The Summer of Solidarity
7/15/2020
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
George Soros, Explained
7/8/2020
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
The Political Pianist
7/1/2020
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
Love, bees and brain surgery
6/24/2020
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
Recipes for rebellion
6/17/2020
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
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
The Great Pull of China
6/3/2020
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
Guide to a Non-Existent Country
5/27/2020
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
Wikipedia’s Missing Women
5/20/2020
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
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