Checkpoint Charlie
The Cold War, the Berlin Wall and the Most Dangerous Place on Earth
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Checkpoint Charlie
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Narrated by:
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Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
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By:
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Iain MacGregor
About this listen
A powerful, fascinating, and groundbreaking history of Checkpoint Charlie, the legendary and most important military gate on the border of East and West Berlin where the United States and her allies confronted the USSR during the Cold War.
As tensions between east and west rose during the Cold War, East Germany committed $millions to the creation of the Berlin Wall in the early 1960s, an 11-foot-high barrier that would evolve through the years to consist of 79 miles of fencing, 300 watchtowers, 250 guard dog runs and 20 bunkers and was operated around the clock by guards who shot to kill. Over the next 28 years, at least 10 thousand people attempted to smash through it, swim across it, tunnel under it, or fly over it, desperate to escape the repressive totalitarian East German regime for the freedom of the West.
In November 1989, the East German leadership buckled in the face of a civil revolt that culminated in half a million East Berliners demanding an end to the ban on free movement. The world's media flocked to capture the moment which, perhaps more than any other, signalled the end of the Cold War. The wall was opened, and then torn down, stone by stone. Checkpoint Charlie, the epicentre of global conflict for nearly three decades, was the location of the greatest jubilation as crowds flowed across the border.
As the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Wall approaches in 2019, Iain MacGregor captures the mistrust, oppression, paranoia and fear that gripped Berlin throughout this period. Checkpoint Charlie is about the nerve-wracking confrontation between the West and USSR, highlighting such important global figures as JFK, Nikita Khrushchev, Reagan, Gorbachev and other leaders of the period.
He also includes never-before-heard interviews with the men who built and dismantled the Wall; lovers who crossed it; relatives and friends who lost family trying to escape over it; German, British, French, and Russian soldiers who guarded its checkpoints; CIA, MI6 and Stasi operatives who oversaw secret operations across its borders; politicians whose ambitions shaped it; journalists who recorded its story; and many more whose living memories contributed to the full story of Checkpoint Charlie. A brilliant work of historical journalism, Checkpoint Charlie is an invaluable record of this period.
©2019 Iain MacGregor (P)2019 Hachette Audio UKListeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
"A lively, evocative account of the life and death of the world's most notorious wall. In capturing the essence of the old Cold War he may just have helped us to understand a bit more about the new one." (The Times)
"Checkpoint Charlie is a fascinating and telling reminder of what was perhaps the most potent symbol of the Cold War...Iain MacGregor writes with great fluency and narrative drive." (William Boyd, New Statesman)
"A rich collection of tales from cold war Berlin captures the city's mad complexities." (Observer)
What listeners say about Checkpoint Charlie
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Helliemoo
- 05-03-24
Very Informative
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, well read and very informative. It gave a very personal perspective from all nations involved as well as a really good overview.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Zej AK
- 30-08-22
A little hard to follow at times
At times when moving into 1st person account - a little hard to follow.
Also, having grown up in Berlin surrounded by British Military and schooled at RAF Gatow, I found some of the pronunciation a bit grinding like BRXMIS rather than the phonetic ‘Bricksmis’ as it was actually known. But very minor gripes.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 09-06-21
A must listen
Great story, great narrator. A must listen. One of the best Berlin books Ive come across.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Rossano Nocera
- 20-05-21
Brilliant
Superb listen, I had the hardback version but thought it’d be a good listen too, and wasn’t disappointed.
Wonderfully narrated, superb telling of the stories behind the wall.
Can’t recommend it highly enough.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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- JojoBean
- 06-03-21
Amazing
Having been to Berlin it was wonderful to visualise all the places spoken about in the book.oved this from start to finish
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- jim halley
- 19-02-21
Exceptional
Fantastic historic journey through incredible times, excellent book, first class performance. Certainly recommend this book.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- JonD
- 17-08-21
Fantastic
A really engaging history of the Berlin Wall. Well written covering both the big picture and personal stories plus excellent naration.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- KK
- 31-03-23
Good German pronunciation
The only audible I’ve not had to speed to x2. Good pace , excellent German except for Frankfurt am Main
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- exile71
- 07-01-24
Excellent
Well researched with lots of personal perspectives and not too academic or dry. Great chapters on some of the cultural aspects leading up to the end of the division such as the Berlin Springsteen concert in the late eighties gave this book an extra level of interest. Must read for anyone interested in this period in history.
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