Romero Beltrán's photography exhibition 'Dialect' at Foam, documenting the experiences of young Moroccan migrants in Spain. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 08, 2024
Toxic air and toxic politicians
Last weekend, Parisians voted to triple parking fees for SUVs in a bid to remove some of the city's more polluting vehicles. It's just one of many policy ideas that are being tested out in European cities to clean up the air we breathe — but how bad is the problem really, and can we really fix it? This week we ring up Oliver Lord from the Clean Cities Campaign to find out. We're also talking about the exhausting antics of Viktor Orbán and some juicy Italian art theft allegations. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/toxic-air-and-toxic-politicians This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Mrs Mohr Goes Missing' by Maryla Szymiczkowa, and The European Tree of the Year 2024 . You can find a video of Vittorio Sgarbi's eyebrow-raising interview on the best account on Twitter, Crazy Ass Moments in Italian Politics . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Many thanks to our friends at Outside/In for featuring our Oatly mini-series recently. You can find their show here . 00:22 Coming soon, a podcast entirely about disturbing European children's songs 03:32 Good Week: Ukraine's €50 billion aid deal 12:01 Bad Week: From culture minister to art thief? 37:44 The Inspiration Station: Mrs Mohr Goes Missing and The European Tree of The Year 2024 40:49 Happy Ending: Hooray for the HPV vaccine Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 01, 2024
Why are Europe’s farmers so angry?
From France to Romania, Germany to Bulgaria, angry farmers have been blocking the roads. What's behind this wave of agricultural protests across the continent? This week we're getting to grips with the policies behind the food on Europe's plates with agriculture correspondent Sofía Sánchez Manzanaro. We're also dishing up some Polish recommendations and a slice of good climate news. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/why-are-europes-farmers-so-angry Sofía writes about food, agriculture and sustainability for S&P Global and is about to start a new role at Euractiv. You can find her on Twitter here . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: Chopin's Nocturnes. played by Idil Beret , and Olga Tokarczuk's interview on the Paris Review podcast . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Many thanks to our friends at Outside/In for featuring our Oatly mini-series recently. You can find their show here . Producers: Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Threads | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Fri, January 26, 2024
What actually happens to Europe’s recycling?
A lot of us are pretty diligent when it comes to throwing our plastic into the dedicated bin. But how much of that stuff actually gets recycled? This week we're digging into the truth behind Europe's trash with Nico Schmidt, reporter for Investigate Europe. We're also talking about Germany's massive anti-AfD protests, and Saudi sell-out Rafael Nadal. EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/what-actually-happens-to-europes-recycling Resources for this episode: 'Secret plan against Germany' - Correctiv ‘Everyone, together, against fascism’: protests sweep Germany after exposé of AfD party’s deportation ‘masterplan’ - The Guardian Wasteland - Europe's plastic disaster - Investigate Europe ‘Queen of trash’ and employees arrested over Sweden’s ‘largest environmental crime’ - The Guardian On the French border, drowning in a sea of trash - Politico Hitster 'Black Butterflies' by Priscilla Morris Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Many thanks to our friends at Outside/In for featuring our Oatly mini-series recently. You can find their show here . 00:22 The Europeans: coming to you soon in 200 languages? 02:35 Good Week: Standing up against the German far-right 14:35 Bad Week: Saudi sellout Rafael Nadal 38:58 The Inspiration Station: Hitster and Black Butterflies 41:50 Happy Ending: A 3,000-year-old map of the stars? Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram |<
Thu, January 18, 2024
Influencer fraud, liveable cities and the Israel taboo
We’re kicking off the new year with a heady mix of urban policy, cake-based scandal and political controversy. Find out which European city ranks as the most ‘liveable’ in Good Week, and dive into the fraud case embroiling Italian mega-influencer Chiara Ferragni in Bad Week. And in this week’s interview, hear from historian Quinn Slobodian about the parallel he sees between the current discourse around Israel-Palestine in Germany, and events 50 years ago. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/influencer-fraud-liveable-cities-and-the-israel-taboo Quinn is Professor of History at Boston University. You can follow him on Twitter here and read his New Statesman article, ‘Germany’s new years of lead’, here . Resources for this episode: Report on the quality of life in European cities, 2023 ‘How to define genocide’: an interview with historian Omer Bartov in The New Yorker German police statistics on politically-motivated crimes ‘Oral’ by Björk and Rosalía Continental Riffs The Guardian: ‘New “riskier” wave of British musicals to challenge West End’s established order’ Tickets for Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York) Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Happy 2024, listeners! 02:57 Good Week: Europe's most liveable city? 08:17 Bad Week: Italian mega-influencer Chiara Ferragni 20:49 Interview: Quinn Slobodian on Germany's history of 'militant democr
Sun, December 24, 2023
’Twas Christmas Eve In Dublin
In the winter of 2020, deep into the misery of the global pandemic, Richy Craven lit up the internet with a tale about working at Christmas in a fancy department store in Dublin. His story went viral and we loved it so much that we asked our friend, the writer and podcaster Darach Ó Séaghdha , to read it for us. Producer Katz Laszlo added some audio magic, and a classic episode of The Europeans was born. As a little early Christmas present, here it is again. A very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from The Europeans! If you enjoyed this story, please consider donating to Barnados . Music by Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin and Ultan O'Brien , as well as Lena Orsa and Timbre on Freesound . Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 14, 2023
The Christmas Book Flood
In Iceland, the night of December 24 is traditionally spent curled up with a book. Why? Because you're very likely to have been gifted one, given the huge array of literary offerings that get published in Iceland in the run-up for Christmas. In this festive last episode of the year, we're speaking to the writer Hildur Knútsdóttir about the Christmas Book Flood and why Iceland is such a nation of bookworms. We're also talking about Christmas tree diplomacy, a new twist on an old tradition, and an Italian tyre-slashing mystery. You can find Hildur here on Instagram and here on Twitter . You can find details of her new book, 'The Night Guest', here on her website . This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Small Things Like These' by Claire Keegan, 'My Father's House' by Joseph O'Connor, and 'La Ride' by Simon Boileau and Florent Pierre. Hildur's recommendations are 'Shadows of the Short Days' and 'The Shadows of a Midnight Sun' by Alexander Dan Vilhjálmsson. Thanks so much to everyone who's supported us this year. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it in 2024, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Mon, December 11, 2023
An Autocrat’s Guide to Destroying Local Media, Part 2
In Part 1, you learned how illiberal regimes have used the political tools at their disposal – and their rich friends – to turn the media outlets of democratic European countries into propaganda machines. In Part 2 we’re exploring the legal tools needed to complete the job and talking to local journalists who found themselves on the receiving end of these takeovers. Finally, we’re asking: how can you stop a wannabe autocrat doing this in *your* country? This series was funded by Journalism Fund Europe , the Allianz Foundation , and supporters of The Europeans. Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Credits Reporters: Viktória Serdült, Dimitar Ganev and Wojciech Oleksiak Writers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Dimitar Ganev Production, scoring, sound design and mixing: Wojciech Oleksiak Editors: Adam Zulawski and Katy Lee Editorial support: Katz Laszlo and Dominic Kraemer Director of recording sessions: Dominic Kraemer Artwork: RTiiiKA Thanks for talking to us: Vesislava Antonova, Ervin Gűth, Antal Józing, Zuzanna Nowicka, Venelina Popova, Anna Wójcik, Spas Spassov, Marek Twaróg, Ágnes Urbán, and Cezary Węgliński. Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 07, 2023
An Autocrat’s Guide to Destroying Local Media, Part 1
It’s a playbook that’s been used by illiberal governments across Central and Eastern Europe: muzzling the media until it resembles little more than propaganda. But how exactly does one go about dismantling the free press, in a democratic country within the European Union? In Part 1 of this two-part special, Viktória Serdült, Dimitar Ganev and our producer Wojciech Oleksiak ask: how the hell did we get here? And how did the local press become such a powerful political weapon? This series was funded by Journalism Fund Europe , the Allianz Foundation , and supporters of The Europeans. Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Credits Reporters: Viktória Serdült, Dimitar Ganev and Wojciech Oleksiak Writers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Dimitar Ganev Production, scoring, sound design and mixing: Wojciech Oleksiak Editors: Adam Zulawski and Katy Lee Editorial support: Katz Laszlo and Dominic Kraemer Director of recording sessions: Dominic Kraemer Artwork: RTiiiKA Thanks for talking to us: Vesislava Antonova, Ervin Gűth, Antal Józing, Zuzanna Nowicka, Venelina Popova, Anna Wójcik, Spas Spassov, Marek Twaróg, Ágnes Urbán, and Cezary Węgliński. Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 30, 2023
The Dutch Turn Right, Spain Stays Left
In Spain, an unlikely left-leaning coalition has managed to block the right from taking power; in the Netherlands, the far-right has come out on top. This week we’re talking about two very different political situations with the help of Politico reporter Aitor Hernández-Morales and producer Katz Laszlo in Amsterdam. You can follow Aitor on Twitter here and read his reporting here . Our episode about life as an undocumented person in the Netherlands, ‘Mohamed’, is here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Inspiration Station offerings: ‘Anatomy of a Fall’, ‘ Ordinary People’ , and ‘Treasure Islands’ by Nicholas Shaxson. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 16, 2023
This Ukrainian Will Not Compete For Your Attention
Ukraine has seen an exodus of foreign journalists in the wake of the terrible conflict in the Middle East. But coverage of the war on this continent remains more crucial than ever. This week we talk to the writer Sasha Dovzhyk about what is happening in Ukraine right now, as well as Ukrainians' complicated feelings around the struggle for international attention. We're also talking about the corruption scandal rocking Portugal's government, and Greta Thunberg's fraught appearance at Amsterdam's huge climate protest. Sasha is the editor of the London Ukrainian Review . You can read her piece in the New York Times here and subscribe to her newsletter, Ukrainian Killjoy Dispatch, here . The NRC piece on the climate movement's soul-searching over Palestine can be found here (in Dutch). And Aitor Hernández Morales’ excellent tweeting on the dramatic events in Portuguese politics can be found here . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Inspiration Station offerings: The Deepest Breath' on Netflix and the Spotify playlist of 'Le Guess Who?' festival in Utrecht (Katz’ top pick: Swedish Ethiopian band BITOI , combining vocals and bass heavily inspired by birdsong). Producers: Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Instagram | Bluesky | Twitter | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, November 08, 2023
The Oatly Chronicles Part 3: Can Green Capitalism Save Us All?
The Swedish oat milk brand Oatly has taken on some eyebrow-raising investments over the past few years. It insists those investments haven’t changed its proud identity as a climate-saving company – but is that really true? In the third and final episode of ‘The Oatly Chronicles’, we investigate a piggy controversy, why oat milk is so damn expensive, and whether Oatly is acting like a big, bad oat milk monopoly. And we ask: what *should* we be eating, to save the planet? This series is funded by Journalismfund Europe and the Allianz Foundation . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Credits: This episode was produced by Katz Laszlo, and reported by Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee. Editing came from Katy Lee, as well as Justine Paradis, visiting from NPR’s excellent podcast, Outside/In. Editorial support came from Margot Gibbs, Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak, and mastering, scoring and sound design also came from Wojciech. Artwork came from favourite illustrator RTiiiKA . Thank you for talking to us: George Monbiot, Fredrik Gertten, Laura Young, Ashley Allen, Lisa van der Velden, Thin Lei Win, Sonalie Figueiras, Sara Berger, and Boris de Lorn. Special thanks to lovely neighbours Joris Klingen and Thomas van Dijk, for letting us use their very nice studio. You can find their music under Bovenburen . Interesting links: Oatly’s ‘Fuck Oatly’ website: https://fckoatly.com ‘The Awkward Truth about Oatly and Alpro’: Lisa van der Velden’s reporting in the Financiele Dagblad, December 2022 https://fd.nl/bedrijfsleven/1458366/ongemakkelijke-waarheid-oatly-en-alpro-voeden-intensieve-veehouderij ‘Big Dairy is trying to get Gen Z’ - New York Times, 2023 https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/04/dining/milk-dairy-industry-gen-z.html Instagram | <a href='https://bsky.app/profile/europeanspod.bsky.soci
Fri, October 27, 2023
The Oatly Chronicles Part 2: What’s The Housing Crisis Got To Do With It?
Swedish oat milk company Oatly says it's on a mission to defeat the almighty dairy industry and save the planet. To do that, it claims it needs to grow into a massive corporate success — and it’s willing to take on controversial investments to get there. In episode two of ‘The Oatly Chronicles’, we investigate what makes those investors so controversial. It takes us on a journey from green capitalism being battled out in the coffee shops of Malmö; to enormous housing protests in a post-financial crisis Spain; to… China? This series is funded by Journalismfund Europe and the Allianz Foundation Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Credits: This episode was produced by Katz Laszlo, and reported by Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee. Editing came from Katy Lee, as well as Justine Paradis, visiting from NPR’s excellent podcast, Outside/In. Editorial support came from Margot Gibbs, Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak, and mastering, scoring and sound design also came from Wojciech. Artwork came from favourite illustrator RTiiiKA . Thank for talking to us: Fredrik Gertten, Lucía Gonzalez Martín, Laura Young, George Monbiot, Max Carbonell, Ben Axler, Brett Christophers, and Gregor Sebastian. Special thanks to lovely neighbours Joris Klingen and Thomas van Dijk, for letting us use their very nice studio. You can find their music under Bovenburen . Interesting links: ‘Change Isn’t Easy’ - Oatly’s statement on the Blackstone investment (August 2022 update) https://community.oatly.com/conversations/news-and-views/change-isnt-easy/62f2f4c91b4bf47dd15fb249 ‘Private Equity Propels the Climate Crisis’ - a report by the Private Equity Stakeholder Project, 2021 https://pestakeholder.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/PESP_SpecialReport_ClimateCrisis_Oct2021_Final.pdf ‘These Photos Show the Reality of Spain's Housing Crisis’ - Time, August 2015 https://time.com/4007349/spain-evictions-housing-crisis/ ‘#RavalVsBlackstone. The right to the city versus the finance-real estate-tourism complex’ - European Network of Cor
Wed, October 18, 2023
The Oatly Chronicles Part 1: The Big Dairy Problem
In 1994, the world’s first oat milk company was born in Sweden. Three decades later, Oatly is on a high-stakes mission to defeat the dairy industry – by growing into the biggest plant-based brand the world has ever seen. Can a start-up from Malmö save us all through capitalism? This is the first episode in a three-part series, ‘The Oatly Chronicles’. This week we’re asking: just how much damage is our dairy addiction doing to the planet? This series is funded by Journalismfund Europe and the Allianz Foundation . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Credits This episode was reported, written and produced by Katz Laszlo. Editing came from Katy Lee, as well as Justine Paradis, visiting from NPR’s excellent podcast, Outside/In. Editorial support came from Margot Gibbs, Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak, and mastering, scoring and sound design also came from Wojciech. Artwork came from favourite illustrator RTiiiKA. Thanks for talking to us: George Monbiot, Thin Lei Win, Elsa Guadarrama, Sonalie Figueiras, Ashley Allen, and Sofia Ehlde. Special thanks to lovely neighbours Joris Klingen and Thomas van Dijk, for letting us use their very nice studio. You can find their music under Bovenburen . Interesting resources: https://interactive.carbonbrief.org/what-is-the-climate-impact-of-eating-meat-and-dairy/ https://drawdown.org/news/insights/the-powerful-role-of-household-actions-in-solving-climate-change https://theoutline.com/post/8384/sweden-milk-war-oatly Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, October 11, 2023
Train bistros and an oily climate commissioner
This week, we hear about the controversies surrounding the selection of the EU's climate commissioners, we look into the past, present, and future of the Nagorno Karabakh situation, and enjoy a delightful interview with David Ecker, the person behind the @_DiningCar Twitter/X account, dedicated entirely to the experience of dining while traveling on trains. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com 00:22 A Little Polish Election Update 06:39 Bad Week: Azerbaijan Ducks Peace Talks with Armenia 15:14 Good Week: Hoekstra, the Unexpected New EU Climate Chief 29:16 Interview: David Ecker - Dining on Rail Cars 40:10 Inspiration Station: Mae Martin’s stand-up - ‘SAP’ - on Netflix, Laura Mvula’s song ‘Pink Noise’ (but anything from Laura Mvula really) 42:04 Happy Ending: Barcelona’s BiciBús!
Wed, October 04, 2023
Anyone for fried jellyfish?
Have you ever been stung by a jellyfish or found yourself unable to take a dip in the ocean because of them? In this week's episode, our guest, Professor Stefano Piraino, will answer the big question: What should we do about the overabundance of jellyfish in European waters? Professor Piraino and Katy Lee take a deep dive into the world of these ancient creatures, uncovering some unexpectedly fascinating quirks about jellyfish, as well as proposing a striking solution to address their burgeoning population. We're also discussing the shady manoeuvres of the Alicante city council regarding trees and Poland's pivotal election, which is less than two weeks away. And finally, stay tuned until the very end of this episode for a special surprise – a baby beaver awaits! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com 00:22 AI-powered podcast translations 04:06 Bad Week: Alicante’s tree falling 12:11 Good Week: Poland’s opposition march 22:52 Interview: Stefano Piraino on why jellyfish is your next favorite snack 36:29 Inspiration Station: A documentary about Sinéad O'Connor - ‘Nothing Compares’ and a new season of “Have You Heard George's Podcast’ 40:52 Happy Ending: Baby beaver born in London!
Wed, September 27, 2023
Politically Charged Post
Our producer Wojciech has a theory that Central and Eastern Europe, in their broadest sense, share a common trait - they do not tolerate emptiness. Any deficit or shortage is promptly filled by individuals who have come to realize that they cannot always depend on their states to provide essential services. This is precisely the theme of our interview this week, with Ilir Gashi, who shares his story of getting involved in an unofficial courier system between Kosovo and Serbia when the state postal office ceased its deliveries. Against the backdrop of recent tensions between these countries flaring up once again, it provides a poignant glimpse into the daily life on the border of these nations. We're also talking about Greece’s new left-ish leader Stefanos Kasselakis (and his good-looking dog) and Spain's dealings with its gruesome past under the infamous General Franco. This is our first episode of the autumn season and we’ll stay with you until the end of the year! There’s lots to come with some very exciting special episodes coming up! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can read Ilir’s piece here in In The Guardian , we heartily recommend you do! Hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katz Laszlo Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 27, 2023
Mohamed
We're on a summer break right now, but here's something to put in your ears while we're away. To celebrate the beautiful visual animation of 'Mohamed' winning Germany's prestigious CIVIS Prize , we're re-releasing the original audio podcast, one of our all-time favourite episodes. 'Mohamed' is a story about a young man living in limbo while trapped in a labyrinth of bureaucracy. You can watch the animated version here on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAg-fJcU0iw&t=2s This was the fourth episode in our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like : intimate stories from young Europeans across the continent. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Mohamed Bah Art Direction & Motion Design: Studio Mélody Da Fonseca Motion Design & Illustration Assistants: Andréa Reille & Rafaelle Fillastre Mixing and Mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Sound design: Katz Laszlo Editor: Katy Lee Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel To Be Free , covered by Bahghi ; Ancore une Staggione by Bottega Baltazar ; Blurry by Curtis Cole ; Kongo by Trio Particular ; Coco Bread by Wearethegood ; Mas Feliz Del Mundo by Ofir Atar ; Fandanguillo also by Ofir Atar ; No One Is Out Here by Yehezkel Raz . Theme music by Jim Barne . SFX from Freesound.org . This series is co-produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation .
Thu, July 20, 2023
What is Europe up to on Africa’s borders?
Once upon a time, European powers drew up borders in Africa as part of their colonisation of the continent. These days the EU is increasingly interested in those borders again — including the idea of placing its own agents there to stop migrants heading towards Europe. This week we hear from investigative journalist Andrei Popoviciu about how EU funds are being used to police West African borders, often with a disturbing lack of scrutiny. We're also talking about Italy's #10secondi outrage, France's plan to subsidise clothing repairs, and artistic revenge in the 16th century. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/what-is-europe-up-to-on-africas-borders This is our last episode of the summer but we'll be hard at work until our return in September, preparing episodes for the autumn. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can read Andrei's investigation here in In These Times , and we'll post a link to the French version in Le Monde as soon as it's out. You can follow Andrei on Twitter here . The episode we made with Andrei last year about EU border agency Frontex can be found here . The graphics Katy mentioned on how Europeans dispose of unwanted clothes can be found here , and the Guardian's exclusive report about Dürer's sassy revenge on his boss is here . And if you have a few minutes to spare, we'd be really grateful if you could fill in a quick survey to help us improve the podcast. You can find it here: https://iter.ly/fcmgq 00:22 Go away, Heatwave Charon 03:41 Bad Week: Italy's 10-second assault case 08:11 Good Week: France's discounts for clothes repairs 18:43 Interview: Andrei Popoviciu on the EU's migration policy in Africa 32:37 Isolation Inspiration: Maro's Tiny Desk Concert and Afropop 36:32 Happy Ending: Revenge on bad bosses, 16th century-style <p
Thu, July 13, 2023
Threads, solar and giant farming lobbies
How much sway do giant interest groups have over the way our food gets grown? This week we're delving into the murky world of farm lobbying with Thin Lei Win , one of the reporters behind a fascinating investigation into the highly influential Copa-Cogeca group. We're also talking about the mass FOMO outbreak resulting from Threads' absence from the EU and what the hell is going on with Europe's electricity prices right now. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/threads-solar-and-giant-farming-lobbies We're running a survey to help us improve the podcast! If you've got five minutes to spare, we'd be really grateful if you could answer a few questions here: https://iter.ly/fcmgq You can find Lighthouse Reports' investigation into Copa-Cogeca here , with links to their partners' coverage in six languages. You can sign up to Thin's excellent newsletter on food and the climate here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Songs from Spain and microfiber make-up remover cloths. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Sunny days watching the Dutch government collapse 04:25 Bad Week: Threads FOMO in Europe 16:42 Good Week: Bountiful solar power 27:45 Interview: Thin Lei Win on the outsized influence of Europe's giant farm lobby 42:08 Isolation Inspiration: Songs from Spain and microfiber make-up cloths 45:38 Happy Ending: Underwhelming but very very old Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 06, 2023
Fighting Putin, one meme at a time
How can cartoon dogs help fight Russian disinformation? This week, hybrid warfare expert Robert van der Noordaa gives us a crash course on the #NAFOfellas movement and why Ukraine has been so good at using internet humour since last year's invasion. We're also talking about France's riots and the Dutch king's apology for the Netherlands' role in slavery. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/fighting-putin-one-meme-at-a-time Robert is an analyst at Trollrensics and tweets here . You can watch the heartwarming video of Jolien Boumkwo running the 100m hurdles here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: R.M.N. , rugelach and sfogliatelle. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 A big announcement! 04:07 Bad Week: France's riots 17:32 Good Week: The Dutch king's slavery apology 27:13 Interview: Robert van der Noordaa on Ukraine's meme-armed internet warriors 37:41 Isolation Inspiration: RMN, rugelach and sfogliatelle 41:40 Happy Ending: Jolien Boumkwo, champion of our hearts Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 29, 2023
Greece’s elections, whales, and disability rights
Being able to move freely around 27 countries is one of the biggest benefits of living in the EU. In reality, this is pretty hard if you’ve got a disability. This week we speak to Alejandro Moledo, deputy director of the European Disability Forum, about plans to start addressing that. We’re also diving into Greece’s elections and, with the help of producer Katz Laszlo, the decision to halt Iceland’s summer whale-hunting season. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/greeces-elections-whales-and-disability-rights You can follow Alejandro on Twitter here and find the EDF's podcast mini-series here . The reports Alejandro mentioned can be found here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'The Employees' by Olga Ravn and ' Fanfic ' on Netflix. Bonus: best-selling whale song album 'Songs of the Humpback Whale '. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Busy busy busy, hot hot hot 02:52 Good Week: Iceland's whales 12:19 Bad Week: Greek leftwingers 22:42 Interview: Alejandro Moledo on the EU's (lack of a) disability policy 34:03 Isolation Inspiration: 'The Employees' and 'Fanfic' 37:57 Happy Ending: A bunch of things to celebrate this Pride Month Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 22, 2023
Beyoncé, inflation and the case for climate optimism
It's easy to feel doomed when it comes to climate change. In her latest book, the Italian political scientist Nathalie Tocci makes the case for cautious optimism about Europe's climate and energy policies. We chat to her this week about the opportunities and challenges of the European Green Deal, as well as how to interpret the death last week of Silvio Berlusconi. We're also talking about a push to ban unpaid internships across the EU, and whether or not we should be blaming Beyoncé for stubbornly high inflation in Sweden. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/beyonc-inflation-and-the-case-for-climate-optimism Nathalie is the director of the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome. You can follow her on Twitter here and find more information about her latest book, 'A Green and Global Europe', here . We are over the moon that the animated version of our episode 'Mohamed', made with our friends at Are We Europe , has won a CIVIS prize ! You can watch the beautiful animation here on YouTube . This week's Isolation Inspiration: roasted fennel and 'The Council of Egypt' by Leonardo Sciascia. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Amsterdam heat and breakfast tears 03:44 Good Week: Interns 10:49 Bad Week: Beyoncé 21:31 Interview: Nathalie Tocci on the case for climate optimism in Europe 36:32 Isolation Inspiration: Roasted fennel and The Council of Egypt 40:02 Happy Ending: (Everyone's) Free-To-Wear Sunscreen Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 08, 2023
Why is it so hard to fix Kosovo’s problems?
Last week, dozens of NATO peacekeepers were injured after violent protests broke out in northern Kosovo. What is going on, and why do Kosovo's problems seem so hard to fix? This week we dig into the deeper context behind the unrest with political analyst Agon Maliqi. We're also talking about why much of Europe is antsy about who's going to be steering the EU next year, and a bizarre dispute in the art world. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/why-is-it-so-hard-to-fix-kosovos-problems You can follow Agon on Twitter at @AgonMaliqi . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Turn of the Tide and Fatma Aydemir: The State of European Literature at the Forum on European Culture, De Balie . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 The sunny side of the continent 02:14 Bad Week: Looming EU presidencies 12:37 Good Week for Dutch art trolls? 23:20 Interview: Agon Maliqi on why it's so hard to fix the Kosovo-Serbia relationship 35:46 Isolation Inspiration: Turn of the Tide and the Forum on European Culture 40:36 Happy Ending: The magic of Enhanced Rock Weathering Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 01, 2023
Europe’s place in outer space
The last time we interviewed the physicist Meganne Christian, she was working on the French-Italian research base on Antarctica. Now she has her eye on outer space. We ring her up to find out more about her new life as a reserve astronaut for the European Space Agency, and Europe's role in the new commercial space era. We're also talking about Pedro Sánchez's Spanish election gamble and a hopeful court verdict for same-sex Romanian couples. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/europes-place-in-outer-space Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. You can follow Meganne here on Twitter and Instagram , and the ESA here and here . The report on Europe's future role in space exploration can be found here , and you can find out more about the ESA astronaut selection process here . Some other links you might want to check out: ESA Space Ambition book ESA Terrae Novae 2030+ Strategy Roadmap International Space Station Benefits for Humanity 2022 ESA Human Spaceflight on Twitter This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'The [Queer] Politics of Eurovision' from verilybitchie, and This Is Love: The Museum of Broken Relationships . 00:22 Welcome to the western-most peninsulas of Eurasia 03:28 Bad Week: Spain's Socialists 11:36 Good Week: LGBT couples in Romania 20:53 Interview: Meganne Christian on life as a reserve astronaut and what Europe is up to in space 32:53 Isolation Inspiration: The Queer Politics of Eurovision and The Museum of Broken Relationships
Fri, May 26, 2023
The biggest climate case that ever was
We usually see young people as the face of climate activism. This week, we find out how 2,000 Swiss women, all over the age of 65, took their government to court in a case that could change climate laws across Europe. And along the way, we figure out once and for all how the European Court of Human Rights actually works. This is a special episode made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation , one of several podcasts we're making this year about sustainability with their support. Stay tuned later in the year to hear more. You can find out more about the KlimaSeniorinnen here . Listening from Amsterdam? The Forum on European Culture runs at De Balie from May 31-June 4, with a ton of great speakers on the line-up. Find the full programme here: https://cultureforum.eu/programme-2023 Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/the-biggest-climate-case-that-ever-was Reporter and producer: Katz Laszlo Editor: Katy Lee Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak Sound design, mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music by Jim Barne, Epidemic Sound and Blue Dot Sessions Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 18, 2023
The naughty child of NATO?
We've been glued to the Turkish elections over the past week. But what does Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's victory in the first round mean for the country, and for Europe as a whole? This week we ring up political scientist Ahmet Erdi Öztürk to find out. We're also talking about a big boost in Germany's support for Ukraine, a fake tan controversy, and the teeny tiny bridge behind the Mona Lisa. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/the-naughty-child-of-nato You can follow Erdi on Twitter @ahmeterdiozturk . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Cautionary Tales: ' The Man Who Bet His House on a Pop Song - A Eurovision Tale ' and 'The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared' by Jonas Jonasson 00:22 Together again 03:31 Good Week: Is Germany's Ukraine 'turning point' actually here? 11:27 Red-faced over orange-face 19:26 Interview: Ahmet Erdi Öztürk on the Turkish elections 28:23 Isolation Inspiration: 'The Man Who Bet His House on a Pop Song' and 'The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window And Disappeared' 33:19 Happy Ending: A Mona Lisa mystery solved? Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 11, 2023
Eurovision vs. The Champions League
This week is a bonanza for fans of Europe's two favourite competitions: the Champions League football tournament and the Eurovision Song Contest. Both are held up as events that bring Europeans together, but which one does the job better? This week we aim to settle the debate once and for all with a face-off between sports commentator Barbara Barend and Eurovision historian Dean Vuletic. We're also talking about a €300-million EU pension black hole and France's first rap awards. Do you live in Europe, and do you enjoy this podcast? If so, you can celebrate democracy and fund our show at the same time, by signing up to join the Capital of European Democracy jury. It only takes a few clicks and it's a huge help to us! Sign up here before May 15: https://join.capitalofdemocracy.eu/europeanspod FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/eurovision-vs-the-champions-league The Eurovision vs. Champions League debate was part of a special event for Europe Day hosted by the European Cultural Foundation . You can find out more about this year's celebrations at europeday.eu . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'King Charles III's Secret Kingdom' and 'If Found' . You can find the article Katy mentioned on the Flamme awards here in the Guardian , and the ECF's Radio Europe Day playlist here on Spotify . 00:22 Beyoncé in the Brussels bubble 03:49 Bad Week: A €300m pensions black hole 13:25 Good Week: France's first rap awards 18:39 Help us out by joining the European Capital of Democracy Jury! 20:23 The ultimate debate: Eurovision vs The Champions League 37:46 Isolation Inspiration: 'King Charles III's Secret Kingdom' and 'If Found' 40:54 Happy Ending: Aurimas Valujavičius's epic journey Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. <p
Thu, May 04, 2023
Brussels, that well-known comedy goldmine
The EU is a lot of things. But is it funny? And would Europe be a better place if we *could* find it funny? This week we're talking to Lise Witteman, one of the co-founders of live comedy show The Schuman Show, about finding humour in the Brussels machine. We're also talking about Pope Francis' face-off with Viktor Orbán and the Italian tourism campaign that spawned a thousand memes. Do you live in Europe, and do you enjoy this podcast? If so, you can celebrate democracy and fund our show at the same time, by signing up to join the Capital of European Democracy jury. It only takes a few clicks and it's a huge help to us! Sign up here: https://join.capitalofdemocracy.eu/europeanspod FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/brussels-that-well-known-comedy-goldmine You can find out more about the Schuman Show at https://www.schumanshow.eu . The final visual version of the episodes in our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, produced by our friends at Are We Europe, can be found here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Allusionist's Eurovision episodes and 'The Curious Case of Columbo's Message to Romania' 00:22 King's Day and erotic fiction penned by a finance minister 03:53 Good Week: The Pope v Viktor Orbán 11:44 Bad Week: Open to Meraviglia! 18:12 Help us out by joining the European Capital of Democracy Jury! 20:26 Interview: Lise Witteman on making the EU funny 31:58 Isolation Inspiration: The Allusionist's Eurovision episodes and 'The Curious Case of Columbo's Message to Romania' 35:53 Happy Ending: Gamefy The Dam Removal Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspod
Thu, April 20, 2023
How racial bias is messing with DNA research
Mapping our genes has already allowed humanity to make huge strides in medicine. But the vast majority of the genomes we’ve decoded are those of people of white European heritage. Why is that a problem, and how do we fix it? This week we talk to the Nigerian geneticist Segun Fatumo about fixing the genome gap. We’re also talking about Andalucía’s bid to protect flamenco, and why Europe’s most powerful media mogul is in hot water. Segun is an associate professor of genetic epidemiology and bioinformatics at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine . He tweets @SFatumo . You can find a video of flamenco performers celebrating Andalucía’s new law here , and watch the latest visual podcast in our series with Are We Europe, 'Andrea', here . We are delighted that the visual version of an earlier episode of This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, 'Mohamed', has been nominated for the CIVIS Prize! Watch it here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: this interview on the European Space Agency's Jupiter mission; How To Sell Drugs Online (Fast) ; World Leader or My Friend's Dad? and Luis Sal's Parisian croissant review . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/how-racial-bias-is-messing-with-dna-research 00:22 Make Europe Digestible Again 02:23 A Good Week for protecting flamenco? 09:22 A Bad Week for Axel Springer's CEO 19:30 Interview: Segun Fatumo on the European bias of genomic studies 30:24 I
Thu, April 13, 2023
Libraries: the safest spaces we have?
What comes to mind when you imagine a library? Rows of books, probably. But across the continent, libraries are transforming into places that serve communities in all sorts of other ways. This week we hear from two very different libraries about how they're doing just that: Bojana Grujic of the Novi Sad City Library in Serbia and Myrto Tsilimpounidi from the Feminist Library at the Feminist Autonomous Centre in Athens. We're also talking about the fallout from Macron's trip to China, the international fight against Hungary's homophobic law, and the hallucinogenic adventures of early Europeans. Bojana and Myrto's libraries are taking part in the European Cultural Foundation's Europe Challenge . The hunt for new participants begins soon; keep an eye on the ECF's website for updates, or subscribe to their newsletter . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Birdsbesafe cat collars , available via the Royal Belgian League for the Protection of Birds, and 'The Shadow King' by Maaza Mengiste. Bonus: Katy's amazing Notion template . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/libraries-the-safest-spaces-we-have 00:22 No Easter eggs for Dominic 02:43 Messy / Bad Week: Macron and von der Leyen's trip to China 14:47 Good Week: The fight against Hungary's anti-LGBTQ law 23:06 Interview: Bojana Grujic and Myrto Tsilimpounidi on the reinvention of Europe's libraries 35:51 Isolation Inspiration: Birdsbesafe cat collars and 'The Shadow King' by Maaza Mengiste 40:59 Happy Ending: Early Europeans' psychedelic dabbling Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | <a href='https://www.instagram.com/europeanspo
Thu, April 06, 2023
The great investment greenwash
Trillions of euros — trillions! — are currently invested in 'sustainable' investment funds across Europe. But how green really are these funds? This week we ring up El País journalist Daniele Grasso , part of the international team of reporters behind the Great Green Investment Investigation, to find out. We're also talking about Sanna Marin's defeat, Italy's move to ban ChatGPT, and courgette flowers. You can find Follow The Money's investigation on green investigation funds here , with links to reporting from Daniele and the rest of the team at the bottom of the page. The TechCrunch piece on the ramifications of Italy's ChatGPT ruling can be found here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: courgette flowers with garlic butter and oats; 99% Invisible - The Panopticon Effect . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 British lads and the correct way to enjoy a marathon 04:21 Bad Week: Sanna Marin 09:55 Good Week: Italy vs ChatGPT 20:28 Interview: Daniele Grasso on Europe's not-so-green investment funds 32:19 Isolation Inspiration: Courgette flowers and 99% Invisible: The Panopticon Effect 35:31 Happy Ending: Congratulations, Ryyan! Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 30, 2023
Suspicion machines and combustion engines
If you've claimed welfare benefits in Europe lately, there's a decent chance that authorities have used an algorithm to assess whether you might be trying to scam the system. The problem? All kinds of discrimination are baked into these calculations. This week we speak to Gabriel Geiger, one of the journalists behind an international investigation into these ‘suspicion machines’. We’re also looking back at a week of highs and lows for Europe’s climate policy, and celebrating Pompeii’s fluffy new recruits. You can find the various pieces published as part of Lighthouse Reports’ ‘suspicion machines’ investigation here and follow Gabriel on Twitter here . The Guardian graphic that Dominic mentioned, explaining why it’s so hard to power ships with electricity, can be found here . This week’s Isolation Inspiration: 'Lessons' by Ian McEwan, Traute Lafrenz's obituary , and 'A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived' by Adam Rutherford. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 The highs and lows of modern technology 02:52 Good week: Europe's maritime fuel deal 10:45 Bad week: The great combustion engine flop 19:33 Interview: Gabriel Geiger on Europe's suspicion machines 36:11 Isolation Inspiration: 'Lessons' by Ian McEwan, Traute Lafrenz's obituary, and 'A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived' 40:05 Happy Ending: Pompeii's fluffy new recruits Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 23, 2023
Why would you flood a forest?
Last year, conservationists deliberately flooded a Slovakian forest. Why would you do such a thing? This week we ring up the co-founder of one of the organisations behind the project, Duarte de Zoeten of Mossy Earth, to find out. We're also talking about Italy's rainbow families, a kind-of-sort-of deal between Kosovo and Serbia, and Europe's first wild river national park. You can find Mossy Earth's YouTube channel here and their latest video about the Danube project here . Find out more about their Slovakian partners, Broz, here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Vrij Spel (NPO) - Arnout, Dominic, Felix & Timo vs. Purcell ; Stanley Tucci - Searching for Italy . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Rats and Covid 03:12 Bad week: Milan's rainbow families 09:39 Good week (ish): Serbia and Kosovo 19:03 Interview: Duarte de Zoeten on flooding a Slovakian forest 32:05 Isolation Inspiration: Arnout, Dominic, Felix & Timo vs. Purcell, and 'Searching for Italy' 37:45 Happy Ending: Europe's first wild river national park Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 09, 2023
What is Putin up to in Moldova?
There've been a bunch of worrying reports from Moldova in recent weeks, from claims that Russia is fuelling street protests to fears of a coup d'etat. What exactly is going on, and what does Moscow have to do with it? This week we speak to Ivana Stradner, a specialist in Russian information warfare, to try to get to grips with Putin's strategy in the wider region. We're also talking about a teenager who may or may not have set up a non-existent airline, and what makes Swiss chocolate Swiss. Ivana is a special correspondent at the Kyiv Post and a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies . You can follow her on Twitter here . Read more about the strangest story in German aviation here on One Mile At A Time . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Tár, 'The Instrumentalist' by Zadie Smith , Aftersun, and Rádio Olisipo . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Viral cucumbers 03:13 Bad week: The teenager behind Germany's non-existent airline 09:48 Good week: Protecting Brand Switzerland (aka 'let's talk about Toblerones') 19:10 Interview: Ivana Stradner on Russian information warfare in Moldova and beyond 33:24 Isolation Inspiration: Tár, 'The Instrumentalist' by Zadie Smith, Aftersun, and Rádio Olisipo 38:08 Happy Ending: The opposite of burgling Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 02, 2023
So Nearly A Eurovision Hit
We're deep into the selection process for the world's most ridiculous music competition, with artists across the continent vying to be chosen as their nation's Eurovision entry. But what happens to the songs that don't actually make it to the contest? This week we've got a joyful interview with Monty Moncrieff, whose podcast Second Cherry gives some love to the nearly-Eurovision hits that still deserve a listen. We're also talking about Elly Schlein, Italy's new leader on the left, and an eyebrow-raising decision by Malta's prison service. This week's Isolation Inspiration: ' Euphoria ' and ' Tattoo ' by Loreen; ' The Last Soviet ', and bonus entry 'Email to Berlin' by Double Date. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:23 Continental drama and bird noises 02:36 Good Week: Elly Schlein 12:13 Bad week: Malta's prison service 22:09 Interview: Monty Moncrieff on nearly-Eurovision hits 34:50 Isolation Inspiration: Loreen and 'The Last Soviet' 38:44 Happy Ending: A Roman dildo? Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 23, 2023
Valeria
An overnight career change. Switching the language you love in. This week, how war transforms your life in ways you’d never expect. This is the final instalment of our award-winning mini-series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, a co-production by The Europeans and Are We Europe , made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation . You can find the other episodes, which take us from Italy to Belarus, here . Our regular show will be back next week. Thanks as ever to the listeners who support this podcast so that we can keep making it. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Valeria Fokina Sound design: Katz Laszlo Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Editor: Katy Lee Editorial support: Wojciech Oleksiak and Dominic Kraemer You can find Valeria on Instagram here . Music: The Kiffness x Boombox - Remix of Andrii Horolski singing ‘Oy u luzi chervona kalyna’ ; коники by Tik Tu ; Vesna , Baby and Alambari by DakhaBrakha; Valeria Fokina covering ‘I Will Survive’ by Gloria Gaynor; When It Hits You and The Final Cut from Epidemic Sound . Theme music by Jim Barne . SFX from Freesound.org . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 09, 2023
Spies, wolves and taxes
There's been a steady drip-drip of revelations for months now that an alarming number of people in Greece have had their phones tapped. Who is behind this mass snooping, and why are they doing it? This week we call up our favourite Greek-splainer Nick Malkoutzis to unravel a complicated scandal. We're also talking about oil and gas companies' bonanza profits, and the wolf that killed Ursula von der Leyen's pony. Nick is the co-founder and editor of MacroPolis . You can find The Agora, his excellent podcast on Greek politics, here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Cunk on Earth and The Making of Modern Ukraine (on Youtube here and on Spotify here ). Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:23 Duolingo fraud 02:22 Bad Week: Ursula and the Wolf 08:03 Good week: Filthy-rich oil and gas giants 18:35 Interview: Nick Malkoutzis on Greece's snooping scandal 30:48 Isolation Inspiration: 'Cunk on Earth' and 'The Making of Modern Ukraine' 34:25 Happy Ending: Hercules rises from the sewer Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 02, 2023
Germany’s Gonna Germany
Germany’s government has faced international criticism in recent weeks for dithering over whether or not to send tanks to Ukraine. The Leopard 2s are finally on their way — but why is Europe’s richest country so reluctant to look like a military leader? This week we’re diving into the psychology of Germany’s foreign policy with Sophia Besch, Europe fellow at the Carnegie Endowment. We’re also talking about Czechia’s anti-populist new president, and a bitter row over wine labels. You can follow Sophia on Twitter here and find out more about her work here . This week’s Isolation Inspiration: Stromae’s Tiny Desk Concert and ‘The Door’ by Magda Szabó . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:00 Good Week, Fast Week 02:50 Good Week: Bye-bye Babiš 11:08 Bad week: The Great Wine Label Row 22:00 Interview: Sophia Besch on how Germany sees its place in the world 39:27 Isolation Inspiration: Stromae’s Tiny Desk Concert and ‘The Door’ by Magda Szabó 41:33 Happy Ending: Sharks in Liverpool Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, January 26, 2023
The dark side of fine dining
When legendary Copenhagen restaurant Noma announced that it's planning to close its doors, its star chef René Redzepi said that producing his kind of elite cuisine had become 'unsustainable'. The restaurant, and others like it, have faced vocal criticism over working practices ranging from exploitative unpaid internships to gruelling 16-hour days. This week we speak to Lisa Lind Dunbar, an industry veteran and critic of Denmark's restaurant working culture, to try to understand how fine dining went so wrong. We're also talking about Polish bison, why Turkey is blocking Sweden's NATO bid, and the Irish president's vision of a blissfully homework-free childhood. You can follow Lisa on Instagram here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Paolo Sorrentino's ' Hand of God ', and 'Ukraine: Under the Counter' , reported by our very own Katz Laszlo for Rough Translation / Radiolab. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:00 The Europeans, brought to you by ChatGPT 03:49 Good Week: A proposed homework ban in Ireland 10:15 Bad week: Why Turkey is blocking Sweden's NATO bid 20:55 Interview: Lisa Lind Dunbar on Denmark's broken restaurant industry 39:03 Isolation Inspiration: 'The Hand of God' and 'Under the Counter' 42:07 Hooray for Polish bison Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, January 19, 2023
Andrea
This week, a story about being incredibly sure you’re right about something, and then realising you weren’t. We’re heading to Cyprus for the latest instalment of our award-winning mini-series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like. This series is a co-production by The Europeans and Are We Europe , made in cooperation with the Allianz Foundation . You can find the other episodes, which take us from Italy to Belarus, here . Our regular show will be back next week! Thanks as ever to the listeners who support this podcast so that we can keep making it. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Producers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Andrea Solomonides Scoring, sound design and mixing: Wojciech Oleksiak Editors: Katz Laszlo, Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer Music by Blue Dot Sessions . Theme music by Jim Barne . With special thanks to Eleni Tzialli and Hilmi Tekoglu. Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 15, 2022
Merry Christmas And A Penis Morning To You
*Content warning: This episode contains some colourful language and a discussion of what happens to letters to Sinterklaas* It's our final episode of 2022! This week we're getting into the festive spirit with Berlin-based historian Kathrin Schwarz, creator of an entire series of Christmassy European podcasts. We're also talking about Belgium's Sinterklaas postal failure, and why a 1970s Eurovision hit has gone viral in Ukraine. This episode was recorded live on Zoom in front of an audience of our supporters! Thank you so much to everyone who chips in so that we can keep making The Europeans. You can join us at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Kathrin's podcast, available in German, is called 'Have yourself a very European Christmas - Adventskalenderpodcast'. You can find all 24 episodes here on Spotify , as well as on Apple. You can also follow Kathrin on Twitter here or Instagram here , and find her latest work on witches in Brandenberg here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: @balthazar_theblackmagus and ' Limbic ' by Peter Scapello. 04:01 Good Week: Goeiemorgen, morgen 09:56 Bad Week: The great Sinterklaas postal failure 18:03 Kathrin Schwarz on Christmas in the EU 29:13 Isolation Inspiration: @balthazar_theblackmagus and 'Limbic' by Peter Scapello 31:11 Happy Ending: Fighting loneliness at the supermarket checkout Thanks for listening! We'll be back in January. Hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee Producers: Katy Lee, Wojciech Oleksiak and Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com * * * * * * * * * * * * Kathrin's Recipe: Sardine sandwiches with Christmas cognac Ingredients 200 ml béchamel sauce* 4 slices of toast 50 g grated Gruyère cheese 1 tin of sardines in olive oil (115 g) 1 teaspoon mustard 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/4 teaspoon chopped thyme salt black pepper *Melt butter, mix with flour, then
Thu, December 08, 2022
The Surprising Queer History of Poland
In 1932, Poland became one of the first countries in Europe to decriminalise homosexuality; today it's one of the most hostile on the continent when it comes to LGBTQ rights. This week historian Kamil Karczewski joins us to discuss Poland's little-known history as a queer pioneer, and what has changed since. We're also talking about France's crackdown on domestic flights and Ireland's amazingly successful experiment with the four-day week. Oh, and we pay a visit to the EU metaverse, so that you don't have to. You can follow Kamil on Twitter here , and visit the EU's Global Gateway metaverse site here . Good luck, and let us know if you make it inside! This week's Isolation Inspiration: Règle 30 , TechTrash , and Inside the Mind of a Cat . You can follow the Savitsky Cats on Instagram here . Don't forget to sign up to support the podcast this week if you'd like to join the live recording of our Christmas episode on December 12! We're hugely grateful to everyone who chips in so that we can keep making the show. You can join us at patreon.com/europeanspodcast , and many currencies are available. Thanks for listening! 02:22 Good Week: France's crackdown on domestic flights 09:36 Bad Week: The EU's metaverse fiesta flop 22:23 Interview: Kamil Karczewski on Poland's little-known queer history 38:16 Isolation Inspiration: Règle 30, Tech Trash, and 'Inside the Mind of a Cat' 42:22 Happy Ending: Ireland's four-day working week is a roaring success Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 01, 2022
Is China trying to police people in Europe?
When reports emerged of Chinese 'police service stations' operating in Europe, alarm bells began ringing across the continent. But what exactly is going on at these sites, and how worried should we be about them? This week we ring Yuan Yang, Europe-China correspondent at the Financial Times, to get a better understanding of how China works beyond its borders. We're also talking about Viktor Orbán's controversial scarf and the right not to be 'fun' at work. You can follow Yuan on Twitter here and read her reporting on China's offshore police stations here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'The White Lotus', Season 2 , and The Playlist . Our interview with newly-minted astronaut Dr Meganne Christian, from February 2019, can be found in this episode: The Most Isolated Place on Earth' . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 03:04 Bad Week: Scarfgate 08:09 Good Week: The right to not be fun 15:35 Interview: Yuan Yang on China's 'overseas police stations' 29:20 Isolation Inspiration: Season 2 of 'The White Lotus' and 'The Playlist' 32:22 Happy Ending: Europe's new astronauts Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 24, 2022
Good Five Years, Bad Five Years
The first episode of The Europeans aired five years ago this week! To mark this very special occasion, producers Katz and Wojciech join Katy and Dominic to look back on how Europe has changed in the half-decade we've been making this podcast. Many thanks to the amazing people who've taken the time to speak to us over the years. In this episode you heard: Franz Kubacyk - ' Translating Trump, Defending Deneuve ', January 2018 Katz Laszlo - ' How the hell do you make an EU law? ', February 2020 Tom Moylan - ' President of the European what now? ', December 2019 Pasi Sahlberg - ' Finnish Lessons ', April 2021 Andrei Popoviciu - ' Pushbacks ', November 2019 Remco Yizhak Cooremans - ' It takes more than two, baby ' - June 2022 Grace Ly - ' France's Invisible Asians ', November 2020 Patrick Gathara - ' Eurafrica ', February 2020 Natalie Lamprou - ' Cheese Diplomacy ' - April 2021 Sara (episode 3 in our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like) - November 2021 And thank you for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. A video of friendly wolves can be found here . 04:10 Good Five Years: Solar energy 10:48 Bad Five Years: Western naivety 15:55 Good Five Years: Wolves 21:46 Bad Five Years: Media freedom in Central and Eastern Europe 33:42 An ode to governments that came and went 35:32 Franz Kubacyk on Translating Trump 38:46 Tom Moylan on the secrets of the European Commission building 39:53 Pasi Sahlberg on Finland's education system 42:14 Frontex and Fortress Europe 43:48 Remco Yizhak Cooremans on recognising rainbow families in the Netherlands 44:51 Grace Ly on France's Invisible Asians 45:45 Patrick Gathara on Eurafrica 47:34 Natalie Lamprou on halloumi
Thu, November 17, 2022
Fleeing climate change
As the COP27 climate talks wrap up in Egypt, we’re turning our attention to an issue that got less attention at the summit than you might expect: the growing number of people having to flee their homes as a result of climate change. What role does Europe have to play in all this, both in terms of finding solutions and as a major driver of climate change in the first place? This week we find out with the help of Alexandre Porteret of the European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations department, and François Gemenne of the Hugo Laboratory , the world’s first interdisciplinary research centre focusing on how climate change impacts migration. This episode was supported by the European Commission, with coordination from Are We Europe . Producer: Katz Laszlo Scoring and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: BlueDot Sessions and Epidemic Sounds Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 10, 2022
Take your time in Barcelona
This week we're wrestling with a big idea: time, and the lack of it. Most Europeans have experienced burnout, or felt close to it, at some point in their lives. What if we redesigned policies to give citizens their time back? To find out more, we called up Ariadna Güell Sans, one of the coordinators of the Barcelona Time Use Initiative , about how the city is using time to try to make life easier and fairer. We're also talking about incomprehensible euro-speak, and healing Franco-German relations with train tickets. You can find Christian Rauh's study on the European Commission's unintelligible press releases here and Sarah Wheaton's reporting on it here in Politico. The European burnout survey can be found here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Something to Do' from Zadie Smith's 'Intimations', and Katy's Notion planner. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 02:35 Bad Week: Impenetrable euro-speak 10:46 Good Week: French and German young'uns 19:12 Interview: Ariadna Güell Sans on giving Barcelona's citizens their time back 34:57 Isolation Inspiration: 'Something To Do' by Zadie Smith, Notion and Rádio Olisipo 38:36 Happy Ending: The Netherlands' high school mayo dealers Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 03, 2022
The one where we take over the European Parliament
Last weekend, we took over the European Parliament (kind of) along with more than 1,000 young activists from across the continent. This week we hear from some of those activists as well as from President Roberta Metsola, in a conversation recorded live on stage inside the Hemicycle. We're also talking about Germany's plans to legalise cannabis, and how to steal a Polish tram. Katy and Dominic were hosting Level Up! , a two-day activism bootcamp organised by the European Parliament, the European Commission and the European Youth Forum, whose president Silja Markkula also spoke to us on stage. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Greta Thunberg in conversation with Björk on the New Statesman's World Review podcast, and Adam Buxton in conversation with the Irish novelist Marian Keyes . 02:58 Good Week: Germany's plans to legalise cannabis 09:44 Bad Week: Poland's stolen tram 15:03 Our takeover of the European Parliament with 1,000 young activists 34:20 Isolation Inspiration: Greta Thunberg and Björk in conversation; Adam Buxton and Marian Keys in conversation 37:50 Happy Ending: The upside-down Mondrian Producer: Katy Lee Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find the first chapter 'Mohamed' here , and more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 20, 2022
Kinga
Can we find ways to live happily alongside people with radically different values than our own? This week, we journey to one of the most isolated corners of Europe for the sixth installment in our series ‘This Is What A Generation Sounds Like’. A beautiful visual version of this podcast will be available soon. In the meantime, you can find the first visual podcasts in this series here. This series is co-produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Kinga Goc Mixing, mastering and sound design: Wojciech Oleksiak Editorial support: Katz Laszlo, Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer Music by Casletila. Theme music by Jim Barne. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 13, 2022
Hacked by Hungary
What does it feel like to know that your government has been able to access every single message on your phone? Last year, the Hungarian investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi found out that he'd been hacked using Pegasus spyware. This week we hear about his latest investigation, which looks at how the Orbán government managed to get hold of this incredibly powerful surveillance tool in the first place. We're also talking about last weekend's mysterious German train sabotage and growing European protests against World Cup hosts Qatar. You can follow Szabolcs on Twitter here and read the inside story of how Pegasus was brought to Hungary here via Direkt36. A background read on the spyware scandal currently rocking Greece can be found here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Isolation Inspiration: The latest visual episode in This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, our series with Are We Europe: Denisa Scottish crime drama Karen Pirie 'Les années' (The Years) by Annie Ernaux 00:22 Welcome! 02:49 Bad Week: The Great German Train Sabotage Mystery 10:22 Good Week: Europe's growing World Cup protest movement 24:39 Interview: Szabolcs Panyi on being hacked by the Hungarian government 36:06 Isolation Inspiration: 'Denisa', 'Karen Pirie', and 'The Years' by Annie Ernaux 40:39 Happy Ending: Waxworms, gross but good Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 06, 2022
Golden passports, anal beads, and the world’s most complicated elections
With fourteen governments and a three-person presidency, Bosnia and Herzegovina's political system is often described as the most complicated in the world. It's a system that was designed to keep the peace after a devastating war. But three decades on, is it still working? This week we give Aleksandar Brezar the near-impossible task of untangling the weekend's elections for us. We're also talking about Malta's golden passports and a chess scandal involving anal beads. Yes, you heard that correctly. Aleksandar is a journalist mostly covering the Western Balkans. You can find him on Twitter here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Born in Blackness: Africa, Africans, and the Making of the Modern World, 1471 to the Second World War', by Howard W. French The ZOE podcast: 'How to control blood sugar spikes' , with Jessie Inchauspé 02:42 Good Week: A challenge to Malta's golden passport scheme 09:33 Bad Week: Anal bead scandal strikes the chess world 18:44 Interview: Aleksandar Brezar on the Bosnian elections 30:46 Isolation Inspiration: 'Born in Blackness' and Jessie Inchauspé on the ZOE podcast 34:41 Happy Ending: The power of cow poo Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 29, 2022
What the hell just happened in Italy?
This week saw a political earthquake in Italy — albeit one that had been widely predicted. With Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy poised to lead the new government, just how scared should we be? We ring up the philosopher Lorenzo Marsili to help us understand what just happened. We're also talking about fair pensions for Swiss women, and a Spanish lagoon that can now call itself a person. Lorenzo is the founder of the progressive civil society movement European Alternatives . You can follow him on Twitter here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Flying to LA' by Maro feat. Lisa Oduor-Noah 'I'll Come Too' by James Blake 'Broken Greek' by Pete Paphides and the accompanying Spotify playlist 02:18 Good Week: The Mar Menor 06:43 Bad Week: Swiss women 13:57 Interview: Lorenzo Marsili on the Italian elections 28:16 Isolation Inspiration: Maro and Broken Greek 32:07 Happy Ending: We can't wait for Rail Baltica Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 22, 2022
The joys of the early internet
Between those of us who grew up before the internet and those who've never known a world without it, there's a generation of people who came of age *with* the web. This week we chat to the French-Moroccan journalist Marie Le Conte about 'Escape', a book that reflects on the vibrant, chaotic days of the early internet and what has changed since then. We're also talking about Viktor Orbán's money woes and why psychiatrists in Brussels are prescribing museum visits for mental health. Marie tweets at @youngvulgarian . 'Escape: How a generation shaped, destroyed and survived the internet' is out now . You can read about how Hungary's elite made a fortune from EU subsidies here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Politalia newsletter and ' Druk ' (Another Round). Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 02:47 Bad (ish) Week: Hungary's billions 10:34 Good Week: Brussels' 'museum therapy' initiative 18:57 Interview: Marie Le Conte on 'Escape' and growing up on the early internet 30:18 Isolation Inspiration: The Politalia newsletter and 'Druk' ('Another Round') 32:59 Happy Ending: Happy Birthday, Spider-Man Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 15, 2022
Episode 200! Sweden’s elections and a guy who used to run a country
We're back after our summer break, and celebrating a milestone this week: our 200th episode! To mark the occasion, we're joined by a special guest, former Finnish prime minister Alexander Stubb . Now that he's training the next generation of leaders at the European University Institute in Florence, we asked him to grade the current batch on their handling of everything from the war in Ukraine to the energy crisis. We're also talking about Sweden's election, an ill-advised decision by Bosnian football bosses, and how sheep can help to fight forest fires. Alexander Stubb is Director of the School of Transnational Governance at the European University Institute. You can follow him on Twitter here . Back in 2020 we interviewed another former Finnish PM, 16-year-old Aava Murto, after she held the job for a day. You can check out that conversation in this episode . And Aleksandar Brezar's reporting on Bosnia and Herzegovina's planned friendly against Russia can be found here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Take A Chance' - DOMi & JD BECK, feat. Anderson .Paak 'Thou Wilt Keep Him In Perfect Peace' - Samuel Sebastian Wesley 'The short unhappy life of Elizabeth Windsor' - Politico Europe Thank you so much to all the listeners who have helped us reach 200 episodes. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 We're back, and it's our 200th episode! 03:36 Good Week? Sweden's elections 20:27 Interview: Alexander Stubb grades Europe's leaders on their handling of various current crises 36:33 Isolation Inspiration 41:04 Happy Ending: Firefighting sheep and goat(s) Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | <a h
Bonus · Fri, September 09, 2022
Josh and Franco
This week, we heard that 'Josh and Franco', one of our all-time favourite episodes, has been nominated for the equivalent of an Oscar in the European podcast world: the Prix Europa. We are over the moon and thought this was a good moment to re-release the episode. It was the first episode from our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like and if you are watching on Spotify, you will be able to watch this podcast as it was our first attempt at creating a 'Visual Podcast', in collaboration with our friends at Are We Europe . If you are not listening on Spotify, then you can experience the visual episode on Vimeo here: https://vimeo.com/areweeurope/joshandfranco Podcast Credits: Producers: Katz Laszlo and Josh Prezioso Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer, Katy Lee, Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Video Credits: Visual & Motion Design: Eddie Stok Project Coordination: Mick ter Reehorst Translation: Giosuè Prezioso Subtitles: Marco Mingolla Music: Tarantella del Gargano by Marco Beasley & represented by Out Here Music; Italian Opera by UV Protection; Andante (Italian Concerto) written by Bach and performed by Catrina Finch; Amore Mio by Mina with Warner Music Italy; Tomb by Veshza; La Luna E Fisarmonica by Ziv Moran; Disco Ball by Evgeny Barduzha, and Jim Barne. Additional music from Blue Dot Sessions : Kilkerrin by Scalcairn; Sylvestor by One Such Village; Angel Academy by Marc Oakley; Toby or not Toby by Mark Oakley. SFX from Freesounds.org: Wescwave ; GeorgeHopkins ; suonidigallipoli ; samararaine ; cmusounddesign ; suonidibologna ; wolkenunddreck ; ancorapazzo ; soundforest . This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . This series is co
Thu, July 21, 2022
Bad laws and feta wars
In the final episode before our summer break, we dive into a cheese-based conflict between Greece and Denmark and a homophobic Hungarian law that is finally being challenged by the EU in court. Plus, we ring up Una Hajdari, roaming reporter in the Western Balkans, to try to untangle why North Macedonia has had such a rough ride on its path to EU membership. And in a special pre-holiday edition of Isolation Inspiration, we've got a bumper crop of European summer reads and a chat with Gregory Warner from NPR's Rough Translation about work culture around the world. You can follow Una on Twitter here and Szabolcs Panyi, the Hungarian journalist Dominic mentioned, here . The Europeans' Summer 2022 Reading List is here and you can check out Rough Translation's new season, 'Work', at https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510324/rough-translation . Thanks for listening! We'll be back on September 15. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Welcome! 02:33 Good Week: Slovenia legalises gay marriage and adoption 08:25 Bad Week: The Uber Files 19:43 Interview: Janez Potočnik on Europe's food supplies 33:03 Isolation Inspiration: 'Techtopia' and 'Standing Up' 36:25 Happy Ending: Old bones in Spain Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 14, 2022
Farmers, fossils and files
Russia's assault on Ukraine is driving a global food crisis, and there are calls for Europe to dramatically increase its own supplies in response. But can we do that without damaging the environment? This week we speak to former EU environment commissioner Janez Potočnik about how to ensure our food security without sacrificing ambitious climate and biodiversity plans. We're also talking about the #UberFiles, Slovenia's move to legalise same-sex marriage, and an extremely old Spaniard. Janez is the co-chair of the UN International Resource Panel and a partner at SYSTEMIQ. You can follow him on Twitter here . Isolation Inspiration: This episode of Techtopia on a massive ransomware attack in Germany; Standing Up on Netflix. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 00:22 Welcome! 02:33 Good Week: Slovenia legalises gay marriage and adoption 08:25 Bad Week: The Uber Files 19:43 Interview: Janez Potočnik on Europe's food supplies 33:03 Isolation Inspiration: 'Techtopia' and 'Standing Up' 36:25 Happy Ending: Old bones in Spain Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 07, 2022
The bigger the better?
Ukraine and Moldova have been granted candidate status to join the EU. It's a major moment in the messy process of knitting this continent together — but is a bigger European Union automatically a better one? This week we chat to Dr. Ilke Toygür about what this all means for Ukraine, Moldova and the EU itself. We're also talking about Venice's new entry fee for day-trippers, sexy Swedish waste disposal, and why Greece and Turkey are fighting over a made-up word. Ilke is a professor of political science at the University Carlos III of Madrid and a fellow at the Centre for Applied Turkey Studies at SWP Berlin. You can follow her on Twitter here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: ' Borgen - Power & Glory ' and ' She Rides Like The Wind - the story of Alfonsina Strada ' by Joan Negrescolor. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 02:20 Good Week? Venice's fee for day-trippers 08:50 Bad Week: The Great Greek-Turkish Portmanteau Row 16:52 Interview: Ilke Toygür on growing the EU 32:13 Isolation Inspiration: 'Borgen' and 'She Rides Like The Wind' 35:11 Happy Ending: Malmö's smutty bins Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 30, 2022
Your Face Looks Familiar
More and more European police forces are using facial recognition technology. Under an EU proposal they'd be able to share access to the millions of images they've collected – creating what critics say amounts to one of the most extensive biometric surveillance systems in the world. This week we speak to Domen Savič, head of Slovenian digital rights NGO Državljan D (Citizen D), about the tricky balance between fighting crime and protecting our privacy. We're also talking about Seville's plans to name its heatwaves and the French response to the US Supreme Court's abortion ruling. Plus, a recording of Dominic's doorbell disaster. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Bionic reading , Nicola Coughlan on Off Menu , DakhaBrakha , Jamala , Kalush and Go_A . You can check out Državljan D's monthly podcast on tech ethics here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 02:34 Good Week: Seville's plan to name its heatwaves 11:52 Bad Week (or Good Response To A Bad Week): France's response to the US Supreme Court ruling 18:20 Interview: Domen Savič on the EU's facial recognition plans 30:33 Isolation Inspiration: Bionic reading, Nicola Coughlan on Off Menu, and Glastonbury's Ukrainian offerings 34:42 Happy Ending: Rock, paper, scissors on wheels Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 16, 2022
It takes more than two, baby
When Remco Yizhak Cooremans moved home to the Netherlands after many years abroad, the authorities told him something shocking: his son wasn't legally his son. This week, we hear about Dutch plans to bring the law up to date with the realities of 21st-century parenting. We're also talking about Roman trash and minimum wages you can actually live on. Remco is the chairman of Meer dan Gewenst . If you're interested in the multi-parenting law, you can catch him speaking at De Balie in Amsterdam on June 16, and it's being streamed online too. Details here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Navalny , and Rough Translation's episode on France's forbidden desk lunches . We're taking a break next week so that Katy can go stand in a muddy field. While we're away, check out this beautiful episode from Belarusian poet Hanna Komar , reflecting on the meaning of freedom. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 02:41 Good Week: Minimum wages you can actually live on 08:54 Bad Week: Messy Rome 18:06 Interview: Remco Yizhak Cooremans on the Netherlands' planned multi-parent law 32:33 Isolation Inspiration: 'Navalny' and Rough Translation's French lunch episode 34:23 Happy Ending: Congratulations, Candida! Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 09, 2022
What is Orbán playing at?
In the EU's complicated efforts to present a united front on Ukraine, Viktor Orbán stands out like a sore thumb. Why is Orbán cosying up to Vladimir Putin? This week, we catch up with longtime Orbán-watcher Viktória Serdült on what game the Hungarian leader might be playing. We're also talking about the toxic row engulfing Germany's documenta fifteen festival, and a gamechanger for annoying customer service calls in Spain. Viktória is a journalist at HVG , one of the few remaining bastions of independent media in Hungary. You can follow her on Twitter here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: On Spec and Season 3 of Derry Girls . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 03:07 Bad Week: documenta fifteen 14:06 Good Week: Spain's amazing customer service bill 20:18 Interview: Viktória Serdült on Viktor Orbán's latest antics 31:16 Isolation Inspiration: On Spec and Derry Girls 34:09 Happy Ending: Pompeii DNA Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 02, 2022
Hanna
From Minsk and London, a story about the meaning of freedom. Hanna Komar, a poet, was jailed for her activism in Belarus. This week, she tells us what it’s like to move from a place where people have to fight for basic rights, to a place where people take them for granted. This is the fifth episode in our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: intimate stories from young Europeans across the continent. A beautiful visual version of this podcast will be available later this year. In the meantime, check out the first visual podcast in this series: Josh and Franco. This series is co-produced with Are We Europe and is made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Katy Lee and Hanna Komar Sound design: Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Editors: Katz Laszlo and Dominic Kraemer Music: ‘Girl in White’ by Naviband, ‘Ballerina’ by Yehezkel Raz, ‘Ballerina Remix’ by Yehezkel Raz and Lalinea, ‘Магутны Божа’ by Volny Chor; ‘Looking for You’ by Christof Waters; Blue Dot Sessions; and Papa Bo mixing tracks by Meute, live during the protests in Minsk. Theme music by Jim Barne. SFX from Freesound.org. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 26, 2022
Moldova’s Propaganda Problem
Moldova represents a prime example of social media giants' failure to tackle disinformation in smaller and less wealthy countries — in this case, with hugely dangerous potential consequences. This week we speak to civil society activist Diana Filimon about the propaganda war that Russia has been waging in countries neighbouring Ukraine. We're also talking about Germany's €9 transport experiment, the morality of a lockdown for cats, and scallop discothèques. You can find out more about Diana's work at Forum Apulum here and read Philip Oltermann's reporting on racism claims against Berlin ticket inspectors here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Truffle Hunters , and the New York Times' reporting on the legacy of Haiti's reparations to enslavers . You can read more about the methods used for the NYT's reporting here and more on reactions to the story here . A video of dancing scallops can be found here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few bucks a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (many currencies are available). You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. And this week, why not #TellASwede about this podcast's existence? 02:51 Good Week: Germany's €9 transport experiment 09:40 Bad Week: Walldorf's lockdown for cats 17:12 Interview: Diana Filimon on disinformation in Moldova 33:06 Isolation Inspiration: 'The Truffle Hunters' and the NYT's reporting on Haiti's reparations to enslavers 38:19 Happy Ending: Scallop disco Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak, with thanks to Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | <a href='https://www.instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Thu, May 12, 2022
Solar-Powered Scrolling
Kris de Decker's balcony in Barcelona is nice and sunny. Which is just as well, because a website depends on it. This week we chat to Kris, co-founder of Low-Tech Magazine, about why he built a solar-powered website and how human history can inspire modern environmental solutions. We're also talking about foie gras, faux gras, and bringing EU and non-EU Europe together. You can check out the solar-powered version of Low-Tech Magazine's website here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Today in Focus - The Wagatha Christie case' ; 'Multiples: 12 stories in 18 languages by 61 authors' ; this vegan foie gras recipe ; Impact from Les Glorieuses, a feminist newsletter in English and French . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. 03:23 Good Week? Macron's big new idea 12:09 Bad Week: Foie gras 20:09 Interview: Kris De Decker on building a solar-powered website 34:38 Isolation Inspiration: 'Today in Focus - The Wagatha Christie case' and 'Multiples' 38:04 Happy Ending: Italy's women footballers go pro Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak, with thanks to Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 05, 2022
Doctor Eurovision
We know, we know, not everyone loves Eurovision — but we think you'll enjoy this week's interview even if you're not as nuts about the annual celebration of euro-kitsch as we are. Dr Dean Vuletic is the world's pre-eminent Eurovision historian, and we were delighted to talk to him about how the contest came into being and why it's always been so political. We're also talking about the EU's Russian oil embargo, a row over WWII reparations in 2022, and a first for wind power in the Mediterranean. We'll be running a Eurovision sweepstake for our Patreon supporters on the night of the finals, May 10! More details soon at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Financing Putin's war: you can find the real-time tracker of EU fossil fuel imports here and read the Atlantic Council's research on replacing Russian gas here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Young Mungo' by Douglas Stuart , the photography of Wolfgang Tillmans , and Russian Doll, Season 2 . 02:26 (Tentative) Good Week: The EU's Russian oil embargo 10:24 Bad Week: Italy, Germany, and WWII reparations 15:57 Interview: Dean Vuletic on the history of Eurovision 32:45 Isolation Inspiration: 'Young Mungo', Wolfgang Tillmans and Russian Doll, Season 2 Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producer: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 28, 2022
Mohamed
This week, a story about Mohamed, living in limbo while trapped in a labyrinth of bureaucracy. This is the fourth episode from our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: intimate stories from young Europeans across the continent. A beautiful visual version of this podcast will be available later this year. In the meantime, check out the first visual podcast in this series: Josh and Franco. This series is co-produced with Are We Europe and is made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Mohamed Bah Mixing and Mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Sound design: Katz Laszlo Editor: Katy Lee Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: I Wish I Knew How it Would Feel To Be Free, covered by Bahghi; Ancore une Staggione by Bottega Baltazar; Blurry by Curtis Cole; Kongo by Trio Particular; Coco Bread by Wearethegood; Mas Feliz Del Mundo by Ofir Atar; Fandanguillo also by Ofir Atar; No One Is Out Here by Yehezkel Raz. Theme music by Jim Barne. SFX from Freesound.org. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 21, 2022
Can the EU fix fast fashion?
Every year, Europeans chuck away millions of tons of clothing. The EU has a new plan to tackle the huge environmental impact of the fashion and textile industry — but can it make a difference? We asked the model and activist Nimue Smit to take a look. We're also talking about the UK's extremely controversial plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, and a legal leap forward for Spain's single parents. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Lithuanian clothing exchange Vinted , and Belgian Netflix comedy 'Soil' ('Grond') . A few things Nimue mentioned that listeners might want to check out: 'Consumed' by Aja Barber , Depop , Vestiaire Collective , Sustainable Fashion Giftcard , Rank A Brand . 02:17 Bad Week: UK asylum policy 13:44 Good Week: Spain's single parents 19:49 Interview: Nimue Smit on fixing the fashion industry 34:02 Isolation Inspiration: Vinted and Grond 36:28 Happy Ending: Teaching teens to love natural history Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producer: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak, with thanks to Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, April 12, 2022
Katy went to Le Pen’s party so you didn’t have to
Iiiiit's French election week! Katy spent the big night at Le Pen HQ. This week, in a Europeans first, Dominic and Katz turn the microphone on our resident French person to ask: what just happened? And could Marine Le Pen really become France's first far-right president? We're also talking about the soaring cost of housing (again) and the European microstate that just pulled off an LGBTQ+ world first. You can listen to Cody Hochstenbach calling for a revolution in housing policy here and find the latest figures from Eurostat here . And you can read here about why microstates have often been slow to catch up on LGBTQ rights. Isolation Inspiration: 'Free' by Lea Ypi and Große Freiheit (Great Freedom). 02:07 Bad Week: Housing costs up AGAIN 04:49 Good Week: San Marino's world-first LGBTQ+ head of state 10:22 Interview: Katy on the French election 28:09 Isolation Inspiration: 'Free' by Lea Ypi and Große Freiheit (Great Freedom) 30:31 Happy Ending: Making the most of the Greek sunshine Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producer: Katy Lee, with thanks to Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 07, 2022
Finnish Lessons
We're back! And we're headed into the classroom. Kids across Europe have very different experiences of school depending on where they live and how rich their parents are. One country that's been praised for getting public education right is Finland. This week we speak to education professor Pasi Sahlberg about what the world can learn from the Finnish way. We're also talking about Orbán's victory, bridging Europe's North-South divide, and a particularly special edition of El Clásico. Pasi is Professor of Education at Southern Cross University. You can read more about his work here and follow him on Twitter here . You can read the joint Spain-Netherlands paper here and find Politico's reporting on it here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Flee , Talking France , and Paroles de France(s) . 02:50 Bad Week: Hungary's opposition 11:48 Good Week: Bridging the North-South divide 20:46 Interview with Pasi Sahlberg 34:56 Isolation Inspiration: Flee and French election podcasts 38:39 Happy Ending: A very special Clásico Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 31, 2022
Millennial History: Children of the Decree
Joanna and Catinca were born in Romania during the final years of the dictatorship of Nicolai Ceausescu, a regime that combined elements of The Hunger Games, The Handmaid's Tale and North Korea. Our regular episodes return next week. While Dominic wraps up work on his new show, here’s the second of two special guest appearances from Millennial History, a podcast series that relives moments in recent world history, as seen through the eyes of people who were children when they happened. In interviews with musical journalist Andrea Voets, they reflect on the far-reaching consequences of the events on their lives and societies. Andrea and composer/sound designer Luke Deane have combined these testimonies with music donated by more than sixty bands to create a unique form of ‘musical journalism’. Producers: Andrea Voets and Luke Deane Special thanks to: Cosima Opartan, Surorile Osoianu, Subcarpati, Karpov not Kasparov, Musai Soundworks, Diana Rotaru, Temple Invisible, Alex Simu & quintet, Robin & the Backstabbers, Andrea Voets This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . A cooperation of Resonate Productions - creating musical journalism - and Are We Europe. For more episodes, subscribe to Millennial History. www.millennialhistorypodcast.com || www.facebook.com/musicaljournalism
Thu, March 24, 2022
Millennial History: Sicily, Mafia and Falcone
Aki grew up in Sicily. On May 23, 1992, the mafia blew up the highway behind his grandmother’s house, killing a judge named Giovanni Falcone. Since Dominic is away right now, we’re bringing you the first of two very special guest appearances from Millennial History, a new podcast series reliving impactful moments in recent world history, as seen through the eyes of people who were children when they happened. In interviews with musical journalist Andrea Voets, they reflect on the far-reaching consequences of the events on their lives and societies. Andrea and composer/sound designer Luke Deane have combined these testimonies with music donated by more than sixty bands to create a unique form of ‘musical journalism’. Producers: Andrea Voets and Luke Deane Special thanks to: Alfio Antico, Giulia Tagliavia, Francesco Guaiana, Salvatore Bonafede This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . A cooperation of Resonate Productions - creating musical journalism - and Are We Europe. For more episodes, subscribe to Millennial History. www.millennialhistorypodcast.com || www.facebook.com/musicaljournalism
Mon, March 14, 2022
Voice notes from Ukraine
Before the war, Vladimir was a film producer and Yuriy was a journalist. Daria works in marketing, Andrii is a musician, and Anna is a human resources manager for an IT company. This week we asked five Ukrainians to send us some voice messages, documenting their thoughts and feelings since the world turned upside down on February 24. You can donate to the International Committee of the Red Cross's Ukraine appeal here . Many thanks to Daria Barakhta, Andrii Kovalov, Yuriy Matsarsky, Anna Tolstaia, and Vladimir Yatsenko for sharing their thoughts with us. Vladimir continues to film footage of the war; you can follow his posts here . This episode was produced by Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak, with editorial help from Katz Laszlo. Sound design by Wojciech Oleksiak. Music by Jazzpospolita and Jim Barne. Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, March 02, 2022
Army boots
We're struggling to process what has happened on this continent over the past week. With events moving incredibly fast on the ground, we wanted to reflect on the human cost of conflict in Ukraine. The writer and historian Olesya Khromeychuk , director of the Ukrainian Institute London, joins us to read an excerpt from her book 'A Loss', about her brother's death on the frontline in 2017. We also hear from our producer Wojciech Oleksiak about how the Russian invasion feels different if you're following the news from Central or Eastern Europe compared to further West. Plus, the sound of Europeans standing with Ukraine, from London to Lisbon, Berlin to Minsk. This week's recommendations: 'A Loss' ; '1944' by Jamala ; 'Grey Bees' by Andrey Kurkov . You can support the Kyiv Independent on Patreon here , and donate to a range of different Ukrainian media organisations here . More information on ways to help can be found here . Many thanks to the Ukrainian Village Voices choir for giving us permission to play this beautiful recording of 'O Bozhe' . #StandWithUkraine Producers: Katy Lee, Wojciech Oleksiak and Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 24, 2022
Let Them Entertain Us
This week, the case for culture: keeping it free, and keeping it funded. We're talking about the state of artistic freedom in Poland; plus, the state of Europe's live music industry, with Elise Phamgia of Liveurope and Janine Cathrein of Swiss indie folk band Black Sea Dahu. Also on the agenda: what to do with problematic statues in Brussels. Black Sea Dahu are touring again! You can find tour dates and more on their website , and listen on Spotify . Isolation Inspiration: Liveurope's artists to watch out for in 2022 ; Ukrainian war literature in translation ; Édouard Louis , 'Qui a tué mon père'. Bonus recommendations: Black Sea Dahu's new album, 'I Am My Mother', and ' Empireland ' by Sathnam Sangera. 02:43 Good Week, or 'Constructive Ideas Week': Brussels' report on colonial-era monuments 12:17 Bad Week: Krzysztof Głuchowski and artistic freedom in Poland 21:53 Interview: Elise Phamgia and Janine Cathrein on the state of Europe's live music industry 34:21 Isolation Inspiration: Liveurope's new music for 2022; the new Ukrainian war literature; Édouard Louis, 'Qui a tué mon père' 37:46 Happy Ending: a boat trip Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 17, 2022
WTF, housing market?
From Ireland to Croatia, the cost of housing has been shooting up across this continent, leaving rising numbers of people homeless and millions struggling to pay the rent. This week Amsterdam city geographer Cody Hochstenbach , whose new book Uitgewoond argues for a revolution in housing policy, is here to explain how we ended up in this mess — and what we might do to fix it. We're also talking about Spanish orcas, lost teeth, and a Europe without Facebook and Instagram. You can read El País' long read on the changing face of Spain's drug trade here , and check out Bruno Le Maire's unsmiling mug shots here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Beautiful World, Where Are You and The Summit of the Gods 02:39 Bad Week: Meta in Europe 12:33 Good Week: Spain's orca drug plot busted 20:14 Interview: Cody Hochstenbach on fixing the housing market 33:08 Isolation Inspiration: Beautiful World, Where Are You and The Summit of the Gods 36:53 Happy Ending: Paul and his teeth, reunited Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 10, 2022
A Whale of a Taxonomy
What do nuclear energy and whale-hunting have in common? They're both at the heart of controversial debates about whether they can ever be described as 'sustainable'. This week we delve into a questionable EU anti-greenwashing effort, as well as Iceland's mooted plan to put a ban on commercial whaling. We're also looking at the revamp of one of Venice's most historic buildings, the Procuratie Vecchie . Emma Ursich, whose NGO The Human Safety Net will be among its new occupants, is here to explain why the building is opening its doors after half a millennium closed to the public. You can check out Influence Map's investigation into the EU gas lobby here , and listen to our producer Katz Laszlo's beautiful piece 'Whale Fall' here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Trojan Horse Affair and Glória . 03:01 Bad Week: Gas, nuclear and the EU taxonomy 11:56 Good Week: Whales off the coast of Iceland 22:01 Interview: Emma Ursich on remaking the Procuratie Vecchie 31:53 Isolation Inspiration: The Trojan Horse Affair and Gloria 34:29 Happy Ending: amazing Swiss scientists Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, February 03, 2022
The Case for Colour
Taryn de Vere set herself a joyful challenge in January: to dress up each day as a household object, from a bottle of toilet cleaner to a sack of potatoes. This week, the person dubbed Possibly The Most Colourful Woman in Ireland joins us to make the case for injecting a little more fun into our wardrobes. We're also talking about ghost flights, a relaxing Berlin transport initiative, and whether Italy's 80-year-old president will ever be allowed to retire. You can follow Taryn on Instagram here and on Twitter here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: ' Into Eternity ' and ' Courage '. This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, January 27, 2022
Malta’s abortion taboo
When the European parliament elected a new president last week, many of the headlines focused on one thing: the fact that she's against abortion. But Roberta Metsola's public stance is not at all unusual in a country with one of the strictest abortion bans in the world. This week we're asking: where does this incredibly strong taboo come from? Researcher and activist Liza Caruana-Finkel is here to fill us in. We're also talking about Chinese influence at European universities, and the case of a toilet that went all the way to Italy's Supreme Court. 'Why it is vital to decriminalise abortion: the case of Malta' - The Conversation China's Magic Weapon - BBC Excellent tweets about embarrassing mistakes in a second (or third or fourth) language This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Investigation ( Efterforskningen) ; Atlas Linguae This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review or giving us five stars on Spotify. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, January 20, 2022
Energy bills, bills, bills
We're back for a brand new year of stories from across the continent. Top of the agenda is an issue that's been worrying a lot of Europeans: eye-wateringly expensive energy bills. Energy expert Marine Cornelis is here to explain why this is happening and what can be done about it. We're also catching up on Ukraine and a transatlantic cheese dispute. Marine is the founder of Next Energy Consumer and the host of the Energ'ethic podcast . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Young Royals , Stromae's new single , and Angèle . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 16, 2021
The Europeans’ Christmas Party!
We threw a little party for our last episode of the year! Producers Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak join Katy and Dominic from Amsterdam and Warsaw to discuss elephant retirement, tree fraud, and festive traditions around Europe. Local snacks included. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Women at War , Draumalandið by Valgeir Sigurðsson , The Way Home: Tales from a Life Without Technology by Mark Boyle , and Are We Europe: Online Lies, Offline Lives . Thank you so much for listening to The Europeans in 2021. We'll be back on January 20. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it into next year, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 09, 2021
The life of a reindeer herder
It's that time of year when reindeer start cropping up on all kinds of Christmassy consumer goods, from snowglobes to Advent calendars. But for the indigenous Sámi people of northern Europe, herding these remarkable animals is a way of life — and one that is increasingly under threat. This week we speak to Sámi herder and climate change expert Jannie Staffansson about her community's intimate and profound relationship with reindeer. It's an animal-themed episode this week, so we're also talking about a bee miracle in the Canary Islands, and how a European sheep can somehow be rare and a threat to biodiversity at the same time. This week's Isolation Inspiration was brought to you courtesy of Arte . Check out their series Re: European Stories here . Dominic enjoyed this episode on tea farming in Georgia , while Frederic recommends you check out this episode on village shops . You should also check out the latest episode of NPR's Rough Translation podcast ! It includes a version of 'Sara', one of the episodes from our mini-series 'This Is What A Generation Sounds Like', co-produced by our very own Katz Laszlo with Adelina Lancianese. This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, December 02, 2021
The Subtle Art of Subtitling
Millions of us have spent this pandemic bingeing on international films and television, transported far away through the magic of the screen. But there's an underappreciated army of workers who make it all possible: the subtitlers. This week we chat to Russian subtitler Max Deryagin about how Netflix has shaken up the industry and why things sometimes get lost in translation. We're also talking about the new Germany, the failures of Britain's asylum policy, and the woman on Romania's new 20 lei banknote. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Steve Rosenberg's interview with Alexander Lukashenko , this episode of the BBC's Media Show podcast, and Lords of Scam . You can also check out this Twitter thread about a key problem with Netflix subtitles. This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 25, 2021
Move Fast And Fix Things
'Move fast and break things' was Facebook's corporate philosophy in its early days. Europe now wants to do the opposite when it comes to the harmful effects of social media: move fast and fix things. This week we're taking a look at the EU's plan to rein in the tech giants with the help of one of our favourite European tech nerds, Guillermo Beltrà of the Open Society European Policy Institute. We've also got a special Outer Space edition of Good Week Bad Week. This podcast was produced in collaboration with the Open Society European Policy Institute. You can find out more about their work here and check out an episode we previously made with them about Europe's climate policy here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Unlikely Murderer (Den osannolika mördaren) and Tear Along the Dotted Line (Strappare lungo i bordi). This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 18, 2021
Pushbacks
It’s dawn in the Aegean Sea. A dozen asylum seekers are crammed into a rubber dinghy, hoping to land on the Greek island of Lesbos. They are already within EU waters — and they have the right, under international law, to claim asylum. But a huge ship is blocking their way. This week we are looking at the phenomenon of pushbacks: illegal efforts to push people back across a border so that they cannot claim asylum. And we’re looking at mounting evidence that the EU’s border agency, Frontex, has witnessed or even participated in these pushbacks. We recommend that you check out Lighthouse Reports' investigations on Europe's borders . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Reporter and producer: Andrei Popoviciu Editorial support: Katz Laszlo, Katy Lee, Dominic Kraemer, Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Sound design: Andrei Popoviciu and Wojciech Oleksiak Editor: Katy Lee Mixing: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne , Bluedot Sessions , Artlist.io Sound effects: Freesound.org
Thu, November 11, 2021
Trapped at the EU border
A humanitarian crisis is unfolding at the edge of the EU. Asylum seekers are finding themselves trapped in the forest between Poland and Belarus, caught up in a political game, and literally freezing to death. Marta Górczyńska, a migration lawyer who has been helping some of the new arrivals, explains what's happening on the ground and what international law has to say about this shameful situation. We're also talking about the Council of Europe's hijab fiasco and Italy's mafia maxi-trial. Plus, a tale of cough sweets and generosity. We have some tickets to give away to see some great musical acts, courtesy of our friends at Liveurope! Check out our Instagram and Facebook page for a chance to win tickets to see Priya Ragu in Amsterdam on November 18 and Viagra Boys in Lille on November 23. This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, November 04, 2021
Sara
This week, a story that spans three generations of women: Sara, her mother, and her grandmother. In their collective lifetimes, Albania entered a communist dictatorship; the regime fell; and then there was a transition. And through it all, there was a dish: trahana. This is the third episode from our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: intimate stories from young Europeans across the continent. A beautiful visual version of this podcast, as well as the previous episode, ‘Denisa’, will be available soon! In the meantime, check out the first visual podcast in this series: Josh and Franco. This series is produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Sara Assistant producer: Priyanka Shankar Editor: Katy Lee Sound design: Katz Laszlo Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer, Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Era e Feminise, by Elina Duni; Song of Emigration, by Women’s Choir from Permet; Tana, by Saziso; Ka Nje mot e gjysem viti, by Elina Duni Quartet; Jonuzi Me Shoket by Vaome Kaba; Ballerina by Yehezkel Raz; Mëmëdheu by the Peter Pan Quartet; Jim Barne. SFX from Freesound.org. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 21, 2021
Will Europe’s climate policy save us all?
Fit for 55 sounds like a plan to get middle-aged people to exercise, but it is in fact one of the most ambitious climate policies on the planet. But is it enough to make a difference? This week, in collaboration with the Open Society European Policy Institute, our favourite climate explainer Emily Stewart breaks down Europe's plan for us. Is Fit for 55 fit for purpose? And can Europe turn it into a reality without sparking a continent-wide social revolt? You can follow Emily on Twitter here and find out more about OSEPI's work here . This episode was produced and sound designed by Wojciech Oleksiak, with editorial support from Katy Lee, Dominic Kraemer and Katz Laszlo. Music by Jim Barne and Blue Dot Sessions. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 14, 2021
What the hell just happened in Poland?
Wondering why everyone is suddenly talking about the prospect of a 'Polexit'? This week we're talking to excellent Polandsplainer Jakub Jaraczewski about why the government in Warsaw has just got itself into a huge legal mess. We're also talking about the downfall of Austria's Wunderkind, why so many young Spaniards live with their parents, and the mysterious power of the European chestnut. Jakub is a research coordinator at Democracy Reporting International . You can follow him here on Twitter . This week's Isolation Inspiration: the Earthshot Prize on Saturday, October 16, and 'On Time And Water' by Andri Snær Magnason. You can also watch his video for TED here . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, October 07, 2021
The château, the walrus and the rogue Danish artist
This week we're delving into the Czech PM's secret purchase of a French château, an extremely bold Danish artistic experiment, and, oh yes, Wally the Walrus' tour of the European coastline. Plus, political scientist Arndt Leininger is here to decrypt the German election for us. For excellent German politics nerdery you can follow Arndt on Twitter here , and for a Pandora Papers deep-dive into Andrej Babiš and his French château, head to the ICIJ . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Anna Learns A New Language ; Darknet Diaries Got a better name for our Isolation Inspiration segment? Answers on a postcard please: hello@europeanspodcast.com This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, September 28, 2021
The last 250 years of Amsterdam - Live at the Tolhuistuin
It's our first ever live show! Recorded live at the Tolhuistuin in Amsterdam. And what could be a more appropriate discussion than the fact that this city will one day be underwater? We promise that's a less depressing conversation than it sounds, because the person who's here to talk about it is husband of the show Thomas Lamers, a member of the documentary theatre collective Collectief Walden . They spent this summer asking an intriguing question: if Amsterdam only has around 250 years left, what should they look like? This week's Isolation Inspiration: Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney and The Hidden Life of Trees . You can also watch a video about Collectief Walden's Eiland project here and listen to their podcasts here . Thank you so much to the Lieven and the whole team at the Podcastfestival for having us, and to Katz Laszlo, Mick ter Reehorst and Stefano Montali for their help on the night. And thank you for listening. If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Music: Jim Barne, Ed Bahonie and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 23, 2021
Submarines and rainbow families
This week, Katy’s plunging into the depths of the French Submarine Saga and Dominic’s delving into some tentatively good developments for LGBTQ parents in Europe. Plus, the speech we were all waiting for! Or not. One of our favourite journalists within the Brussels bubble, the Spanish reporter Beatriz Ríos, is here to unravel Ursula von der Leyen's State of the European Union for us. We can’t wait to see some of you at our first-ever live show in Amsterdam on Friday! For those of you who can’t join us, don’t fear – a recording will be dropping in your feeds next week. It’ll be a little earlier than usual, so look out for it on Monday or Tuesday. This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Hill Where Lionesses Roar ; A Poisoning You can follow Beatriz on Twitter here and read about Italy’s one-euro homes here . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 16, 2021
The Belarus solidarity algorithm
A year into the protest movement in Belarus, what are things like on the ground? This week we talk to the poet Hanna Komar about her own experience in detention, and the extraordinary "algorithm" of solidarity among women in the movement. We're also talking about Russian gas, Norwegian oil, and the magnificence of Emma Raducanu. You can read Hanna's article, 'Sisterhood behind bars', here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Lykke Li and Robyn on Song Exploder; The Book of Reykjavik . There are still a few tickets left for our first ever live show, in Amsterdam on September 24! Grab one here . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, September 09, 2021
Is Friday the new Saturday?
We're back from our summer break with an enticing idea: what would happen if we only worked four days a week? Far from spelling economic disaster, the Portuguese economist Pedro Gomes argues it would boost the economy and our well-being at the same time. We chat to him about his excellent new book, 'Friday Is The New Saturday: How A Four-Day Week Will Save The Economy'. We're also talking about naughty European banks, a lucky Neapolitan scratchcard, and — of course! — the return of ABBA. We're doing our first ever live show at the Podcastfestival in Amsterdam on Friday, September 24! The show starts at 7pm. Get your tickets here . You can check out the EU Tax Observatory's report on banks and tax havens here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Malta and the El Hiblu 3 ; Bandigou de Melun . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 15, 2021
Europe’s next illiberal democracy?
Slovenia, aka Katy's favourite country, is increasingly drawing comparisons with Hungary and Poland when it comes to the state of its democracy. Can this worrying direction of travel be reversed? This week we ring up our favourite Sloveniologist Aljaž Pengov Bitenc to find out. We're also talking about Bulgaria's political rock star, and a shocking attack on a Dutch crime journalist. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Katla and an update from Death In Ice Valley . You should also check out our interview with Death In Ice Valley host Marit Higraff, from May 2018! Listen here . You can follow Aljaž on Twitter here and read his blog here . We're off on a little summer break! We'll be back in September. In the meantime, we think you'll love the visual version of our the first episode in our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, Josh and Franco , and the second episode, Denisa . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Producers: Priyanka Shankar and Andrei Popoviciu Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 08, 2021
Bread Week
Few people talk about bread in such magical terms as Apollonia Poilâne. This week we speak to the head of one of France's most prestigious bakeries about the secrets of sourdough and taking over the family company aged just 18. We're also talking about Iceland's four-day week experiment, a cyberattack that took out hundreds of Swedish supermarkets, and boosting body positivity in Norway. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Apollonia's book Poilâne , Eurocrats Who Look Like Europe (EU Scream) , and Sweat . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, July 01, 2021
Denisa
We tend to talk about freedom of movement within the EU as an abstract concept. In reality, moving to a new place involves a million little moments of awkwardness, sweetness, and human vulnerability. This week, we bring you a story of what freedom of movement actually felt like, for a 14-year-old Romanian moving to Germany. This is the second episode from our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: intimate stories from young Europeans across the continent. A beautiful visual version of this podcast will be available soon! In the meantime, check out the first visual podcast in this series: Josh and Franco. This series is produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Denisa Harbuz Sound design: Andrei Popoviciu and Katz Laszlo Editorial support: Katz Laszlo, Katy Lee, Dominic Kraemer and Priyanka Shankar Music: Sat după sat by Robin and the Backstabbers; Limba Română and Frunzuliță, iarbă deasă by Subcarpați; Lavalamp by Phish Funk; Romcom and Days and Days by Gustav Kemps; The Way To Romania by She Said Destroy!; Chaos at the Spaceship by Out Of Flux; Follow The River by Delnova; Jim Barne. Additional music from Blue Dot Sessions and Artlist. SFX from Freesound.org. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 24, 2021
The women who built Europe
Streets, cities, train stations: across the continent, they're likely to be named after men. What if the women who shaped Europe were given the recognition they deserve? This week, Katy speaks to the Irish journalist Mary Fitzgerald and Italian writer Francesca Cavallo , co-author of Good Night Stories For Rebel Girls, about a wonderful project which reimagines the Brussels metro map in celebration of brilliant European women. We're also talking about the row over LGBTQ rights at the Euro football tournament, and how unsexy-but-important housing policy brought down Sweden's prime minister. You can explore the Capital of Europe, Women of Europe map here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: We Are Who We Are (HBO) ; Lupin (Netflix) ; Ecotopia (Arte) ; Are We Europe: The Queer Issue . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a brand-new collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 17, 2021
The plastics law, revisited
A whole bunch of plastic objects are about to become illegal across the European Union: everything from coffee stirrers to straws and cotton buds. As we count down to the big day on July 3, we're revisiting last year's special episode about how the EU is even able to make laws like this for 27 countries. This week we're asking: "How the hell do you make an EU law?" Originally released in February 2020, this episode was part of our mini-series Bursting the Bubble , an attempt to explain how EU institutions work in the least boring way possible. Huge thanks to the European Cultural Foundation for funding this series. They support projects that promote Europe as an open and democratic space. Written and produced by Katz Laszlo, with help from Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 10, 2021
The best rainy city in the world
Jens Thoms Ivarsson has one of this continent's most fascinating jobs: chief "rain man" for the city of Gothenburg. We chat to the creative director of Rain Gothenburg about the Swedish city's rather wonderful plan to become the best place in the world when it's raining. Also this week: expensive Finnish breakfasts, accidental asparagus, and why Budapest's plans to build a Chinese university campus have gone down so badly. This week's Isolation Inspiration: " Inside the last matriarchy in Europe ", Zero , and " Portrait of a pigeon racer ". You can read about Rain Gothenburg here in The Guardian . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a brand-new collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, June 03, 2021
Thinker, Plaintiff, Merkel, Spy
This week, a murky spying scandal and a huge climate lawsuit. It seems that our American friends may have been using Denmark's internet cables to spy on European politicians. But how much did Denmark know about it? We're also talking about the landmark Dutch court ruling that could force Shell to drastically cut its carbon emissions. Plus, the European Review of Books ! We chat to George Blaustein and Sander Pleij about why they're setting up a new magazine of ideas for the continent. You can help crowd-fund the European Review of Books here and read about the grime-eating bacteria in the Medici Chapel here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Day X and The Mole . This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a brand-new collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Senior producer: Katz Laszlo Producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 27, 2021
Josh and Franco
We have a very special episode for you this week. From the south of Italy, a father and son's coming of age stories, told in parallel. This is the first episode of our series This Is What A Generation Sounds Like: intimate stories from across the continent, as told by the young Europeans experiencing them. This series is produced with Are We Europe and made in cooperation with Allianz Kulturstiftung, an independent not-for-profit cultural foundation committed to strengthening cohesion in Europe using the tools of art and culture. Find out more at kulturstiftung.allianz.de. Producers: Katz Laszlo and Josh Prezioso Editorial support: Dominic Kraemer, Katy Lee, Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Tarantella del Gargano by Marco Beasley & represented by Out Here Music; Italian Opera by UV Protection; Andante (Italian Concerto) written by Bach and performed by Catrina Finch; Amore Mio by Mina with Warner Music Italy; Tomb by Veshza; La Luna E Fisarmonica by Ziv Moran; Disco Ball by Evgeny Barduzha, and Jim Barne. Additional music from Blue Dot Sessions: Kilkerrin by Scalcairn; Sylvestor by One Such Village; Angel Academy by Marc Oakley; Toby or not Toby by Mark Oakley. SFX from Freesounds.org: Wescwave; GeorgeHopkins; suonidigallipoli; samararaine; cmusounddesign; suonidibologna; wolkenunddreck; ancorapazzo; soundforest. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review. This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 20, 2021
Inventing an Alphabet
This week, Eurovision, panthers, and a celebration of Cyrillic writing. Ahead of a Cyrillic national holiday in several Eastern European countries, we chat to typography designers Maria Doreuli and Krista Radoeva about what makes the script so special. We're also talking about the Paris mayor's war on cars, and why Slovenia's populist prime minister is really, really into panthers. Plus, a special edition of Isolation Inspiration for the Eurovision nerds. You can follow Maria and Krista here and here on Instagram and check out their Cyrillicsy design workshops here on Twitter. Donate to Covax | Donate to Medecins Sans Frontières The Swedish Ambassador's Guide to Eurovision can be found here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 13, 2021
The bear, the prince and the streaming giant
Like everyone else, we Europeans have been watching a LOT of television over the past year. But something rather nice has been happening: we've been watching *each other's* television . Could streaming giants like Netflix be helping develop a shared European culture, as we all sit down to enjoy shows like Lupin and Money Heist? This week we speak to Jérôme Dechesne of European producers' group CEPI about the Europeanisation of binge-watching. We're also talking about the prince who apparently-accidentally shot Romania's largest bear, and the Belgian farmer who may have apparently-accidentally moved the French border. This episode was produced as part of Sphera, a brand-new collective of independent European media. Find out more at sphera-hub.com . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Quo Vadis, Aida? , Toksvig's Almanac 2021 , and The Economist: How Netflix is creating a common European culture . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is part of the Are We Europe family. Find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, May 06, 2021
Unravelling a Scandal
The Oscar-nominated Romanian film Collective is enraging and inspiring in equal measure. This week we hear from Răzvan Luțac, one of the investigative journalists who uncovered the vast healthcare scandal at the heart of the film. We're also talking about a fascinating court case brought by young German climate activists, censorship allegations on Italian TV, and a missing finger. Special thanks to Maja and Zoe in Ukraine, Ruben in Switzerland, Leo and Florence in France, Remy in the UK and Raul in Germany for lending us their voices to help us celebrate Europe Day this week. For more Europe Day inspiration, check out europeday.eu . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina The Europeans is part of the Are We Europe family. You can find more like-minded European podcasts at areweeurope.com/audio-family . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 29, 2021
Cheese Diplomacy
This week we're delighted to have an excuse to talk about Dominic's favourite salty cheese. Halloumi has just been recognised as a product unique to Cyprus — something that eurocrats have hailed as a positive step towards reconciliation on the divided Mediterranean island. Is there any truth to that? Cypriot podcaster Natalie Lamprou is here for a great chat about cheese, politics and Cypriot identity. We're also talking about the French mayor running a town from his jail cell, and the German gymnasts taking a stand against sexualisation in sport. This is our first-ever episode as part of Sphera, a new collective of brilliant independent media outlets from across Europe. We are excited to be a part of it! Sign up to follow Sphera on Instagram, TikTok and more: https://linktr.ee/Sphera You can find Natalie's podcast Evris here and read her beautiful piece about Cypriot identity here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Romanian documentary Collective , virtual reality experience Pollinator Park , and the Feel Good Film Festival . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is a proud partner of Are We Europe. If you enjoy beautiful, border-breaking journalism, check out their website and buy their latest magazine . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 22, 2021
Realo Greens and Fake Palm Trees
It's a green-themed episode this week: we're talking about why Germany's Greens are the party of the moment, and taking a look at the environmentalists now running the Danish territory of Greenland. Plus, Katy's been chatting to the Polish artist Joanna Rajkowska about why she put a giant palm tree on a Warsaw roundabout. You can visit the palm tree here and read an interview with Joanna by friend of the show Ania Jakubek here . Joanna's latest work, Rhizopolis, sadly can't be visited right now because of the pandemic, but you can check out this beautiful environmental work on her website . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Anne+ and The Good Life Elsewhere by Vladimir Lorchenkov. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review ! Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina This podcast is a proud partner of Are We Europe. If you enjoy beautiful, border-breaking journalism, check out their website and buy their latest magazine . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 15, 2021
The Northern Ireland Knowledge Gap
Why are so many British people completely clueless when it comes to understanding Northern Ireland, given that it's part of the UK? After days of rioting in Northern Irish towns and cities, we speak to historian Tim Mc Inerney, co-host of the excellent podcast The Irish Passport, about the strange island-of-Ireland-shaped hole in many Brits' understanding of their own history. We're also talking about Czech vaccines, Spanish vultures, and Brigadier Broccoli, the Swiss army cat. You should all listen to The Irish Passport! Find it in all the usual places, as well as here on their website . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Louis Theroux: Shooting Joe Exotic and "Jemima!" from jingle man Jim Barne and his writing partner Kit Buchan. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar This podcast is a proud partner of Are We Europe. If you enjoy beautiful, border-breaking journalism, check out their website and buy their latest magazine . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 08, 2021
Trains!
All aboard! We love trains here at The Europeans, but your ability to get around the continent by rail depends a lot on where you live. This week we're chatting to Italian data journalist Lorenzo Ferrari about why Vienna has a ton of international train connections and Albania has... zero. We're also talking about Kosovo's super-popular new female president, the Netherlands' less-popular PM, and a Swiss underwear controversy. You can check out Lorenzo's investigation into the state of international rail in Europe here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Are We Europe's new magazine and West Cork . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, April 01, 2021
The power of Romanian teenagers
This week, the young Romanian activist who has the patriarchy shaking in its boots. Sofia Scarlat founded Romania's first ever gender equality organisation for teenagers; in a country where the very idea of sex education has come under fierce debate, Girl Up Romania's Instagram account has become a vital source of information for young women. We chat to Sofia about her hopes for a gender equality revolution; we're also talking about the cultural appropriation of Portuguese sweaters, Roman traffic cops, and why it's illegal to call the Polish president a moron. You can check out Sofia's excellent TED Talk here , and read Politico Europe's round-up of where it's illegal to insult the head of state here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: ' Rembrandt in the Blood ' from The Daily, and French TikTok accounts Lulucaskip , Maitresse Adeline and Loïc Suberville . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 25, 2021
The Great Reverse Migration
For decades, Eastern Europe has suffered a massive brain drain of people heading abroad in search of opportunity. But something remarkable happened during the pandemic: huge numbers started coming back. Can they be convinced to stay? This week we speak to urban researcher Ognyan Georgiev about his fascinating work tracking Bulgaria's returnees — and we get his predictions for which European cities are going to be the coolest in 20 years time. We're also talking about sexism in German football, Iceland's spectacular volcano eruption, and why Finland has yet again been named the world's happiest country. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Oscar-nominated Romanian film Collective ; My Family And Other Animals ; and the fabulous music of our Patreon supporter (and newest jingle composer) Mariska Martina: instagram.com/mariskamartina Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 18, 2021
Headscarves & Eurovision
Pretty much everyone has their face covered in public these days, and yet Switzerland is set to become the latest European country to ban (non-Covid) face coverings in public — including Muslim garments like the niqab and burqa. Given that barely any Swiss women wear these, what exactly is going on here? This week we speak to Inès El-Shikh of the Foulards Violets feminist group about what this referendum campaign has felt like for Muslim women. Also this week: Eurovision! We've been scrutinising the rather threatening lyrics of the Belarusian band kicked out for being too political. Plus, an ancient Roman coffee table and France's reckoning with the past. This week's Isolation Inspiration: White Rabbit Red Rabbit ; And Then We Danced ; and Are We Europe's delightful recipe cards, a perk of their awesome membership programme . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Priyanka Shankar and Andrei Popoviciu Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Thu, March 11, 2021
Poland’s abortion fight
To mark International Women's Day this week, we speak to one of this continent's most courageous activists: Marta Lempart of the Women's Strike, the movement that that has organised massive street protests in recent months against Poland's incredibly restrictive abortion laws. We're also talking about Berlin's gender-neutral acting prize, Fidesz, and the power of oranges. This week's Isolation Inspiration: " It's A Sin ", " African Europeans: An Untold History " and El País' long-read about José Epita Mbombo . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 24, 2021
A polyphonic episode
We've got a musical episode for you this week: a Catalan rapper jailed for controversial lyrics and tweets, an ancient French instrument, and some vintage Dutch pop. Plus the historian Timothy Garton Ash is here to explain why he thinks we need a more "polyphonic" Europe. Timothy and his team at University of Oxford want to hear your stories! Take part in their Europe's Stories project here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Capitani on Netflix , Mangrove on Amazon Prime / the BBC , "Ding-a-Dong" by Teach-In . Thanks for listening! If you like our podcast and want to help us keep making it, we'd be hugely grateful if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 17, 2021
Decolonising Kitchens
A lot of this continent's favourite food comes originally from its former colonies — often with tweaks to suit European tastes. This week we talk to the superstar chef Asma Khan about food that has crossed borders, as well as her bid to banish macho culture from the restaurant industry. We're also talking about Super Mario, Greece's student protests, and an extremely old nun. Thanks for listening! If you like our show and would like to help us keep making it, we'd be hugely grateful if you'd consider chipping in a few euros/dollars/pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 10, 2021
The weird and wonderful world of eels
Why has a book about eels become a smash-hit in Sweden and beyond? This week we talk to Patrik Svensson, author of The Gospel of the Eels, about these strange and wonderful creatures and their epic annual migration from Europe to the Sargasso Sea. We're also talking about the Balkans' #MeToo uprising, Germany's mass coming-out, and the world's greatest Zoom meeting. Isolation Inspiration: Italian Netflix comedy Rose Island (L'incredibile storia dell'Isola delle Rose), and live dance performance Our House Is On Fire , amplifying the words of Greta Thunberg, on Thursday February 11. Thanks for listening! If you like our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds at patreon.com/europeanspodcast.com . We're hugely grateful for your support! Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producer: Andrei Popoviciu Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 03, 2021
Taming Big Tech
Europe has big plans to regulate the giant internet companies that shape our lives. But just how much will they force the likes of Google and Facebook to behave? This week we ring up Andrii Degeler , host of the Tech.eu podcast, to explain the whole thing without putting us to sleep. We're also talking about the French village with an astonishing history of helping the persecuted; bingeing on movies on a lonely Swedish island; and why the EU's design might make it harder to fight poverty. Listen to the Tech.eu podcast here (https://podcast.tech.eu/) and find out more about how Le Chambon-sur-Lignon helped Jewish refugees during the Holocaust here (https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/le-chambon-sur-lignon). This week's Isolation Inspiration: Orff-Schulwerk: Gassenhauer (https://open.spotify.com/track/1sbtYPTZ2TW5T54JZaIshg?si=-bSHVY3nSNyn98LtKt3O4Q) from Klassix for Kidz (!) and Danish Netflix comedy Rita . If you enjoy our podcast and want to help us keep making it, we'd be hugely grateful if you could chip in a few euros, dollars or pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also support our friends at the beautiful magazine Are We Europe, who have just launched a new membership drive. Find out more: https://2021.areweeurope.com Thanks for listening! Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producers: Priyanka Shankar and Andrei Popoviciu Twitter @europeanspod | Instagram @europeanspodcast | Facebook The Europeans Podcast | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 27, 2021
The Shell Case
The oil giant Shell is Europe's biggest company — and it's facing an absolutely massive court case over climate justice. This week we speak to Anoek Nuyens, one of the women behind an extraordinary piece of theatre about Shell that laid bare the "crisis of responsibility" at the heart of global climate policy. We're also talking about Russia's opposition protests and the horrifying case of a TikTok challenge gone wrong in Italy. To find out more about This Is What A Generation Sounds Like, the new podcast series we're making with our friends at Are We Europe, check out our website: europeanspodcast.com/call-for-stories-allianz-kulturstiftung . And why not get yourself 50 percent off Are We Europe's excellent new magazine ? Enter EUROPEANS at checkout. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Call My Agent, Moonstruck, Dating Amber. Thanks for listening. If you like our podcast and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Producer: Katz Laszlo Assistant producer: Priyanka Shankar Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 20, 2021
The mafia on trial
The 'Ndrangheta has become one of the most powerful and dangerous crime syndicates in the world. But how does the mafia actually operate? This week, as a massive trial of suspected 'Ndrangheta members gets underway in Italy, we delve into the inner workings of Europe's organised crime scene with the criminologist Federico Varese. We're also dishing up edible insects, the many European governments on the verge of collapse this week, and the magical power of seagrass. Isolation Inspiration: Federico's fascinating book Mafia Life; French Netflix show Lupin; nepotistic but excellent theatre livestream The end of Eddy. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy The Europeans and want to help us keep making it, we'd be hugely grateful if you'd consider chipping in a few euros/dollars/pounds at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. Edited by Katz Laszlo. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 13, 2021
Life after Merkel
Happy New Year, Europeans and europhiles! We're back with a brand new episode featuring everything from ancient fast food to naughty aristocrats. Since Angela Merkel's party starts choosing her successor this weekend, German journalist Wolfgang Munchau is here to reflect on what kind of a hole the Queen of Europe will leave in our continent. We're also taking a look at Norway's split personality when it comes to the climate, and why Amsterdam cannabis tourism may become a thing of the past. Wolfgang is the director of Eurointelligence . Check out his podcast ! This week's cutting-edge Isolation Inspiration: Fleabag (2016), The Bureau (2015), Bridgerton. Thanks for listening! If you like our podcast and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds a week at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . This episode was edited by Katz Laszlo. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, December 16, 2020
’Twas Christmas Eve in Dublin
For our last episode of the year, we take you to a supermarket in the Dublin suburbs in 2006. We also discuss a string of mysterious explosions at Polish grocery stores in the Netherlands, doing a deal with Viktor Orbán, and the secret to happiness in Europe. This week's beautiful story was written by Richy Craven , read by Darach Ó Séaghdha , and produced by Katz Laszlo. If you enjoyed it, please consider donating to Barnardos . You can check out Darach's podcast, Motherfoclóir, here , and listen to the sweet sounds of Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin and Ultan O'Brien here . Other music from Lena Orsa and Timbre at Freesound . This week's Isolation Inspiration: The Great , Catherine The Great , The Romanovs , Handel's Messiah from VOCES8 , To Catch A Thief and ÜberWeihnachten . Thank you so much for listening to The Europeans in 2020. We've loved making the show. If you'd like to help us keep going in 2021, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, December 09, 2020
Philip and Laci
Philip recently found out that his classmate was a member of a far-right group. This is what happened when the two of them sat down to talk. This podcast was made possible by our Patreon supporters. If you'd like to help us keep making The Europeans, you can support us here: patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Reporting by Philip Pollak; production by Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer; editing by Katy Lee; artwork by Rosa ter Kuile; music by Jim Barne. With huge thanks to Natalie Nougayrède and Emily Schultheis for their editorial advice. The original Hungarian audio and an annotated English transcript can be found here (password-protected) . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, December 02, 2020
An unsung hero
This week, the Hollywood-worthy story of Janina Garbień. Her family hid a nine-year-old Jewish girl in their Warsaw home during the war; Janina would later fall in love with an Italian prisoner at a Nazi camp, lose him, and find him again. Ola Cichowlas tells us her grandmother's extraordinary tale. We also talk about a shocking case of police brutality and the controversy over France's security law. Plus, unfortunate village names and the truth about apples. Ola is Moscow correspondent for Agence France-Presse (AFP). You can follow her here and read a beautiful thread about her grandmother here . Katy guest-hosted the first episode of the new UN Women podcast Generations Talk Gender, featuring a conversation between a young Romanian feminist and a long-time activist in Serbia. Check it out here . Thanks for listening! If you enjoy this podcast and would like to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Swedish comedy 'Love and Anarchy' , Dutch TV show 'Een programma over de jaren negentig' , and this accompanying 90s Eurodance playlist . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, November 25, 2020
A country of dreamers
Moldova has just elected a pro-EU president, kicking out a favourite of Vladimir Putin's. This week, we wanted to talk to someone about daily life in a country that has seen a huge exodus to the rest of Europe; don't miss our moving conversation with Aliona Rotaru about what it's been like to stay behind. Also this week: naughty Dutch hackers, German glass ceilings, and Croatian winter warmers. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Check out Are We Europe's beautiful multimedia project featuring Aliona, 'The Drums of Democracy' ; read R. Daniel Kelemen's piece in Politico, ' Time to call Hungary and Poland's bluff' ; and cosy up with AFP's video on Croatian codpieces . This week's Isolation Inspiration: 'Blindness' at Amsterdam's Royal Theater Carré, and Colette , a documentary from the Guardian. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, November 18, 2020
France’s invisible Asians
France has one of the biggest Asian communities in Europe. So why aren't there more Asians on the French screen? This week we talk to Grace Ly, writer and co-host of the hit podcast Kiffe Ta Race, about food, stereotypes, identity, and why it's so hard to talk about racism in France. Also this week: Europe's anti-terrorism balancing act, a round-up of LGBTQ good news, and celeb dad hangouts. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our show and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You follow Grace here and check out Kiffe Ta Race's crossover episode with Dipsaus, tackling racism in Europe, here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Sofia Loren's new movie The Life Ahead , the Voila Europe theatre festival, and the BBC podcast Mayday . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, November 11, 2020
A hot mess of an airport
This week's podcast is sponsored by Europe Talks. Sign up to have a conversation with a random European here ! Now that we are FINALLY turning our attention to other things, this week we bring you the enjoyably chaotic story of Berlin's new airport. Jöran Mandik is one of the co-hosts of How To F#€k Up An Airport , an entire podcast series about the saga. We chatted about too-short escalators, human fire alarms, and scandalous overspending. Also this week: carrier pigeons, Denmark's vegetarian u-turn, and how to punish undemocratic governments. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our show and want to help us keep running, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . How To F#€k Up An Airport is a series from Berlin's English-language news show, Radio Spaetkauf . Dominic has been listening to this Esther Perel interview . Katy has been watching The Queen's Gambit and enjoying this Twitter thread about the German filming location. Katy is speaking at Bulgaria's Listen Up podcasting festival next week! Get tickets here . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, November 04, 2020
A non-election podcast
We're steering blissfully clear of the elephant in the global room this week: we're talking about books, sign language, and endemic corruption in Bulgaria. Investigative journalist Nikolay Staykov is here to explain why Bulgarians have protested for more than 100 nights against a government they compare to the mafia. We're also celebrating the Netherlands' life-saving whale sculpture and alternatives to Amazon. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros/dollars/pounds at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also leave us a review on Apple Podcasts . Nikolay is the co-founder of Bulgaria's Anti-Corruption Fund. Find out more here . Dominic has been listening to French and Saunders: Titting About . Katy has been watching this meme on repeat and listening to Bilal Göregen . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, October 28, 2020
A war on the edge of Europe
This week the journalist Arzu Geybulla is here to help us untangle the conflict that has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan; if you're confused about Nagorno-Karabakh, this is the podcast for you. We're also discussing Poland's abortion ban, the Pope's big move on same-sex civil unions, and Europe's latest weird art prank. Thanks for listening! If you enjoyed this podcast and you have a few coins to spare, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping into our fund at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Arzu recommends Black Garden by Thomas de Waal , as well as updates from Laurence Broers . You can also follow Arzu on Twitter here . Katy is watching Barbarians on Netflix. Dominic is watching Season 2 of Killing Eve . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, October 21, 2020
The House of Many Languages
This week Dominic is furious about the EU vote on whether or not veggie burgers can be called veggie burgers, so we're distracting him with languages. Interpreter extraordinaire Alexander Drechsel is here to discuss the weird English dialect that has developed in Brussels, and whether the EU of the future will be anglophone. Plus, Sarkozy, Sweden's big-spending military, and adorable nuns. Thanks for listening! If you like the show and have a couple of euros / dollars / pounds to spare each month, you can support us at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Alex is on Twitter @adrechsel , and you can get tickets for his November 18 debate on the role of English in the EU here . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, October 14, 2020
The One Where We Interview A Prime Minister
Ok, ok, the title of this episode might be a bit of a stretch, but she WAS prime minister for a day. This week we chatted to 16-year-old Aava Murto about what happened when she got to replace Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin for 24 hours. Also this week: the downfall of Greece's Golden Dawn neo-Nazis, Bulgaria's anti-corruption protests, and Iga Swiatek's brilliant French Open performance. Thanks for listening! If you like our show and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros / pounds / dollars a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . How Norway makes rule of law offenders pay - Politico This week's isolation inspiration: Mary Wollestonecraft - Letters Written in Sweden, Norway and Denmark ; Michelle Buteau - Welcome to Buteaupia Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, October 07, 2020
The oat milk question
We've got a food-themed episode for you this week: bread, meat, and oat milk ethics. We're talking to the documentary-maker Fredrik Gertten about why Swedish vegan company Oatly may be making a deal with the devil. We're also discussing why Subway bread isn't bread (in Ireland at least) and asking why the wurst may be over in Germany. Plus, foul-mouthed parrots. Because everyone needs foul-mouthed parrots. Thanks for listening! If you like our show and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in a few euros / pounds / dollars a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Watch Fredrik's award-winning documentary Push here , and listen to his podcast here . This week's isolation inspiration: Notes to Self by Emilie Pine ; Kidnapping (ARTE) . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, September 30, 2020
Poison, puffins and the people’s game
This week, the game that unites this continent. We're talking to Eniola Aluko , former England and Juventus striker, about her experience as a black woman in European football. We're also talking about what it's like to recover from a Russian Novichok poisoning; Europe's latest refugee plan; and clever puffins . Thanks for listening! If you'd like to help us keep making The Europeans, you can chip in a couple of euros/dollars/pounds a month to our Patreon fund: patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can watch Eni speaking at the Forum on European Culture here , and check out her book here . This week's Isolation Inspiration: Hanna, The Vampire Ship , and the latest issue of Are We Europe . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, September 23, 2020
Make Europe Romantic Again
Could Europe do with a 19th-century reboot? This week we're talking to Simon Strauss, millennial star of the German literary world, about why he thinks Romanticism is the future. We also hear about a lovely project he's launched to collect the stories of ageing Europeans. Plus: Ursula's big day, eco-burials, and what Tchaikovsky got in the post. Simon's smash-hit novel, Seven Nights, is now available in English: https://rare-bird-books.myshopify.com/products/seven-nights Read his 2018 keynote from the Forum on European Culture: https://cultureforum.eu/report2018/wp-content/uploads/Day-3_keynote-simon-strauss.pdf And check out the European Archive of Voices: https://usefenut.myhostpoint.ch/european-archive-of-voices/ This week's Isolation Inspiration: Why Did You Betray Me? https://www.decomposedshow.org/episode/2019/04/30/why-did-you-betray-me-tchaikovsky La Haine https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/la_haine Thanks for listening. If you like our show and would like to help us keep making it, we'd be really grateful if you could chip in a few dollars a month at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, September 16, 2020
The women of Belarus
Women are kicking ass in Belarus right now, and this week we're catching up with the journalist Hanna Liubakova about why — and where the protest movement is going. We're also talking about the fire at Greece's Moria refugee camp and the mess that is Europe's refugee policy. Plus: greener energy choices in Portugal and the French film behind the #CancelNetflix hashtag. Follow Hanna on Twitter for essential updates on Belarus: https://twitter.com/HannaLiubakova The Forum on European Culture runs in Amsterdam/online from September 17-20. Check out the line-up here: https://cultureforum.eu Thanks for listening! If you'd like to help us keep making this show, please consider chipping in a couple of dollars or euros a month at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, September 09, 2020
Italy’s past, Europe’s future
We're back from our summer break and here to bring you all the European Things that have been missing from your life. This week, the Italian novelist Francesca Melandri on what happened when her beautiful Letter From The Future went viral; we also chat about how Italy deals (or doesn't) with the past. Also this week: theatrical freedom in Hungary, extremely slow music, and a fly-swatting disaster. Francesca is speaking at the Forum on European Culture next week. Get the full programme here: https://cultureforum.eu Thanks for listening! If you like our show and want to help us keep running, you can donate a couple of euros/dollars a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, August 19, 2020
The Chain, part three
In this final installment of European love letters, we're travelling from Hungary to Germany, Germany to Russia, and across the border to Norway. We're celebrating the books that stay with us for a lifetime — and books that seem to have a life of their own. And we're heading to the Arctic with an extremely stubborn grandmother. The Chain is presented by Mick ter Reehorst and is a collaboration with Are We Europe as part of the Summer of Solidarity, a pop-up collaborative journalism project. Find out more at https://www.summerofsolidarity.eu . The stories you heard were written by Philip Pollak, Viola Theunissen and Nina Lamparski. Mixing and sound design was by Katz Laszlo, production by Dominic Kraemer, and editing by Katy Lee. Music and sound effects from Blue Dot Sessions and Freesound.org. You also heard the Fourth Movement of Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 6 in B minor, and Divertimento from his Suite No.1, Op.43, via Musopen. https://europeanspodcast.com | https://www.areweeurope.com
Fri, August 14, 2020
The Chain, part two
We're hopping from Sweden to France, France to Spain, and Spain to Austria for part two of The Chain, a series of love-letters from Europeans to each other's countries. This week we're climbing a volcano, feasting on chocolate cake, and seeing Europe through a dog's eyes. The Chain is presented by Mick ter Reehorst and is a collaboration with Are We Europe as part of the Summer of Solidarity, a pop-up collaborative journalism project. Find out more at https://www.summerofsolidarity.eu . The stories you heard were written by Julie Lindahl, Sedera Ranaivoarinosy and Marta Santiváñez. Lisa Klevermark was the voice of Ellie. Mixing and sound design was by Katz Laszlo, production by Dominic Kraemer, and editing by Katy Lee. Music and sound effects from Blue Dot Sessions and Freesound.org. The final waltz was Johann Strauss' G’schichten aus dem Wienerwald, played by the Wiener Johann Strauss Orchester. https://europeanspodcast.com | https://www.areweeurope.com
Thu, August 06, 2020
The Chain, part one
Introducing The Chain: a series of love-letters from Europeans to each other's countries. This week we're hopping from Romania to the Netherlands, the Netherlands to Italy, Italy to Bosnia and Herzegovina. We'll hear about a mountain, a monument from a non-existent country, and a life-changing conversation in a soap shop. The Chain is presented by Mick ter Reehorst and is a collaboration with Are We Europe as part of the Summer of Solidarity, a pop-up collaborative journalism project. Find out more at https://www.summerofsolidarity.eu . The stories you heard were written and recorded by Andreea Sirbu, Thomas van Neerbos and Veronica Tosetti, and produced by Dominic Kraemer, Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee. Music and sound effects from Blue Dot Sessions and Freesound (including Richard Laiepce, antigonia, genghis attenborough, and Katz' own field recordings). https://europeanspodcast.com | https://www.areweeurope.com
Wed, July 15, 2020
The Summer of Solidarity
In our last episode before a little summer break, we're zooming out and taking a look at the state of Europe with Natalie Nougayrède. The Guardian columnist and former Le Monde editor is spearheading Summer of Solidarity, a collaborative journalism project celebrating human stories across Europe. We chat about the 'othering' of Central and Eastern Europeans and the case for a pan-European media outlet. Also this week: Poland's election, problematic metro names, and the power of bison. We want your stories for our special summer episodes! Find out more: https://europeanspodcast.com/the-chain Explore the Summer of Solidarity, including some great Spotify playlists, at https://www.summerofsolidarity.eu Thanks for listening! If you like the show and want to help us keep making it, you can chip in as little as $2 month at https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, July 08, 2020
George Soros, Explained
Why has George Soros inspired conspiracy theories involving everything from the Holocaust to Beyoncé? This week we're talking to Emily Tamkin, author of 'The Influence of Soros', about why the Hungarian-born billionaire is such a source of fascination and controversy. Also this week: Belgium faces its past; Latvia faces Russian 'propaganda' efforts; and Parisian jazz goes solo. Thanks for listening! If you like our show and want to make sure we can keep making it, you can chip in a couple of dollars a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Emily's book is out now: https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062972637/the-influence-of-soros/ 'Russia's RT Network: Is It More BBC or KGB?' - https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/08/world/europe/russias-rt-network-is-it-more-bbc-or-kgb.html 'RT, Sputnik and Russia's New Theory of War' - https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/13/magazine/rt-sputnik-and-russias-new-theory-of-war.html Malin Broman x 8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWwLSsfdmNk Floor Is Lava https://www.netflix.com/title/81006858 Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, July 01, 2020
The Political Pianist
Igor Levit, as the New Yorker put it, "Is Like No Other Pianist". This week we chatted to the German-Russian superstar about playing for 15 hours straight, why he staged 50 concerts from his living room, and Germany's ongoing struggle against systemic racism. We're also talking about France's "green wave" and Romania's very expensive super-church. Thanks for listening! If you like the show, you can chip in a few dollars a month to help us keep running at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. Follow Igor on Twitter and Instagram and watch his epic performance of Erik Satie's Vexations here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uu_03mUPgHU Eurovision Song Contest - The Story of Fire Saga: https://www.netflix.com/title/80244088 The Fog of Srebrenica: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thefogofsrebrenica Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, June 24, 2020
Love, bees and brain surgery
This week we're celebrating those moments when Europeans are actually nice to each other. Rafael Loss, data wizard at the European Council on Foreign Relations, is on the line from Berlin to explain why he built an online tool to track solidarity during the C-word crisis. We're also talking about Serbia's elections, Croatian bees, and awake brain surgery. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy the show, please consider a small monthly donation to help keep us running: https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast The Silver Lining, the latest magazine from Are We Europe, is out now! Enter EUROPEANS at the checkout for 30% off: https://www.areweeurope.com/store/the-silver-lining Summer of Solidarity - explore all kinds of European stories here: https://www.summerofsolidarity.eu Check out Rafael's Solidarity Tracker: https://www.ecfr.eu/solidaritytracker On Sweden's sexual consent law - The Local: https://www.thelocal.se/20200616/how-swedens-new-consent-law-led-to-a-75-rise-in-rape-convictions Still Life On The Island: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg00VY78QdQ&app=desktop Where's Simon? The London Symphony Orchestra: https://lso.co.uk/whats-on/alwaysplaying/digitalactivities/wheres-simon.html Dominic's colleague having awake brain surgery: https://youtu.be/obiARnsKUAo Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, June 17, 2020
Recipes for rebellion
Communist Bulgaria was home to a furtive cooking craze on a massive scale: women swapping recipes on scraps of paper, with strangers on trams, even at funerals. The historian and writer Albena Shkodrova sees this fascinating phenomenon as a form of subversion; we called her up to ask why. Also this week: Happy Birthday Schengen, an accidental invasion, and an end to Sweden's longest-running murder mystery. Thanks for listening! If you enjoy the show, you can chip in a couple of dollars a month to keep us running at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also leave us a ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ review on Apple Podcasts! https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-europeans/id1315776736 Find out more about Albena's forthcoming books, 'Communist Gourmet' and 'Rebellious Cooks': https://www.albenashkodrova.com Who Killed The Prime Minister? - The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/news/2019/may/16/olof-palme-sweden-prime-minister-unsolved-murder-new-evidence On achève bien les gros - ARTE https://www.arte.tv/fr/videos/086161-000-A/on-acheve-bien-les-gros Lianne LaHavas - NPR Tiny Desk (Home) Concert https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qso4MRfidrw People of Europe - Susan Neiman https://www.facebook.com/debalie/videos/948520485598650 Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, June 10, 2020
Why the Black Lives Matter protests are different in Europe
Protests over the death of George Floyd have been spreading on this side of the Atlantic, from Britain to Hungary. This week we're talking about what makes the European anti-racism protests different, with the artist and cultural critic Quinsy Gario. We're also talking about Prague's mysterious poisoned suitcase, and a possible post-COVID rail revolution. Amsterdam protest recording by Katz Laszlo. Thanks for listening! If you like the show, you can chip in a couple of dollars a month to help us keep making it at https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also leave us a review at https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-europeans/id1315776736 On hydrogen and pasta: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/27/business/hydrogen-fuel-climate-change.html Isolation Inspiration: Afropean by Johny Pitts | Whisper of the Heart | Wind of Change Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, June 03, 2020
The Great Pull of China
You can blame Dominic for the pun. This week, as tensions between the United States and China reach fever-pitch, we're asking: does Europe need to pick a side? Tom Wan, Research Director in European Politics at the Global Studies Institute in Hong Kong, is on the line to explain what's at stake in Europe's relationship with China. Also this week: reproductive rights, a badly-behaved prince, and what lies beneath the floorboards. In memory of Christo: https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2020/06/photos-works-of-christo/612484/ The Crowd: https://ochentastudio.com/ochenta-stories/2020/5/27/the-crowd Thanks for listening! If you liked the show and have a couple of dollars spare a month, you can help us keep making it at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, May 27, 2020
Guide to a Non-Existent Country
The Italian journalist and travel writer Giovanni Vale is used to writing tourist guidebooks, but usually they're for countries that still exist. We rang him up to ask why he's turned his attention to 'extinguished' countries, starting with the Venetian Republic which sprawled across the Mediterranean for more than a millennium. Also this week: Polish punk and Europe's organic revolution. Giovanni's guide to the Venetian Republic is available for pre-order here: https://bit.ly/2zB1Rar Isolation Inspiration: Rabbit Hole - The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/column/rabbit-hole (Although) In Pieces, Yet One - Francesca Vincentie https://inpiecesyetone.com Inside Politics - all that bond stuff, explained https://bit.ly/2AcEPq6 Thanks for listening. If you like the show, you can help us keep making it by chipping in a few dollars a month at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, May 20, 2020
Wikipedia’s Missing Women
Less than a fifth of the biographies on Wikipedia are those of women; Rebecca O'Neill is part of a movement to fix that. We talk to her about her quest to write famous Irish women into the Wikiverse, as well as how the site helps minority languages to stay alive. Also this week: Merkel rises above it, and theatre gets political in Albania. Find Rebecca's Wikipedia tutorials on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/smirkybec/videos And on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCME0KIqk13bdfdg_fqqYISA Thanks for listening! If you'd like to help us keep this podcast running, you can chip in a few dollars a month at https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, May 13, 2020
What is Russia doing at the bottom of the sea?
Last July, a group of fishermen near the coast of Norway were surprised to see a submarine burst out of the water in front of them. A terrible disaster had struck the Losharik, a highly advanced Russian vessel that had been lurking on the seafloor. But what happened? And what was the submarine doing so close to European shores? This mystery has fascinated the Norwegian journalist Thomas Nilsen, one of the authors of a New York Times investigation into the Losharik disaster. We talked to him about why Russia is so interested in what lies beneath these waters. Spoiler alert: your internet connection depends on it. Also this week: Finland's basic income experiment, a setback for German homophobes, and graffiti for the green-fingered. Thomas is the editor of the Barents Observer . Read his New York Times investigation: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/20/world/europe/russian-submarine-fire-losharik.html We're hosting an Online Pub Quiz for our Patreon supporters this week! To join the fun, you can sign up to support us here: https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast Isolation Inspiration: Trying: https://youtu.be/nGA_6WTD3vM Under Milk Wood: https://youtu.be/WJtzOD3KbLM Thanks for listening! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, May 06, 2020
Quarantainment
This week we've got a cultural bonanza for you. We're talking about Poland's Netflix tax and the new drive-in cinema in Vilnius, as well as all the TV and online concerts we've been bingeing on. Plus, a great interview with the French screenwriter Noé Debré about Parlement, the European satire we've been waiting for. Thanks to all the generous supporters who are helping us keep this podcast running right now. If you have a few dollars to spare a month, you can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Watch Parlement here: https://www.france.tv/series-et-fictions/series-comedies/parlement Hope@Home: https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/RC-019356/hope-home Floyd on France: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=floyd+on+france Fleabag Live: https://www.sohotheatreondemand.com/show/FleabagFourPound Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, April 29, 2020
The Other C-Words
This week we bring you: coal, chess, and the circular economy. We speak to Esther Goodwin-Brown of Circle Economy about the economic model that's getting environmentalists all hot and bothered. We're also talking about why Europe's fallen out of love with the black stuff and why chess is getting a revamp. Plus, metal detectors — because what would this podcast be without metal detectors? Thanks for listening! If you like our show, you can help us keep it running by chipping in a couple of dollars a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Isolation Inspiration: Frankenstein at the National Theatre https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/shows/nt-at-home-frankenstein Wordsworth 250 https://wordsworth250.org Parlement https://www.france.tv/series-et-fictions/series-comedies/parlement That climate litigation thing that Katy forgot about: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/24/dutch-officials-reveal-measures-to-cut-emissions-after-court-ruling Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, April 22, 2020
Normal and Boring
The superstar illustrator Christoph Niemann is on a mission to better understand Europe. 'In Praise of a Normal, Boring Country', the latest installment of his New York Times visual essay series, took him to Estonia. We rang him up in Berlin to talk about his trip and a bunch of other stuff. Also this week: Dominic gets to grips with debt mutualisation, and Katy gets to grips with mittens. Thanks for listening! If you like our show, you can help us keep making it at Patreon: https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast Read Christoph's lovely visual essay about Estonia here: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/03/25/magazine/dispatches-estonia.html Isolation Inspiration: Sunday Sketching by Christoph Niemann | Unorthodox on Netflix Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, April 15, 2020
Poll-Land
There's a bunch of interesting stuff happening in Poland right now, so we rang up our favourite Polish journalist Ania Jakubek to untangle it for us. Also this week: blue tits, volcanoes, mutant enzymes and an Easter panda. Thanks for listening. If you like our show, you can help us keep making it at https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Isolation Inspiration: Ania's drawings: https://www.instagram.com/amjakubek Making An Opera: https://www.nporadio4.nl/podcasts/making-an-opera Are We Europe magazine: https://www.areweeurope.com/ Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, April 08, 2020
Not The Apocalypse
The Irish writer Mark O'Connell spent three years meeting people who are preparing for the end of the world. At a time when a lot of us have been gripped by a general sense of doom, we had a weirdly reassuring chat about the apocalypse. Also this week: big developments in Central Europe, bouncy pavements, and a celebration of the theremin. Mark's book, Notes from an Apocalypse , is out on April 14. This week's Isolation Inspiration: Cross-border romance ( http://tiny.cc/jo5nmz listen from 24:50), Field Recordings ( https://fieldrecordings.xyz/ ) and live jazz from Mariska Martina ( http://tiny.cc/xr5nmz ). Thanks for listening! If you like the show and have a few euros to spare, you can help us keep making it at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, April 01, 2020
Absolutely marble-lous
In this time of crisis, many, many people are watching marbles roll down miniature race tracks. We talk to Dion Bakker, one of the Dutch brothers behind the hit marble-racing YouTube channel that's filling the void left by cancelled sports events. We also catch up with atmospheric physicist Meganne Christian, who spent a year in Antarctica, to hear her tips on surviving isolation. Also this week: Viktor Orbán's terrifying power grab, and trees, lots of trees. Like the show? If you have a couple of spare dollars to spare each month, you can help us keep making it at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, March 25, 2020
Lakes and dogs
Calming things are much needed this week, so we're talking about lakes and we're talking about dogs. Our guest is the poet and author Kapka Kassabova, whose latest book To The Lake is a beautiful account of life on the borders of Greece, Albania and North Macedonia. We're also celebrating cleaner skies, human-canine relationships, and putting booze to good use. Thanks to the amazing people who support this podcast on Patreon, especially in these uncertain times. If you have a couple of dollars to spare each month, you can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Watch Dominic's latest opera here ! Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, March 18, 2020
Consent
The show goes on. This week, aside from bringing you some positivity from around the continent, we're talking to someone who turned something terrible into something empowering. Emma Holten was 20 years old when nude photos of her were leaked onto the internet without her consent. We gave her a call in Copenhagen to hear about her inspiring fightback. Also this week: good dogs and good decisions in Spain and Greece. You can follow Emma on Instagram here and Twitter here . Thank you to the generous supporters who keep this show going! You can pledge just $2 a month or more at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, March 11, 2020
Long Distance
This week, the distances travelled in search of love and safety. The Finnish novelist and playwright Saara Turunen has written beautifully about what it's like to navigate a relationship between Helsinki and Barcelona. We chat to her about European culture clashes and what feminism looks like in the two countries she lives between. Plus, Europe's failed refugee policy, magical taps, and ill-chosen words by a billionaire populist (no, not that one). Saara's piece appears in Europa28 , a collection of writing by European women which comes out on March 12. Read the New York Times investigation on how oligarchs milk EU farming subsidies here . Fancy seeing Lysistrata in Dortmund on March 23 or Greentea Peng in Lisbon on April 23? We have free tickets! Tag us in a post alongside @liveurope for your chance to win. Thanks for listening. If you like the show and have a couple of spare dollars a month, you can help keep us running at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, March 04, 2020
The God Lobby
You might not think of the corridors of Brussels as a particularly spiritual place, but all kinds of religious groups are jostling for influence there. This week we delve into the world of religious lobbying with the French journalist Quentin Ari ès . Also this week: a secret passage, winds of change in Slovakia, and the power of the Paris agreement. You can read Quentin's article on religious lobbying in the latest issue of Are We Europe magazine. Listeners to this podcast get 25% off with the code EUROPEANSPOD. Watch Iceland's amazing Eurovision entry here and help support this podcast at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 26, 2020
Why is Greece’s refugee policy such a mess?
In 2015, the 'migrant crisis' was the front page story of every newspaper in Europe. Today more than 42,000 people are still stranded on the Greek islands, in shameful conditions — and yet we barely talk about it. Migration researcher Apostolis Fotadis joins us from Athens to explain why Greece's refugee policy has become such a disaster. Also this week: big changes in Portugal, criminally-bad (?) singing in Croatia, and a Finnish mystery. Thanks for listening. You can support the podcast on Patreon here: https://patreon.com/europeanspodcast Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 19, 2020
Eurafrica
This week, a tale of two continents. Katy speaks to the Kenyan writer Patrick Gathara about Eurafrica, an idea that informed the European project after World War II but is now largely forgotten. Sixty years after a wave of African countries won their independence in 1960, we're also talking about why decolonisation is an ongoing process. Also this week: jilted Balkan lovers, mixed meat messages, and a lost summer soundtrack. Read Patrick's piece about Eurafrica for Al Jazeera: https://bit.ly/2HE5s88 Take part in our survey and help us make the podcast better: https://iter.ly/w9d8i Enter our competition for free Charlotte dos Santos tickets : http://tiny.cc/n3p7jz Thanks for listening. Patreon | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 12, 2020
What just happened in Ireland?
Something huge just happened in Irish politics, but as outsiders it's difficult to understand what exactly. Naomi O'Leary from the excellent podcast The Irish Passport is here to untangle everything for us. Also this week: coronavirus racism, a step forward for LGBTQ+ rights in Switzerland, and what happens when a celeb does the 'double-clicky-likey-thing' on one of your social media posts. We're doing a survey to work out how to make the podcast better! If you've got 5 minutes to spare, we'd love to hear your thoughts. You can take part here . We also have a competition this week, courtesy of our friends at our favourite European concert venue chain Liveurope ! We have three pairs of free tickets to see the brilliant Charlotte Dos Santos in Copenhagen , Brussels and London in March. For a chance to get their hands on them, tag us in a tweet or Instagram post letting the world know you listen to The Europeans! Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, February 05, 2020
How the hell do you make an EU law?
We've been wondering how on earth the European Union makes laws for 27 countries at once. Producer Katz Laszlo went to the beach to find out. This is the last episode in our mini-series Bursting the Bubble, explaining how the EU works in the least boring way possible. Huge thanks to the European Cultural Foundation for funding this series. They support projects that promote Europe as an open and democratic space. Thank you also to the amazing Patreon supporters who keep this show running, and to The Europeans' tote bag designer and beach trash collector Rosa ter Kuile . Written and produced by Katz Laszlo, with help from Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 22, 2020
Fanya and the Forest
This week, Katy heads to the forest in Lithuania. Ahead of International Holocaust Memorial Day on January 27, we're talking about memory politics with a formidable 97-year-old. This is the last podcast in our mini-series Postcards from Europe, featuring intimate portraits of lives and places across the continent. It was made possible by the European Cultural Foundation , who support initiatives that rethink Europe as an open and democratic space. This podcast was written, produced and edited by Katy Lee, with help from Sonia Zhuravlyova, Dominic Kraemer and Katz Laszlo. Voiceover by Haya Vardy. Music provided by Moni Ovadia , Yad Vashem and Blue Dot Sessions . Artwork by La Kingsbeer . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon europeanspodcast.com | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 15, 2020
Why are monarchies still a thing in Europe?
Monarchies might seem out of date on a continent that prides itself on its democratic values, but nearly a third of Europeans still live in countries that have them. This week the drama in the British royal family finally convinced Katy to lift her ban on the topic. She and Dominic are joined by Bob Morris — constitutional expert at UCL and co-editor of a forthcoming book comparing European monarchies — to talk about why the royals are still a thing in the 21st century. Plus, flight-shaming, Federer-shaming, and Hungary's quest for a baby boom. Fancy a postcard from Paris or Amsterdam? Chip in to our Patreon fund before the end of the month! Thanks to the amazing donors who are already keeping this show running: patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Wed, January 08, 2020
A fisherman goes to Brussels
This week, a story that puts the romance back into European policy negotiations. What does a ninth-generation Catalan fisherman have to do with a law that affects an entire continent? Quite a lot, it turns out. This is the third in our series of original reported podcasts, Postcards from Europe, featuring intimate portraits of lives and places across the continent. It was made possible by the European Cultural Foundation , who support initiatives that rethink Europe as an open and democratic space. This podcast was written, produced and edited by Katz Laszlo. Editing and production assistance from Katy Lee, Dominic Kraemer and Valentina Vivona. Voiceover by Kike Molares. Music by Martí Batalla i Busquets and Blue Dot Sessions. Artwork by La Kingsbeer. With thanks to the Tarridas family, Alfons Garrido and our amazing Patreon supporters. hello@europeanspodcast.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon
Tue, December 17, 2019
A bar in Budapest
In Budapest, going out for a drink can be a political act. For the final episode of 2019, Dominic takes us to Auróra, a very special bar at the heart of the fightback against Hungary's authoritarian government. This is the second in our new series of original reported podcasts, Postcards from Europe, featuring intimate portraits of lives and places across the continent. This series was made possible by the European Cultural Foundation, who support initiatives that rethink Europe as an open and democratic space. Thank you also to our generous Patreon supporters and to Budapest band Jü for the music you heard in this episode. Looking for the infamous Instagram pics of police officers posted outside the bar? You can find them here . Happily, Gyuri says they haven't had to post on the account for two months. Reporter and producer: Dominic Kraemer. Assistant producer: Philip Pollak. Editors: Katz Laszlo and Katy Lee. Artwork: La Kingsbeer . Thanks for listening. We'll see you in 2020! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, December 10, 2019
What’s going on in Malta?
“There are crooks everywhere you look now," Malta's top investigative journalist wrote on her blog in 2017. "The situation is desperate.” Half an hour later, Daphne Caruana Galizia was dead. The fallout from her murder has now tipped Malta into a full-blown political crisis. Ranier Fsadni, columnist for The Times of Malta and The Shift , is on the line to help us untangle the situation. Also this week: ancient wood transportation and the slashing of Danish art. Thanks to our generous Patreon supporters for keeping the show going. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast , or leave us a review to help other people find us. Thanks for listening. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, December 03, 2019
President of the European what now?
This week we travel to the heart of the continent to ask: who is Ursula, and should you give a damn about her? This special episode was made with help from the European Cultural Foundation , who support projects that promote Europe as an open and democratic space. Liked the show? Please leave us a review or help keep us going by chipping in to our Patreon fund at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, November 26, 2019
Europe’s colonial past and present
Europe's museums are facing growing calls to give back treasures stolen during the colonial era. But what about colonial hand-me-downs that can be found in ordinary households? Elliot Ross, who covers Everyday Colonialism for The Correspondent, is here to explain why this ugly part of our past is still very much a part of our present. We're also talking about a scandal that has been rocking Iceland and nuggets of good news for the planet. You can follow Elliot on Twitter here and check out his work for The Correspondent here . Thanks for listening! If you like the show, please leave us a review to help other people find us! And if you're feeling extra generous, you can chip in to our Patreon fund to help us keep the show running at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, November 19, 2019
Postcards from Europe: Herstedvester
For this special episode, we're taking you inside Herstedvester, a maximum-security prison in Denmark. Herstedvester houses prisoners with serious mental health issues, as well as those who are considered a danger to others. Lene Bech Sillesen went to meet some inmates who are facing a choice with drastic consequences. This is the first in our new series of original reported podcasts, Postcards from Europe, featuring intimate portraits of lives and places across the continent. It was made possible by the European Cultural Foundation , who support initiatives that rethink Europe as an open and democratic space. A note on this week's show: we do not explore the inmates' crimes in this episode. Our aim is not to vindicate them, but we want to show what life is like for Greenlandic prisoners in the Danish penal system. That said, if you or people close to you have been affected by serious crime in Greenland, you might want to skip this episode. Hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee. Reporter and producer: Lene Bech Sillesen. Editor: Katz Laszlo. Voice actors: Peter Frederik Olsen and Vivi Nielsen. Artwork by La Kingsbeer . hello@europeanspodcast.com | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon
Tue, November 12, 2019
The Other Europeans
This week we’re celebrating Europeans who refused to let boundaries get in the way of things. The historian Orlando Figes is here to talk about the continent-crossing lovers at the heart of his new book, the brilliantly-named ‘ The Europeans ’. The poet Christopher Hütmannsberger reads us a beautiful new work to mark 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall. Plus, wild borders and the Gentle Revolution. Thanks to our amazing Patreon supporters for keeping us going! You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com Thanks for listening.
Tue, November 05, 2019
Loggerheads
This week, the fight for Romania's forests. Two of the country's forest rangers have been suffered brutal deaths since September. Who would do such a thing? The answer may lie in the lucrative illegal trade for wood in Romania, home to more than half of Europe's remaining primeval forests. Environmental activist Gabi Paun is here to explain why protecting trees has become so dangerous. We're also talking about Belgium's first female PM and wounded French pride. You can find out more about Gabi's activist group, Agent Green, here . Like the show? You can chip in to help us keep it running at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, October 29, 2019
A Polish teenage diarist
Renia's diary spent decades locked in a bank vault. Like many teenagers, she had used it to vent about stupid fights with her friends and to record the thrill of her first kiss. And when the war came, she used it to document the relentless killing of Jews in the town where she lived. Ania Jakubek is on the line from Warsaw to tell us the extraordinary story of Renia Spiegel, and why it stayed unknown for so long. We're also talking about promising signs that Europeans are becoming less bigoted. Oh, and there's a dog. You can read Ania's article about Renia here . For beautiful drawings, you should also follow Ania on Instagram . If you, like Dominic's mum, would like to get your hands on a limited edition Angry Macron tote bag, consider signing up for our Patreon top tier! All donations big and small are very welcome at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com Thanks for listening.
Tue, October 22, 2019
Invisible ink
This week, the female writers that Europe forgot. Carme Font Paz is leading a fascinating project aimed at uncovering the scribblings of European women from centuries ago and giving them their rightful place in the literary canon. Plus, Poland's election, posthumous comedy and why the EU won't be expanding east any time soon. You can find out more about Carme's project here . Thanks for listening! If you liked the show, please give us five big gold stars on Apple Podcasts or help us grow by chipping in on Patreon . See you next week. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Tue, October 08, 2019
Toxic elements
This week, the fight for LGBT rights in Poland. A horrible pattern has been repeating itself in Polish cities: far-right thugs turning up to hurl eggs, bottles, blows and insults at Pride protesters. Our guest, the poet and novelist Jacek Dehnel, is on the line from Warsaw to reflect on what bishops and politicians have to do with it, as well as why there are reasons for hope. Plus, nitrogen and warm-hearted drug smugglers. You can read Jacek's account of what happened at the Pride march in Białystok here in the Guardian . His novel Lala and the first volume of the murder mystery series co-written with his husband, Mrs Mohr Goes Missing , are now available in English along with his poetry collection Aperture . Enjoying the show? Join the generous souls helping us to make it better at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help out by leaving us a (nice!) review on Apple Podcasts . Thanks for listening! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com
Mon, September 30, 2019
Podchraoladh
This week, the beauty of the Irish language. Our guest is Darach Ó Séaghdha, whose wonderful book and podcast are a celebration of a language that may only have about 74,000 daily speakers but is very much alive and kicking. Also: the right to be forgotten, the Ukrainian side of the Trump impeachment inquiry, and treasures hidden in plain sight. Check out Darach's book, 'Motherfoclóir: Dispatches from a Not So Dead Language' and his podcast of the same name. And follow @TheIrishFor if you know what's good for you. Thanks as always to the hugely generous Patreon supporters who are keeping this show going. You can sign up at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | hello@europeanspodcast.com Thanks for listening. europeanspodcast.com
Mon, September 23, 2019
The Tourists of Venice
How does a city of little more than 50,000 permanent residents deal with an annual stampede of 25 million tourists? Venice is an extreme example of the growing scourge of overtourism across Europe. We talk to one of the residents organising a fightback, Elena Riu of the Gruppo 25 aprile . Also this week: #ClimateStrike, Rammstein and skydiving in your nineties. Thanks as always to the amazing Patreon supporters keeping this show going: patreon.com/europeanspodcast Hit us up at our shiny new email address! hello@europeanspodcast.com Thanks for listening ❤️ Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | europeanspodcast.com
Tue, September 17, 2019
What the hell is the European Way of Life?
This week we’re heading into the belly of the EU beast to talk about who’s going to be running the show for the next five years. Alberto Alemmano , aka the busiest man in Europe, is here to unpick some controversial decisions by Ursula von der Leyen as she gets ready to take charge in November. Plus, skeletons and Macron portraits. Send us ideas for new laws! hello@europeanspodcast.com Help us out by joining our amazingly generous Patreon squad! patreon.com/europeanspodcast Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Tue, September 10, 2019
Back for your Görlitzening pleasure
WE'RE BACK, with a new look for a new season. This week we're catching up on the summer's Italian drama and tackling the delicate question of Nazi relatives. And we're heading to Görlitz, on the German-Polish border, to find out why why so many voters in eastern Germany are putting their faith in the far-right AfD. Our guest is Emily Schultheis, a Berlin-based journalist covering right-wing populism, who spent a month in Görlitz getting into voters' heads. Read Emily's report for the Institute of Current World Affairs, where she is a fellow, here ! Check out her latest piece for The Atlantic ! And follow her on Twitter: @emilyrs . In other news, we have a beautiful new website: europeanspodcast.com . Help keep us running by joining our generous Patreon supporters: patreon.com/europeanspodcast . In Amsterdam on September 12? Get tickets for Cine Radio , the glorious international audio event hosted by our new producer Katz Laszlo. See you next week, it's good to be back. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, August 06, 2019
Hiphopo
... or 'hiphop' in Esperanto. This week we're talking about how the internet shook up the world's most idealistic language, with Federico Gobbo, professor of Esperanto at the University of Amsterdam. We're also talking about the furore over a rapper involved in a Swedish assault case, and the Dutch kid behind one of the most successful beats of all time. We're taking August off to work on some special episodes, but we'll be back before you know it. Keep your eyes peeled in September for our brand new logo! As a final farewell to its iconic predecessor, we'll be sending out limited edition Angry Macron tote bags to our existing Patreon subscribers to say thanks for the amazing support. Not a member yet? Sign up for our new $20 subscription to get your hands on a piece of podcasting history. See you in a few weeks! Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Patreon europeanspodcast.com europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, July 29, 2019
Portugal’s revolutionary drug policy
Scotland now has the highest rate of drug-related deaths in Europe — even higher than the United States. The shocking statistics have prompted calls in Scotland for a move towards the decriminalisation of drug use, taking the lead from a radical change of approach in Portugal. Portugal went from a full-blown opioid crisis in the 1980s to having one of the lowest rates of drug deaths in Europe today. We called Andreia Alves, a social worker with the Lisbon NGO Crescer , to find how a more humane policy makes her work easier. Also: turtle doves, VIP tour guides, and the art of the Spanish compromise. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening.
Mon, July 22, 2019
When politicians talk about love
This week we’re talking about what happened when Actress , the electronic musician also known as Darren Cunningham, made British and Dutch politicians debate the meaning of love. We’re also talking about French extravagance, the gentrification of Berlin, and the magic of medicine. You can find the article Dominic mentioned on the incredibly complex surgery that separated twins Safa and Marwa here . Liked the show? Please give us five big gold stars ! Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon Thanks for listening.
Mon, July 15, 2019
Morals and the Mediterranean
We don't call it 'the migrant crisis' anymore. Yet, every day, people attempt the treacherous crossing to reach our shores, and more than 500 people have died trying this year alone. This week we're talking about the politics of fear and the laws of the sea with the Italian migration expert Matteo Villa . We're also talking about rockets, bees and Greece's return to the right. Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Patreon Thanks for listening.
Mon, July 08, 2019
Brave and competent women
This week, the European women steering the ship. Katy and Dominic discuss the case of Carola Rackete, the rescue boat captain who has come to symbolize the moral divide over migration, as well as the nomination of Germany's Ursula von der Leyen and Christine Lagarde to two of the most powerful jobs on the continent. In the meantime, the biggest Czech protests since the fall of communism have been giving the populist billionaire PM Andrej Babiš a run for his money. We ring up Benjamin Roll, one of the young leaders of the growing protest movement. Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Patreon Thanks for listening.
Mon, July 01, 2019
Notes from Black Europe
What does it mean to be black in Europe? This week's guest Johny Pitts went on a five-month journey around the continent, interviewing black Europeans and exploring his own identity. The result is his brilliant new book, ' Afropean: Notes from Black Europe ', which makes the case for a community that crosses borders. Also this week: the role of railways in the Holocaust; whether or not we should talk about Merkel; and a strange reward for good behaviour. Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Patreon europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening.
Tue, June 25, 2019
Eldorado
This week, the strange and rather wonderful story of how the BBC tried (and failed, pretty badly) to create a European soap opera back in the 1990s. Former 'Eldorado' star Kai Maurer reflects on how his unlikely role playing a German beach bum kicked off his acting career and how the show was ahead of its time. Plus: a landmark Spanish court ruling and the ugly realities of European consensus politics. Read the article that sparked Katy's El Dorado obsession here . Should we launch a campaign to get the BBC to bring it back? Send us your thoughts: europeanspodcast@gmail.com Twitter Facebook Instagram Thanks to our supremely generous Patreon supporters. You can help us keep the show running by chipping in here . See you next week.
Mon, June 17, 2019
Sarajevo calling
This week, the increasingly worrying politics of a country with one of the most complicated governments in the world. We're talking to the Bosnian journalist Aleksandar Brezar about troubles that go ignored all too often in Europe and wartime scars that have yet to heal. We're also talking about European countries' varying approaches to regulating what women do with their bodies, and a transatlantic romance that has stood the test of time. Read Aleksandar's excellent piece in the Guardian and check out his podcast about Southeastern Europe, Sarajevo Calling . Rachel Kadish's superb piece about the humanity of Anne Frank can be found here , and France 24's in-depth reporting on abortion across Europe is here . Thanks as always to the supremely generous Patreon donors who are keeping this show running. You can chip in as little as a dollar a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, June 10, 2019
Europe needs culture
Hands up if you've got a better idea of what's happening in American politics than European politics, despite living on this side of the pond? This week André Wilkens , the new director of the European Cultural Foundation, argues that Europeans need to get better at telling their own story — whether it's in the form of a Hamilton-style hit musical or otherwise. Also: scooter wars, holograms, and when the left gets tough on immigration. You can read Katy's piece on the arrival of electric scooters in Paris last summer here in the Guardian, and see a holographic elephant here . If you like the show, you can help us out by giving us five big gold stars on Apple Podcasts , or join our hugely generous Patreon supporters. Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, June 03, 2019
Who won?
We've just elected a bunch of people to represent 500 million of us. But when it comes to the results of the European elections, most of us have been preoccupied with what happened in our own countries. This week we're zooming out to take a look at the continent as a whole with Caroline de Gruyter , the Oslo-based Europe correspondent for the Dutch newspaper NRC. Plus: Ibizagate, part 2; rural PR stunts; and the importance of correctly-spelled tweets. Many thanks to our Patreon supporters ! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening.
Mon, May 27, 2019
The wars of the future
Should machines have the power to decide whether a human on the battlefield lives or dies? Ulrike Franke spends her days imagining the wars of the future. We chatted to her about ‘killer robots’ and rogue drones. Plus: a far-right honey-trap and Germany in the age of the influencer. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Many thanks to our Patreon supporters ! See you next week.
Tue, May 21, 2019
SPECIAL EPISODE: Bursting the Bubble, Part 1
Katy's never voted in a European election before. This week she tries to make amends by figuring out, finally, what the European parliament is and what MEPs actually do. The elections are May 23-26 depending on what country you're in. Please vote! This episode was made with support from the European Cultural Foundation . They support initatives which rethink Europe as an open and democratic space. Thanks for listening. europeanspodcast.com
Mon, May 13, 2019
Syria, Kosovo, Brussels and the mountain
Countries all around Europe are dealing with the same dilemma: what to do with citizens who went to join ISIS. Tiny Kosovo is alone in opting to bring back a large group of its citizens when other countries are turning their backs. To find out why, Dominic talked to AJ Naddaff , who spent months researching why so many left Kosovo to fight, and the country's humane response to bringing people back. Over on the western edge of Europe Katy's been chatting to the French writer Maxime Calligaro about why the Brussels bubble is a surprisingly great place to set a crime novel. Maxime and Katy also spoke at the Ancienne Belgique last week about how to make Europe less boring (you can watch it here ). Thanks Liveurope for hosting! Also this week: sheep, bears (you can read about the mystery here in El País ) and an attempted coup. We'll be back next week for a special episode on how the European parliament works and why you should give a damn about the elections. Til then, hit us up online: PATREON: we're hugely grateful for your donations to help keep the show running! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, May 06, 2019
Bananadrama
This week, a celebration of the quintessential Renaissance man: yes, it's opera singer Dominic Kraemer with an interview about CHEMICAL ELEMENTS. We're also marking the 500th deathday of some guy called Leonardo who was similarly talented in both the arts and sciences. In Poland, the art world has gone bananas; in Spain, there's life in socialism yet; and British chemist and YouTube sensation Martyn Poliakoff is here to explain why he wants to turn the periodic table upside down, literally. In a week when we won a big prize, we want to say thanks more than ever for listening. Particularly huge thanks go to our Patreon supporters. If you want to throw a dollar or so into the tip jar, you can do so at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Beat Polish censorship by watching Natalia LL's work here . Love it? Hate it? Let us know: Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, April 30, 2019
Happy Birthday Bauhaus!
This week, European cultural greats past and present. We discuss the good, the bad and the Bauhaus with the American painter Henry Isaacs , who grew up surrounded by many of the key figures from the legendary German art school that marked its 100th birthday this month. And Katy chats to Kurt Overbergh, artistic director of the Ancienne Belgique music venue, about new sounds, immigration and the return of Turkish psychedelia. In Brussels? Come and see Katy at this great event at the Ancienne Belgique on May 7! Thanks for listening. If you have a euro or more to throw in the tip jar, the more the merrier at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . You can also help other listeners find the show by leaving us a review here . Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, April 22, 2019
Lyra
This week a brilliant young journalist was shot dead in Northern Ireland, on the 21st anniversary of the Good Friday peace agreement. The senseless death of Lyra McKee is a reminder of a conflict that most in the country have put behind them. Her friend, the writer Susan McKay, is here with a very moving tribute to a remarkable person. Also this week: a rebellion in London, rising from the ashes in Paris, and the magnificent species that is the European honey bee. You can follow Susan on Twitter here . Many thanks to BBC Radio Foyle in Derry for recording Susan's tribute for us. Thanks for listening. If you have a euro or two a month to spare, you can help support the show at patreon.com/europeanspodcast.com . And if you fancy writing a (flattering) review on Apple Podcasts, you can do so here . See you next week, Europe. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, April 15, 2019
Disinformation Wars
No, European governments are not handing out 'brothel vouchers' to immigrants; and no, the EU is not trying to ban bendy cucumbers. Euro-myths are as old as the union itself, but with elections just around the corner, setting the record straight feels more important than ever. This week's guest is on the frontlines of the fight against disinformation: Jules Darmanin , the coordinator of a new continent-wide band of fact-checkers. Plus: Julian Assange, Swiss democracy, and the world's greatest neighbours. You can find the Fact Check EU website here in 11 beautiful languages. That nice article about our former guest Flavia Kleiner that Dominic was talking about is here , and the Swiss podcast episode that Katy was raving about is available here . Huge thanks to the incredibly generous people helping us to keep this show running with their donations. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, April 08, 2019
Nice One, Slovakia
This week, a little glimmer of hope from central Europe in the form of a new Slovakian president who refuses to fight dirty. And a little glimmer of the future in the form of our guest, bionic woman and tech journalist Mimi Billing, one of a growing number of Swedes to have got themselves... microchipped? Plus: Russian whale jails, a decades-old French mystery, and germs at the opera. Follow Mimi on Twitter here and read her great article about Swedish body-hacking here ! And for more on Slovakia's badass president-elect Zuzana Čaputová, there's no better place to start than the latest episode of the In Between Europe podcast hosted by our former guest Zselyke Csaky, which you can check out here . A massive thanks to our growing army of Patreon supporters for keeping the show going. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . See you next week, and in the meantime, see you online! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, March 26, 2019
Political Tinder
This week, like so many other weeks, it's been easy to take a look at the world and think: how did things get so polarised? Ahead of the European elections, the battle lines are already being drawn: nationalists vs globalists, liberals vs conservatives. But a fascinating project is trying to get Europeans from across the political spectrum to actually sit down and talk about their differences. Sebastian Horn , the deputy editor of Die Zeit online, is on the line from Berlin to explain the thinking behind the Europe Talks project. Plus: changing populist fortunes from Budapest to Amsterdam, and the mathematics of soap bubbles. Sign up to take part in Europe Talks here . Thanks so much to our listeners who've donated on Patreon! Every little helps and we're hugely grateful for the support. You can chip in at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, March 19, 2019
MEGALITHS!!!!
After the week it's been, we could all do with a break from the present. This week, we're venturing into Europe past -- about six thousand years ago, to a time when mysterious stone structures were springing up all around the continent. Today we call them megaliths, and there's a lot we still don't know about them. But one woman has been on a quest to work out how these extraordinary monuments spread around Europe. Archaeologist Bettina Schulz Paulsson is on the line from Gothenburg to talk about how early Europeans were exchanging knowledge and culture a good few millennia before the EU was invented. Also: a reverse art heist, a blow for the anti-vaxxers , and how to say no to big business. Thanks so much to the new supporters who joined our Patreon this week! You can help us carry on making the show by chipping at https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, March 12, 2019
A taste of the nuclear apocalypse
This week The Europeans are heading underground to the nearest bunker. Julie McDowall, Cold War writer and expert on all things atomic, is on the line from Glasgow to talk about how different countries in Europe planned for nuclear war and what it’s like to visit Chernobyl, three decades after the disaster. We also talk about the woman shaking up Estonian politics, questionable ethics in Italian opera, and Slovenian sandwiches. You can check out Julie’s excellent podcast The Atomic Hobo here and follow her on Twitter here . Thanks so much to the new supporters who joined our Patreon this week! You can help us carry on making the show by chipping at https://www.patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, March 05, 2019
They / Them / Theirs
This week we're talking about transgender rights in Europe with the author and activist CN Lester, whose wonderful book Trans Like Me gets its mainstream paperback release on Thursday. And on a continent where young people mostly stayed at home for the last elections, Mick ter Reehorst calls in to explain why he's launched a new campaign, #ProveThemWrong, to get out the youth vote in May. Plus: winter bacon, sticking it to the homophobes, and a mile-high culture clash between France and the Netherlands. Check out CN's work at cnlester.com ! Get the youth vote out at provethemwrong.eu ! And watch this great video about women getting the vote in Switzerland! Thanks so much to everyone who's started chipping in to our Patreon fund. Help us keep the show going at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, February 25, 2019
The brands that Karl built
This week, the kid from Hamburg who grew up to become one of the most powerful forces in global fashion. Karl Lagerfeld built not one but three hugely successful brands. After his death last week at the age of 85, we're exploring the flaws, quirks and legacy of this complicated man with the help of Fiachra Gibbons , culture editor at Agence France-Presse and long-time observer of 'the Kaiser'. We also discuss Europe's rising problem with anti-Semitism, some good news for Serbia's gay first couple, and how to make it big in Finland. Thanks to everyone who's started chipping in to our Patreon fund! Help us keep the show going at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, February 19, 2019
The most isolated place on Earth
This week we're stretching the definition of Europe to the limit and travelling all the way down to the French-Italian research base in the Antarctic! By some miracle we managed to Skype the physicist Meganne Christian at the Concordia base about what it's like spending an entire year living in the most isolated place on Earth (albeit with decent Italian cooking). At the other end of the planet: bears, Viktor Orbán's bid to turn Hungarian women into baby-machines, and pop that pisses off the populists. Thanks to everyone who's started chipping in to our Patreon fund! Help us keep the show going at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, February 11, 2019
The skies over Skopje
This week, the city where you can taste the air on your tongue. We're going to Skopje with the Macedonian writer Aleksandar Dimishkovski to find out what it's like living in the most polluted city in Europe. On the brighter side, we also have some Swedish bling, a badass Romanian anti-corruption crusader, and some long-forgotten treasures. Interested in finding out why John Ruskin is so relevant? Click here . Thanks so much to everyone who's signed up to support us on Patreon! If you like the show and have a tiny bit of cash to spare, you can join our kind donors at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, February 05, 2019
Stick it to the grown-ups
This week's guest is ten years old and one of the fiercest, smartest people we've ever had on this podcast. Lilly Platt calls in from Zeist in the Netherlands to tell us why she's helping to lead the tens of thousands of children across Europe striking to demand action on climate change. And from skipping school to skipping the queue, anti-money laundering expert Laure Brillaud is here from Brussels to cast a light on the murky world of 'golden visas' for sale in Europe. Plus: positive pop, bad meat, and one very happy cellist. You can follow Lilly's school strike and Plastic Pick-Up campaign on Facebook and Twitter . Read Laure's report on golden visas for Transparency International here . Thanks so much to everyone who's signed up to support us on Patreon! If you like the show and have a tiny bit of cash to spare, you can join our kind donors at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Need a moment of calm? Check out this track by sexy 500-year-old composer Giovanni Pierluigi Palestrina here . Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, January 29, 2019
Kraemer vs Kraemer
This week, two Kraemers for the price of one! Dominic's brother, BBC political nerd Daniel Kraemer, is here to explain why Britain has the weirdest parliament in Europe. Don't worry, we kept the B-word chat to a minimum. Plus: Macron and Merkel's Duolingo pact, Ronaldo's millions, and the kindest grandma on the continent. Thanks so much to everyone who's signed up to support us on Patreon! If you like the show and have a tiny bit of cash to spare, you can join our kind donors at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . Follow Daniel on Twitter @dcakraemer (if you have to follow one account tweeting B****t, this should be it). Something we should be covering in your corner of Europe? We want to hear from you! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤
Tue, January 22, 2019
It’s that damn bear again
It's good to be back! We've got big plans for 2019. Starting with the fact that we're now on Patreon! If you have a few euros to spare and want to help us grow, hit us up at patreon.com/europeanspodcast . This week, smart Finns and a very smart bear. Computer scientist Teemu Roos is on the line from Helsinki to explain why Finland is trying to educate its population en masse about artificial intelligence. And our Woman in Warsaw Ania Jakubek is back with the tale of a Polish wartime hero who just happened to be... a bear. Plus: Greek drama, Satanic tourism, and how to make the internet a nicer place. SUPPORT US ON PATREON here . We're grateful for any donations, big or small. Short on cash? Support the pod by spreading the word :) START TEEMU'S AI COURSE at elementsofai.com . READ ANIA'S ARTICLE about Wojtek the bear at https://yhoo.it/2FEdA9F And follow her on Instagram! instagram.com/amjakubek Finally, you can check out the great Swedish anti-troll Facebook group #jagärhär here . 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Music: 'Moon Noose' by Druslan From the Free Music Archive CC NC ND https://bit.ly/2CrYorW
Tue, December 18, 2018
The Bee Word
This week, the need for more buzz around Europe: the bee kind, and the excitement kind. Our very special guest to round off the year (and keep Katy company while Dominic was rolling around on the floor) is the Dutch writer Joris Luyendijk, who despite having been named Bad News reporter for De Correspondent has more hope than you might think for this continent as we roll into 2019. Trigger warning: there's a mention or two of the b-word as we talk about why Europe ain't so boring and the mysteries of the British psyche. Plus: Powerfrauen; an all-too-human robot, and the fight to save our pollinators. Thank you so much for listening in 2018! We'll be back in January. In the meantime, we'd love it if you left us a review as a Christmas present (preferably a nice one): apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Bonne année, Frohes neues Jahr, and Feliz Año Nuevo! 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, December 11, 2018
Freedom
This week on The Europeans, two passionate defences of liberty, the political and the sexual. Renowned Hungarian rights defender Márta Pardavi is on the line from Budapest to talk about what it's like fighting with the increasingly authoritarian government of Viktor Orbán. And Paulita Pappel calls in from Berlin to chat about her work as a feminist pornographer. Plus: France's road rage, Luxembourg's road delight, and the greatest ever reason to uncork a bottle of wine. Follow Márta and Paulita on Twitter: @martapardavi / @paulitapappel Also, listen to Paulita's brilliant podcast if you know what's good for you: https://ersties-podcast.com Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, December 04, 2018
Flavia and the Machine (anniversary episode)
A special show marking A WHOLE YEAR OF THE PODCAST! Extra brilliant guests are here to help us mark this very narcissistic edition of anniversary annexe/commemoration corner. Flavia Kleiner, whose Operation Libero has been waging a quietly successful war against rightwing populism in Switzerland, calls in from Zurich with some lessons for the rest of Europe. And Andrea Chalupa is here to discuss her new film Gareth Jones, about a courageous Welsh journalist's battle to tell the truth about the famine her grandfather survived in Ukraine 85 years ago. Plus: vote-buying, espionage, and a few splashes of prosecco. Follow Flavia and Operation Libero here: https://twitter.com/operationlibero And Andrea here: https://twitter.com/AndreaChalupa Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤
Mon, November 26, 2018
November 27: Picasso, Poland & Pedagogy
This week, the story of one of Europe's strangest art heists keeps getting stranger; the fate of Poland's judges keeps getting more complicated; and a teacher in one of France's poorest towns refuses to give up on her kids. Juliette Perchais is on the line to talk about what it's like teaching in one of her country's toughest schools and how she traveled the world to bring back the best educational ideas out there. Check out her website www.storiesofinspiringteachers.com — it does what it says on the tin. You can also find some reporting Katy did from Grigny here: https://yhoo.it/2PWgdZV And last but not least, your podcast recommendations for the week: Stammtisch https://bit.ly/2An9lKw Radiolab: Tweak The Vote https://bit.ly/2OFzpWc Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, November 20, 2018
November 20: Why doesn’t Europe have a Silicon Valley?
This week of all weeks, your favourite Parisian reporter and Amsterdam crooner are here to bring you Everything Europe That Isn't Brexit. We’ve got two brilliant guests who couldn’t be more different from each other: YouTube tech guru Marton Barcza, aka TechAltar, is here to talk about why Europe hasn’t produced an internet giant to rival Google or Facebook. And Paris-based comedian Sarah Donnelly walks us through an ethical minefield: to open for Louis CK, or not to open for Louis CK? Also: a runaway prime minister, political underwear, and the smell of defeat. Subscribe to TechAltar on YouTube: https://bit.ly/2Bgsy2a And follow Sarah's show Becoming Maman: https://www.instagram.com/becomingmaman/ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤
Tue, November 13, 2018
November 13: The black soldier’s lament
A hundred years on from the end of World War I, we wanted to look at an aspect of the conflict we don't often talk about: the role of millions of troops of colour who fought for European powers. The excellent Christian Koller, professor of modern history at Zurich University, is here to help us explore what life was like for African and Asian soldiers who were often dismissed as 'savages' while risking their lives for European governments. Also: France faces its past, European conservatives face their future, and Dominic faces a lifetime of incessant church bells. Our episode name comes from the poem by George A. Borden: 'Black blood was spilled black bodies maimed / For medals brave no black was named.' You can read Christian's fascinating research here: https://bit.ly/2JYrDGu Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Thanks for listening. 🇪🇺 ❤
Tue, November 06, 2018
November 6: Watching Over The Night Watch
This week, the story of a painting that's been attacked with knives, chopped up, hidden in a cave from Nazis, and has probably had beer spilled on it. It also happens to be one of the world's greatest masterpieces. Our very special guest is Taco Dibbits, director of the Rijksmuseum, here to explain why the Netherlands' national museum is going to be restoring The Night Watch while the whole world watches. And from Rembrandt to race, the playright Marjorie H. Morgan is on the line from Liverpool to talk about the difference between being black in Europe and black in America. The Europeans is supported by Are We Europe, the continent's most beautiful magazine. Type 'europeanspod' for a 15% discount on your copy at www.areweeurope.com. Thanks for listening! 🇪🇺 ❤ Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Tue, October 30, 2018
October 30: Everyone’s free to vote (and wear sunscreen)
This week: freedom. Freedom to vote, freedom of speech, and freedom to attempt a robbery in Belgium even when you're not quite sure how robberies work. Dominic's been at the European Parliament's liaison office in Berlin chatting to Frank Piplat and Christopher Lade about what makes these elections different, and Sally Eshun is here from Are We Europe to talk about hate speech on both sides of the Atlantic. Also: naughty Italians, balloon sticks, and the beauty of toilets. Are you, like Katy, lacking inspiration when it comes to the European elections? Check out http://thistimeimvoting.eu for a few ideas. Read Sally's article at www.areweeurope.com — and if you believe in the power of print, type 'europeanspod' for a 15% discount on your copy of the continent's most beautiful magazine. The Europeans is supported by Future Europe, a podcast from the European Investment Bank. Check it out here: eib.org/future-Europe Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com 🇪🇺 ❤
Mon, October 22, 2018
October 23: Big continent, mini episode
This week on the Europeans: bacteria, cathedral thinking, and a Spanish drug lord who got too cocky. We're guest-less this week due to illness so this is a mini-show, but we wanted to drop by and say a quick gutentag. We'll be back with a fully-sized episode next week. Thanks so much for listening. The Europeans is supported by Future Europe, a podcast from the European Investment Bank. Check it out here: eib.org/future-Europe And we're supported by Are We Europe! Type 'europeanspod' for a 15% discount on your copy of the continent's most beautiful magazine at www.areweeurope.com Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com 🇪🇺 ❤
Mon, October 15, 2018
October 16: The Unlucky Passport
Whether you're a European passport-holder or not, so much in life is determined by the paper we carry in our pockets. Our guest this week is the Yemeni photographer Thana Faroq, whose brilliant project The Passport explores what it's like to hold a so-called 'unlucky' passport. Her work is on show in New York right now, but she's not allowed to travel from her home in the Netherlands to see it with her own eyes. Also this week, Bram Hilkens is here to delve into the continent's hip-hop scene, Katy and Dominic have been gallivanting in Berlin (stand by on instagram.com/europeanspodcast for romantic photos), and Greece has been lightening the load for its donkeys. The Europeans is supported by Future Europe, a podcast from the European Investment Bank. Check it out here: eib.org/future-Europe And we're supported by Are We Europe! Type 'europeanspod' for a 15% discount on your copy of the continent's most beautiful magazine at www.areweeurope.com Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening.
Tue, October 09, 2018
October 9: Macedo, Macedon’t
What's in a name? A lot, if you're Macedonia. Emil Atanasovski is here to talk us through one of the most confusing questions in the Balkans, thank god. Transatlantic movie man Kevin Sachs is on the line to explain why Netflix is about to get a lot more European, with his tips for stylish German television thrown in for free. Plus bears, trains, and ancient weapons, we've got it all this week. The Europeans is supported by Future Europe, a podcast from the European Investment Bank. Check it out here: eib.org/future-Europe And we're supported by Are We Europe! Type "europeanspod" for a 15% discount on your copy of the continent's most beautiful magazine at www.areweeurope.com Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening.
Mon, October 01, 2018
October 2: Wall, Rocket, Bottle, Horse
This week a tiny horse made a grand entrance to Europe, and one of France's finest singers took his final bow. RIP Charles Aznavour, trailblazer and source of the most embarassing story of Dominic's life (listen til the end). Our guest this week is Monique Van den Abbeel, a Belgian campaigner for the visually impaired who is soon to be welcoming Europe's first guide horse into her home in Bruges. Yes, this is a thing, and we are very excited about it. In Week 2 of our partnership with Are We Europe we also talk to co-editor Alexander Hurst about being an American on the continent. Check out the magazine's latest issue here: https://areweeurope.com Also: a space race, a non-existent wall, and a message from the past. Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ❤️🇪🇺
Mon, September 24, 2018
September 25: WEB OF LIES
This week on the Europeans: bad Italian wifi, a bad Danish bank, and badly behaved Spanish politicians. And spiders, lots of spiders. The Financial Times' Madrid correspondent Michael Stothard is on the line (kind of) to explain Spain's growing plagiarism scandal. And as part of our new partnership with the uber-cool magazine Are We Europe, we chat with its editor Kyrill Hartog about their latest issue The Ocean Between Us, all about Europe's complicated relationship with America. Check it out here — and if you too believe that print is not dead, buy a copy! www.areweeurope.com Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ❤️🇪🇺
Mon, September 17, 2018
September 18: Welcome To Europe, Here Are Four Walls
There's a big difference between a shelter and a home. After Sweden's elections cast a spotlight on the integration of immigrants, this week we're asking how housing and urban design can affect your ability as a newcomer to settle in a new place. Alice Pittini, research coordinator at Housing Europe, talks us through some of the best examples of housing designed to help refugees and asylum seekers get stuck in and start building new lives. We also chat about Viktor Orbán and the battle for Europe's soul, green jargon, and French superheroes. Plus, a listener sheds some light on Dominic's salty German food mystery. Read Housing Europe's latest research on migration & housing here: https://bit.ly/2N6p89H And check out this neat project they're involved with, Designing Inclusion: https://www.desinc.org Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ❤️🇪🇺
Tue, September 11, 2018
September 11: The Future Library
Dominic's singing in Berlin, Katy's painting in Paris, and a forest is quietly growing just outside Oslo. Our guest this week is Anne Beate Hovind, project manager of a strange and wonderful project in Norway involving books, trees and the passage of time. Also on the menu, Florence is taking things OFF the street food menu and Poland is harnessing the power of the howling wind. Plus, a glimmer of hope after some dark days in Chemnitz. Say hallo: Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com If you liked the show and have a minute to spare, please drop us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ️🇪🇺
Mon, September 03, 2018
September 4: Nation Branding, Robot Dancing
This week on The Europeans: national branding done right (Sweden) and wrong (Theresa May's robot dancing). Or will the British PM have the last laugh on that one? The jury's still out. Swedish journalist Charlotte Boström is on the line to explain how her country successfully marketed itself as an eco-friendly feminist paradise. And as Dominic packs his bags for two months in Berlin, he and Katy talk clocks, democracy, fine food and Lego. Find us on the interweb, we love hearing from you! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ❤️🇪🇺 Charlotte's article in The Groene (in Dutch): https://www.groene.nl/artikel/de-kunst-om-een-land-te-verkopen
Mon, August 27, 2018
August 28: Greece and Fabrice
This week we're talking about a couple of journeys. Greece has gone from the depths of despair to something a little less like despair; Nick Malkoutzis of Macropolis (@NickMalkoutzis) is on the line from Athens to explain. And Frenchman Fabrice Pothier is here to tell us about his fun (?) 700-kilometre cycle from Foie Gras country to Santander, hoping to learn a thing or two about Europe. Also: an artistic mishap, virulent success, and a discordant initative by Berlin transport authorities. Drop us a line! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod Instagram.com/europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com Write us a review! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks for listening. ❤️🇪🇺
Mon, August 20, 2018
August 21: The G-Spot of Europe
This week, sex and the internet. For once it's not us making the filthy innuendos, although Dominic does his best. It's Lithuania's capital Vilnius! We ask tour guide Agneta Ladek (https://bit.ly/2BBRNyi) if her city is really 'the G-spot of Europe — nobody knows where it is, but when you find it, it's amazing'. Dimi Dimitrov is on the line to explain why changes to the way we regulate the internet in Europe would have made life harder for Wikipedia and more boring for everyone else. And one woman is on a quest to bring some ancient Norman sass to modern-day Guernsey. Hit us up! Twitter.com/EuropeansPod | Instagram.com/europeanspod Facebook.com/europeanspodcast | Wikipedia: watch this space?
Mon, August 13, 2018
August 14: The traces they leave
This week, something a little different: Deborah Cole, a Berlin-based reporter since 1995, reads us her beautiful piece about the race to collect the memories of elderly Germans who lived through some of the most tumultuous events in modern history. Follow Deborah on Twitter @doberah, she's our favourite person tweeting from Merkel Land. Also: an airborne mishap, an ingenious Spaniard, and irony, Slovenian-style, explained with the help of the brilliant Aljaž Pengov Bitenc (aka @pengovsky). Hit us up on the internet: Twitter: @europeanspod Insta: @europeanspodcast Facebook.com/europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com europeanspodcast.com Your Apple reviews make our lives worth living. Add to the pile here: apple.co/2Ez2KN8
Mon, August 06, 2018
August 7: Piss and Populism
As you'll see in this week's episode, we're warming to two themes this season: urine, and the far-right. Timo Lochocki (@TLochocki), an expert on populism in Europe, is on the line from Berlin to talk about why we SHOULDN'T talk about Steve Bannon's new venture on this side of the Atlantic. On a brighter note, Adrian Murphy's here to talk about Europeana, a lovely EU culture project that is currently collecting personal stories about migrating around the continent. Check it out at https://www.europeana.eu. Also: good times for cash-strapped Berlin parents, bad times for Shakespearean amateur voiceover artists, and a disaster averted in Katy's hometown. Liked the show? Please leave us five big shiny stars! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, July 30, 2018
July 31: HEAT
We're back! What's cooking, Europe? Apparently the whole continent. Greece has just suffered Europe's deadliest forest fires in a century, part of a spate of extreme weather all over the northern hemisphere. Just back from Athens, we ask incoming AFP science correspondent Patrick Galey (and his dog) whether this is the new normal. Follow @patrickgaley for the angriest climate tweets in town. Things have been heating up in Germany too, in the form of a huge debate over identity politics. Dicle Akar, a teacher at the Berlin International School, gives us her thoughts on Turkish identity in Germany and the row over football star Mesut Özil. Plus: how the summer's been going for Europe's biggest political egos, and the bright side of the forthcoming apocalypse. Send us your most beautiful/hideous pics of Europe for our elite Instagram contest! instagram.com/europeanspodcast / europeanspodcast@gmail.com Twitter.com/europeanspod | europeanspodcast.com
Mon, June 11, 2018
June 12: Waxy smiles
Smiling may not come easily to Russians, as you'll hear about on this episode. But here at The Europeans we've got plenty to smile about this week: 1) Katy's at a pig farm 2) Dominic's latest opera is going great 3) We have fantastic guest Aljaž Pengov Bitenc on the line to talk about what we can learn from Slovenia's recent election. Follow him at twitter.com/pengovsky and hear us on his podcast Evropska četrt: https://bit.ly/2sUjkDk 4)Spain's Mr Handsome is off to a good start and the US ambassador to Germany is off to a bad one 5) We're going on holiday! We'll be back in a few weeks. Please stay subscribed because we won't be gone long and we'll likely be dropping by to say hello! Please review us PLEEEASE: apple.co/2Ez2KN8 We're supported by Stackry, the global leader in parcel forwarding from the US. Use our special link & coupon EUROPEANS: bit.ly/European3 twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspod instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Fri, June 08, 2018
BONUS EPISODE: Akbar Ahmed on Islam in Europe
A longer version of our conversation with Akbar Ahmed on his book 'Journey into Europe' about Islam's role in the continent. twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, June 04, 2018
June 5: Changing PMs at 103 BPMs
In Europe our clocks may be slow (see our March 13 episode) but our politics moves fast. Two new governments in a week! Katy and Dominic get you up to speed on what's been happening in Spain and Italy. Our guest this week is Akbar Ahmed, one of the world's leading experts on Islam, who has just published a major new study on Europe's Muslims. We enjoyed our conversation so much that we'll be releasing it in full as a bonus episode, so look out for that later in the week. Plus: how Spain's trashiest 1990s dance hit could save your life. Muchas gracias for listening! Please leave us a review if you liked the show, it helps new listeners find us: apple.co/2Ez2KN8 We're supported by Stackry, the global leader in parcel forwarding from the US. Use our special link & coupon EUROPEANS: bit.ly/European3 twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, May 28, 2018
May 29: Five Stars, Ireland
What a week. There’s been wonderful news from Ireland and so much drama in Italy that we actually had to re-record part of this week’s show at the last minute. Speaking of Italian thrillers: we’ve been chatting to Giuseppe Porcaro, author of brand-new sci-fi novel DISCO SOUR (https://amzn.to/2IVCi7s), about why he decided to set it in a parallel European universe. And Katy’s been talking to Sweden-based Florian Tirnovan about his great project organizing a talent show for deaf people from all around the continent. Plus: a thunderstorm, a requisitioned towel, and an unlikely friendship in the most beautiful (?) corner of Europe. Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts if you liked the show, it helps other people find us! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 We're supported by Stackry, the global leader in parcel forwarding from the US. Use our special link & coupon EUROPEANS: bit.ly/European3 twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, May 21, 2018
May 22: A wedding and no funeral
This week we're going back to the 1970s to look at two great mysteries: an unsolved murder in Norway, and Britain's ever-enigmatic relationship with Europe. Norwegian investigative journalist Marit Higraff joins us to talk about Death In Ice Valley, the true crime podcast from the BBC and NRK hoping to uncover the truth behind a woman's death half a century ago. Also delving into the past is British comedian Kieran Hodgson, whose new show looks for laughs in the unlikeliest of places: the story of how Britain ended up joining the EU. Plus: Cold comfort for the Balkans, Amsterdam's war on 'mono-culture', and the secret to living a very, VERY long life. Oh, and the tiniest mention of a certain wedding. We're supported by Stackry, the global leader in parcel forwarding from the US. Use our special link & coupon EUROPEANS: bit.ly/European3 Make us very happy with 5 big gold stars! apple.co/2Ez2KN8 twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Sat, May 19, 2018
Hello, new listeners!
A big warm European welcome to the many new listeners who've joined us over the last few weeks! Here's a little bonus episode in which Dominic and Katy introduce themselves and suggest a few favourite episodes you may want to check out. Our guests are amazing people from all around Europe: chefs, designers, athletes, scientists... Here are the highlights mentioned in this show: May 7: Making a living from gambling on Eurovision March 27: A Michelin-starred chef on pizza and national identity March 20: Vogue's international editor on euro-fashion Feb 6: The philosophy behind IKEA Feb 20: Juggling a hairdressing career with Olympic curling Jan 16: The trouble with translating Donald Trump Jan 30: A beginner's guide to Viennese waltzing Dec 19: The lack of diversity in EU institutions Find us on the internet: twitter.com/EuropeansPod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, May 14, 2018
May 15: The winner takes it all, the loser takes a selfie
First up, hello new listeners! We’ll be dropping a bonus ep shortly to explain what this is all about, but this week’s main show is a great place to start. We’re a journalist in Paris and an opera singer in Amsterdam. Welcome! It’s been week of highs and lows for Europe and The Europeans. Katy came back from Germany with empty pockets but a full heart (and a selfie). It’s been a bad week for euro diplomacy, but a great one for trashy pop. Someone who’s seen more than her fair share of highs and lows is our guest Farah Abdi, a transgender Somali refugee who arrived in Malta by boat in 2012. She tells Katy about her journey and her fight for better rights for LGBT refugees in Europe. And songwriter MaJiKer, who’s penned songs for Eurovision hopefuls, is on hand to explain why Israel snatched victory and Sweden got robbed. Thanks for listening! Leave us a review here: https://apple.co/2Ez2KN8 We're supported by Stackry. Use our special link & coupon 'Europeans': https://bit.ly/European3
Mon, May 07, 2018
May 7: Eurovision. EUROVISION!!!!!
Katy gets all mushy about Europe as we talk to a very clever man who makes his living by speculating on Eurovision. Daniel Gould (Mr Gould to Dominic), is the founder of www.Sofabet.com and gives us all the latest from Lisbon. We then head over to Spain to speak to the activist and writer, Brigitte Vasallo about Spain's #MeToo movement and the public reaction to the shocking court ruling in a rape case in Pamplona. Plus, we have meatballs, terrorists, Harry Potter Royalty and a healthy serving of cultural appropriation. Meanwhile, Katy is heading over to Aachen to find out if we've won Eurovision for Euro-geeks, aka the EU's Charlemagne Prize for Youth. Please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts to help stop the flow of tears when we probably/definitely don't win: apple.co/2HPcgkK Find us on the socials if you miss us between episodes: twitter.com/EuropeansPod instagram.com/europeanspodcast/ facebook.com/europeanspodcast/ http://europeanspodcast.com/
Mon, April 30, 2018
May 1: Sticks and stones and dandruff
We couldn't have two more different interviews for you this week: we're talking anti-Semitism in Germany and the art of remaining zen on a beach in Scotland. After two German rappers sparked national outrage with lyrics about the Holocaust, Human Rights Watch Germany's chief Wenzel Michalski is on the line to talk about his all too personal experience of Europe's rising anti-Semitism problem. Why throw stones when you can turn them into art instead? Scottish photographer Andy Buchanan brings us the weird, wonderful and unexpectedly hilarious story of the European Stone Stacking Championships. His beautiful photos in the Guardian: https://bit.ly/2KkCY3b Plus, Macron Does America and Bulgaria Does It Wrong (https://bit.ly/2qMCTgH). And why not stick around and Take A Chance On Dominic's happy ending this week? Thanks for listening, Europe! Twitter: @europeanspod | Instagram: @europeanspodcast | facebook.com/europeanspodcast The story behind our artwork: https://bit.ly/2HDXycZ
Mon, April 23, 2018
April 24: Keep your bitcoin close and your botany closer
A treasure-themed episode for you this week: the natural treasures of Poland's ancient Białowieża forest, hidden treasures in rural France, and buried treasure on a German island. Dominic's been chatting to Agata Szafraniuk of environmental lawyers ClientEarth about their battle with the Polish government to protect Białowieża, one of the few remaining patches of the primeval forest that covered Europe 10,000 years ago. Also heading into the countryside are Parisian podcaster Oliver Gee of The Earful Tower fame and his fiancee Lina Nordin, on a quest to discover the real France through a heart-shaped (awwwwww) tour of the country. Plus: Strict Belgian gyms, 10th century bling and a bitcoin heist. We're being listed by Apple as a 'new and noteworthy' podcast for the next few weeks, woohoo! Help us make the most of it by leaving us a rating and/or review here: https://apple.co/2HPcgkK Thanks so much for listening!
Mon, April 16, 2018
April 17: Once Upon A Time In Hungary
Gather round, children, it's story time. This week in The Europeans, the dark tale of how Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán became one of the most powerful men in Europe, to the great disquiet of his western neighbours. Zselyke Csaky, expert on all things Central European, is on the line to explain why campaigning against immigrants, Muslims and billionaire George Soros has paid off so well for this worryingly autocratic leader. To cheer you up, Mick ter Reehorst of storytelling project Are We Europe has a happier tale to tell. He cracks open a couple of beers with Dominic as he sets out his mission to Make Europe Sexy Again with a beautifully-designed website and and magazine. Plus: murders, pizzas, and musical road surfaces. Thanks for listening! Get your Europeans fix in between Tuesdays: twitter.com/europeanspod facebook.com/europeanspodcast instagram.com/europeanspodcast
Mon, April 09, 2018
April 10: Liberté, Egalité, Difficultés
Bonjour Europe, we're all joining Katy in Paris this week to talk about some of the less rosy aspects of la belle France. Our guest this week is the French writer and film-maker Rokhaya Diallo, who has all too often found herself on the receiving end of troubling attitudes towards race in the country she calls home. And with train drivers unleashing three months of rail strikes and students barricading faculty buildings, is Emmanuel Macron heading for a summer of discontent? Plus: Dutch sugar highs, problematic theatre, Swedish beats and buried treasure. Join us on the internet where we post fun and interesting things from around Europe! facebook.com/europeanspodcast | twitter.com/EuropeansPod | instagram.com/europeanspodcast And if you're feeling extra generous, maybe drop us five stars on iTunes? 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 https://apple.co/2Ez2KN8 Thanks Europe, we love you very much.
Tue, April 03, 2018
April 3: Trash islands and rainbow homes
"Ever wonder where plastic ends up? I have a story I'd like to share." This week on The Europeans, the Irish journalist Naomi O'Leary describes what happened when she visited a remote paradise island in the Caribbean, only to find the entire Western world had got there first: plastic, plastic and yet more plastic. We talk about what Naomi found and what Europe can do to stop it. And we quizzed her about her podcast The Irish Passport too! In Zagreb, Daniel Martinović is on the line to discuss the success of Dugine Obitelji (Rainbow Families), Croatia's first children's picture book showing kids with LGBT parents. Plus: the Netherlands keeps its gas underground; a London embassy keeps Julian Assange off the net; and a tale of redemption for an amateur sculptor in Madeira. Thanks for listening! Let us know what you thought of this week's show: --> facebook.com/europeanspodcast | Twitter: @EuropeansPod | Insta: @europeanspodcast | Email: europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, March 26, 2018
March 27: French Burgers, Danish Pizza
First up, fantastic news: The Europeans Podcast has been nominated for a prize! Hit play to find out all about it, we are over the moon. What a delicious episode we have for you this week. Michelin-starred chef Christian Puglisi is on the line from Copenhagen to talk about how his heritage has helped him shape cuisine that defies the rules. Born to a Norwegian mother and a Sicilian father, Christian's ideas about where he comes from have changed with time, as have his ideas about food. We hear all about how his hit restaurant Baest has blurred the lines of what makes an 'authentic' pizza by going for freshness first — to the point of making Danish mozzarella — and his ongoing battle to make his restaurants as green as possible. Plus: how the French learned to love burgers; how the world learned to hate Cambridge Analytica; and a German footballer with a huge heart (and lucky blood). europeanspodcast.com | facebook.com/europeanspodcast | @EuropeansPod | Instagram: @europeanspodcast
Tue, March 20, 2018
March 20: Suzy Menkes and the Beer-Brewing Monks
Katy makes no secret of the fact that she records this podcast in her pyjamas, but she may need to up her game after this week's interview with Vogue's legendary international editor, Suzy Menkes, about the European fashion scene and the death of iconic French designer Hubert de Givenchy. In other news, Dominic comes clean about his traumatic experience as a 12-year-old child star in Siberia and gets mixed up (like everyone else this week) between Slovenia and Slovakia. Plus: happy Finns, clowns, and a PR coup for some beer-brewing Belgian monks. Thanks for listening! If one weekly Europe fix isn't enough, check out our Facebook page where we post all kinds of interesting links from around the continent: https://www.facebook.com/europeanspodcast/ See you next week when we'll have our first-ever Michelin-starred chef on the show! Twitter: @EuropeansPod Instagram: @europeanspodcast 🇪🇺 europeanspodcast.com 🇪🇺
Fri, March 16, 2018
March 13: The best place for our little sprouts
This week we're imagining a better future for baby Europeans and also what might happen after the nuclear apocalypse. Jennifer Pettersson is Swedish radio maker who's been based in Amsterdam for the last 20 years. She's always loved living in the city — until it came to putting her kids in school there. Dutch kids are famously supposed to be the happiest in the world, but is it really true? Since we're planning for the future we might as look all the way ahead to Doomsday. Katy's been chatting to Asmund Asdal, the coordinator of Norway's Global Seed Vault, which keeps back-ups of the world's grains and seeds for use in case of disaster. Also: good news for young Europeans with wanderlust, bad news for clocks, and some mile-high poetry. Thanks for listening! If you've got a few minutes to spare, we'd love it if you could help us spread the word by leaving us a review on iTunes: https://apple.co/2FtsBva europeanspodcast.com | Twitter: @EuropeansPod | Insta: @europeanspodcast
Fri, March 16, 2018
March 6: Don’t put salt on every snail
Hello Europe! Your favourite continental podcast is back with everything from salted snails to middle-fingered salutes on the menu. Dominic's been walking on thin ice and Katy's been cocooning; there's good news for Angela Merkel and bad news for press freedom in Slovakia. Eckard Helmers is on the line from Germany to explain why Europe fell in love with diesel cars even though they're poisoning our air. And we're talking English — literally — with Marko Modiano, a linguistics expert in Gävle, Sweden, about how the language is taking on a life of its own in Europe. Don't forget to review, rate and subscribe! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 europeanspodcast.com Twitter: @EuropeansPod Insta: @europeanspodcast europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Thu, March 01, 2018
BONUS EPISODE: ALEXANDRA PASCALIDOU
Our first ever bonus episode! We enjoyed our conversation in this week's show with Alexandra Pascalidou so much that we're sharing the whole thing with you. Raised by Greek parents in a working-class Stockholm suburb, Alexandra went on to become a prominent journalist in Sweden. But along with the job came the threats: years and years of horrific threats from neo-Nazis who didn't like the way she stood up for multi-culturalism. Last year, something unexpected happened: a former neo-Nazi got in touch to confess he had tormented her for years, and to say he was sorry. And Alexandra did something even more unexpected: she decided to meet up with her former tormentor for coffee. Katy and Dominic rang Alexandra in Stockholm to discuss her remarkable decision to forgive Martin, and why Sweden needs to take its neo-Nazi threat much more seriously. But along the way they also talk about national identity, the Eurovision song contest, and what it means to be European.
Mon, February 26, 2018
Feb 27: Making peace with the wolves
Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Not Alexandra Pascalidou. The Greek-Swedish journalist did something that would scare many of us: after years of threats from neo-Nazis, she invited one of them for a cup of coffee. Alexandra gives us a masterclass in forgiveness — and stay tuned later in the week for a bonus episode featuring her full conversation with The Europeans. But first, actual wolves. After Belgium saw its first in a century, we're taking a look at how different countries across the continent are dealing with 20,000 of the proud predators — and our guest Max Rossberg of the European Wilderness Society argues we need a total rethink. Plus: the monster of Brussels, a monstrous week for Britain's Jeremy Corbyn, and some less monstrous news to cheer us up at the end. Thanks for listening, and don't forget to leave us a review on iTunes if you enjoyed the show! Twitter: @EuropeansPod europeanspodcast.com europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, February 19, 2018
Feb 20: Olympic gold, Dominic is old, Katy has a cold
We've got two birthdays to celebrate this week. Independent Kosovo is officially 10, and your host Dominic Kraemer is officially old. Congrats to both! As Kosovo marks 10 years since declaring independence from Serbia, we give our man in the Balkans Andrew MacDowall a call to explain the challenges that lie ahead for Europe's youngest country. Meanwhile, Katy's been huddling under a duvet in Paris with a cold this week -- a great excuse to obsess over the Winter Olympics, not least that amazing Scottish invention, curling. Team Finland's Oona Kauste is on the line all the way from South Korea with a staunch defence of the sport against allegations that it 'looks weird', and how she manages to juggle the Olympics with her career as a hairdresser and make-up artist. Plus: out and proud LGBT Olympians, happy news for German commuters, and political truth, Dutch-style. Oh, and a mysterious Finnish tongue-twister. Anyone that solves the mystery gets a gold medal of their very own. We're
Mon, February 12, 2018
Feb 13: Mi kidney, su kidney
Hello from Paris and Amsterdam! Since we’ve seen a huge rise in listeners this week (welcome!) we’re in a giving mood, so we’re talking about organ donation. As countries across Europe weigh up how to save the most lives, transplant ethicist Greg Moorlock is on the line from Birmingham, England to discuss why Spain sees so many more donations than Germany and whether or not the Netherlands should make giving up our kidneys an ‘opt-out’ affair. And Ania Jakubek in Warsaw is back to explain what’s going on with Poland’s new Holocaust law. Plus: a good (ish) week for Angela Merkel, and a bad one for French fashion designer Christian Louboutin and his famous red-soled shoes. Thanks so much for the lovely reviews you’ve been writing — it’s not too late to add another to help people find the podcast across Europe and beyond! https://t.co/2qmA739cYh Check out our website: https://europeanspodcast.com/ Follow us on Twitter: @EuropeansPod
Tue, February 06, 2018
Feb 6: Build your own Europe, baby
This week on The Europeans, two interviews about building things from scratch. We speak to in-house IKEA designer Sarah Fager in Älmhult, Sweden, about the philosophy that drove the company’s late founder Ingvar Kamprad to take over the world with his flatpack furniture. And in Milan, Andrea Venzon is on the line to give us the lowdown on the new pan-European political movement he’s just set up, Volt. Plus: gassed monkeys, dabblings in erotica by Jean-Claude Juncker, and a whole lot of oranges. Dominic and Katy are delighted that The Europeans has been listed by the British Podcast Awards in their Podwatch newsletter as one of the top five podcasts that will change your perspective! Join the 40,000 people signed up to their email updates here. In the meantime, a special thanks for helping to spread the word about the podcast. We'd love it if you could leave us a review on iTunes so we can get it plugged into every ear in Europe: https://t.co/M6OuFyn7kk. For more info, v
Mon, January 29, 2018
Jan 30: Trawlin’, Ballin’, Fallin’
A war between France and the Netherlands over fish (trawling), a beginner’s guide to waltzing in Vienna (balling), and a tragic ski accident (falling). The Europeans comes to you from Amsterdam and Paris as always, but Katy and Dominic have both been in Austria this week and are taking a little inspiration from their (mis)adventures to delve into the traditions of the Viennese ball season. We’ve got devoted local fan Matthias Brandstetter on the line to run us through the do’s and dont’s of taking your first spin on the Viennese dance floor. But first, to the sea! We speak to Pavel Klinckhamers from Greenpeace Netherlands about the controversial fishing technique that may have landed the hake on your plate and has French fishermen furious with their Dutch competitors. Enjoying the show? We’d love it if you could leave us a review to help more listeners find us around Europe and beyond: https://t.co/M6OuFyn7kk | Twitter: @EuropeansPod | Insta: @
Mon, January 22, 2018
Jan 23: Fake snus
Fake snus The Europeans let loose discussing snus and fake news. German journalist Juliane von Reppert-Bismarck tells us all about her plans to teach school kids across Europe how to spot propaganda and media bias on the internet with her new project Lie Detectors. And we delve into the world of Scandinavian snus tobacco, illegal in most of the EU. For the first time, it’s more popular in Norway than cigarettes. But why? We find out from Kris Johansson in Oslo, and the author Christopher Snowdon is on hand to explain why this stuff is still banned around Europe despite growing evidence that it helps people quit smoking. Plus: news from Davos with the tiniest mention of T***p, and a weaponized sausage for dessert. If you like The Europeans, help us spread the word! Write us a review on iTunes: https://t.co/M6OuFyn7kk Twitter: @EuropeansPod Insta: @europeanspodcast https://europeanspodcast.com
Mon, January 15, 2018
Jan 16: Translating Trump, Defending Deneuve
Your favourite plucky Parisian reporter and glamorous Amsterdam opera singer are BACK. Episode 6 is about two people with bouffant hair but little else in common: Donald Trump and Catherine Deneuve. We’ve got a great interview with the voice of Trump on German television, Franz Kubaczyk, and his fellow interpreter Leonie Wagener about the perils of translating the most unpredictable president in US history. And the French writer Agnès Poirier is on the line to discuss Deneuve’s controversial letter criticizing the #MeToo movement and what may have been lost in translation. Plus: fantastic plastic news and an unwelcome flashback from early-2000s pop. Have Katy and Dominic won you over? Please loudly proclaim your love to Buzzfeed to help us get noticed! https://www.buzzfeed.com/scottybryan/podcasts-2018 Twitter: https://twitter.com/EuropeansPod | https://europeanspodcast.com Email us: europeanspodcast@gmail.com
Mon, January 08, 2018
Jan 9: The Dumbest Farmer Finds The Biggest Potatoes
Happy New Year, The Europeans are back! We’re kicking off 2018 by brushing up on our Luxembourgish, giving Nina Lamparski a call to find out why a language officially listed as endangered is making an unexpected comeback. And Georgi Gotev is on the line to talk about what we can expect from Bulgaria as the EU’s poorest country takes the helm as president for the next six months. We ask why a baby born in Bulgaria has a much lower life expectancy than one born in Spain; and there’s a feminist, vodka-flavoured happy ending for you. What more could you want from your favourite European podcast? https://europeanspodcast.com | https://twitter.com/EuropeansPod
Mon, December 18, 2017
Dec 19: O Come All Ye Phosphateful
For the last episode of The Europeans before a little break to indulge in some festive merry-making, we talk to influential man about Brussels Ryan Heath of Politico about why the corridors of EU power are so goddamn white. Phosphate-laden euro kebabs and novelty avocados are also on the menu for our millennial listeners. And we give Dutch trans activist Jonah Lamers a ring to ask why the Netherlands picked ‘gender neutral’ as the most irritating word of 2017. We’ve had a blast making our first four episodes and can’t wait to see you next year! Thanks for all your support. Please help us spread the word https://twitter.com/EuropeansPod or by leaving us a review on iTunes at https://t.co/M6OuFyn7kk. For more info, visit https://europeanspodcast.com
Mon, December 11, 2017
Dec 12: National Hallydays
This week in The Europeans, we're looking at national icons -- the beloved, in the form of French rock star Johnny Hallyday who died this week -- and the controversial, in the form of the Netherlands' Black Pete. Dominic talks to Anousha Nzume from Dipsaus, the hit podcast for Dutch women of colour, about why the Netherlands insists on making blackface a festive affair at this time of year. And Katy makes a valiant attempt to explain why Hallyday wasn't remotely famous outside France despite being a legend at home. Plus Ania Jakubek is back with news of a new Polish prime minister, with Dominic's Happy Ending bringing up the rear... Literally. Please rate and review us on iTunes so others can find the podcast! And hit us up: https://twitter.com/EuropeansPod | https://europeanspodcast.com
Tue, December 05, 2017
Dec 5: C’est too much
Episode 2 of The Europeans, in which Dominic stays in a German haunted house. It’s been a dramatic week on the continent, with a convicted war criminal committing suicide in the middle of a courtroom in The Hague. Elsewhere, we talk to journalist Claire Sergent about whether French could really one day be the world’s most widely spoken language, and to European gay travel supremos A Couple Of Men about their hugely successful blog. This podcast contains no traces of Brexit at all, it’s a near-Christmas miracle! Please leave us a review if you enjoyed The Europeans, and help us to spread the word. https://europeanspodcast.com | https://twitter.com/EuropeansPod
Tue, November 28, 2017
Nov 28: Katy smells the money
Iiiiiiit’s the first ever episode of The Europeans! In which Katy smells the money wafting off European agencies and Dominic gets chased by angry French nudists. Elsewhere, we chat to journalist Frank Zeller in Berlin about Germany’s very un-German lack of a government, and Ania Jakubek in Warsaw about Frida Kahlo’s ties to Poland.
Sun, November 19, 2017
The Trailer
The Europeans is a moderately amusing podcast hosted by Katy Lee, a reporter in Paris, and Dominic Kraemer, an opera singer in Amsterdam. Every week we call each other up to chat about what’s been happening around the continent, and we call up friends and interesting people to see what’s been going on where they are. If you’re looking for a podcast about Europe in English that isn’t waaay serious or just about Brexit, you’ve come to the right place. Out on Tuesdays!
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