Radio Spaetkauf Berlin

Should a man who once trained with the Stasi be allowed to run Berlin's housing department? Professor Andrej Holm has been named city secretary for housing. He's been the most vocal critic of the city's policies for many years, and advocates high taxation on real estate speculation. His critics say he shouldn't have such an important job because in 1989 he joined a Stasi training academy. His supp...

Berlin still has an estimated 3000 unexploded WWII bombs under the surface. One was discovered this week between Neukölln and Treptow, causing the evacuation of 2600 residents. The city also has a lot of people in jail for not paying their public transport fines. Almost 10 percent of the city's 4100 inmates are there for dodging train fares. Now the new justice senator, Dirk Behrend from the Green...

Berlin's bird flu outbreak keeps getting worse. Now residents near the central waterways are being told to keep their pets inside - even cats. The petition to keep Tegel Airport airport has progressed to the next phase. The supporters could trigger a referendum if they collect enough signatures by March. Radio Spaetkauf's next live show is on Sunday December 18, 6pm, at the Comedy Cafe Berlin. Thi...

While the rest of the world votes for crazy leaders and dumb ideas, Berlin's new coalition has just announced an amazing social program that makes this city even better. On this special 5th anniversary recording of Radio Spaetkauf, we remind ourselves why we came to Berlin, and why we plan to stay. There's plenty to talk about in the new red-red-green (R2G) coalition agreement, including more soci...

Welcome to our new series of short news updates produced for RadioEins, Berlin's public broadcaster! On this show we talk about how Berlin's new "red-red-green" coalition between the SPD, Die Grünen and Die Linke plan to change the city. Their coalition talks include closing Unter den Linden to most vehicle traffic, and building several new tram lines across the city. The incoming coalition also p...

Berlin still has no official governing coalition, as the SPD, Die Linke and Die Grünen drag on their negotiations. Public transport ticket prices for 2017 have been announced, and they're going up again, despite the BVG pulling in a record profit. Come along to Radio Spaetkauf's next live show on November 20 at Comedy Cafe Berlin. And stay tuned for a very special new project. Radio Spaetkauf is t...

The Berlin election results are in. And it looks like the SPD's Michael Müller will remain mayor, if he can build a coalition with two other parties - most likely Die Grüne and Die Linke. This election was a protest against the major parties. Every party lost votes, except for AFD (+14.2%), FDP (+4.9%) and Die Linke (+3.9%). Michael Müller's SPD won the most votes, with 21.6% and 38 seats. But tha...

We're decoding the Berlin election with a full run down on what each party is promising, with some graphic design critique thrown in. Who's going to run Berlin after the September 18 vote? Probably not the CDU, who have lost voters to the far-right AFD. The SPD doesn't want to govern with them, and neither do the Greens. It makes an SPD-Greens-Linke coalition a pretty likely scenario. Our own cand...

At our annual outdoor recording in the woods, we interview three Syrian refugees - Ghaith, Omar and Munzer - who have created an app to help deal with German paperwork. It's called Bureaucrazy. Some rich person out there should really give some money to this: http://www.facebook.com/Bureaucrazy.de/ After a glorious weekend of watching movies, watching bands and swimming in the lake at Klingemühle,...

On this quick update, we talk about the secretive British investment company behind all the problems between punks and police on Rigaer Straße. Daniel thinks the whole scenario could be turned into a musical, possibly called "Henkel's Leftist Orgy of Violence" after Berlin's interior minister, who has been embarrased by a court ruling this week that found the police-assisted eviction at Rigaer Str...

Berlin typographer Anton Koovit spent over a year creating his font called U8, based on the letters on U-Bahn station signs. Recently the BVG began using Koovit's font to print new signs. But they didn't bother to pay for a license. We talk to Anton about his font, and what he plans to do about the BVG's piracy. Bicycle riders working for the food delivery company Deliveroo recently launched a pro...

Radio Spaetkauf live recording outdoors, in front of the big screen at Mobile Kino! Come watch the full RS team reading the news (starting at 20.00), followed by a movie (starting at 21.45). Topics this show include... - Berlin bicycle food delivery riders go on protest - Did the BVG pirate a Berlin graphic designer's font? - What the cops think of our "six theories of abandoned locks" The film is...

What would we do if we ran the city? Radio Spaetkauf is exploring Berlin's political system by trying to get our own host Jöran Mandik elected to the state Abgeordnetenhaus. We get tips from former Pirate Party leader Martin Delius about how local politics really works. And we're calling for ideas from listeners about what policies Jöran should add to his manifesto. Sunday trading for spaetkaufs?...

Which landmark abandoned locations are going to be renovated - and do we want them to be? Several huge Berlin ruins are about to be developed, while Spreepark Planterwald is set to re-open this summer. Will anyone want to go to a formerly abandoned fully operating theme park? We try and solve a few mysteries. Why are some Berlin streets numbered strangely, and why are there so many lonely bike loc...

A quick update on football and festivals. And come along to our live show on April 24 at 6pm! Comedy Cafe Berlin: https://www.facebook.com/events/626246324195152/

This weekend is Easter, which means it is illegal to watch over 700 films banned by the German ratings authority. It includes obvious anti-religious films such as the Life of Brian, but also strange entries such as Mary Poppins. Dan Stern reads through the list to pick out some gems. The refugee influx has created opportunities for some businesses to make a lot of money. The consulting firm McKins...

Tensions have flared between the police and punks in Friedrichshain, with massive raids on squats and retaliatory car burnings. Our guest John Riceberg explains what's going on. A huge music festival will take place at Treptower Park, having moved there after Tempelhof was turned into a refugee shelter. Now there's a petition against the festival on account of the grass. Can't the kids enjoy music...

You're invited to be part of the audience as we record our next show live on Sunday February 21, 5pm, at Donau115 in Neukölln.

How fancy is your flat? There's a checklist you can use to fight against rental increases. If your building has a communal party room and video intercom, your rent might go up. But if you don't have a proper shower or bike racks, you can argue for a rent reduction. We pay tribute to David Bowie, the ultimate Berlin international temporary resident, who wrote three albums while living here from 197...

Workers at the iconic Kino Babylon have been picketing in front of the cinema for months now, demanding more than the minimum wage. The cinema says it can't pay more, and has filed for bankruptcy. Film goers are being asked to take sides, but who's right in such a messy situation? The Radio Spaetkauf team have a vigorous debate about workers' rights and business realities. The city is filling up w...

RS#08: Live at Donau115 by Radio Spaetkauf Berlin

You're invited to a special Radio Spaetkauf live show at 6pm Sunday November 8 at Donau115 in Neukölln. Come along and hear the local news directly from your hosts Joel, Joeran and Daniel, plus some special guests. See you there!

RS#07: Trouble at Teufelsberg by Radio Spaetkauf Berlin

Radio Spaetkauf is Berlin's news show. On this episode: Europe's refugee crisis is hitting Berlin. Over 550 asylum seekers are arriving each day to seek a safer life. The city's bureaucrats are struggling to keep up with the influx, but volunteers are helping hand out water bottles as refugees wait in the hot sun to file their applications for asylum. The actor Til Schweiger has stepped in to call...

Listen to the first ever live Radio Spaetkauf, recorded in front of an audience of film fans at the Mobile Kino Weekender and featuring an interview with Mobile Kino founders Fernando and Joshua. On this episode we follow up Jöran's Tempelhof bug investigation, look into the costs of having a visit from the Queen and discuss whether or not there is any point in opposing Merkel for re-election. We...