Memories of an East German Naval Officer’s Family

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! Katja is the daughter of Vice Admiral Gustav Hesse of the East German Navy. She opens up about her life growing up in East Germany and offers a rare glimpse into life in a family loyal to the East … Read more

In Conversation with Margot Honecker

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! In this short Cold War Conversations bonus episode, I speak with Jon Benjamin, who recounts his meetings with Margot Honecker, the unrepentant architect of East Germany’s education system and widow of GDR leader Erich Honecker. In 2012 and 2013, … Read more

Doped, Abused and Abandoned: Growing Up in East Germany’s Sports System

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! This episode covers themes of physical and emotional abuse, as well as suicide. If you need support, please follow the links below. UK https://www.samaritans.org/how-we-can-help/contact-samaritan/ Rest of the World  https://findahelpline.com/i/iasp Kerstin recounts her harrowing childhood and life experiences in East Germany. She … Read more

Agent Zo – From War Hero to Enemy: When Cold War Poland Turned on Its Own

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! ​In a world where history often overlooks the contributions of women, ​the story of ​Agent ​Zo stands out as a beacon of bravery and resilience. ​I spoke with ​Claire ​Mully about her book ​Agent ​Zo: the ​Untold ​Story of a fearless ​World ​War ​II ​resistance fighter. ​ From the first day of the … Read more

Rebel Queen: The Cold War, Misogyny, and the Making of a Grandmaster

Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! Susan Polgar is the author of Rebel Queen: The Cold War, Misogyny, and the Making of a Grandmaster. Born to a poor Jewish family in Cold War Budapest, Susan Polgar had the odds stacked against her growing up in … Read more

The Secret History of Britain’s Cold War Nuclear Experiments

  Susie Boniface discusses her book Exposed: The Secret History of Britain’s Nuclear Experiments. In the early Cold War Britain hand-picked its healthiest and cleverest men to undertake a truly terrifying mission: to create and detonate an atomic bomb. Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeListen on Amazon MusicListen on Podcast AddictBecome a Patron! … Read more

The KGB Spies Next Door

In the sleepy suburb of Ruislip in London during the late 1950s, life was anything but exciting for Gay, a 15-year-old girl. Little did she know, her mundane existence was about to be shattered by a shocking revelation that would turn her world upside down. Listen on Apple PodcastsListen on SpotifyListen on YouTubeBecome a Patron! … Read more