Cheese Diplomacy

This week we're delighted to have an excuse to talk about Dominic's favourite salty cheese. Halloumi has just been recognised as a product unique to Cyprus — something that eurocrats have hailed as a positive step towards reconciliation on the divided Mediterranean island. Is there any truth to that? Cypriot podcaster Natalie Lamprou is here for a great chat about cheese, politics and Cypriot identity. We're also talking about the French mayor running a town from his jail cell, and the German gymnasts taking a stand against sexualisation in sport.

This is our first-ever episode as part of Sphera, a new collective of brilliant independent media outlets from across Europe. We are excited to be a part of it! Sign up to follow Sphera on Instagram, TikTok and more.

You can find Natalie's podcast Evris here and read her beautiful piece about Cypriot identity here.

This week's Isolation Inspiration: Romanian documentary Collective, virtual reality experience Pollinator Park, and the Feel Good Film Festival.

Thanks for listening! If you enjoy our podcast and would like to help us keep making it, we'd love it if you'd consider chipping in a few euros / dollars / pounds a month at patreon.com/europeanspodcast. You can also help new listeners find the show by leaving us a review.

Producer: Katz Laszlo

Assistant producers: Andrei Popoviciu and Priyanka Shankar

Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina

This podcast is a proud partner of Are We Europe. If you enjoy beautiful, border-breaking journalism, check out their website and buy their latest magazine.