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PODCAST

Cold War Conversations Podcast

Experience the Cold War like never before with Cold War Conversations — an award-winning podcast recommended by The New York Times. Each week, host Ian Sanders brings you raw, firsthand accounts from the people who lived through one of history’s most tense and transformative eras — soldiers, spies, civilians, and more. These aren’t stories from textbooks. They’re unfiltered voices from the frontlines of history — emotional, gripping, and deeply human. This is Cold War history, told from

history documentary

All Episodes

93:45

A Childhood under the eye of the Secret Police (147)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/31

At 2 a.m. on 10 March 1983, 12-year-old Carmen Bugan was home alone after her father had left for Bucharest. That afternoon, Carmen returned from school to find secret police in her living room. Her father’s protest against the regime had changed her life forever. This is her story. This is one of the most powerful stories I have recorded so far. What you will hear in Carmen’s own words is an incredibly emotional story about childhood, family, spirit and humanity – do stay and listen to the end

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53:21

Don - Cold War 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment at Fulda...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/23

In this second episode with Don Snedeker we talk to him about his time after his tour of Vietnam when he served in West Germany. From 1974 to 1986 Don served in a number of roles but most noticeably he was assigned to the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Fulda, one of the locations where it was assumed that Warsaw Pact units would attack through. He also trained as a Foreign Area Officer specialising in Western Europe and studied at the German Armed Forces Staff College in Hamburg. From 1991 to

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55:11

Navigator aboard the Cold War Vulcan nuclear bomber...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/16

Barry Mullen was a Navigator Radar on the legendary Royal Air Force nuclear bomber, the Vulcan. The Navigator Radar (Nav Radar) had the responsibility for coordinating bombing from the aircraft. This role was performed entirely via instrumentation and was achieved via the ground-facing radar and the Navigation Bombing System a direct successor of the WW2 H2S system used in aircraft such as the Lancaster. This allowed accurate bombing from 57,000 feet down to an incredibly low height of 250

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57:14

1962 Berlin fiction - author interview (144)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/13

In this bonus episode, we talk again with Paul Grant, author of "Coercion" the fourth book about the Schultz family who live in Berlin. His books are set at the end of the Second World War and the start of the Cold War. Coercion is set in 1962 against the backdrop of the Berlin Wall while it is still barbed wire and a fragile wall. Escape attempts are frequent and these attempts are the major theme of Paul’s latest book. If you can spare it I’m asking listeners to contribute at least $3 USD per

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60:52

Don - Vietnam war Armoured Cavalry Platoon Leader (143)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/09

This is the first of two episodes we have following Don Snedeker’s experiences through the Cold War. In this episode, we hear about his time in Vietnam and the book he has written entitled "The Blackhorse in Vietnam: The 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment in Vietnam and Cambodia, 1966–1972”. Don was born in Brooklyn New York but followed his Father’s postings around the globe as an ‘Army brat’. Don was commissioned into the Armour branch of the US Army in February 1969 and by December he had been posted

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60:11

In Cold War Skies – NATO and Soviet airpower 1949-89...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/10/02

Today’s episode is brought to you by Osprey publishing and we’re speaking with Michael Napier, the author of “In Cold War Skies – NATO and Soviet airpower 1949-89”. Michael also flew the Tornado during the Cold War and served during the 1980s at 14 Sqn and 31 Sqn at RAF Brüggen in West Germany where he talks about nuclear QRA, low-level training in Germany, Canada and Exercise Red Flag in the US plus lots more. His book is packed with first-hand accounts of operational flying during the Cold War

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56:40

I was a deep cover KGB spy Part 2 (141)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/09/25

This is part 2 of our chat with Jack Barsky who spent ten years as an undercover KGB agent in the United States. He is the longest surviving known member of the KGB illegals programme that operated during the Cold War. In this episode we talk about his first days in the US, his mission and how he managed build his cover enabling him to live and work as a US citizen. He honestly and candidly talks about the impact his secret life had on those closest to him and the moment of his arrest by the FBI. If

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66:06

I was a deep cover KGB spy Part 1 (140)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/09/18

If you’ve seen the TV drama series, “The Americans” you’ll be fascinated by this episode. Albrecht Dittrich was an East German graduate student and a true believer in the Communist cause when he was recruited by the KGB in 1970. He spent ten years as an undercover KGB agent in the United States. He is the longest surviving known member of the KGB illegals programme that operated during the Cold War. In this episode we talk about his first days his early life in East Germany as well as his

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85:52

Portland Spy Ring Part 2 (139)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/09/11

This is the 2nd episode with Trevor Barnes, the author of “Dead Doubles, a new book on the Portland Spy Ring, one of the most infamous espionage cases of the Cold War. The story continues with the dramatic arrest of three of the KGB spies outside the Old Vic theatre in London and the discovery of the amazing espionage career of the Krogers, the innocent-looking couple in suburbia… We also talk about the revelation that the Portland spy ring was larger than thought and that at least two members

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51:05

Portland Spy Ring Part 1 (138)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/09/04

In this episode we talk with Trevor Barnes, the author of “Dead Doubles, a new book on the Portland Spy Ring, one of the most infamous espionage cases of the Cold War. In 1960 it was discovered that crucial secrets from the world-leading submarine research base at Portland in Dorset were being stolen by a British man and his mistress. The couple were tailed by MI5 'watchers' to a covert meeting with a Canadian businessman, Gordon Lonsdale. The unsuspecting Lonsdale in turn led MI5's spycatchers to

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57:48

The Last British Commandant in Cold War West Berlin...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/08/28

This is the 2nd part of our conversation with Major General Sir Robert Corbett, KCVO, CB who was the last Commandant of the British Sector in Berlin. We join as I ask what were the British Army’s plans in the event of a Warsaw Pact invasion of West Berlin. We also talk about the momentous night of 9th November 1989 and a fascinating tale of a situation, which if handled differently could have sent the history of that night in a very different direction... Sir Robert also recollects his experiences

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48:52

The Last British Commandant in Cold War West Berlin...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/08/21

Major General Sir Robert Corbett, KCVO, CB was the last Commandant of the British Sector in Berlin. We start his story with the description of his first experience of Berlin as a young Army officer commanding a military train across East Germany into West Berlin just weeks after the Berlin Wall had been built. We also talk about his subsequent Army career including his interview with British Foreign Secretary Geoffrey Howe and his early days as the Commandant of the British Sector in Berlin. If you

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78:31

Eva - A Cold War Czechoslovak Childhood (135)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/08/14

Born in Communist Czechoslovakia, Eva Caletkova has written an honest and unflinching account of her childhood in Bratislava. Eva’s parents were Catholics, and the communist regime began to persecute the Catholic Church right from the start in 1948. They had to hide their faith from anyone outside of their home. Eva provides us with an insightful and emotional conversation that captures her experiences of life in Communist Czechoslovakia and the resulting trauma. Do check out her book “Forgiveness &

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64:54

My father was Cold War Stasi spy Werner Stiller (134)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/08/07

Werner Stiller’s spectacular defection to the West in 1979 inflicted one of the Cold War’s most serious blows to the Stasi. At the time he was working as a case officer for the Main Directorate for Reconnaissance, the Stasi’s foreign intelligence division, where he was in charge of scientific espionage in the West. We speak with Stiller’s son Andy, who although he was 11 months old at the time of his father’s defection met his father in later life. Also included is Scott Calonico, who is producing

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73:12

Retracing the Iron Curtain: A 3,000-Mile Journey...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/07/31

Tim Phillips travelled the route of the former Iron Curtain from deep inside the arctic circle to the meeting point in Azerbaijan, Armenia and Turkey. On his journey, he explored both the surviving traces of the Iron Curtain and the Berlin Wall. The people he meets bear vivid witness to a time of change. There are some who now look on the Cold War with nostalgia and affection, but many more who still despise it unable to forgive the hard and sometimes lost decades that their families, friends, and

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73:13

Cold War Czechoslovak hockey star defects to Canada...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/07/24

Vashi Nedomanský is the son of Czechoslovak former legendary ice hockey forward Václav Nedomanský aka “Big Ned” who is best known as the first ice hockey player to defect to North America to play. We hear a dramatic true story that combines sports, politics, espionage, corruption, and life-changing events that played out on a global stage. Among the stories we hear are the vivid descriptions of the 1969 Ice Hockey World Championships where the Czechoslovak National Team faced the Soviet national

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71:32

Robert - The anti Cold War activist (131)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/07/17

Robert Perschmann describes himself as an anti-Cold War activist. His political views started to form while serving in the US Air Force during the Vietnam War period where he saw first hand the toll on the US military and the racism prevalent in the American South. An interview with a Soviet journalist which was broadcast on PBS radio (the US equivalent of the BBC) was the catalyst for an almost one-man campaign to reduce tensions between the two superpowers. At this point, Robert was working as a

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85:29

Susan - An American teaching English in East Germany...

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/07/11

Susan Morrison is Professor of English at Texas State University. In the late 1980’s she taught in Rostock in the former GDR and then lived in West Berlin but frequently crossed back into the East to teach and meet friends. In this episode we talk to her about her experiences and her impression of the two Germanys in 1989. During her time in Rostock, Susan got in trouble with the authorities over bulletin board known as ‘The Wall’; the way she was censured by senior academics in the GDR sheds a

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60:53

The KGB tried to recruit me (129)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/07/03

Hans de Vreij is a Dutch journalist who has worked in Berlin , Brussels, Geneva and Prague. Whilst working at the United Nations in Geneva Hans was the subject of attempted recruitment by the KGB to develop an ‘agent of influence’ to disseminate Soviet points of view. In addition, they analysed the ‘targeted journalist’ in terms of possible blackmail: ‘kompromat‘ (compromising material). This especially held true for journalists who later might find themselves in an important position, such as press

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47:03

Experiencing the Cold War via virtual reality (128)

Cold War Conversations Podcast ·

2020/06/26

How can we go beyond the films, books, and photos to learn more about the Cold War? Films are certainly evocative and certainly inform but how can we go beyond that and immerse ourselves to see what it felt like to be there. The two technologies of Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality may allow us to do this. Robin Hardenberg is a Berlin-based filmmaker who has developed ’The Berlin Wall App’ which uses Augmented Reality to bring the drama of the division of Berlin to those who are able to walk

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447 results

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