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Last week the Václav Havel Library hosted the second of a series of interviews with people who knew and worked with Havel. This month’s guest was the Canadian Paul Wilson, who has translated much of Havel’s work and lived in Prague from 1967 to 1977. He witnessed the Soviet-led invasion, and in the years that followed he became part of the Czech underground music scene, until he was ultimately expelled from the country. Few people in the English-speaking world can claim to be as steeped in the life and culture of Czechoslovakia in the last two decades

Now in its 13th year, the Prague Fringe Festival brings dozens of productions from around the globe to the city for nine days of alternative drama, comedy, music, dance and more. Ahead of Friday’s opening of the colourful festival, which is centred in the historic Malá Strana district, I spoke to director Steve Gove – and began by asking him what the highlights of this year’s Fringe were likely to be.

2014 is a year of anniversaries: 25 years since the fall of communism, 15 years since the Czech Republic joined NATO and 10 years since the country joined the European Union. One Czech politician who was at the centre of all three of these events is Alexandr Vondra.

A memorial dedicated to the late Václav Havel was unveiled in Prague’s Maltézské square on May Day. The memorial –a seating area comprised of a circular table and two wooden seats is a symbolic invitation for reflection and debate on the former president’s legacy. At the dedication ceremony Mr. Havel’s close friend, and his one-time chancellor at Prague Castle, Karel Schwarzenberg said that today, when the centre-left government had traded human rights for business deals in China, it was more important than ever to reflect on Vaclav Havel’s principles. Similar memorials have been unveiled in Georgetown, US, and Dublin, Ireland.

A sculpture made of wax from candles laid at various spots in the Czech Republic following the death of Václav Havel has found a permanent home in the town of Litomyšl in East Bohemia. The object is in the shape of a love heart, referencing the heart that Mr. Havel, who died in 2012, used to draw under his autograph. After being exhibited at various places, the sculpture, designed by artists Lukáš Gavlovský and Roman Švejda, will now remain in the basement of a chateau in Litomyšl.

Acclaimed Czech photographer Oldřich Škácha has died at the age of 72 after suffering from a long illness. Škácha, who worked in the past for numerous Czech magazines and Prague's Barrandov studios, was a member of the dissident movement in the 1970s and a signatory of Charter 77. He was also a long-time photographer of Václav Havel. Mr Škácha was the author of numerous important photographs including that of demonstrators carrying a blood-stained Czech flag after the Soviet-led invasion in 1968 or of Václav Havel writing his famous letter to Communist leader Gustav Husák.

At the end of last month, Prague hosted an international conference to discuss some of the issues determining the direction of today’s Europe. The event was organized by the Václav Havel Library, which aims to keep both the political and the literary legacy of the late Czech president alive. Havel saw the European Union as a force for peace and stability, but he was often critical of the EU’s priorities. So it was apt that the conference heard a huge range of views on Europe’s future, from federalist to deeply sceptical. David Vaughan spoke to one

A memorial to the late Czech president Václav Havel is likely to be erected at Maltézské náměstí by Prague’s Kampa district, the city’s mayor, Tomáš Hudeček, told the Czech News Agency. The “Havel’s Place” memorial features a circular table around a tree and two chairs and was designed by architect Bořek Šípek. Versions have already been unveiled in Washington, Dublin and Barcelona. The Prague one should appear this spring.

The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution recognising former Czech president Václav Havel’s contribution to the fight against communism, to the Velvet Revolution of November 1989, and entry of the Czech Republic into NATO. The resolution will also result in a bust of Havel joining those of a select few foreign and US leaders in the Congress building. Only three foreign statesmen have previously received such recognition. Havel was already awarded the US’ highest civil award, the medal for freedom, in 2003.

Prague Mayor Tomáš Hudeček has made clear Prague could see a memorial to late president Vaclav Havel introduced during the first half of the year. A similar memorial, designed by architect and friend to the late Mr Havel, Bořek Šípek, was unveiled at the weekend in Barcelona. Other memorial sites have also been unveiled in Washington and Dublin. The head of Prague’s Václav Havel Library, Marta Smolíková, said suitable locations needed to be centrally-located but also to provide an opportunity for discussion and meeting. According to the director, Prague’s Kampa was a possible location for such a site.