It’s the only revolution in world history (that we know of) that began with a Eurovision song. This week, Portugal marks 50 years since the Carnation Revolution ended decades of dictatorship. We speak to Alex Fernandes, author of a new accessible history of the revolution, about the day that changed everything. We’re also talking about the UK’s missed opportunity to give an entire generation fun memories (and skills, but mostly fun memories) and Milan's ice cream uproar.
Alex’s book, ‘The Carnation Revolution: The Day Portugal’s Dictatorship Fell’ is out now. You can find him on Twitter here and read his article on the music of the revolution here.
Inspiration Station offerings: ‘E Depois Do Adeus’ by Paulo de Carvalho; Grândola, Vila Morena by José Afonso and MARO on tour. Bonus entry: the ‘Feat. NATURE’ playlist.
Other resources for this episode:
‘What is behind the UK’s labour shortage?’ - UK in a Changing Europe, February 2024
‘Percentage of businesses experiencing a shortage of workers in the United Kingdom in 2023, by industry sector’ - Statista, November 2023
‘Nature is an artist! Inside AKQA’s design for mammoth Spotify and UN project, Sounds Right’ - It’s Nice That, April 2024
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A group of Swiss women, all aged 64 and over, made history last week by winning the first ever climate case heard by the European Court of Human Rights. But what does their victory mean for climate policy across Europe? We ring up international courts reporter Molly Quell to find out. We're also talking about an artistic sense-of-humour failure, a Swedish app controversy, and why Polish kids are particularly big fans of the new government.
FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/why-the-swiss-womens-climate-victory-is-such-a-big-deal
You can find Molly on Twitter here.
This week's Inspiration Station offerings: 'Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York)' - tickets for London's Criterion Theatre; 'Two Strangers' cast recording; the 'Goulash' newsletter.
Producer: Katz Laszlo
Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak
Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
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We all know this continent has major issues with social mobility. But having a rich ancestor from *six centuries ago* shouldn't make it more likely that you're rich today... should it? This week we speak to Guglielmo Barone, one of the economists behind some fascinating research into this question in Florence. We're also talking about Ursula von der Leyen's 'jobs for the boys' scandal and the road to a shared European cycling policy.
FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/nepo-great-great-great-grand-babies
Guglielmo is a professor of economics at the University of Bologna. You can find his study on intergenerational mobility in Florence here, and an article he co-wrote about the research here.
This week's recommendations: 'Today in Focus - Should the UK stop arming Israel?' and 'Have You Heard George's Podcast - Francophone Pt. 1'.
Other resources for this episode:
Social mobility in Europe across generations - EU Science Hub
Intergenerational mobility in the UK - Institute for Fiscal Studies'
What is the point of inheritance tax?' - The New Statesman'
Von der Leyen accused of playing favourite over EU SMEs envoy nomination' - EURACTIV
The European Declaration on Cycling
'How safe is walking and cycling in Europe' - European Transport Safety Council Eurobarometer - Mobility and transport, 2019
The Copenhagenize Index
'Paris’s Picasso Museum Will Show Work by Françoise Gilot in Permanent Collection Galleries for the First Time' - ARTnews
Producers: Katz Laszlo and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak
Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
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This week, music and politics collide. We're talking about Greece's plan to enforce quotas for Greek-language lyrics on the radio, and the racist backlash against Aya Nakamura's rumoured booking for the Paris Olympics. Plus, a great interview with Politico's senior climate reporter Zia Weise about the EU's once-trumpeted nature restoration law. Can the EU still claim to be a world leader when it comes to going green?
FULL EPISODE TRANSCRIPT HERE: https://europeanspodcast.com/episodes/less-beyonce-more-bouzouki
You can find Zia on Twitter here and read her reporting here.
The soundtrack to this week's episode: 'Doggy' by Aya Nakamura; 'Zari' by Marina Satti; 'White Foxes' by Susanne Sundfør. Also recommended this week: 'Smoke Sauna Sisterhood' and Utrecht's fish doorbell.
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00:22 Velkommen til The Europeans podcast!
02:23 Good Week: Aya Nakamura
10:35 Bad Week: The plan for Greek-language radio quotas
22:38 Interview: Zia Weise on the EU's nature restoration law
35:15 The Inspiration Station: Susanne Sundfør and 'Smoke Sauna Sisterhood'
38:43 Happy Ending: Utrecht's fish doorbell
Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak
Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak
Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina
Instagram | Threads | Twitter | Mastodon | [email protected]