Radio Spaetkauf – The Berlin News Show

The landmark Neues Kreuzberger Zentrum at Kottbusser Tor will be purchased by the Berlin city government, snatching it from the hands of private investors. NKZ – the giant 70s construction that bridges Adalbertstraße – will be bought by the city’s own housing company Gewobag for €56.5 million. It is the first major example of the government buying back large tracts of housing from the open market to balance property prices.

Why is the metal sculpture in front of the Volksbühne Theater about to disappear? Konrad Werner tells us about departing intendant Frank Carstoff’s decision to take the circular “Rad” with him when he begrudgingly departs. Listen to Konrad’s own podcast News des Nachrichtens: https://soundcloud.com/newsdesnachrichtens

Why do the escalators at Kottbusser Tor U-Bahn station run British style, with traffic on the left? Wouter Bernhardt talks about his discoveries on the U1 line. Listen to Wouter’s own podcast Walrus and the Bear: http://viertausendhertz.de/walrus-and-the-bear/

Think you’re addicted to your smartphone? A group of Berlin activists wants to convince you to put down your Handy. We interview two members of Radikale Anti Smartphone Front: http://rasf.eu/?lang=de

Our friends at Mobile Kino are organizing the Berlin Film Nights series. Check it out at: http://www.mobilekino.de

This episode was presented by Maisie Hitchcock, Jöran Mandik, Joel Dullroy and Daniel Stern, and recorded on Sunday April 23 2017 at the Comedy Cafe Berlin.

S-Bahn or U-Bahn? Take the U-Bahn if you like free Wi-Fi and fare evading. Figures from the Berlin Senat show the S-Bahn prosecuted over 35,000 repeat ticket cheaters in 2016, three times as many as the BVG. The S-Bahn checked 8.5 million passenger tickets, while the BVG only checked 5 million.

Don’t try it if you want a career in education. A young Berlin man has been denied a career as a teacher because his potential employer ran a police background check and found he had been caught riding public transport with a fake ticket. A labour court upheld the school’s decision.

After the spectacular gold coin robbery at the Bode Museum, here’s another break-in. On Easter Sunday police responded to an alarm at the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf Bürgeramt and caught two men in the building, while a third man escaped. Police said the burglars were trying to steal paper forms.

Barack Obama will be visiting Berlin and will give a public address at the Brandenburger Tor on May 25. He’ll be on stage with Angela Merkel at an event to mark the 500th anniversary since Martin Luther started the protestant reformation.

Our next live show is at 17.30 on Sunday April 23 at the Comedy Cafe Berlin in Neukölln. Come along!

This episode was presented by Joel Dullroy and Daniel Stern, and brought to you by RadioEins.

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Berliners will get to vote on whether to keep Tegel open after the campaign to save the airport collected enough signatures to trigger a referendum. But even if Berlin votes yes in September, it doesn’t mean that Tegel will actually stay open due to complicated legal reasons.

The past March was one of the warmest in recorded history, at an average temperature of 8 degrees. The winter was also unusually warm. Bee-keepers in Berlin and Brandenburg are reporting that 40% of their hives have died as a result, due to the growth of the varroa destructor parasite.

Want to take a ride on Berlin’s first cable car? Head along to the International Garten Ausstellung, opening in Marzahn on April 13. The 1.5km cable car will transport guests into the garden show, and is free to ride with a ticket to the IGA. It also gives a great view of the socialist Plattenbauten of East Berlin. More here: iga-berlin-2017.de

This episode of Radio Spaetkauf was presented by Joel Dullroy and Maisie Hitchcock, and brought to you by RadioEins, Berlin’s public broadcaster.

Restauranteur Clare D’Orsay is a victim of anti-gentrification violence. She has been unfairly targeted by protesters angry about the planned eviction of Cafe Filou in Kreuzberg. Her restaurant Vertikal is next door, but has nothing to do with the eviction. On this show Clare talks about the attacks against her business at the hands of misguided protesters.
Clare says she’s been spat at, pushed to the ground and had her windows smashed by an organized group for being a foreigner opening a nice looking restaurant.

Investors Charles Skinner also joined the show to announce he’s reached an agreement with Cafe Filou and will allow them to stay. Mr. Skinner said he decided to renew the contract after appeals from Green party politician Hans-Christian Ströbele and Ms. D’Orsay. “In the end we saw reason,” Mr. Skinner said.

Maisie is one of 480 British citizens trying to apply for a German passport to ensure she can stay after Brexit. Unsurprisingly she’s run into bureaucratic hurdles. Mark Whiley from Forward Britain joined the show to talk about what despairing Brits can do to create political pressure back home to try to mitigate the effect of Brexit. Visit http://www.forwardbritain.de

This show was recorded live at Comedy Cafe Berlin on Sunday March 19 2017, and was hosted by Maisie Hitchcock, Jöran Mandik, Joel Dullroy and Daniel Stern.

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