Stories From The Eastern West

How a teen's letter to a stranger in the Soviet Union led to a long-distance friendship that has lasted decades. Like ma... Read more

Alchemy – the supposed ancient art of turning everyday objects into gold – is widely believed to be obsolete. Interestin... Read more

Delve into the fascinating background of classic horror film Rosemary’s Baby and learn how it was made. In 1968, Rosemar... Read more

Finland + technology = Nokia, doesn’t it? Yes, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Finland is responsible for many t... Read more

How a giant communal song festival helped Estonians regain independence from the USSR. Part of our mini-series The Final... Read more

Discover the relentless climber who changed the world's deadliest sport... In the early 1960s, a woman decided that the ... Read more

Learn how a strange unwanted building became a lasting symbol of a capital city. In the first of our two-part series on ... Read more

Discover the Iron Curtain's unlikeliest music haven and the people who made it happen. In 1957, the Polish Radio Experim... Read more

How a Romanian mining town that lost its mine fought to turn its remains into a cultural hub.  In our second and final e... Read more

How a single mother in Kyiv experienced the end of the USSR and survived the harsh economic realities of life in post-co... Read more

During WWII, the Third Reich had a systematic policy of plundering artwork from countries they invaded. In occupied Pola... Read more

Discover how Joseph Rotblat went from creating nuclear bombs to winning the Nobel Peace prize. The American bombing of H... Read more

How a Romanian miner made political caricatures at a time when making fun of the country's leadership could mean a visit... Read more

The Czech shoe-maker Tomáš Bat'a was a visionary. A deep believer in capitalism, he dreamt up a unique functionalist c... Read more

How Polish opposition activists began transmitting their own pirate radio and 'hacked' communist-run state TV. Part of o... Read more

The story of a man who mesmerised half a continent... Get it on: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts |... Read more

In 1863, the 3-year-old Ignacy Jan Paderewski probably wasn’t aware that his fellow Polish countrymen were in the midst ... Read more

The German Democratic Republic was known for being one of the more politically repressive countries in the former Easter... Read more

Hear the pole-vaulter who offended the entire Soviet Union at the 1980 Olympics in Moscow explain himself. Władysław Koz... Read more

How East Berlin's leading political cabaret tried to get their message through despite strict state censorship... and wh... Read more