Episodes
Wednesday Aug 07, 2019
Toulouse Episode 06 Art and Architecture
Wednesday Aug 07, 2019
Wednesday Aug 07, 2019
We start with a tour of some of the 'hotels particuliers' which are such a feature of Toulouse architecture, finding out what kind of houses the city's elite built themselves once money and political power had come their way. Then we visit a variety of art galleries, large and tiny, to discover the wonderful range of goodies on offer, from Roman remains to cutting edge photography, taking in plenty of medieval sculpture, 'Golden Age' paintings and oriental treasures en route, while not forgetting to pass by 'one of France’s best contemporary museums' too. Meet some local artists-made-good and a host of internationally famous ones as well.
Wednesday Jul 31, 2019
Toulouse Episode 05 Museums (from woad to outer space)
Wednesday Jul 31, 2019
Wednesday Jul 31, 2019
The story of Toulouse's museums tells us what has been most important in shaping the city. We visit 9 institutions, starting with Terre de Pastel, where you can discover how woad brought fabulous wealth to 15th century Toulouse and ending at La Cité de l'Espace which celebrates the city's massive contribution to space travel. Along the way you'll hear how a love-stuck Genoese soldier brought the first violets to Toulouse, how the pilot of the earliest night mail flights to South America turned novelist and wrote about his adventures and how the work of monks caring for medieval pilgrims led to today's renowned Oncopole cancer research centre
Wednesday Jul 24, 2019
Toulouse Episode 04 The Resistance
Wednesday Jul 24, 2019
Wednesday Jul 24, 2019
The fascinating ‘Musée de la Résistance et de la Déportation is tucked away near the Jardin des Plantes. Its detailed displays of documents, photographs and memorabilia pay tribute to the bravery of the many Résistants who did all they could to work against the German occupation of the city from 1942-44. It also bears witness to the terrible fate of many of the city’s Jews, deported from Toulouse to the concentration camps. Hear about the places in Toulouse which tell us more about the period and the people whose bravery should be related to each new generation.
Wednesday Jul 17, 2019
Toulouse Episode 03 The Capitol
Wednesday Jul 17, 2019
Wednesday Jul 17, 2019
The elegant pink façade of the Capitol, Toulouse’s town hall, which overlooks the magnificent Place du Capitole, is the city’s best-known symbol. Hear about some of its key historical moments, including executions to prove a point and the slaughter of one religious group by another. Then find out what to look out for on a visit, including paintings recalling Toulouse’s great moments, such as a visit from Pope Urban II and the defeat of Simon de Montfort. Plus busts of the citizens of whom the city is most proud, including the mathematician Fermat (of last theorem fame) and Pierre-Paul Riquet, the engineer who built the Canal du Midi.
Friday Jul 12, 2019
Toulouse Episode 02 Churches and Troubadours
Friday Jul 12, 2019
Friday Jul 12, 2019
First, a tour of the main churches in Toulouse. The Basilique St Sernin was founded after the Bishop of Toulouse was martyred by being dragged through the streets tied to a bull. The Couvent des Jacobins is a one-time centre of the Inquisition against heretics and also the burial site of a saint who never visited the city. Find out too about the Cathars whose pious, very particular, take on Christianity so enraged the established church that the Pope sent crusaders to ‘Kill them all.’ Then hear about the troubadours, wandering poets who shunned Latin and wrote in the Occitan language, thus proving their independence of mind.
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Wednesday Jul 03, 2019
Toulouse Episode 01 Introduction
Wednesday Jul 03, 2019
Wednesday Jul 03, 2019
Bienvenue! Welcome to Episode 1 of City Breaks Toulouse. This opening podcast will give you an overview of the city, historically, geographically and culturally and an idea of the material to be covered in each of the remaining 8 episodes. We hope that after listening to it, you’ll be looking forward to the rest of the series and maybe also keen get down to planning a visit, knowing that what you have learned will help you get the most out of your city break. Or perhaps you have already been to Toulouse and will enjoy reminiscing. Either way, we hope you will love the ‘virtual visit’!
Wednesday Jun 26, 2019
St Petersburg Episode 17 Finding Leningrad in Literature
Wednesday Jun 26, 2019
Wednesday Jun 26, 2019
For the final episode in the series, we are 'leaving' St Petersburg to discover Soviet era Leningrad through the work of three very different authors. First, the poet Anna Akhmatova, whose writing was largely banned, but whose very Russian, free-spirited poetry made her a symbol of opposition to the state. Then Helen Dunmore, whose two novels The Siege and Betrayal are set in 1940s and 50s Leningrad, with heart-rending plots showing the difficulties of life in Soviet times. And finally, Sergei Dovlatov, whose short story collection The Suitcase casts a wry, critical, yet amusing look at the trials of being a Leningrad citizen in the 1960s.
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
St Petersburg Episode 16 Gogol, Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
Wednesday Jun 19, 2019
A look at 19th century St Petersburg through the eyes of 3 authors: Gogol, Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky. Hear how a long-desired new overcoat caused the demise of the humble clerk Akaky Akakievich, then wander the streets of the city following an escaped body part in another Gogol story, the absurdist The Nose. Learn of St Petersburg's glittering social life, described in War and Peace, and find out why the author preferred Moscow. And finally, experience the seamy side of the city in the company of Raskolnikov, the student-murderer 'hero' of Crime and Punishment. To round off the episode, a visit to the Dostoyevsky Museum in the heart of the Sennaya Ploshchad district.
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
St Petersburg Episode 15 Pushkin
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
Wednesday Jun 12, 2019
The Father of Russian Literature, Alexander Pushkin, led a colourful life of semi-debauchery in St Petersburg, and set some of his best-loved works there. Biographical details, including his schooldays at the city’s elite Lycée and his dramatic demise in a duel at the age of only 37, are followed by a review of two of his best known poems, which focus closely on St Petersburg. Then we look at his short story ‘The Shot’, a tale of pride, revenge and pistols which eerily previews his own death a few years later. Finally, we outline four places in the city today where you can go in search of Pushkin.
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
St Petersburg Episode 14 Art and Architecture
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
Wednesday Jun 05, 2019
Art lovers flock to St Petersburg's wonderful and extensive collections in the Hermitage and of course we will look at some of the highlights to be found there. But first, a nod to the architectural styles to be found in the city, from the glorious baroque palaces of 18th century St Petersburg, via the much more Russian-influenced design of the Church on the Spilled Blood, to the designs favoured in the Stalinist era. Also, a visit to the Russian Museum, where thousands of exhibits tell the story of Russian art from the earliest icons to the twentieth century and lastly, some pointers for those wanting to see modern art Russian-style.