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We’ve talked a lot about pro-Kremlin internet trolls, who have worked to destabilise the democratic functioning of countries all across Europe. Turns out, there are even more of them than you might imagine – and they’re operating from places you might not expect. This week we chat with award-winning investigative reporter Philip Obaji Jr. about how Russia has been using African nations as launchpads to help sow chaos across Europe. Philip is an incredibly brave journalist working under exceedingly challenging conditions, and his insights on this growing problem are chilling. Also on the podcast this week: a heartening turnout at Kyiv Pride, and news about nuclear proliferation that we have definite mixed feelings about.
You can follow Philip's work on Instagram, Bluesky, LinkedIn and X, and contribute to his fundraiser here.
This week’s Inspiration Station picks are these cheeky counter-Trump European football jerseys and the pan-European queer choir festival Various Voices, which we learned about thanks to listener Davide.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE BOUNCY SUMMER BOP? Contribute to our Summer Playlist! We’re looking for sunny, summery songs from across the continent, especially from lesser-known artists that sing in less widely spoken languages. Send your picks to [email protected] or @europeanspodcast on Instagram/Mastodon.
Resources for this episode:
“Thousands gather for Kyiv's largest Pride march since start of full-scale war” – Kyiv Independent, 21 June 2026
“‘We are modern people’: Zelensky calls for open talk on LGBTQ+ rights in Ukraine” – Pink News, 12 June 2026
“Discrimination in the European Union” (PDF) – Eurobarometer, 2023
Rainbow Map 2026 – ILGA-Europe’s national ranking of LGBTI human rights laws and policies
“Trans people in Ukraine: transition process, legislations, healthcare, and social attitudes” – Seymour Nezoriy, 11 November 2024
“What is Russia up to in Africa?”, our conversation with Beverly Ochieng last year
“Forests Now Cover Over a Third of Italy, Overtaking Farmland for the First Time Since the Middle Ages” – The Italian Times, 10 June 2026
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Co-hosts: Dominic Kraemer and Katy Lee
Audio editing: Morgan Childs and Monika Proba
Senior producer: Katy Lee
Producers: Morgan Childs, Dominic Kraemer, Katy Lee, Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak
Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
With special thanks this week to longtime Europeans producer Katz Laszlo
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Long-time listeners will know that in the early days of The Europeans, we had a semi-official ban on talking about a certain topic: Brexit, or as we liked to call it, ‘the B word’. A whole decade after the UK’s seismic referendum vote to leave the EU, have Katy and Dominic made their peace with the split? What kind of damage has it done, and is there any chance that it might one day be reversed? This week, with the help of some of our listeners, we’re facing the B word head on.
We also hear from someone whose experience mirrors that of our British-born, EU-dwelling hosts: Polish-born Londoner Piotr Cieplak, a writer, film-maker and academic. We chat to Piotr about his experience as an Eastern European in the UK, and why he decided to set his debut novel during the heady days of the referendum.
Piotr’s novel Zofia Nowak’s Book of Superior Detecting is out in paperback on 25 June and available to pre-order now.
FREE TONIGHT? COME HANG OUT WITH US! We’re holding our first ever Office Hour tonight (Thursday 18 June) at 9pm CET. Commune with us in silence about Brexit or ask 15 different questions, it’s up to you. Access is open to all listeners, not just subscribers. We’ll post a link on our website and all our social media channels an hour before the event.
This week’s Inspiration Station picks are Middle England by Jonathan Coe and Autumn by Ali Smith.
GOT A FAVOURITE SUMMER TUNE? Contribute to our Summer Playlist! We’re looking for uplifting songs from across the continent, especially from lesser-known artists who sing in less widely spoken languages. Send your picks to [email protected] or @europeanspodcast on Instagram/Mastodon.
Resources for this episode:
“Waking up to Brexit” – Katy’s blog post from the morning after the referendum, Agence France-Presse (AFP), 24 June 2017“How Brexit has made Britain poorer – in charts” – The Guardian, 14 June 2026“Measuring Brexit’s Economic Toll on the United Kingdom” - US National Bureau of Economic Research “To rejoin the EU, the UK must first understand it” – Timothy Garton Ash on Substack, 17 June 2026This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Monika Proba, Wojciech Oleksiak and Katy Lee
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Saknas det avsnitt?
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After a triggering event we’re calling Legislativegate, producer Wojciech has a bone to pick with the English language and all of its irregularities. This week, Katy arranges a therapy session for Wojciech with Rob Watts, the Berlin-based host of the wildly popular YouTube channel RobWords, to discuss the peculiarities of the English language and the joys of being a “word nerd”. We’re also talking about Nikol Pashinyan’s ✨pivotal✨win in Armenia’s election, and whether or not we can forgive Dua Lipa for her Sicilian destination wedding.
GOT A HOT TAKE ABOUT BREXIT? If you have a personal experience to share for our next episode, or just something (Brexit-related!) to get off your chest, we want to hear from you. Record a voice memo at your earliest convenience and send it to [email protected].
JOIN OUR FIRST-EVER OFFICE HOUR! Next week, come hang out with Katy and Dominic, have a friendly chat, ask questions, and get to know a few more members of the Europeans family. You don’t even have to be a Patreon member to join. The first Office Hour is 18 June at 9pm CET, and you’ll find a link to join the call on our website and all our social media channels an hour before the event.
This week in the Inspiration Station, listener Federico recommended the Free Refugee Week Film Festival.
Contribute to the EUROPEANS SUMMER PLAYLIST! We’re rounding up our favorite tracks that keep the summery vibes going in dozens of languages from across the continent. Special credit will go to songs by lesser-known artists that aren’t in Europe’s most widely spoken languages. Send your picks to [email protected] or @europeanspodcast on Instagram/Mastodon.
Resources for this episode:
Macron’s recent jam session with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan Our inaugural book club podcast (just as good as Dua Lipa’s)RobWords on YouTube and his podcast Words UnravelledRobWords Live at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival “The Chaos” (poem) by Gerard Nolst TrenitéInvestigation suggesting Karapetyan had ties to Russia’s FSBEVN Report – a great news source for anyone who wants to stay up to date with the Armenian election.This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Co-hosts: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak
Produced by Morgan Childs
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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The European Union is many things: an economic powerhouse, an improbably successful peace project, or a bureaucratic hellscape, depending on who you ask. Most people would probably agree on one thing that it isn’t: funny. So when Susanna Kierkegaard set out to write Sweden’s first genuinely entertaining book about the EU, many might have dismissed the idea as a fool’s errand. And yet she has somehow pulled it off.
This week, we call up Susanna to share some of the best bits from her book Superstaten : EU och framtiden, from the MEP who expensed 250 kilograms of chocolate to the Italian whose unpaid electricity bills changed the course of European law.
Susanna is a columnist for Aftonbladet. You can read her work here, and follow her on Instagram as well as TikTok.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katy Lee
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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The predictions began soon after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine: the collapse of the Russian economy was imminent. Four years later, it still hasn’t happened. And yet, the cracks are appearing: Ukrainian drones that are now capable of striking critical targets in Moscow; economic data that even the Kremlin can’t spin as positive. But what do these changes actually feel like for Russian citizens? This week, Wojciech calls people with friends and family in Moscow to find out.
We’re also talking about why your bar of Milka is 10 grams lighter than it was. Oh, and we’re calling up the winner of the Microsoft Excel World Championships. No biggie.
Check out Diarmuid Early’s YouTube videos here, including this one, which starts with an introduction to competitive spreadsheeting.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Aleksandar Vučić’s interview with The Rest Is Politics: Leading, and Francesco Pacifico’s essay in The Dial: Are You Enjoying Our Linguine?
Resources for this episode:
The Milka ruling from Bremen in full (German)“Russia blocks Telegram and cracks down on VPNs” – Ośrodek Studiów Wschodnich, 17 April 2026“Moscow bans publication of Ukrainian drone strike damage without official permission” – The Kyiv Independent, 13 May 2026“Ukraine conflict in January 2026” – Levada-Center, 4 February 2026“Ukrainian attacks on Russia’s oil export infrastructure” – Ośrodek Studiów Wschodnich, 1 April 2026“Turning Point in the War in Ukraine?” – Kyiv Post, 19 May 2026“Disentangling effects of protection on seabed organic carbon and biodiversity in a rare highly protected mud-dominated MPA” – Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, August 2026 issue “Dutch court rules bottom trawling in Dogger Bank is unlawful” – Oceanographic, 11 May 2026This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible — we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katy Lee
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Vinyl records, coffee table books, low-maintenance pot plants: from Dublin to Dubrovnik, all good hipsters have the same stuff. The Italian writer Vincenzo Latronico captures this boring international aesthetic beautifully in his hit novel ‘Perfection’, while skewering millennial life in general. Do you like hearing about Lisbon food, the internet vs real life, and everything that’s wrong with the word ‘expat’? Then you’ll love our inaugural book club conversation, even if you haven’t read the book. We’re also talking this week about a fugitive Polish politician’s transatlantic dash, and the questionable Frenchness of a celebrated giraffe. Listen to the end if you want to know why we are launching a side-business importing sun loungers.
Our book club is brought to you in collaboration with the European Review of Books, featuring the magazine’s co-founder Wiegertje Postma along with Portuguese bookworm Teresa Bandeira de Carvalho. The latest issue of the European Review of Books is out today!
You can subscribe to Teresa’s excellent Substack here, and read her viral post on the word ‘expat’ here.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are the Zenodot website, where you can check if a book has been translated into your language, and the European Press Prize shortlist.
NEED MORE BOOK CHAT? Subscribers of The Europeans have access to an extended version of our book club conversation – twice as long and packed with thoughtful observations about everything from whether or not this story has a happy ending, to... how to run a book club. If you’re not yet a supporter of the podcast but you’d like to hear the longer version of the conversation, you can sign up at patreon.com/europeanspodcast.
The Europeans is made possible by listener contributions – we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs on Patreon in many different currencies, or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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‘Art and politics can totally be separated!’ said no one ever – apart from the organisers of the Venice Biennale, a.k.a. the Olympics of the art world. This week we’re diving into the fallout from the Biennale’s decision to allow both Russia and Israel to participate. We’re also looking at a case study of why it’s so problematic to welcome Moscow to events that showcase its (Kremlin-approved) cultural offerings: the film Mr Nobody Against Putin, whose co-director Pavel Talankin, we are happy to report, has now happily been reunited with his mislaid Oscar. A round of applause for Lufthansa!
It’s taken us many years to get over our bitterness that there are some other kids on the block called The Europeans, but since it’s Europe Day this Saturday, we’ve decided to bury the hatchet. This week we’re delighted to be joined by the Dutch writer Arnold van Bruggen, one half of the photo-documentary project The Europeans. Along with the photographer Rob Hornstra, Arnold is spending the decade chronicling life around a continent that, as he puts it, is being rocked by a perfect storm of political, social and environmental changes. We spoke to Arnold about the latest chapter of the project, in which they got to know the migrant workers who keep southern Spain’s giant greenhouse region running. This interview is brought to you in partnership with the European Cultural Foundation.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Repro Uncensored, which is doing fine work highlighting a wave of shutdowns of queer Instagram accounts, and Rotraut Susanne Berner’s seasonal Wimmelbilderbücher for kids.
EUROPE DAY: How’s your prep going? Got your Rösti at the ready? If you’d like to spend Saturday celebrating everything that’s wonderful about this continent (and maybe discussing some things we could fix) in the presence of other human beings, our friends at the European Cultural Foundation have a great list of events, from film screenings to family days out. Find your nearest at europeday.eu. #HappyEuropeDay!
DON’T MISS OUR INAUGURAL BOOK CLUB PODCAST: You still have a week to read Vincenzo Latronico’s pleasingly short ‘Perfection’, although we’re confident you’ll still enjoy next Thursday’s conversation about possibly the Berlin novel of our time even if you’ve never heard of it. Book nerds may want to sign up to support the podcast this week, because we’ll be bringing you a longer version of the conversation – brought to you in collaboration with the European Review of Books – on Patreon.
Speaking of bonus content: you’ll find some extra snippets of our conversation with Arnold van Bruggen at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (or in your inbox if you subscribe via our website).
The Europeans is made possible by listener contributions – we cannot continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs on Patreon in many different currencies, or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Resources for this episode:
Amsterdammers can catch The (other) Europeans’ exhibition Plastic Sea, Perfect Storm at Domo until next Wednesday. The book version launches at the same venue on May 7 at 4pm.Madrileños can catch the exhibition at PHotoESPAÑA from June 4.Produced by Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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This week, we’ve got a little something for everyone: gambling! Kraftwerk! Blast from the recent US political past Tim Walz! It was a Good Week yet again for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, the darling of the global left, who threw a party for… the global left. And it was a Bad Week for the legendary German electronic band Kraftwerk, who apparently have been around since 1970(!) and therefore can withstand the occasional bad week. We also caught up with Greek investigative reporter Eurydice Bersi, who was part of a team that uncovered a slew of streamers on places like YouTube and Twitch who’ve been directing their followers to unlicensed gambling sites – and profiting off it.
Eurydice is a reporter with Reporters United, Investigate Europe’s partners in Greece.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are the European Cultural Foundation’s calendar of the smörgåsbord of events coming up in celebration of Europe Day 2026, and the website WhoSampled.com.
UPCOMING BOOK CLUB: Don’t forget to pick up a copy of Vincenzo Latronico’s novella Perfection, which we’ll be discussing with our friends from the European Review of Books right here on 14 May.
Resources for this episode:
“The European rule on whether samples need to be cleared moves to a ‘maybe’ with latest Kraftwerk ruling” – Complete Music Update, 15 April 2026“The Court of Justice clarifies the scope of the exception for ‘pastiche’ in relation to sampling” – Court of Justice of the European Union, 14 April 2026“Greek utility completes 2.13 GW solar cluster at former coal mine” – PV Magazine, 7 April 2026“Social media influencers steer millions of Europeans to unlicensed gambling websites” – Investigate Europe, 24 February 2026Shady Bets, Investigate Europe’s series on online gamblingWe know what you’re thinking: you wish you got more emails. What about more emails from…The Europeans? GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK is the Substack newsletter your inbox craves. Don’t believe us? Subscribe here and see for yourself.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Shortly after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, Elon Musk’s company SpaceX swept in to restore internet connectivity to areas that had been affected by Russian attacks. But SpaceX and its internet service, Starlink, have hardly remained indisputable forces for good in the war in Ukraine. Earlier this month, the Kyiv Independent revealed that a fleet of old, rusty ships has been transporting hundreds of millions of barrels of Russian oil… with Starlink’s help. Investigative journalist Tanya Kozyreva joins us to explain what her reporting uncovered about how Starlink is used by the Russian “shadow fleet” – and how Ukrainian sailors have found themselves onboard. We’re also joined by The Europeans’ resident Luxembourger, Nina Lamparski, to discuss a resurgence of bison in Europe and the imperiled fate of halloumi.
JOIN OUR BOOK CLUB: We’re so excited to be partnering with our friends at the European Review of Books on a new audio book club! Want to read along with us? We’ll be discussing our first pick, Vincenzo Latronico’s Perfection, on 14 May.
Resources for this episode:
“From biodiversity to carbon capture: Saving bison from extinction has brought big benefits to Europe” – Euronews, 8 April 2026“Foot-and-Mouth Disease - questions and answers” – European Commission“Disease and division threaten Halloumi in latest Cyprus-Turkey spat” – Politico, 10 April 2026Our 2021 episode about halloumi, “Cheese Diplomacy”“Exclusive: We discovered what’s going on inside Russia’s shadow fleet” – Kyiv Independent, 1 April 2026If this podcast gets you singing “more, more, more!”, we’d love to introduce you to our newsletter, GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK. Same groove, different format, every Friday in your inbox. 🎵How do you like it, how do you like it?🎵
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs and Katy Lee
Editorial support from Katz Laszlo
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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A few weeks back, we asked you to weigh in on a question that’s been on our mind a lot lately: Who are the Zohran Mamdanis of Europe, and when, pray tell, are they going to give our beloved, ailing continent a much-needed shake-up? As it turns out, that’s a complicated question. This week’s guest, Brussels-based journalist Dave Keating, says that the decks are stacked against insurgent outsiders like the New York mayor – yet we need them more than ever. We had a long-overdue chat with Dave about what might be preventing a charismatic, insurgent figure on the left from taking off in the EU, and we also talked about a few of the leaders you wrote in to share with us. (Of course, keep us posted of any changemakers cropping up in your country at [email protected].)
We’re also talking about a controversial new law in Germany introducing voluntary military service in the country for men under the age of 45. We recorded this segment a few hours before the news that young men will not have to seek permission for long stints abroad after all; you can read updated reporting here. We also unpack Netflix’s failed legal challenge to EU regulations that led to a flood of funding for European TV and film production. A burning question has now been answered: yes, the US streaming giant really does have to set aside a decent budget for francophone Belgian content.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are the viral videos emerging from Zara Larsson’s tour and Juhani Karila’s book Summer Fishing in Lapland, brought to our attention by listener Monika.
Resources for this episode:
Dave Keating’s websiteDave’s book The Owned ContinentUK Green Party leader Zack Polanski on the BBC’s Political Thinking“Why a legal challenge by Netflix and Disney in Belgium could have huge implications for European producers” - Screen Daily, 14 May 2025“Forget Netflix — YouTube is our main rival, top French broadcaster says” - Politico Europe, 3 April 2026“Reading for a star: Meet the Portuguese teenager influencer helping kids to pick up books” - Euronews, 18 March 2026Can’t get enough of us? Of course you can’t! For more of The Europeans, subscribe to our newsletter, Good Week Bad Week. New issues land in your inbox every Friday.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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If you got a knock on your door from someone inviting you to Brussels to hash out some EU policies…you’d think it was a scam, right? Us, too. At least, that was the case until last week, when our producer Wojciech went to report on a European Citizens’ Panel, an event designed to allow 150 randomly selected Europeans to weigh in on some of the EU’s thorniest problems. This week we’re taking a deep dive into the ins and outs of what seems like the nerdiest game show ever. How do these panels work? What do they actually achieve? And crucially, are they worth the cost?
Resources for this episode:
European Citizens’ PanelsEU Citizens’ Engagement PlatformMaybe you’re tuning in this week and thinking, “Wait, where’s Good Week, Bad Week?” To that we say: Have you heard about our newsletter? GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK is available for free on Substack and offers everything you love about the podcast, plus a few extra memes and internetty things. Try it; we think you’ll like it.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Reported, written, and produced by Wojciech Oleksiak
Editorial support by Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer
Audio editing by Morgan Childs
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne, Mariska Martina and Blue Dot Sessions
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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It has been 16 years since Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party assumed power in Hungary – and it might have begun to feel like things could never change. But with a parliamentary election just around the corner, there’s now a glimmer – a hint! a twinkle! – of hope that the EU's most illiberal government could finally be on its way out.
This week, we’re devoting the entire episode to the April 12 elections: what’s certain, what remains to be seen, and most importantly, what’s at stake. And to make sense of it all, we’re joined by two Budapest-based friends of the podcast: the novelist Krisztián Marton, and Viktória Serdült, reporter at HVG, one of the last surviving bastions of independent journalism in Hungary.
“At last, a figure has emerged who could wrench power from Viktor Orbán in Hungary” – Viktória Serdült for The Guardian, 18 December 2024Paul the Octopus on WikipediaKrisztián Marton on InstagramViktória Serdült on XThis week’s Hungary-themed Inspiration Station recommendations are the song “Tizenhat” by Elefánt, the documentary The Trap, and the FT series The Orbán System.
MISS OUR NORMAL PROGRAMMING? This week’s edition of our newsletter, Good Week Bad Week, has you covered. Subscribe over here to learn what’s been going on beyond Hungary’s borders (the good, the bad, the silly).
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs, Wojciech Oleksiak and Katz Laszlo
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
The Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Back when Elon Musk was challenging Mark Zuckerberg to a cage fight, Eugen Rochko was building an open-source, non-problematic Twitter alternative, completely without fanfare. Last year, the Mastodon founder announced his departure from the head of the social media platform in a candid blog post, citing a growing discomfort with the role and an interest in preserving the site’s decentralised values. But Mastodon lives on, and – full disclosure – we’re all for it. This week, we spoke to Eugen about his dreams for the “fediverse” and about whether his vision for ethical, supervillain-free online communities has a promising future. In fact, we enjoyed the conversation so much that we’re releasing a longer version for supporters of the podcast.
Also in this episode: a compromise in Europe’s War on Veggie Burgers and the end of the decade-long Iceland-the-country-versus-Iceland-the-grocery-store dispute.
Resources for this episode:
“‘Veggie burgers’ are here to stay. Lab-grown ‘steaks’ never will be.” – Politico, 5 March 2026“European consumer insights on the alternative protein sector” – The Good Food Institute Europe, 25 November 2025Eugen on Mastodon“My next chapter with Mastodon” – Mastodon blog, 18 November 2025“The Statues Were Mostly Men or Nude Women. So These Knitters Got to Work.” – The New York Times, 5 March 2026This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are the Apple TV show Drops of God and the Swiss Android app Nearby Glasses.
You’ve probably heard by now that we have a newsletter. And you’ve probably already subscribed. Why wouldn’t you have? You’re smart, you’re cool, you’re with the programme; you love us, you want more of us. So leaving this link here for you to sign up is purely a formality.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible – we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. You can also donate via our website if you prefer. And finally: we'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska MartinaThe Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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This week, we wanted to ask a question that has been in our hearts and on our minds for years: Is it possible to try to make positive change in the world, and still stay healthy and sane? Dutch writer, political philosopher, and “recovering diplomat” Nori Spauwen believes that the answer is yes – even if it’s not always easy to strike the right balance. We chatted with Nori about “healthy” activism and training yourself to feel empowered in response to difficult news. If you’ve been overwhelmed lately (has anyone not?), this is a conversation for you.
Also in this week’s episode: a successful European Citizens’ Initiative that will make it easier for European women to procure abortion across borders, and a very Bad Week for Greece’s former finance minister-turned-public intellectual Yanis Varoufakis stemming from a Kylie Minogue concert 36 years ago.
Resources for this episode:
Re: Iranians in Europe (documentary)My Voice My Choice on Instagram (a masterclass in how to run an online campaign in 2026)How to launch a European Citizens’ Initiative Our episode from August 2025 in which Wojciech discusses the Stop Destroying Videogames Europeans Citizens’ InitiativeNori’s websiteHer book, Actie! (in Dutch)Her podcast, Verzetje (also in Dutch)The European Little OwlThis week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are this video recipe for Mezrab soup and Die Erweiterung by Robert Menasse.
SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER: Get more of what you like from the podcast, delivered to your inbox each Friday. Sign up for GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK right here.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
Record scratch sound effect by luffy via freesound.orgThe Europeans is proudly produced using Europe’s own Hindenburg.
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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Imagine what would happen if our political, cultural, and economic leaders began to reconsider what it means to create “value” in Europe. What if we were supported to rest, to look after our families, and to enjoy ourselves and our communities as much as we’re encouraged to generate capital? What would it look like for Europe to translate its wealth into greater wellbeing?
These are some of the big questions raised by Emma Holten, two-time Europeans guest and author of the book Deficit: How Feminist Economics Can Change Our World, now being translated into a dizzying number of languages. This week, we’ve devoted the entire show to our conversation with Emma about what “feminist economics” means and how it could change things for the better – not just for women, but for everyone.
GET INSPIRED WITH US: Who are the politicians that are proposing the most exciting and hopeful policies where you live? Introduce us to the leaders who are helping to bring a brighter, more equitable Europe to life: [email protected].
Resources for this episode:
Emma’s websiteHer book, DeficitEmma on The Europeans back in 2020SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER: On the way to building a better world, how about building a better inbox? GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK comes out most weeks and significantly improves them. Your email will thank you. Get in on the action here.
This podcast was paid for by our listeners. If you like what we do – and you’d like our sassy brand of independent European journalism to keep existing in the world – we’d love it if you’d consider supporting us. You can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Wojciech Oleksiak and Morgan Childs
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska MartinaYouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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If you’ve ever wondered where all the affordable night trains are, or struggled to book tickets for an international journey, or spent hours of your one wild and precious life petitioning for compensation for a significantly delayed trip (*takes deep breath, collects self*)... let us introduce you to Jon Worth. This prolific train watcher and commentator is behind a new European Rail Passengers’ Union that is pushing for easier cross-border transit and may even help to resolve some people’s personal cross-border nightmares. Jon thinks Europe’s train travellers deserve better, and we tend to agree.
Find out about the European Rail Passengers' Union here. Subscribe to his newsletter here, and check out his posts on Mastodon here.
Also in this week’s episode: the latest in all those big moves to get European youth off of social media, and an Olympics opening ceremony broadcast debacle for the ages. And some crime-fighting llamas. This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Rosalía making a tortilla de patatas and the Spanish TV series Los Años Nuevos.
Resources for this episode:
“'I feel free': Australia's social media ban, one month on” – BBC, 9 January 2026“Children should be at least 16 to access social media, say MEPs” – European Parliament, 26 November 2025“France: TikTok still steering vulnerable children and young people towards depressive and suicidal content” – Amnesty International, 20 October 2025Winter Olympics chaos at Italian broadcaster RAI (in Italian)Mariah Carey’s performance at the opening ceremony in Milan “Herd of crime-fighting llamas ‘make citizen’s arrest’ of man fleeing police” – @itvnews, 11 February 2026Talk of social media bans getting you down? Keep the screen time going with our newsletter, GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK. We recommend it for anyone over the age of 16 looking to level up their scrolling. Subscribe here; it’s good for you!
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected] -
It has been an absolutely Awful Week for everyone who has been paying attention to the latest release of the Epstein files, both on this continent and around the world. We’re taking a look at what the documents reveal about Europe’s rich and powerful and whether any overdue reckonings might come out of the horrific revelations. On the brighter side: we also discuss a sitting president who does NOT want to be handed the Nobel Peace Prize. A win for us all!
Our guest this week is journalist Salsabil Fayed, co-author of the recent Follow the Money investigation “U.S. donors bankroll Europe’s policy ideas through think tanks”. (Gulp.) What does it mean that some of the biggest American tech companies are financing some of the work of some of the most influential think tanks on this side of the Atlantic? Salsabil spells it all out.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are Fairphone and not looking at your phone in the morning. So…go out and touch grass. (But catch up on your podcasts first.)
Resources for this episode:
“Moldovan president rejects Nobel Peace Prize nomination, says Ukrainian POWs deserve it instead” – Yahoo! News, 6 February 2026“Holding the Line Between Democracy and Putin | President of Moldova, Maia Sandu” – The Rest is Politics, 11 January 2026“Los ‘miles de fallos’ que exponen a las víctimas de los papeles de Epstein” – El Pais, 4 February 2026“A survivor on the Epstein files – podcast” – The Guardian, 5 February 2026 Soundos el Ahmadi sets the record straight about misogynist violence on Flemish TV – De Afspraak, 7 February 2026“U.S. donors bankroll Europe’s policy ideas through think tanks” – Follow the Money, 23 October 2025“Podcast | The hidden U.S. influence on Europe’s policymaking” – Follow the Money, 10 December 2025“US pressure revives call for powerful EU tech regulator” – Politico Europe, 18 January 2026 Screen time increases risk of dementia – Brankele Frank on Brainwash, January 2026 (In Dutch)“Digital dementia in the internet generation: excessive screen time during brain development will increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias in adulthood” – Journal of Integrative Neuroscience, 28 January 2022Are you a visual learner rather than an auditory one? We got you. Here’s our new newsletter. (Almost) all of what you like from the weekly podcast, but…quieter. It’s nice. Try it.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs and Wojciech OleksiakEditorial support from Katy Lee
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech OleksiakMusic by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected] -
A very special bienvenue to this very special episode of The Europeans! This week, the entire team gathered in person in a swanky studio in Paris to answer some of your burning questions, from “How do you stay sane when you’re immersed in the news?” to “Is there a favourite bird?” (i.e. the simple to the deeply complex). Plus: Wojciech’s dream of being a “failed sportsman”, the unvarnished truth about the team’s vegan/teetotaling façade, and… The Europeans Matchmaking Agency?!
We’ll be back with a regular episode next week. In the meantime, subscribe to our cheeky new newsletter! If you like this here, we think you’ll enjoy that there.
Resources for this episode:
“A 24-year-old Frenchman shows up at hospital with a World War I shell lodged in his rectum” – El País, 2 February 2026A heartwarming TikTok compilation of running owlsThis podcast was funded by our listeners. If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katy Lee
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska MartinaYouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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By popular demand (and thanks to Dominic’s singing schedule), our silly, brilliant Luxembourger-in-chief Nina Lamparski is back in the hosting chair – and she’s brought her longstanding grudge against Elon Musk with her. Musk has made a real dog’s breakfast of that app we all used to like, and his AI assistant, Grok, seems designed for maximum awfulness. Can the European-made social media platform “W” provide an ethical alternative to X? We break it down. Plus: 10 European countries have committed to building a power grid in the North Sea that would become the world’s largest reservoir of clean energy, an ambitious move that happens to come on the back of some annoying comments from the American president at Davos. Next time someone calls you a loser, just give ‘em the windmill.
Our guest this week is Katja Diehl, Hamburg-based mobility activist, author, and host of the German-language podcast She Drives Mobility. If you, too, believe that you should have the right to a life without cars, you’ll enjoy hearing from her just as much as we did.
SEND US YOUR Qs! WE’LL GIVE YOU OUR As! Next week we’re recording a special episode of The Europeans, and we’re seeking listener questions. Got something you’re dying to know about? Drop us a line – or better yet, a voice memo – at [email protected].
LISTENER SURVEY: Are you the sort of person who listens to podcasts and thinks, “I have notes”? Now’s your time to shine! Fill out our survey and give us the performance review we’ve been waiting for! (It really won’t take long, and we’ll be very grateful.)
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are That Glasgow Witch and the song “Qanoruna isigivinga?" by Greenlandic singer-songwriter Tûtu.
Resources for this episode:
“EU risks new energy dependence as US could supply 80% of its LNG imports by 2030” – Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, 19 January 2026International Energy Agency overview of Europe’s natural gas supply“European Electricity Review 2026” – Ember, 22 January 2026This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Katz Laszlo and Morgan Childs
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska MartinaYouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected]
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You’d be forgiven for forgetting that Europe is bigger than Davos this week, but we’ve got three great stories to remind you. First up: it’s been a good week for Berliners making Kartoffelsalat, Kartoffelsuppe, Kartoffelknödel, et cetera et cetera, thanks to an initiative that is distributing more than 170 tonnes – TONNES – of potatoes across the German capital. Then we examine a newly leaked “Made in Europe“ proposal that seeks to promote industrial production in the EU (very very fun, we promise).
We’re also joined by Nick Thomas-Symonds, the UK government minister pursuing a post-Brexit “reset“ in relations with the EU, about how the Labour government might help clean up some of the post-Brexit mess. This one goes out to those of you who like to email to remind us that Britain is still Europe. We see you. We read you.
This week’s Inspiration Station recommendations are the Norwegian film Sentimental Value and these 'tasting notes' from a water sommelier.
LISTENER SURVEY: Fear not – we are still seeking responses to our listener survey! It’s not too late to help! It’s simple and really does help us make the show better. Fill it out here and pat yourself on the back afterwards.
Resources for this episode:
4,000 Tonnen, the “great potato rescue operation” “Record potato harvest is no boon in fries-mad Belgium” – France 24, 29 October 2025“Den regionalen Erzeugern wird vors Schienbein getreten” – Taz, 15 January 2026“EU Aims to Fight Industrial Decline With ‘Made in Europe’ Law” – Bloomberg, 17 January 2026Aurora Notifier appJoachim Trier’s acceptance speech at the European Film AwardsVeronika the cow, scratching herselfSUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER: Other things happened/are happening in Europe this week (🫠) and if you’d like to learn more about them, join us over at our newsletter, GOOD WEEK BAD WEEK.
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news. But it’s contributions from listeners that truly make it all possible—we could not continue to make the show without you! If you like what we do, you can chip in to help us cover our production costs at patreon.com/europeanspodcast (in many different currencies), or you can gift a donation to a superfan. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast. We think two feels like a reasonable number.
Produced by Morgan Childs and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering by Wojciech Oleksiak
Music by Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram | Mastodon | Substack | [email protected] - Visa fler
