Stasi Infiltration of the East German Church

  When the Berlin Wall came down, the files of the East German secret police, the much-dreaded Stasi, were opened and read. And among the shocking stories revealed was that of the Stasi’s infiltration of the Church.  The Lutheran Church was the only semi-free space in East Germany, where those who rebelled against the regime … Read more

A British Communist Working in East Germany

  John Tarver was born into a middle-class family. He joined the British Communist Party on his 18th birthday in 1948 because he felt the Soviet Union had made the most effective resistance to fascism. He worked as a party activist in Britain and made several trips to the GDR where he would get a … Read more

Children of the Silent Revolution

What are your dreams at 18 and what happens in the next 20 years? Children of the Silent Revolution is a documentary film following a tight-knit group of classmates from Bulgaria who reveal their stories over a period of 20 years, spanning the transition from communism to democracy in their country. It’s a powerful memoir … Read more

The Last Days of East Germany

Michael Paterson first visited East Germany just after the fall of the Berlin Wall and provides a vivid account of its subsequent decline and fall during the move to reunification with West Germany. Michael is a military historian, author, researcher and illustrator. He began his career on the military magazine ‘Battlefields Review’ as a writer … Read more

Gillian – A US Student at the opening of the Berlin Wall

  Gillian Cox visited the GDR as a student in October 1989 just before the Wall came down. In this episode you will hear her eyewitness of account of what she saw ion that momentous night of 9th November 1989. Before we start the episode I wanted to thanks everyone who is supporting the podcast … Read more

The Opening of the Berlin Wall

Our interview today is in a different format. Cold war Conversations is working with the Imperial War Museum on a project called Voices of the Wall. We will be capturing personal testimonies of people’s experiences of the Cold War which will later become part of the podcast. Therefore, this episode is a composite of previous … Read more

Dean Reed, the Red Elvis, a US music star behind the Iron Curtain – Episode 2

Ramona Reed continues the story of her father who was Dean Reed an American actor, singer and songwriter, director, and Socialist who became a huge star in Latin America and the Eastern Bloc. The previous episode is available here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode97/ Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on Google Podcasts Now if you like the podcast … Read more

Alastair Witnesses the Wende

Alastair took up a teaching post in Halle, East Germany in August 1989 and continued to work in Halle for the next 9 years, seeing the unravelling of the GDR first hand. Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on Google PodcastsBecome a Patron! He arrived just in time to see the early protests and the … Read more

The Strange World of Romanian Cold War Football

In this episode, we hear from Craig McCracken about the strange world of football in Cold War Romania and even if you are not interested in football it’s a fascinating chat about Cold War Romania. Craig runs the website, Beyondthelastman.com, described as 20th century football writing and nostalgia in a skilled and cultured groove. He … Read more