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PODCAST

Cold War Conversations

"Listening to even one episode of "Cold War Conversations" will make this sprawling, potentially intimidating period of history feel vivid and compelling." The New York Times Experience the Cold War like never before with Cold War Conversations — an award-winning podcast. 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

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All Episodes

57:28

From Mao's Red Guard to conscription into the Chinese...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/10/02

At twelve years old, Bing became a Red Guard—and for a few intoxicating months, he felt invincible.Growing up in Mao’s Beijing, Bing was taught to worship Chairman Mao, recite the Little Red Book and attack the old order. But the Cultural Revolution soon turned against his own family. His parents were condemned and sent to labour in the countryside, his grandmother was driven from Beijing, and Bing was left to care for his nine-year-old sister after she suffered a devastating injury during a

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66:27

The Birth of Poland's Free Trade Union Solidarity (475)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/09/25

One morning in August 1980, the noise of 10,000 shipyard workers suddenly stopped. Something extraordinary was happening.As a young shipbuilding student, Bogdan finds himself inside Gdańsk’s Lenin Shipyard as workers down tools and the movement that will become Solidarity begins to take shape. What follows is a remarkable journey through the final decade of communist Poland. Bogdan recalls student occupation strikes, the shock of martial law, encounters with riot police, and his

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68:13

Growing Up Under Communism on Cold War Poland’s...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/09/18

Bogdan was born just a month before the Berlin Wall went up—and left communist Poland a month before it came down. In between lay a childhood shaped by shortages, censorship, compulsory conformity and a growing determination to escape.Raised in Słupsk, a formerly German city near the Baltic coast, Bogdan remembers crowded post-war housing, Saturday school, packed Catholic churches and a world where bananas, meat and even bicycles depended on contacts and barter. His family carried deeper scars:

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47:01

If the Soviets Invaded : Sweden's Secret Underground...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/09/11

For decades, ordinary Swedes secretly prepared for the day Soviet forces might occupy their country. Farmers, factory workers, gamekeepers and travelling salesmen were recruited into a clandestine resistance network, trained to operate radios, use dead drops, scout escape routes and, if necessary, sabotage an invading army.Historian Johan Wennström joins me to reveal the extraordinary story behind Sweden’s Stay Behind organisation. He explains why officially neutral Sweden quietly collaborated

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67:59

Bandit Country - The IRA and South Armagh (472)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/09/04

During the Cold War, British soldiers fought a Provisional IRA insurgency in their own country. Probably the toughest location was South Armagh, where they had to travel by helicopter, while watchtowers scanned the fields, and an IRA sniper could strike without warning.In this episode, journalist and Royal Navy officer Toby Harnden takes us inside his book “Bandit Country”, which describes the borderland of South Armagh where the Provisional IRA fought one of its most formidable

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83:34

A Czech Border Guard’s Daring Escape to the West (471)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/08/28

What happens when the man guarding the Iron Curtain decides to escape through it himself?In 1975, Jiří Barteček was a Czechoslovak border guard, trained to track fugitives with a German shepherd and ordered to stop anyone attempting to reach Austria. Yet Jiří had no intention of defending the communist system. Haunted by the Soviet-led invasion of 1968 and determined never to shoot an innocent person, he secretly studied the border’s weaknesses and planned an audacious escape. One night,

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54:33

Twenty-Six Years Apart: A Family Reunited Behind the...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/08/21

For twenty-six years, war, exile and the Iron Curtain kept one Polish family apart. Torn from his homeland and sent into Stalin’s labour camp system, Aleksander Jablonski survived hunger, forced labour and a wartime journey through Russia, Iran and Italy before fighting at Monte Cassino.When the war ended, returning to communist Poland was impossible. He built a new life in Britain, but the family he had left behind remained painfully out of reach. Then, after more than a quarter of a century,

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0:51

Announcing Cold War Conversations History Tours

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/08/19

I’m delighted to tell you about Cold War Conversations History ToursI'm exploring the idea of hosting a Cold War history tour via a specialist tour company, and I'd like your help working out what it should be. There are several directions it could take, and your answers will shape the plan. There’s a short survey which should take about 5 minutes. Here's the link https://survey.chasehistorytours.com/coldwar As a thank you, those who complete the survey will be eligible for a discount if a

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50:03

Between Two Air Forces: From East German Officer to...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/08/14

After German reunification, former East German Air Force officer Roland faced an extraordinary transformation: joining the military alliance he had once been trained to fight.Roland recounts his difficult passage from the East German military into the Bundeswehr. His experience, qualifications and years of service suddenly counted for less. Having been a member of the Communist Party, he endured intensive screening, as well as a reduction in rank, lower pay than western colleagues and long

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44:38

MiGs, Helicopters and Ideology: Life as an East...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/08/07

What did it mean to train as an officer in the East German Air Force, where technical skill, military discipline and socialist ideology were inseparable?Roland recalls his journey into the air arm of the Nationale Volksarmee, from dreams of flying MiG fighters to the demanding realities of officer training and service with Mi-8 helicopters. He describes the long days, intensive political instruction and constant expectation that war with NATO could erupt at any moment. Behind the impressive

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42:03

Growing Up Grey: Childhood in Cold War Romania (367)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/07/31

Romania in the 1980s was a country of empty shops, power cuts,rationing and fear—but for one little girl it was also home. In this episode, author Oana Aristide shares the remarkable childhood experiences that inspired her novel Astronaut. From writing an anti-Ceaușescu protest demanding more cartoons to surviving freezing winters, queuing for food and learning not to trust the wrong people, her memories bring Cold War Romania vividly to life. Oana explains how children experienced

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41:35

Defection, Spies and the Shadow of Georgi Markov (466)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/07/24

In 1986, Oggy Boytchev made a split-second decision that would change his life forever. Sent to Egypt by a Bulgarian shipping company, he seized an unexpected opportunity to escape communist Bulgaria, boarding a flight to London and claiming political asylum at Heathrow.In this 2nd episode with Oggy, he recounts details of his extraordinary escape to becoming a broadcaster with the BBC World Service. He describes the emotional impact of leaving his family behind, the pride his father felt

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59:01

My Father - The Enemy of the People: A Bulgarian...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/07/17

Oggy Boytchev is a former BBC journalist with more than three decades of experience reporting from conflict zones across the Middle East, the Balkans and the former Soviet Union.Born in 1955, Oggy grew up under the shadow of a family secret. His father had been branded an “enemy of the people” and interned without trial in a remote Bulgarian town, where he spent years under police supervision and forced labour. Even after his release, the family lived under the constant fear of surveillance,

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72:42

Face to Face with the Srebrenica War Criminals (464)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/07/10

Richard Lyntton’s life has taken him from Cold War Moscow to the deserts of the Gulf War and the shattered streets of Sarajevo. In this powerful episode, he recalls studying in the Soviet Union during the hopeful Gorbachev years, travelling across Russia by train, and later serving as a tank commander during the First Gulf War. At the heart of this conversation is Bosnia, where Richard witnessed the siege of Sarajevo, came face to face with Bosnian Serb war criminal Radovan Karadžić, and

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69:57

Inside a Cold War USAF Fighter Squadron (463)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/07/03

Step behind the wire of one of NATO’s most elite tactical fighter squadrons—the 10th Tactical Fighter Squadron—during the tense final years of the Cold War and into Operation Desert Storm. Former US Air Force officer Michael Makatura’s new book, The Fightin’ Tenth, takes you inside the hardened aircraft shelters of Hahn Air Base and witness life on the front lines of the Cold War. From the heart of West Germany to the skies above Iraq, this gripping episode captures what it means to stand ready

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65:31

The Cambridge Five - new files reveal untold stories...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/06/26

Antonia Senior’s new book, "Stalin’s Apostles", challenges what you may have believed about the Cambridge Five, a group of British citizens who spied for the Soviet Union. Antonia argues that their actions during the Cold War have long been romanticised in popular culture., however, the reality is far more complex and tragic. Kim Philby, Donald Maclean, Guy Burgess, Anthony Blunt, and John Cairncross, were not merely glamorous rogues; their espionage activities had dire consequences for

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65:40

Malta & West Germany - Memories of an RAF Childhood...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/06/19

Mark Thompson shares his captivating journey as the child of Royal Air Force personnel during the Cold War. From the moment his parents met in Singapore to their adventures across various military bases, Mark's stories are filled with nostalgia and insight.Mark's father, a skilled electrician, joined the Royal Air Force and was posted to different locations, including Malta and Germany. His childhood memories revolve around the vibrant life he experienced on these bases, from playing with

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52:51

Cold War Football: A History in Ten Matches (460)

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/06/12

The Cold War was a huge battle for hearts and minds — a true “people’s war.” But where did the “people’s game” fit into it?In their new book, Cold War Football: A History in Ten Matches, Tony Shaw and Alan McDougall explore the surprising and fascinating links between football and the global struggle between capitalism and communism. From East Germany’s famous victory over West Germany at the 1974 World Cup to North Korea’s remarkable run in 1966, they show how football became much more than a

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66:53

CIA and MI6 Covert Action in Communist Albania at the...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/06/05

In June 1949, the US and British governments secretly agreed to mount a joint covert action operation to overthrow the communist government in Albania. The top-secret plan would use exiled dissidents to conduct subversive intelligence, paramilitary and propaganda operations to foment an uprising against Albania's authoritarian ruler Enver Hoxha.I speak with Stephen Long, the author of A Rich Harvest of Bitter Fruit: CIA and MI6 Covert Action in Communist Albania at the Dawn of the Cold War. He

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78:06

On the edge of war: A V-Force pilot during the Cuban...

Cold War Conversations ·

2026/05/29

I had the honour of speaking with Tony Dobbie, a former RAF V- Force bomber pilot who joined the RAF in 1960.Tony shares amazing anecdotes from his training, including his experiences flying jets like the Meteor and the Vampire, and the transition to the mighty Victor bomber. He candidly discusses the realities of nuclear missions during the Cold War, revealing the tension and responsibility that came with such roles. One of the most gripping parts of our conversation revolves around the

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