Secret Place Berlin

Secret Place Berlin
Secret Place Berlin Podcast

This is Secret Place Berlin, Where we explore the sometimes hidden and not so well known histories about Berlin, Germany. I’m your host Lacy Barry and today I will tell you the story of...

Episodes

  1. A City Within A City -  Episode 10

    30/07/2021

    A City Within A City - Episode 10

    Nestled just outside of the Ringbahn of Berlin, lay a historical little hub, a calm enclave carved out of a point in time when German Industry was at its height and technological discoveries were erupting regularly. Named after the British Queen, the area of Victoriastadt housed workers that spun wools and finery for her kingdoms consumption at high quantities. Initiating a spring of manufacturing from textiles to concrete, train brakes and pellet balls. Some relics still preserved, but virtually unnoticeable to commuters unless seen from an observing bike ride or by train window, for which the little city is surrounded by these silver snakes that guide trains. The train tracks create the boarders of Victoriastadt and their screaming lullaby is the soundtrack that signifies encapsulated mirages that poignantly speed by to be there one moment and gone the next. However all is well in the small gentle stadt, holding safe a close-knit community of artisans, historians, families and so on… a collection of people that are the result of over a century of evolutions. Though Victoriastadt is no longer an area to house workers to be employed by its nearby factories, the residue of its origins still remain. For instance, a switch-line booth may not hold the telephonic machinery it was intended for, but its shell houses a cultural craft of a newly developed artisanal kind. A tower that once dropped liquefied molton metals for its prize bounty, sits in remission above a block of row houses. And the robust bridges that safely elevate speeding trains above Victoriastads entry points, harbor mysteries of light sculptures beneath them. Glowing angels in hiding, waiting like dignified guardians, light the way to curiosity seekers that are beheld to uncover the hidden magic of a city within a city that awaits them. Episode tip: Listen for the trains wisking by the background of this episode. To support Secret Place Berlin, please visit our Patron at www.patreon.com/secretplaceberlin Follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin SHOW NOTES: Articles explored for this episode: https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victoriastadt https://www.everestate.com/blog/neighbourhood-profile-victoriastadt-in-lichtenberg https://karte.industriekultur.berlin/standort/ehem-knorr-bremse-hauptwerk/ to visit some of the closed monuments once a year in September: https://www.berlin.de/en/events/2860241-2842498-heritage-day.en.html Music by Rossano Snel @rossanofrombrazil serenading from the depths of the Schrotkugelturm Story, Narration, Illustration & Image copyright Lacy Barry @lacy_barry 2020, hiding in plain sight in the Linienverzweiger

    19 min
  2. Seamonsters of Berlin - Episode 7

    19/02/2021

    Seamonsters of Berlin - Episode 7

    When the summer approaches in Berlin, lakes and waterways become the splendor of Berlin residents. Spending many joyful afternoons at waterside, wading in its shores and floating on its surfaces. In and around Berlin, there is a menagerie of lakes and rivers to choose from, and leisure seekers take to its shorelines with joy and happiness, baptizing themselves in their waters each year. But what of some of the relics and hidden lore found on and at the depths of these beloved waters? In Episode 7 of Secret Place Berlin, come with me as I take you on a discovery in two cherished lakes or ‘see’s’ in German, of the mythical sea creatures that reside on its surface and the not so mythical that dwell beneath. SHOW NOTES: ‘Der Nök vom Treptower Karpfenteich’ is Käthe Wetzel’s poem about the Nök News articles citing the famous Monster of Schlachtensee have been sourced from various Berlin news outlets; The Welt, Der Tagesspiegel, Berliner Zeitung and various others. The story of the SS soldier remains found a in the giant catfish was found at Snopes.com To support Secret Place Berlin, please visit our Patron at www.patreon.com/secretplaceberlin Follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin Follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin Music by Rossano Snel @rossanofrombrazil form the mysterious watery depths. https://www.rossanosnel.com/ with special thanks to Maria Laskowska Story, Narration, Illustration & Image copyright Lacy Barry 2020, floating dreamingly on the waters surface.

    14 min
  3. All Along The Watch Tower - Episode 5

    25/11/2020

    All Along The Watch Tower - Episode 5

    Looking out from the top level of an East German watch tower, the scene looks very different from the one over 30 years ago when the Berlin wall was still in place. I imagined giant slabs of erect concrete to my right and left, barbed wire from the middle along with various barricades and dangers placed along a long grave track. If this was then, my job would have been to be aware of trespassers and escapees and my duty to arrest or shoot if necessary… even if those escaping were a friend or relative. But the scene is very different now, the tower is surrounded not with walls and gravel but rather a park, busy leisure seekers and rustling traffic, as though this tower was never intended as a pillar of threat, just a park fixture like any tree or shrub. Instead of wearing uniform, I am in my chosen clothing, surrounded not by other soldiers and artillery, but art, books, and sunlight… Welcome to The Watch. SHOW NOTES: To discover more about The Watch, exhibitions, opening times and residencies, please go to: https://thewatch-berlin.org/ and visit them on Instagram at @residency.wachturm To support Secret Place Berlin, please visit our Patron at https://www.patreon.com/secretplaceberlin Join the community and follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin Music by Rossano Snel @rossanofrombrazil haunting the piano keys of the former GDR. https://www.rossanosnel.com/ Podcast mentions: Allison Sommers artwork can be found here: https://allisonsommers.com/ Story, Narration, Illustration & Image copyright Lacy Barry 2020, on look-out duty.

    26 min
  4. Halloween Special Episode!! The Mysterious Graverobbers of Stahnsdorf Cemetery - Episode 4.5

    30/10/2020

    Halloween Special Episode!! The Mysterious Graverobbers of Stahnsdorf Cemetery - Episode 4.5

    Happy Halloween Episode! Join us as we recount a spooky happening at Stahnsdorf Cemetery involving a story about corpse of the late filmmaker Frederick W. Murnau, known for the famed vampire cult classic ‘Nosferatu’ and the unexpected guest who revealed that story. SHOW NOTES: Press links from the date Murnau’s skull went missing: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8443/friedrich-wilhelm-murnau https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jul/14/nosferatu-director-head-stolen-germany-grave-fw-murnau https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/nosferatu-directors-skull-stolen-grave-808795 https://variety.com/2015/film/news/f-w-murnau-head-stolen-nosferatu-dracula-1201540223/ To support Secret Place Berlin, please visit our Patron at www.patreon.com/secretplaceberlin For more Secret Place Berlin, follow and listen to a playlist curated to the theme of SPB HALLOWEEN SPECIAL EPISODE!!– The Mysterious Grave Robbers of Stahnsdorf Cemetery: spotify:user:1261720013:playlist:46G4mOqmK2QVDtQ2g2VPGO Follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin & Facebook at Secret Place Berlin Music by Rossano Snel, @rossanofrombrazil haunting the pipe organ. Illustration crafted by this month’s guest artist and vampire Daniel Schnatterer. @daniel.schnatterer If you’d like to be featured as a guest artist for one of Secret Place Berlin’s episode get in touch at info@lacybarry.com with a link to a portfolio of your work. Story, Narration, & Image copyright Lacy Barry 2020, tip-toeing through the pumpkin patch.

    5 min
  5. Hidden Network of Vintage Steam Locomotives - Episode 4

    09/09/2020

    Hidden Network of Vintage Steam Locomotives - Episode 4

    Climb aboard an old steam train and allow yourself to be transported back to the era of the Weimar Republic… when Marlene Dietrich dominated the silver screen, Mimi Thoma sang soothing ballads at late night cabarets, and Kurt Widmann & his Orchestra performed regular radio scores to the tune of a bustling booming Berlin up to the early eruptions of WW2. Berlin macht Dampf takes us there, as our host Lacy Barry recounts experiencing one of their vintage steam engines unexpectedly, in a real life account, for the very first time. SHOW NOTES: For the most impressive vintage train excursions Berlin has to offer, go to https://www.berlin-macht-dampf.com/ To support Secret Place Berlin, please visit our Patron at https://www.patreon.com/secretplaceberlin For more Secret Place Berlin, follow and listen to a playlist curated to the theme of SPB Episode 4 – Steam Engines of Berlin: https://open.spotify.com/user/1261720013/playlist/4ZwJWLSrjNijBSS5KJ0tcI Warmest Thanks to Oliver Carter Wakefield of Hot Club Du Monde radio show for suggesting some of the best German music of the 1920s-1940s for this playlist. Listen to his radio show at: https://www.mixcloud.com/discover/hot-club-du-monde/ Special Thanks to Radio Spätkauf for mentioning SPB in their last episode. Hosts, Joel Dullroy, Maisie Hitchcock, Jöran Mandik and Daniel Stern share 'Berlin News in English' in a wonderfully conversational and humorous way. Listen on Apple Podcasts and RadioEins. http://www.radiospaetkauf.com/ Follow us on Instagram @secretplaceberlin & Facebook at Secret Place Berlin Music by Hyperia: https://soundcloud.com/hyperia_music in the 1st class passenger carriage. Story, Narration, Illustration & Image copyright Lacy Barry 2020, in the engine control room.

    10 min

About

This is Secret Place Berlin, Where we explore the sometimes hidden and not so well known histories about Berlin, Germany. I’m your host Lacy Barry and today I will tell you the story of...

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