Another blow to Turkey's embattled democracy, the Czech kick-boxing champion turned anti-bullying activist, the inside story of Finland's gamer-industry boom, and the iconic moped disappearing from Italy's streets. Then: music in exile and what we got wrong about Pinocchio.

Who is Andy Burnham—and is he ready to challenge Keir Starmer? PBS' Alexander Heffner on the growing power of mayors. What’s at stake in Cyprus’ elections? Then—Turkey’s warning over French troop plans, social media bans for minors, red deer vs. Loch Lomond, and Spain’s renewable energy edge. https://www.pbs.org/show/open-mind/&maca=en-podcast_inside-europe-949-xml-mrss

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is hanging by a thread. An investigation uncovers troubling ties between a professor at Germany’s Federal Police Academy and the far right. And Eurovision returns, amid fresh controversy. Plus: a former pilot calls for a ban on private jets as Cannes gets underway, and how Ukraine is transforming its energy system under fire.++ https://shorturl.at/nAuU4 ++?maca=en-podcast_inside-europe-949-xml-mrss

What the UK local elections could mean for the country’s political system, how troop and tariff disputes are worsening relations between Germany and the US, and controversies surrounding a new report on France’s public media. Then: a deep dive into bioacoustics and how AI can support biodiversity research.

Trump whispering and attempts to save NATO, Giorgia Meloni's push to reassert political dominance, and a conversation with ECFR Director Mark Leonard on "Surviving Chaos". Then: German apprenticeships under strain, a new ban on communist symbols in Czechia, and a newspaper in Tromsø using AI to its advantage.

Concerns about Palantir in the UK, Bulgaria's incoming prime minister, and the power of magic mushrooms. Then: DW's Delayland goes in search of Germany's lost mojo, women's role in Spain's progressive milestones, and Germany's handling of its colonial past.

How incoming prime minister Peter Magyar could change Hungary as well as the EU, and what a romantic liaison between France's far-right Jordan Bardella and an Italian princess could mean for the country's presidential elections. Then: a Greenlandic perspective on Greenland, Ireland's basic income scheme for artists, and a Berlin choir aiming to advance democracy.

US Vice President JD Vance backs Viktor Orban in Hungary just days before elections that could have far-reaching ramifications — also across Central Europe. What’s next for NATO, and could the Iran war help resolve a long-standing conflict in the Caucasus? Plus: a high-protein environmental special.

Ukraine's Bucha massacre anniversary fuels push for justice, the Dutch organization with a voting hack to boost women's representation in politics, and the EU-Slovakia dispute over fuel. Then: a special investigation into chemical recycling and its limits.

Italy's failed referendum, trial by jury at risk in the UK, and elections in Denmark and France. Then: what a mutiny at high sea tells us about (un)freedom, North Korea's forced labor program, Central Asian migrants' exodus from Russia, and FC Barcelona's labor violations. + https://shorturl.at/iUMhD +?maca=en-podcast_inside-europe-949-xml-mrss

From Cold War power games to the cultural aspirations of the Pahlavi era, this extended conversation pulls back the curtain on the global forces that continue to shape - and be shaped by - Iran today. Dr Roham Alvandi is Director of the Iranian History Initiative at the London School of Economics and Political Science.