Dallas, 22 November 1963. The main event is supposed to be on the appropriately named Main Street. News footage shows office workers leaning out of windows, peering at the motorcade through a blizzard of ticker tape. On the sidewalks, the crowds are fifty deep, a wall of noise and celebration. Everyone thinks this is the place to be. Well, nearly everyone....

A few blocks away, in Dealey Plaza, the scene is different. There is no ticker tape here, and the crowds are thin. A dressmaker with vertigo films the action balanced on a concrete plinth. A man is opening an umbrella even though it isn’t raining, a construction worker will claim he was sent here by God and three mysterious tramps who will shortly be arrested.



I spoke with Martin Fitzgerald, who has written a new book, The Umbrella Man and Other Stories [https://amzn.to/4tmHaEI].  This is not a book about who killed John F. Kennedy or why he was assassinated. This is a book about memory, how we construct our shared history and what happens when your life is defined by a single, fleeting moment.



It’s a celebration of human nature, of the joy of research and the freedom of an open mind. Above all, it reveals the stories of a group of real people who thought they had opted out of the main event on the day JFK came to Dallas, only to find themselves at the centre of the most scrutinised six seconds of the twentieth century.



Episode extras https://coldwarconversations.com/episode454



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The JFK Assassination: The human narratives behind one of history's most scrutinised events (454)

40 years ago at 1:23 a.m. on April 26, 1986, a routine safety test inside Reactor Four at the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant spiralled into the worst nuclear disaster in history.



This episode traces the catastrophe from the control room, where exhausted operators struggled with an unstable reactor they did not fully understand, to the streets of Pripyat, where thousands of residents woke the next morning unaware that radioactive contamination had already settled around them.

Through a dramatic, chronological account, I examine the fatal combination of human pressure, flawed reactor design, secrecy, and delayed decision-making that turned a technical failure into a global crisis.



The story follows the night shift, the firefighters who rushed toward a blaze they believed was ordinary, the officials in Moscow who hesitated to tell the truth, and the liquidators who later entered lethal zones to contain what could not be undone.



This is not only the story of an explosion. It is the story of a system built on certainty, silence, and control, confronted by a disaster that defied all three. From the hidden flaws of the RBMK reactor to the evacuation of Pripyat, the construction of the sarcophagus, and the long shadow left across Europe, Chornobyl remains a warning about technology, power, and the cost of withholding truth.



Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode453/

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Chornobyl: Anatomy of a Catastrophe (453)

Juli begins by recounting her early years in East Berlin, a time marked by the tragic loss of her father. Drafted into the army just days before her birth, her father continually deserted to see his family, ultimately leading to his untimely death. This early loss left Juli and her mother to navigate a harsh landscape in East Germany alone.



Life in East Berlin was a world of contrasts. Juli describes the indoctrination she experienced in school, where lessons were steeped in socialist propaganda. The Berlin Wall, a symbol of division and oppression, loomed large in her family’s life, cutting them off from relatives in the West. Despite the regime’s efforts to control information, Juli’s family found ways to glimpse the outside world through Western television channels, fuelling her desire for freedom.



As Juli grew older, she became increasingly aware of the regime’s lies and the oppressive nature of the state. The revolutionary movements of the late 1980s, sparked by events like the Tiananmen Square massacre, galvanised her. Juli joined the Monday demonstrations in Leipzig, risking her safety to demand change.



Juli’s story doesn’t end with the fall of the Wall. She moved to Ireland, where she built a new life and family. She speaks candidly about the challenges of adapting to a new way of life and the lingering impact of her upbringing.



Due to some last-minute production problems, this episode is a repeat of a brilliant episode from 18 months ago. It’s well worth hearing again!



Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode452



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From East Berlin to West Ireland (452)

Chris was a US Marine assigned to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a sprawling US base on the Communist island of Cuba.

Chris describes the guard duty along the fence line, where the proximity to the Cuban border created an unusual tension. Chris also shares anecdotes of encounters with defectors and the fascinating dynamics of life on the base. From observing Cuban life across the fence to the camaraderie among Marines, his stories paint a vivid picture of military life.

Chris also touches on the challenges faced by service members, including the isolation and the impact of alcohol on morale. With mandatory counselling sessions addressing alcoholism, the veteran reflects on the importance of mental health support within the military community.



Episode Extras ⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode450/]https://coldwarconversations.com/episode451/



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Guarding the Wire at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba (451)

In this episode, historian and writer Michael G. Stroud explores how decades of political instability drew the Soviet Union into Afghanistan in 1979—and why the intervention quickly spiralled into a protracted and unwinnable war.



From the struggle to control vast, rugged terrain to the challenge of winning support from a fiercely independent population, we examine the realities faced by Soviet and Afghan government forces.



At the centre of the discussion are the battles for Zhawar, a vast cave complex on the Afghan-Pakistan border that served as a critical Mujahideen stronghold. Through two major assaults, we uncover how guerrilla tactics, terrain, and resilience repeatedly frustrated a technologically superior force.



These battles reveal a broader, enduring truth: in Afghanistan, military victory is one thing—but lasting control is something else entirely.



Linked episodes

 * The Soviet Afghan War https://coldwarconversations.com/episode338/

Episode Extras https://coldwarconversations.com/episode450/



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Soviet - Afghan War, Mujahideen Resistance: The Brutal Fight for Zhawar (450)

Former MI6 Director David Bickford takes us behind the scenes of one of the most unusual and precarious postings of the Cold War. Arriving in Berlin in 1979, the city is still technically under Allied occupation—surrounded by East Germany and governed through a complex web of agreements dating back to the Second World War.

He recounts the day-to-day realities of maintaining access routes into the city, negotiating with the Soviets without the backing of force, and managing constant disputes over transport, tariffs, and air corridors. Against the backdrop of rising tensions following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, David reveals how fragile the balance really was—and how close things could come to escalation.

We also hear extraordinary stories from inside Spandau Prison, home to Nazi war criminal Rudolf Hess, and the bizarre logistical and political challenges of managing a prison built for hundreds but housing just one inmate.

With vivid personal memories, this episode offers a rare, human perspective on life at the frontline of the Cold War—where ambiguity ruled, tensions simmered, and even the smallest incident could have international consequences.

Check our David’s books here https://amzn.to/4c0WfFD

Episode extras here ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode449/⁠ [%E2%81%A0https:/coldwarconversations.com/episode449/]

Linked episodes

      Guarding Rudolf Hess, Hitler’s Deputy Führer https://coldwarconversations.com/episode262/

·        Being present at the post-mortem of Hitler’s deputy Rudolf Hess https://coldwarconversations.com/episode405/

·         BRIXMIS, British defence of Cold War Berlin, and Hitler’s deputy Rudolf Hess https://coldwarconversations.com/episode21/

·         BRIXMIS episodes https://coldwarconversations.com/?s=brixmis



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MI6 Director Looks Back at His Time in Cold War Berlin (449)

Ihor reflects on his time serving as an officer in the Soviet Union’s Ministry of Interior troops. After volunteering for military service, he found himself travelling from Lviv to Lithuania to begin officer training in communications and field operations.



The training program brought together recruits from across the Soviet Union and beyond communications; these troops had a wide range of responsibilities—from guarding strategic facilities to responding to hostage crises and public disturbances.



This is a rare opportunity to hear the everyday realities of military service inside the Soviet security structure.

Listen to Ihor's first episode here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode447/

Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode448/



Linked episodes

 * Moscow Coup - Brett, a US student's account  [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode214/]
 * Moscow Coup - Kieran, a UK student's account  [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode81/]
 * Moscow Coup - How the BBC announced the coup   [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode73/]
 * Training to be a US Army Tank Commander [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode38/]
 * Defending the Fulda Gap  [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode41/]

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If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, we also welcome one-off donations via the same link.



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An officer in The Internal Troops of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs (448)

Born in Lviv in Ukraine, in 1958, Ihor grew up in a city where borders shifted, but memories endured. In this episode, he recalls a childhood shaped by silence, censorship, and family stories that could only be told in private.

While official history came from Moscow, a very different past survived in the countryside—passed down by grandparents who had lived through empire, war, and occupation.

This is a unique personal account of what it meant to grow up in Soviet Ukraine in the 1950s and 60s.

Episode extras here ⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode445]⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode447⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode447%E2%81%A0]⁠ Go to ⁠⁠⁠https://surfshark.com/coldwardeal⁠⁠⁠ [https://surfshark.com/coldwardeal] or use code COLDWARDEAL at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN!

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Growing up in Soviet Ukraine in the 1960s and 70s (447)

During the Cold War, some of the most dangerous encounters between East and West took place far beneath the ocean’s surface.

I speak with historian Dr. Paul Brown, author of Secret Warriors: British Submarines during the Cold War [https://uk.bookshop.org/a/1549/9781472865120]. Brown reveals the extraordinary covert missions carried out by Royal Navy submarines as they monitored Soviet naval bases near Murmansk and the Barents Sea.

British boats gathered vital intelligence by recording the acoustic signatures of Soviet submarines, trailing enemy vessels, and observing major naval exercises. These missions were risky and occasionally resulted in collisions, such as the dramatic incident involving HMS Warspite in 1968.

Along the way, Brown shares remarkable stories of Cold War espionage at sea, including a daring intelligence operation where a British submarine secretly observed the Soviet aircraft carrier Kiev from just a few feet away.

This is a rare glimpse into one of the Cold War’s most secretive battlefields: the depths of the ocean.

Buy the book here and support the podcast⁠⁠ [https://uk.bookshop.org/a/1549/9781472865120]

Episode extras here ⁠⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode445] https://coldwarconversations.com/episode446 [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode446%E2%81%A0]⁠

Similar episodes:

 * On Her Majesty’s Nuclear Submarine Service ⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/episode106/]https://coldwarconversations.com/episode162/
 * From the Merchant Navy to Covert Hunter Killer Nuclear Submarine Missions https://coldwarconversations.com/episode388/ ⁠

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If a monthly contribution is not your cup of tea, we also welcome one-off donations via the same link.



Find the ideal gift for the Cold War enthusiast in your life! Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/store/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/store/]



CONTINUE  THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION

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Secret Warriors - British Submarines during the Cold War (446)

Lt Col Rob “Z-Man” Zettel is the author of American MiG Pilot - Inside the Top Secret USAF “Red Eagles. He tells the Red Eagles story for the first time through the experiences of a pilot who flew Soviet MiGs to their maximum performance in simulated combat engagements, often several times a day, against some of the very best fighter pilots hand-picked from the ranks of the USAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps.

With controls labelled in Russian and the only spare parts being the ones they could salvage, the pilots who climbed into the MiGs - the Red Eagles - accepted all of the risks associated with operating these aircraft.

Rob’s vivid accounts of training engagements put the reader right in the cockpit as he describes what it was like to be there day in and day out at one of the most access-restricted airfields in the entire USAF, flying MiGs.

In part two of our story, we join him for his first interview for the Red Eagles.

Buy the book here and support the podcast⁠ [https://amzn.to/4rhar2H]

Episode extras here ⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode445 ⁠

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Help me preserve Cold War history via a simple monthly donation,

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Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/]

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American MiG Pilot: Inside the Top Secret USAF "Red Eagles" MiG Squadron Part 2 (445)

Award-winning real stories of the Cold War told by those that were there. Every week we interview an eyewitness of the Cold War. Across soldiers, spies, civilians, and others, we aim to cover the whole gamut of the Cold War experience. Hosts Ian Sanders, James Chilcott and Peter Ryan bring your ears into the heart of the Cold War. Reading a history book is one thing, but hearing a human voice, with every breath, hesitation and intonation brings a whole new dimension to understanding what it was like to be there.

Ian Sanders

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