How to make sense of Europe's place in the world right now

How to make sense of Europe's place in the world right now

Author: Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer May 1, 2025 Duration: 46:52
The world is in flux. What's Europe's place in it, exactly? This week, we're bringing you something different: a big, sprawling conversation with leading European historian Timothy Garton Ash. Can anything good come from Trumpism for this continent? What can be done to stop autocrats like Viktor Orbán from undermining the EU from the inside? And does it matter if we talk about different things when we talk about Europe?    Timothy is Professor of European Studies at the University of Oxford. 'Homelands' is now available in more than 20 languages; you can find all the available editions here.   We'll be at two events in Amsterdam for Europe Day on May 9! We've got two pairs of tickets to give away to the late-night EuropaNacht event at Paradiso. Email hello@europeanspodcast.com for a chance to win them. If you're too late, you can buy a ticket here; tickets to the earlier event, at SPUI25, are available here. With many thanks to our friends at the European Cultural Foundation, DutchCulture and De Kiesmannen.   Thanks for listening. If you enjoy our podcasts, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting our work. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/europeanspodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast!   This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news.   Producers: Wojciech Oleksiak and Morgan Childs
Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak
Music: Jim Barne    YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | Mastodon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | hello@europeanspodcast.com

Every week, Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer sit down to untangle the stories shaping the continent, moving beyond the headlines to find the human threads within European news, politics, and culture. Their conversations feel like joining two well-informed friends who are genuinely curious, offering clarity on complex political shifts in Brussels one moment and diving into a compelling film from Berlin or a novel from Lisbon the next. This isn't about dry analysis; it's about understanding the forces that define daily life from Dublin to Sofia. In this The Europeans podcast, you'll hear interviews with policymakers, artists, and everyday people, all contributing to a richer, more nuanced picture of a region in constant motion. The tone is engaging and accessible, designed for anyone who feels that Europe's narrative is too often reduced to stereotypes or institutional jargon. By weaving together current affairs with deeper cultural trends, each episode builds a more complete and surprisingly relatable portrait. If you've ever wanted to feel more connected to the ideas and debates circulating across the Channel and beyond, this is a consistent and thoughtful guide.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

The Europeans | European news, politics and culture
Podcast Episodes
Is real change coming to Serbia? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:08
Serbia’s government has come under intense pressure since a deadly disaster at Novi Sad’s main railway station last November. Student-led protests have spiralled into a nation-wide resistance movement and for months, Ser…
Hungary's plight, kids' rights, and Spargelzeit [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:59
Asparagus, lesbian family rights and Viktor Orbán’s latest power plays: like all good meals, this podcast episode is perfectly balanced. German food writer Ursula Heinzelmann joins us to explain the ‘Spargelzeit’ phenome…
What the hell just happened in Romania (and at Eurovision)? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:09:10
Romania, Poland, Portugal... and of course, most importantly of all (?), Eurovision. It's been a huge week of voting across Europe! This week we're mostly diving into Romania's election drama with Codruţa Simina, a journ…
Europe, an unfinished love story [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:53
This week, a not-so-classic 'girl meets boy' story. Başak Layic, storyteller extraordinaire, reflects on what the European Dream looks like from the outside. This story was recorded live at SPUI25 in Amsterdam as part of…
Is a pregnant nun about to crash Poland's election? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:12:58
In theory, the government's guy looks set to win Poland's presidential election, making life a hell of a lot easier for Donald Tusk as he attempts to undo eight years of destructive authoritarian rule under the previous…
Hungary's Pride crackdown, Ukrainian sleuths, and 158 barrels of poop [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:06:27
We've got a veritable smörgåsbord for you this week on The Europeans, from human rights in Hungary to the sorry tale of two Danish sustainability influencers whose eco-resort business went spectacularly wrong. We discuss…
Inside Europe: Exploring Grief [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:31
We're away this week, but you're in good company: our friends at Deutsche Welle (DW), Germany's international broadcaster, are here to fill in for us. On this special edition of DW's weekly podcast Inside Europe, the tea…
Tesla, Turkey, and unnecessary trash [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:46
We're taking the Schadenfreude approach to the chaos that Trump's tariffs have unleashed upon Europe (and the rest of the world). This week, our favourite Luxembourger Nina Lamparski joins Dominic to explain why sales of…
Rockets, recipes and Le Pen(itentiary) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:30
Marine Le Pen has been banned from running for the French presidency after this week's bombshell court ruling finding her guilty in a huge embezzlement case. But does she have any chance of a comeback? And could the far-…
How would Europe's €800 billion defence plan actually work? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:47
Europe is set to spend an eye-wateringly huge amount of money on building up its militaries over the next few years, after That Guy In The White House signalled he's no longer that interested in helping us defend ourselv…