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Cold War Conversations Podcast

Cold War Conversations Podcast

By: Ian Sanders
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About this listen

 Experience the Cold War like never before with Cold War Conversations — an award-winning podcast recommended by The New York Times. Each week, host Ian Sanders brings you raw, firsthand accounts from the people who lived through one of history’s most tense and transformative eras — soldiers, spies, civilians, and more. These aren’t stories from textbooks. They’re unfiltered voices from the frontlines of history — emotional, gripping, and deeply human. This is Cold War history, told from the inside out. We cover subjects such as spies, spying, the Iron Curtain, nuclear weapons, warfare, tanks, jet aircraft, fighters, bombers, transport aircraft, aviation, culture, and politics. We also cover personalities such as Fidel Castro, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Nikita Khrushchev, Leonid Brezhnev, Yuri Andropov, Mikhail Gorbachev, Konstantin Chernenko, Margaret Thatcher, John F. Kennedy, Josef Stalin, Richard Nixon, Lech Walesa, General Jaruzelski, Nicolae Ceaușescu. Other subjects include Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Romania, Checkpoint Charlie, Berlin, West Berlin, East Berlin, Cuban missile Crisis, Berlin Airlift, Bay of Pigs, SALT, Perestroika, Space Race, superpower, USSR, Soviet Union, DDR, GDR, East Germany, SDI, Vietnam War, Korean War, Solidarność, Fall of the Wall, Berliner Mauer, Trabant, Communist, Capitalist, Able Archer, KGB, Stasi, STB, SB, Securitate, CIA, NSA, MI5, MI6, Berlin Wall, escape, defection, Cuba, Albania, football, sport, Bulgaria, Soviet Union, Poland, China, Taiwan, Austria, West Germany, Solidarity, espionage, HUMINT, SIGINT, OSINT, IMINT, GEOINT, RAF, USAF, British Army, US Army, Red Army, Soviet Army, Afghanistan, NVA, East German Army, KAL007, T-72, T-64, Chieftain, M60 The podcast is for military veterans, school teachers, university lecturers, students and those interested in Cold War history, museums, bunkers, weapons, AFVs, wargamers, planes, A Level, GCSE students studying Superpower Relations and the Cold War.© Cold War Conversations Social Sciences World
Episodes
  • The Moscow Playbook: How Russia Used, Abused, and Transformed Sports in the Hunt for Power (443)

    The Moscow Playbook: How Russia Used, Abused, and Transformed Sports in the Hunt for Power (443)
    Feb 14 2026
    I speak with Bruce Berglund, the author of The Moscow Playbook: How Russia Used, Abused, and Transformed Sports in the Hunt for Power, which is a fascinating journey through the world of Soviet sports and its intricate ties to politics as a means of soft power and national pride. We learn how the Soviets achieved strategic advantage through women's sports, the abuse of amateur status, the controversial topic of doping and how sports science revolutionised the performance of athletes. Listeners will also hear about the iconic "Miracle on Ice" ice hockey game in 1980, where the U.S. amateur team defeated the seasoned Soviet professionals, and how this event was perceived on both sides of the Cold War divide. Buy the book here and support the podcast Episode extras here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode443 Go to https://surfshark.com/coldwardeal or use code COLDWARDEAL at checkout to get 4 extra months of Surfshark VPN! Help me preserve Cold War history via a simple monthly donation, You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠⁠ 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONTINUE THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠ Threads ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter/X ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    1 hr and 2 mins
  • Chasing Rogue Nukes after the Fall of the Soviet Union (442)

    Chasing Rogue Nukes after the Fall of the Soviet Union (442)
    Feb 7 2026
    Susan Miller continues the story of her CIA career, recalling a harrowing experience of the 1991 US embassy fire in Moscow, and the unexpected humanity displayed by a KGB officer who helped save lives during the crisis. Episode one is here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode441/ In Poland, a KGB walk-in claims to have microfiche containing the names of every spy the KGB was running overseas. And as CIA Chief in Vilnius, Susan is confronted by another KGB walk-in with a box of weapons-grade uranium Listen to part one here https://coldwarconversations.com/episode441/ Episode extras ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode442/ Help me preserve Cold War history via a simple monthly donation, You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠⁠ 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/⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONTINUE THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION Follow us on BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Threads ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations⁠⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/⁠⁠⁠⁠ Youtube ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Show More Show Less
    52 mins
  • Dead Drops and Disguises - A Female CIA Officer in 1980s Moscow (441)

    Dead Drops and Disguises - A Female CIA Officer in 1980s Moscow (441)
    Jan 31 2026
    I explore the remarkable journey of a CIA operations officer who transitioned from a quiet childhood in California to the thrilling world of espionage. What began as a joke application to the CIA turned into a life-changing opportunity. The episode delves into her rigorous training, including paramilitary courses that prepared her for the realities of fieldwork and thrilling stories from her time in Moscow during the late 1980s. Susan also gives tradecraft insights on surveillance techniques and the unique challenges faced by women in intelligence roles during that era. Episode extras ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode441 Part two here ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/episode442 Help me preserve Cold War history via a simple monthly donation, You’ll become part of our community, get ad-free episodes, and get a sought-after CWC coaster as a thank you and you’ll bask in the warm glow of knowing you are helping to preserve Cold War history. Just go to ⁠⁠⁠https://coldwarconversations.com/donate/⁠⁠⁠ 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/⁠⁠⁠ CONTINUE THE COLD WAR CONVERSATION Follow us on BlueSky ⁠⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/coldwarpod.bsky.social⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Threads ⁠⁠⁠https://www.threads.net/@coldwarconversations⁠⁠⁠ Follow us on Twitter ⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/ColdWarPod⁠⁠⁠ Facebook ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/coldwarpod/⁠⁠⁠ Instagram ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/coldwarconversations/⁠⁠⁠ Youtube ⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@ColdWarConversations⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
    Show More Show Less
    49 mins
All stars
Most relevant
good subjects and fascinating guests from both sides of the wall. Intelligent questions and insights from those who lived it.

personal accounts of cold war

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