Czechia in 30 minutes

Czech reactions to drone attack on Polish territory, history of ferries on the Vltava, visit to Prague's Jewish Quarter

Statue of St.Ludmila recovered, traditional ceremony at Pilsner brewery, exploring Prague's hidden passageways 

Tick-borne diseases on the rise, Cosmas anniversary highlights lack of modern-day chroniclers, Gustav Mahler and the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands

Memorial to Czech RAF pilot František Hekl unveiled in Scotland, Mystery Formula 1 driver from D4 motorway apprehended after 6 years of cat-and-mouse, A brief history of Jewish identity and belonging in Czechoslovakia

Journalist and podcaster Julie Urbišová reflects on life between cultures—Czech, American, and Turkish.

UNICEF exhibition traces Czechia's engagement in helping to improve children's lives worldwide, “Blood” Moon to rise over Czechia in rare total lunar eclipse, Anna Shavit on campaigning with early ANO, “very polarised” 2025 elections – and potential coalitions

Revised War Veterans Act opens the way for better care for country's war heroes, From Sydney to Bohemia: Unique toy collection donated to Chrudim museum, Prague's D line: Why is the city getting a fourth metro line?

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Historic US Open quarterfinals for Czech tennis as four players reach the last eight; international Organ Festival in Olomouc celebrates Baroque masters Bach and Handel; and for our feature, our interview with Jiří Pehe in wake of the attack on opposition leader, Andrej Babiš.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Deadly myxomatosis hits hares in southern Moravia: experts warn of serious risk'; Czech teacher salaries continue to lag behind OECD average, but why?; and for our feature, we meet Barbora Baronová, who says she puts all her own money into her feminist publishing company – and can only afford to do this as she has no children. Enjoy!

Interview with American film director David Borenstein, author of the award-winning documentary “Mr. Nobody Against Putin” and a closer look at the many historical house signs in Prague's Lesser Town, which once served in place of numbers.

News; Lost manuscripts of The Good Soldier Švejk found after 90 years in Prague archive; Conservationists ringing alarm bells over surge in poisonings of wild birds and animals; Is Czechia's view on Israel changing? The ambassador to Israel responds to criticism in exclusive interview.

19 EU countries propose monitoring communications in the EU, but what would that mean for privacy?, Tigers in Kletečná should be turned over to the state, Minister Hladík promises “tough action” against illegal breeders, Jeff White on why shortwave radio still matters: HFCC Conference in Prague 

Czech Television produces film about most successful Czech RAF pilot Josef František, Amid growing pressure from locals, Prague 1 bans e-scooters on historic Nerudova Street, Ostrava Zoo: home to 451 species, including some extinct in the wild

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Petra Kvitová bows out with emotional US Open farewell; “Without her, 68 Publishers would not exist”: On writer and translator Zdena Salivarová's legacy; and, for our feature, Lucy and Selam unveiled: Exclusive preview and interviews at new ‘People and Their Ancestors' exhibition.

Archirun 2025: A run across Prague's many historical sites, Hundreds of amethysts uncovered in Kroměříž Chateau grotto, Meanders through Prague: a family-friendly guide created by locals

For the first time, Czech citizens living abroad will be able to vote by mail—but only if they register by Sunday, August 24. The change marks a milestone in democratic access and follows years of civic effort by the Czech diaspora. As the country reflects on the 1968 invasion that once ended hopes of free elections, this reform is more than timely. In this edition of Czechia in 30 Minutes, we revisit the voices and stories behind this historic shift.

News; Crystal Valley Week 2025: Liberec celebrates North Bohemia's glass-making tradition; Popular video game Kingdom Come: Deliverance II reveals exciting expansion; Interview with Karel Kovář, better known as Kovy, one of the biggest names in Czech social media.

Czechs mark 57th anniversary of 1968 invasion, documentary filmed in Ukraine premieres in Czech cinemas, NeverMore68 festival

Interest in voluntary military service waning, Czech national logo, Moravian folk artists head for the US to teach their craft, Liberec Zoo

Will Ye have a concert in Prague? Number of obese childrnen growing. Visit to Telč.   

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Skepticism high in Czechia regarding Putin's willingness to stop the war; Lucy and Selam come to Europe: 3.3 million-year-old hominin fossils to go on display at National Museum; and, for our feature, “Other places and languages become possible”: Oxford scholar Rajendra Chitnis on the value of studying Czech literature. Enjoy!

This weekend edition of Czechia in 30 Minutes features something a little different: a short story by Karel Čapek, one of the most famous Czech writers. Written in the early 1930s and later published in his collection Apocryphal Tales, On the Decline of the Times humorously shows that every generation believes the present is worse than the past. It's a witty reminder that many of our “unprecedented” worries may be as old as humankind itself.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes Show: Selected Czech pharmacies to offer flu vaccinations this autumn; the world hasn't changed much since Hanzelka and Zikmund, says exhibition curator; and in our feature, we meet Brendan McNally, author of a book on Martha Dodd – a spy for the Soviet Union who spent decades in Prague. McNally learnt about her from a Czech colleague when he first moved to the city.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes Show: Letní Letná festival offers Prague a carnival of the best new circus and theatre; Czech junior athletes among Europe's best, breaking records; and, for our feature, another edition of our Prague Off the Beaten Track series, this time in Divoká Šárka. Enjoy!

News; Escaped wolves spark search and safety measures in Šumava National Park; The favourites triumph in the World Yo-Yo Contest, for the second time held in Prague; A trip to Ratibořice Chateau, where European nobility and Russian Tsar Alexander I met; Chomutov Zoo, from an open-air heritage museum to a vistas of free-roaming wildlife.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Foreign Minister Lipavský in Ukraine: Czechia backs Kyiv before Alaska Summit; Prague's Lesser Town boasts 70 historic house signs, which once served in place of numbers; and in our feature, we look back at Jakub Ferencik's interview with historian Ivan Puš about the history of Jewish identity and belonging in Czechoslovakia. Enjoy!

Oscar nomination announced, Czechia unveils new national logo, escaped lion shot dead, hiking around Czechia 

In this weekend edition of Czechia in 30 Minutes, Vít Pohanka speaks with Julia Kňažková, a Slovak who has made her home in the picturesque South Bohemian village of Holašovice. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is famed for its perfectly preserved Baroque farmhouses and centuries-old village layout — and for the everyday life that continues behind its painted façades.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: The negative impact on Czech foreign tradedue to US tariffs; experts at Czech Academy of Sciences investigate sleep; and, for our feature, an interview with Aleš Březina, director of the Bohuslav Martinů Institute and co-curator of the festival ‘Martinů and His World', celebrating the legacy of the great Czech composer at Bard Music Festival. Enjoy!

News; Karel Zeman's Journey to the Beginning of Time turns 70 – a Cold War cinema classic; Czechia's iconic “Knödel Express” not being written off just yet; RPI visits Jihlava Zoo in the Vysočina Region.

Marlene Dietrich at Grebovka, Czech food at EXPO 25 and award-winning Czech writer Marie Dočkalová

Czechs abroad register to vote in elections, after 40 years Prague has a new railway station, brewing beer at home abroad and the story of Silvester Muller. 

The International Day of Remembrance for the Roma and Sinti Holocaust is marked on 2 August — the date when over 4,000 Roma were murdered at Auschwitz-Birkenau in 1944. In this weekend edition of Czechia in 30 Minutes, we speak to Michaela Küchler, Secretary General of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, about her family's Czech roots, her mission to preserve the memory of the Roma genocide, and the tragic history of the Lety camp.

News; Mendel's microscope now on display at London's Science Museum; Pardubice student fixes potholes with dazzling mosaics; Michael Tate, founder of UK-based Jantar Publishing, on Prague Talk.

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Czechia defies trend: No recognition of Palestine, yet; Brno unveils Milan Kundera's final resting place; and, in our feature, we look back at Ruth Franková's interview with Adam Plachetka, one of Czechia's foremost opera singers, who this year celebrates ten years since his debut at New York's Metropolitan Opera. Enjoy!

On today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: World Esperanto Congress for 2025 meets in Brno; fireflies named insect of the year 2025, as their glow disappears from Czech summer nights; and, for our feature, we will explore another one of Czechia's ZOOs, in our summer series "Stories from Czech ZOOs" - this week from Olomouc. Enjoy! 

News; The US premiere of Smetana's opera Dalibor is being staged at Bard College with all-American cast; Prague Pride is “more important than Christmas” for Czech transgender activist Lenka Králová; Simon Rawlence shares the story of his father-in-law Věněk Šilhán: from Communist Party secretary for a week, to a banished dissident and signatory of Charter 77.

News; Envelope with Masaryk's last words to be opened in September; Velké Březno chateau holds possible oldest group photograph in the world; Prague as a 15-minute city? Interview with Zdeňka Havlová, a researcher at the Prague Institute of Planning and Development.

In the weekend edition of Czechia in 30 Minutes, journalist and podcaster Julie Urbišová talks about adapting to life in the U.S., raising bilingual children, and teaching school yoga. Born in the Hlučínsko region of Czechia, she now lives in New Orleans, where she helps children unwind in a world full of noise and pressure. Her story is one of resilience, cultural blending, and small daily acts of balance—told in her own voice in Czechia in 30 Minutes.

Today on Czechia in 30 Minutes: ‘Masters of avoiding humans', Golden jackals captured on camera in Pálava, South Moravia; Prague Pride returns to celebrate LGBTQ+ lives and ask “where my home is”; and, in our feature, Ian Willoughby is back with his Prague Talk series, where this week, he speaks to Czech-Vietnamese director Dužan Duong.

Today on our Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Holašovice Peasant Festival brings Czech traditions to life in South Bohemia; Japan to Canada, brewing own Czech-style beer is a global phenomenon; and, for our feature, another edition of our Prague Off the Beaten Track series, Where Prague feels like a village: exploring Kajetánka and its neighbors. Enjoy! 

For today's Czechia in 30 Minutes show: Czech-made Tour de France winner's trophy for 2025 features bold, new design elements; Hrádek u Nechanic: A piece of England in eastern Bohemia; Czech National Day at Expo 2025 in Osaka, welcomes President Pavel, Alfons Mucha, Czech beer, music, and more; and in our feature, another instalment of our summer series, ‘Stories from Czech ZOO's', where this week, we take you to Zlín.