News; government agrees to nominate Jozef Síkela as new Czech EU Commissioner; mini Eiffel tower made out of recycled ocean waste erected at Olympic Festival on shores of Lake Most; Veronika Tuckerová, author of new book on how Kafka was perceived in Czechoslovakia under communism

The Czech government has decided that the country's candidate for the next European Commission will be the current minister of industry and trade, Jozef Síkela. Prime Minister Petr Fiala said after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday evening that Mr. Síkela had a proven track record in both the private sector and government. I spoke with Viktor Daněk, d…

A mini Eiffel Tower made entirely out of recycled ocean waste has been erected near Lake Most in north Bohemia. The replica will be one of the centrepieces of the Olympic Festival, organised by the Czech Olympic Committee, taking place on the shores of the country’s largest pit lake during the Games.…

News: canoeist Jiří Prskavec hopes to defend his Olympic title in Paris; three Czech films set to screen at the Venice film festival at the end of this summer; an interview with Yale historian Timothy Snyder.

Three Czech films are set to screen at the Venice film festival at the end of this summer – including a mixed-reality immersive film set in a Ukrainian living room. Although none of the Czech offerings this year are in the running for the Golden Lion in the main Venezia 81 competition, all are competing in smaller categories.…

Yale historian Timothy Snyder was in Prague last week at the Plus and Václav Havel Library conference Borders of (Un)Freedom. The next day, he was interviewed by Czech Radio journalist Jan Bumba. They discussed topics ranging from the Republican nomination of Donald Trump as presidential candidate; how a Trump election might impact Europe and Russi…

Canoeist Jiří Prskavec is one of Czechia’s brightest medal hopes going into the Olympic Games in Paris. The kayak single specialist is current Olympic titleholder, a multiple world and European champion – and Czech number one in a sport in which the country traditionally does well.

News: National Theatre in Prague to undergo major renovations; world champions Schweiner and Perušič among Czechia’s Olympic hopefuls; summer Czech Course for Expats

The ice cube-like New Stage of the National Theatre in Prague is to undergo major renovations, its operators announced on Tuesday. An adjacent building will also get an overhaul, and more use will be made of the small plaza linking the complex to the historic National Theatre.

As every year, dozens of students from all over the world arrived in Czechia to take part in this year’s edition of the annual Summer Czech Course for Expats organised by Charles University's Institute for Language and Preparatory Studies. For the past few years, the course has been held in the charming spa town of Poděbrady in Central Bohemia. We …

Beach volleyball world champions David Schweiner and Ondřej Perušič will be among the first Czechs to compete at the imminent Olympic Games in Paris. Three years after their Covid-related disappointment in Tokyo, the Czechs are hoping to bring back gold this time.

News; Top Czech politicians to Joe Biden news; Lukáš Krpálek going for third judo gold at Olympics; Peter Zusi, a US academic teaching Czech literature in the UK.

Senior politicians in Prague have been reacting to US President Joe Biden’s announcement that he will no longer seek reelection in the 2024 US presidential elections. The Czech prime minister called it the decision of a statesman, while the foreign minister said it reflected Mr. Biden’s love of his country.…

Lukáš Krpálek, the current Olympic heavyweight judo champion since his victory in Tokyo in 2021, will be competing at the Olympic Games once again in a few days’ time. Aware of the high expectations surrounding him, the most successful judoka in the country’s history is trying to stay grounded as the tournament approaches.…

Pop singer Lenny on measuring success

News: Czech food prices fall most rapidly in EU; how Prague zoo animals are keeping cool amidst the heatwave; interview with Timothy Garton Ash

Like most of Europe, Czechia has seen some extremely hot weather over the past weeks. It is not just people who suffer during heatwaves – zoo animals do too. I talked with Prague Zoo’s spokesperson Filip Mašek to find out just how the animals are coping.

Food prices in Czechia dropped significantly in June, in comparison with the EU, with a 4.8 percent year-on-year decrease. But producer prices published by the Czech Statistical Office suggest that the downward trend could end soon. While food could still become cheaper depending on the harvest, the reduction won't be as pronounced.…

News; upcoming Blade Runner TV miniseries begins shooting in Prague; Czechs eye Olympic success – but how many medals are they expected to bring home?; Ukrainian journalist Sevgil Musaieva on how Putin uses propaganda to divert from his true intentions

Blade Runner 2099, the upcoming Amazon Prime Video television sequel to the 1982 and 2017 films of the same franchise, has started shooting in Prague. US actress Hunter Schafer and Malaysian Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh are among the big names known to be filming in the Czech capital. I caught up with Czech Radio film critic Kristina Roháčková to fin…

Sevgil Musaieva, a journalist from Crimea, Ukraine, is the editor-in-chief of Ukrainska Pravda and among the initiators of the creation of the KrymSOS web portal. Ms. Musaieva was in Prague to speak this week at the conference Borders of (Un)Freedom, headlining the event in a moderated discussion with Yale historian Timothy Snyder. I spoke to her a…

Czech athletes are currently doing their final preparations for the Olympic Games in Paris, which get underway on Friday next week. But how many medals would be considered a success for the Czech team?

News; Prague and Kyiv unveil plans to step up weapons production in Ukraine; oldest Czech daily still in print Lidové Noviny will only be available online from September onwards; the discovery of a Neolithic settlement near Kutná Hora; Karlovy Vary and its magnificent spa

One of Czechia’s cornerstone national newspapers is set to scrap its print edition after the summer. Up until now, Lidové Noviny was the oldest Czech daily still in print. But from September onwards, it will only be available online.

Czech archaeologists have discovered a Neolithic settlement near the central Bohemian town of Kutná Hora. Built approximately 7,000 years ago, it has been exceptionally well-preserved, including the floor plans of four long houses. I discussed the details of the discovery with Daniel Pilař from the Czech Academy of Sciences’ Department of Prehistor…

Karlovy Vary is the largest and most visited spa town in Czechia. Together with Františkovy and Mariánské Lázně, it forms a so-called West Bohemian Spa triangle, which was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2021 as part of the Great Spas of Europe. Karlovy Vary boasts magnificent scenery, beautiful architecture and unique spa treatments…

The Czech and Ukrainian governments on Monday signed a number of bilateral agreements opening the way for closer cooperation in arms production and the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said the two countries were building a “strong, strategic partnership” that would make Europe safer.…

News, Yale historian Timothy Snyder in Prague, Summer Festivities of Early Music, interview with Sergio Almeida -Portugese cyclists' right advocate in Prague

"Freedom is closely linked to unpredictability," said Yale Historian Timothy Snyder at a Prague conference titled Borders of (Un)Freedom held in Prague on Monday. The conference, organized by Czech Radio and Václav Havel Library, focused on the definition of freedom, the war in Ukraine and the growth of the far-right in Europe.…

The annual Summer Festivities of Early Music kick off in Prague on Tuesday evening with a special concert at Prague’s Emmaus Monastery. The performance, featuring rare instruments and music from medieval manuscripts, will bring to life an altarpiece by the famous Flemish Renaissance painter Hans Memling. I discussed the opening event and more with …

Cycling enthusiast Sergio Almeida has come to public attention in Prague for his clashes with the authorities, both online and on the streets. The Portuguese man, who is 45, criticizes the city’s cycling lanes and aggressive drivers on social media and even streams videos from his bike live on YouTube. The magistrála, the large through-road that cu…

News; US veteran George Thompson dies at 99; How Czechia produces so many top tennis players; Czech comic book pays homage to Soviet-era superheroine Octobriana

The American war veteran George Thompson, who helped liberate Plzeň in May 1945 with the 16th Armored Division, has died at the age of 99. He was the last of the surviving American veterans who liberated the city and returned repeatedly for the annual Liberation Festival. The West Bohemian capital held a memorial in his honour on Monday.…

Barbora Krejčíková lifted the women’s singles title at tennis’s Wimbledon on Saturday – a year after her compatriot Markéta Vondroušová had also become a first-time champion at the All England Club. Just how is Czechia producing so many world class women’s players?

Czechoslovak Exile Scouting – The movement that binds many émigrés beyond the Cold War

News; Prague top conference destination; new art at Prague Metro station; history of Czechoslovak Radio under communism.

News: Does membership of new group mean ANO are far-right or pro-Russian?; Slánský family members rehabilitated seven decades later; photographer Stanislav Krupář speaks.

News; app spotlights popularity of Czech first names over 120 years; first Czech satellite with hyperspectral camera soon to be launched into orbit by SpaceX; Pavel Nedvěd: one of only two Czechs named European Footballer of Year

News; Hantec enthusiasts seek to make the Brno sociolect part of UNESCO list; why boating on the headstream of the Vltava River is a special treat; interview with Jazz pianist and composer Emil Viklický.

News; Interview with director Mark Cousins from The Karlovy Vary film festival; ancient Egyptian scribes left specific traces on their skeletons; and interview with Nicholas Lowry about IDENTITA: A Film About Czech Graphic Design

Interview with Eva and Rob McLean, a Czech-US couple who have fostered 12 babies in as many years; Czech research highlights rapid decline in Europe’s biodiversity

Special episode dedicated to Cyril and Methodius, who are celebrated each year on 5th July in Czechia.

News; Baggage crisis at Prague’s Václav Havel Airport is gradually coming under control; Czech Pavilion at EXPO 2025 set to be tallest wooden building in Japan; All-Sokol Slet feels like “one giant family” say Sokol LA members

News; could a 4-day workweek become the norm in Czechia?; rare mushroom previously thought to only grow in the US discovered in Moravia; Nicholas Lowry, a New York auctioneer, art expert and TV personality with Czech roots

News; Film critic on why ‘Waves’ received several-minute standing ovation at Karlovy Vary; Czech Radio Symphony Orchestra embarks on Japanese tour; Jaroslav Rudiš on his soon to be published novel, Winterberg’s Last Journey

News; new alliance forms in the European Parliament; museum exhibition in Nelahozeves opens celebrating Antonín Dvořák; unique project reviving military bunkers built in Czechoslovakia before WWII

Broadcast in English - 06/29/2024

News, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival opens, Prague Landscape Festival, interview with Prague-based young actress

News; Bears no longer a sight at Czech castles from 2030; Famous Czech sculptor working on new statue for Antarctica; Prague Lions boss on why Europe is ready for American football

News; Czechs and Canadians celebrate Canada Day in Prague; Exhibition explores Czechoslovak perceptions of Orwell under communism; Rare Apollo butterfly re-introduced to Krkonoše after 100 years