logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2014
9m 1s

The Fall of the Berlin Wall

Bbc World Service
About this episode

It had been one of the enduring icons of the Cold War. It had divided East Berlin from West Berlin; and socialism from capitalism. But on 9 November, 1989, after weeks of anti-Communist protests across East Germany, that all changed. Hear from two East Germans - Aram Radomski and Siegbert Schefke - who were among the first to cross from East to West Berlin.

Photo: copyright Siegbert Schefke

Up next
Dec 2014
The Biggest Rock Concert Ever
What does rock megastar Rod Stewart remember most about playing to 4 million people on Copacabana beach on New Year's Eve 1994? Well... it's not nice.Photo: Rod Stewart at the BBC. 
8m 52s
Dec 2014
The Beginning of Reality TV
In December 1999 a young Dutch man, Bart Spring in't Veld, won the first ever Big Brother reality TV show. It was to be the start of a global television phenomenon. But for 22-year-old Bart the victory proved to be a mixed blessing.Photo: Big Brother winner Bart Spring in't Veld, ... Show More
8m 57s
Dec 2014
The Casa Pia Scandal in Portugal
In 2004, some of the most high-profile people in Portugual went on trial on charges of sexuallly abusing boys from a children's home called Casa Pia. Six defendants were eventually found guilty, including a famous televison presenter. Simon Watts talks to Pedro Namora, a lawyer w ... Show More
8m 56s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2019
The fall of the Berlin Wall
1989 was a seismic year in world history and ended with the fall of the Berlin Wall, the clearest symbol of the Cold War. But it was a series of events across Europe that added to the momentum. We journey back through Poland, Hungary and East Germany ahead of that historic moment ... Show More
49m 54s
Aug 2021
The Berlin Wall
In August 1961, communist East Germany began building the Berlin Wall, which divided the city for nearly three decades and became a symbol of the Cold War. We hear the memories of Germans from both sides of the Wall and tales of daring escapes. Plus, what life was like in the Eas ... Show More
50m 46s
Aug 2021
Escaping from East Berlin
How a young West German student helped East Berliners escape communism at the height of the Cold War. Volker Heinz told Robin Lustig how he worked with a Syrian diplomat to smuggle people across the Berlin Wall in the boot of the diplomat's car. From March to September 1966 the p ... Show More
8m 59s
Jan 2022
A Cold War love affair
The East German authorities built the Berlin Wall in 1961 to keep their people in. Thousands had been streaming westwards. But a few people went the other way. Frauke Naumann was one of them. She grew up in West Germany but fell love with her cousin who lived on the other side of ... Show More
8m 57s
Feb 2023
Battle for the capital: Bonn v Berlin
In 1989, the Berlin Wall fell and Germany had to decide which city would be the new capital. The contenders were the West German city of Bonn and the East German city of Berlin and the two fought it out in a ferocious political battle that would help define the country.Ilona Toll ... Show More
9m 14s
May 2020
The Soviet occupation of Berlin
After Germany's surrender to Allied forces in May 1945 Soviet soldiers occupied the German capital Berlin. For ordinary German citizens it was a time of fear and uncertainty. The city had been reduced to rubble and for women in particular, the presence of Soviet troops was terrif ... Show More
8m 59s
Jan 2020
East Germany's punks
In the early 1980s, thousands of young people in communist East German became punks, attracted by the DIY culture and anti-establishment attitude.But the East German secret police the Stasi believed the subculture represented an existential threat to the state and tried to crush ... Show More
8m 59s
Sep 2020
Fall of the Berlin Wall and German Reunification | 33
This year marks the 30th anniversary of one of the most historic moments of the 1990s. On October 3, 1990, East and West Germany were reunited after 45 years of cold war separation. The reunification process was set in motion a year earlier when border crossings along the Berlin ... Show More
38m 43s
Dec 2021
[REDIFFUSION] Le blocus de Berlin
Pendant la période des fêtes, (re)découvrez deux épisodes publiés depuis la création du podcast en avril dernier. Aujourd'hui, le blocus de Berlin !  *** En 1948, Berlin, l’ancienne capitale du 3e Reich devient pour la première et pas la dernière fois, le lieu d’affrontement des ... Show More
11m 10s
May 2020
The battle for Berlin
Hear the eyewitness account of a female Russian soldier and a German schoolboy who fought on opposing sides in the final, brutal battle for the capital of Nazi Germany. The fall of the city to Soviet forces led to the end of the Second World War in Europe in May 1945.Photo: A Sov ... Show More
12m 14s
Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami