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Liepāja, Latvia's third-largest city, is known as the city "where the wind is born" and an easy-going seaside resort that became one of the Baltic's most strategically important and culturally distinctive places. Why? Join me as we walk through six layers of the city: wind, water, wood and brick, iron and concrete, music and footsteps. Thanks for listening!

A tiny bottle of perfume opens a story of Rīga industry, Soviet scarcity and changing ideas of femininity. This episode follows Dzintars from its nineteenth-century roots through its Soviet heyday, explores the cult fragrance Koķete, and asks what MÁDARA's rise reveals about Latvia’s modern cosmetics industry. Thanks for listening!

There's a sound that, if you grew up in Soviet Latvia, you'd recognise instantly: a buzzy little two-stroke engine. That sound belonged to the Riga moped. We tell the history of this moped and how it gave millions across the Soviet Union affordable mobility; we hear Jana's experience riding one; and we visit a wonderful place where you can find a collection of Riga mopeds. Thanks for listening!

The story of amber, the fossil that isn't quite a rock, isn't quite a jewel, yet has shaped trade routes, folklore, craft guilds, and Latvian identity for thousands of years. We'll explore how it was formed, how it travelled from these shores to the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs, how it ended up pinned to the shoulder of traditional Latvian costumes, and how to buy the real thing without getting stung. Thanks for listening!

Rīga is 825 years old. Join me as we join the big party! We also tell the history of Rīga, not as a chronological listing, but through legends, stories and tales. Thanks for listening!

There is an object in Latvian cuisine that has outlasted empires and is still in supermarket aisles today. It is small. It is round. And it is very, very sweet. It is a tin of condensed milk. Iebiezinātais piens is nostalgia in a can. We will trace the history of this product, explore its use in Latvian cuisine and make one of Latvia's most celebrated cakes. Thanks for listening!

Latvia's maritime history told through stories about its lighthouses. From Hanseatic merchants, through Courland's golden age, to the dark years when the Soviet Union turned the coastline into a military fortress and to today. Three lighthouses highlighted and a road trip! Thanks for listening!

This is one of the most difficult and important episodes I have recorded: the deportation of over 57,000 Latvians by the Soviet Russian regime in 1941 and 1949. Regarded as genocide and a crime against humanity by the European Court of Human Rights. I tell the story of what happened and how it happened. Thanks for listening!

The story of a small town in Latvia with a big name. It was renamed after a legendary Latvian ideologue who used to teach there, Krišjānis Valdemārs. It has an award-winning 500-year-old linden tree, a crumbling Baltic German manor house, and a lovely lake. Join me as we visit Valdemārpils. Thanks for listening!

A 270-year-old balm that is regarded as the national drink of Latvia. Sold in dark clay bottles. Some people love it, some don't. We explore the story and legends surrounding Riga Black Balsam, and hold a tasting with friends. Thanks for listening!

Ludza is the oldest town in Latvia - a country that has known occupation and catastrophe many times over. It is a town that was once more than half Jewish, whose synagogue survived a fire and a genocide yet is still standing. It is a town whose medieval castle tells a story of crusading ambition and ultimate ruin, and whose lakes still carry the legend of the bewitched princess waiting somewhere beneath the hill. Join me on a trip to Ludza. Thanks for listening!

This is the story of a metro system for Rīga that was planned for decades, almost built in Soviet times, but was stopped by an environmental protest movement in 1988 that changed the course of an entire nation, leading to Latvia regaining its independence. The metro that never was.  Thanks for listening!

From Victorian Brits plunging down icy chutes in St Moritz, and a Latvian family transforming a Soviet-era track into an Olympic medal factory, to a British gold medallist embracing his Latvian coach at the bottom of the Milan-Cortina Olympic run, skeleton tells a story of speed, risk, and unlikely bonds. This is that British-Latvian story. Thanks for listening!

The history of the media in Latvia is a fascinating story. From the simple beginnings of a Latvian-language newspaper in 1822, to strict censorship during the Soviet Russian occupation, to the media's role in the independence movement. And now today, with a fragmented on and offline Latvian media scene and Russian media in exile. Join me as we explore this. Thanks for listening!

This is the fascinating story of Jelgava, a city in Latvia that was once the capital of the Duchy of Courland for centuries, was destroyed during the Second World War, rebuilt as an industrial powerhouse under Soviet occupation, and is now transformed into a vibrant university city. Thanks for listening!