Last night I went to my first Berlin Summer Rave at the disused Tempelhof Airport – a great location despite the distinctly un-summer-y weather. I went with Summer Rave veterans Steffi, Bine and Olli and after a few short queues in the Berlin rain we could feel the bass even before we entered the building. […]
Ohrwurm: Niki & The Dove – DJ, Ease My Mind
Niki & The Dove – DJ, Ease My Mind has been playing on repeat in my head since I heard it when I walked into a Berlin clothes shop last week. I first heard the song when it featured in the BBC Sound of 2012 list but hadn’t thought of it since. This unofficial video (the […]
Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1960s
The 1960s was a decade of great social and technological advances and Berlin, as the main flashpoint between the ideologies of capitalism and socialism, saw more changes than most cities. The loss of skilled workers to the West, as referred to in my Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1950s post led the government […]
Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1950s
Throughout the 1950s the government of the DDR (Deutsche Demokratische Republik) continued a process of Socialisation in East Germany. Tensions were running high between the East and West and also amongst the people of the DDR. The ‘brain drain’ had started, as workers sought out the higher pay and better working conditions in the West. […]
Sunday Documentary: Legendary Sin Cities – Berlin: Metropolis of Vice
Metropolis of Vice, an episode from the Legendary Sin Cities documentary series focuses on the potent mix of sex and entertainment in the Weimar era Berlin of the 1920s. “Its very name became synonymous with perversion, debauchery and creativity. Berlin in the 1920s was the sex capital of Europe.” In response to the hyperinflation of the […]
Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1940s
Continuing my Twentieth Century Berlin on Film series, footage of 1940s Berlin is dominated by the machinations and effects of the Second World War. At the beginning of the decade the city is a focal point for Nazi marches and speeches. During the war, the German capital is a prime target for the allied bombers […]
Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1930s
Berlin in the 1930s was witness to Hitler’s rise to power as Chancellor of Germany and subsequently many shockingly destructive and despicable acts like the book burning of 1933 and the Kristallnacht in 1938. Continuing my Twentieth Century Berlin on Film series here are a few short videos that show Berlin in the 1930s. Summer […]
Twentieth Century Berlin on Film – The 1920s
The twentieth century was not kind to Berlin – war, economic depression, Nazism, division and re-unification all left their mark. Twentieth Century Berlin on Film is a series of posts that, through YouTube videos, will show the changes the city has undergone. We begin with the heady days of Berlin in the 1920s – in […]
Art in Berlin – A report by Monocle Magazine
It’s Gallery Weekend in Berlin – a time when the city’s many galleries showcase art from a broad range of local and international talent – so when better to share this film from Monocle magazine on Art in Berlin. Berlin is a hotbed of creative talent. In the 1920s, artists were attracted by the city’s […]
Berlin Songs: Sex Pistols – Holidays in the Sun
My Berlin Songs series, which features songs that are either inspired by Berlin, about the city or by artists based here, continues with Sex Pistols – Holidays in the Sun. Singer John Lydon says of the song on the Sex Pistols website: “I loved Berlin. I loved the wall and the insanity of the place. The […]