Related articles
ArtsCzech Catholic literature 1918-1945: from utopia to despair
Opposed, later persecuted – and finally forgotten. That was the fate of
many Czech Catholic writers, who stood outside the literary mainstream. In
one of Europe’s most atheist nations, the impact of these authors
gradually diminished throughout the 20th century although in their heyday,
in the interwar period, they managed to convey many original ideas and
intriguing artistic expressions.
More
Czech BooksLost and found in translation: writers discuss the complexities of literature across frontiers
Last month Prague hosted Bookworld, one of Europe’s major international
book fairs. Writers from around the world, whose work covers a Babel of
different languages, converged on the Czech capital. As part of the event,
six of the writers got together to talk about how literature can play a
role in helping to build understanding between cultures. A lively
discussion emerged, chaired by Radio Prague’s David Vaughan.
More
Current AffairsTop documentary prize goes to film about Vietnamese immigrants
The Pavel Koutecký prize for documentary film is awarded to “tireless
observers of the world with the ability to convey their feelings and
insights through film.” This year, the work chosen as best able to meet
those criteria was “Country of Dreams”, by writer and director Martin
Ryšavý. The film takes a hard look at the lives and tribulations of the
Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic.
More
One on OneIain Banks: the revival of science fiction inspiration
Scottish writer Iain Banks is a prolific novelist of conventional novels
and science fiction. Since his first novel, “The Wasp Factory” was
published in 1984, he has penned around a dozen conventional novels. Under
the pen name Iain M Banks he has published around half that number of
science fiction books. Many of these feature a utopian civilization of the
future called “The Culture.” Away from the writing, Mr. Banks takes a
public political stand on many issues, for example he tore up his passport
and mailed it to the prime minister in protest against the war in Iraq.
Radio Prague met up with Iain Banks who is in the city for the Prague
Writers’ Festival and asked him to explain what his latest book,
“Transition,” is about.
More
Czech BooksA remarkable book tells a story of resilience and courage
Not many people have their first book published when they are over 80, but
Jaroslava Skleničková is a remarkable exception. Her home village is
Lidice, a few miles to the west of Prague, where she and her husband
Čestmír, will be celebrating their diamond wedding anniversary next year.
But the fact that Jaroslava is alive at all is nothing short of a miracle.
Her book, which has just been published in English, tells the moving story
of her life, as David Vaughan reports in this week’s Czech Books.
More
Czech BooksHeresy and Rebellion in Prague
The Prague Writers’ Festival which begins on June 6 is all about the
encounter of ideas. Over the last twenty years this annual event has become
a lively forum for writers from many parts of the world, and the diversity
of their work and thought has been the festival’s greatest strength. This
year it revolves around the theme of Heresy and Rebellion, pointing to the
perennial tension between the writer and the society in which he or she
lives. A couple of days ago I met the festival director, Michael March, to
talk about this year’s event. We began by looking at the festival’s roots,
which go back more than 30 years. In the late 1970s Michael March started
organizing readings in London by writers from behind the Iron Curtain, and
in the process he found out just how little people knew about Central and
Eastern Europe.
More
One on OneTomáš Škrdlant: giving a voice to the marginalised
My guest in One on One is Tomáš Škrdlant. With more than sixty films to
his name, covering over thirty years, Tomáš is one of the Czech
Republic’s foremost documentary film makers. Much of his work has focused
on the lives of people living on the margins of society: sometimes because
of disability, sometimes old age, or simply because they are different.
This ties in with a second thread that runs through his films: our complex
relationship to the world around us, how we identify with the place we live
and its ecology. When I visited Tomáš Škrdlant at his flat in the centre
of Prague, I began our conversation by asking him where his interest in
film began.
More
ArtsMakers of Czech Dream turn sights on abandoned US radar plan in new documentary Czech Peace
In 2004 Vít Klusák and Filip Remunda made a big splash with Český Sen,
or Czech Dream, about a hoax they pulled on shoppers in Prague, using a big
advertising campaign to draw them to a non-existent hypermarket. The
documentary, originally their final project at film school, received a good
deal of international attention for the way it raised questions about
consumerism in a post-communist society.
More
Current AffairsDocumentary to show post-war mass murder of German civilians in Prague
Public broadcaster Czech TV will screen a documentary film on Thursday
entitled Zabíjení po česku, or ‘Killings Czech style’. It features
unique footage of a massacre of over 40 ethnic Germans that took place in
Prague in May, 1945, shortly after the end of the war. The authors say they
want to draw attention to the atrocities committed on German civilians in
post-war Czechoslovakia, though some historians believe this particular
murder was carried out by Soviet troops.
More
Czech BooksIvan Jelínek: a poet in the newsroom
If you had been listening to Radio Prague back in the late 1930s, it is
very likely that you would have heard the voice of Ivan Jelínek. He was
one of the pioneers of broadcasting in Czechoslovakia, and an early
presenter of our broadcasts to Britain and North America. From the radio
headquarters here in Vinohrady, he witnessed many of the dramas leading up
to World War Two, including moment of the German occupation itself. During
his wartime exile in Britain and in the decades that followed the war, Ivan
Jelínek became a familiar voice in the Czechoslovak section of the BBC,
and he continued to broadcast from London until his death in 2002, at the
age of 93. But Ivan Jelínek was not just a broadcaster. His lifelong
passion was poetry. In Czech Books this week, I’ll be looking at
Jelínek’s fascinating life and work.
More
+1
+10
