Katja Hoyer and John Kampfner Richard Ovenden

German-British historian Katja Hoyer and leading journalist John Kampfner discuss German history and its impact on the country in the post-war period and today.

In Beyond the Wall: East Germany, 1949-1990, Hoyer argues that East Germany was a far more dynamic country than the Cold War caricature painted in the West. She says the state was ultimately built in a distinctive German fashion and, amid the oppression, it was home to a rich political, social and cultural landscape. Hoyer was born in East Germany and is now based in the UK where she is a visiting research fellow at King’s College London and co-host of The New Germany podcast. Her previous book was the acclaimed Blood and Iron.

‘Utterly brilliant . . . Authoritative, lively and profoundly human, it is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand post-World War II Europe’ Julia Boyd

Kampfner’s In Search of Berlin tells the story of the city’s past 800 years. He says it is a city that has undergone plague, fire and war and that has had to start again each time it has been destroyed. He says every era of its history has affected what Berlin is today, a global city and a destination for refuge and culture. Kampfner reported as a foreign correspondent on the fall of the Berlin Wall. He is a former editor of The New Statesman, chief political correspondent at the FT and political commentator on the BBC’s Today programme and Newsnight.

Discussions are chaired by Bodley’s Librarian Richard Ovenden.