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In less than two months’ time, between June 4 and June 7, the European Union will be holding the biggest trans-national election in history. Citizens of the 27 member states will be voting to choose the 736 members of the European Parliament. One of the features of the election is that citizens of one member state who live abroad are entitled to vote in their country of residence, if that country is also an EU member. That means that if you are a citizen of any EU country and live legally in the Czech Republic, you can vote for candidates standing

This year’s Easter has been very special for Christians in the Czech Republic as, for the first time in 30 years, they could read the Bible in a new translation. Entitled the Bible – a 21st century translation, it presents all Biblical texts in modern, contemporary Czech, making the scriptures accessible to all generations. The new translation was officially launched on Thursday in Prague’s Bethlehem Chapel.

This Tuesday marks the halfway point of the Czech Republic’s EU presidency. On a recent visit to Brussels, I met one of the people instrumental in organizing the Czechs’ time at the helm, Milena Vicenová, the Czech Ambassador to the European Union. In the calm of her Brussels office, just a few days before Prague made headlines for the fall of the centre-right government coalition, Ms Vicenová discussed how the presidency had been going so far. For her personally, it has meant a great deal of hard work:

For the Czech Republic and other central and eastern European countries, joining NATO ten years ago was a milestone on their journey from Soviet-style dictatorship to freedom and democracy. Joining the alliance meant becoming part of a respected, stable and democratic security structure; it confirmed that these countries, trapped in the communist block for four decades, had returned to the free world. With the fall of communism and the changing face of Europe the alliance has also had to redefine its role in response to new threats and

Fame, envy, intrigue and murder –that is what some suspect surrounded the mysterious death of Tycho Brahe, a Danish astronomer who died in Prague in 1601 as one of the most distinguished scholars of his time. Several theories exist about the cause of his death, and some experts actually claim he was given a lethal dose of mercury. A team of Danish experts are now going to officially ask the Czech authorities for permission to open his grave in order to analyse his remains.

The world of Czech culture is in mourning following the death of the renowned architect Jan Kaplický, who passed away on the evening of Wednesday 14th January. The loss is not just a major one for the Czech Republic, but a deep personal one for his family – Mr Kaplický aged 71 died from sudden heart failure, on what his family described as one of the greatest days in his life – he was just three hours into celebrating the birth of his daughter Johanka - his wife still in hospital. The sudden loss has thrown the full spectrum of Kaplický’s life,

My special guest in the studio this New Year’s Eve is cocktail expert Alexander Mikšovic, who has written eleven books on the art of the cocktail, and trained generations of Prague barmen. Alex is an expert on whiskies, and knows more of my native Scotland than I could ever claim to have seen, but is equally as proud of the Czech Republic’s own domestic offerings. I first asked him if, in terms of alcohol, there was more to this country than beer:

Over the last couple of months, American glassmaker Charlie Parriott has been working with Czech scientists and craftsmen to make the biggest wine bottle in the world. The project has taken blood, sweat and more than the odd glass of Muller-Thurgau, but now it is finally drawing to an end. In the final days of the project, I met up with Charlie Parriott to ask why he decided to embark upon this mission in the first place:

When it comes to New Year’s Eve, things have changed in the last 20 years. Now Czechs don’t just sit in front of their TVs on the last night of the year, noshing on chlebíčky and jednohubky, the famous open-faced sandwiches and canapés. They go out more, partying with friends and dining out; many theatres give special performances and neighbours just get together and celebrate the coming year. But one thing has not changed at all – their favourite drink to match the occasion is an original Czech sparkling wine – Bohemia Sekt.

If any country in the world is home to the Christmas carol, it has to be the Czech Republic. The tradition of carolling goes back centuries, and Czech Christmas music is a wonderfully rich mixture of spiritual, secular, classical and folk traditions. So for this special programme, we take you on a journey into the world of Czech Christmas music. In order to enjoy this programme fully, you need to hear the music. Just click on the “listen” icon. But even if you are not able to listen, you can read a transcript of part of my interview with a person