The city of peace and justice resembles a Wild West frontier town this week after a corruption scandal and an inferno on the beach brought down The Hague’s entire government. But the new sheriff, Johan Remkes, arrives with some heavy baggage as his report on the nitrogen ruling is cited as one reason why the renovation of parliament will be delayed by a year. We also update you on a scientific breakthrough for premature babies in Eindhoven, the ban on... More >

This week, Paul and Molly update you on endless things going on in the Hague, from the government falling to improper building permits. They also talk sports, protests and the Marianne Thieme leaving her post as the leader of the animal rights party. In the discussion, it’s tractors, stikstof and a PSA for eating less meat. News Marianne Thieme Climate March The Hague De Mos Bonfires Updates Derk Wiersum The Ocean Clean Up Marijuana Trials Sports Doha Ajax Discussion Traffic... More >

In a week literally exploding with news, we examine how the coalition may lose its majority over a building permit, the mayor of Amsterdam got in hot water over a non-smoking gun, ministers faced tough questions about Stints and jihadist passports, and some Dutch political horse-trading left British citizens in an unstable situation. There’s also our usual round-up of the week’s sporting action, ophef about the Battle of Arnhem and the strange but true story of Utrecht’s smallest jailbird. Want... More >

There was only one question on everybody’s lips on Prinsjesdag (aka Budget Day) this year, eclipsing even the speculation about Marianne Thieme’s outfit or whether Wopke or Erik came up with the €50 billion special projects fund: would King Willem-Alexander be the first monarch to deliver his speech through a beard? We also reflect on the shocking murder of a lawyer on his doorstep in Amsterdam, the sad death of Fernando Ricksen at 43, a stunningly candid interview by the... More >

It’s been a week of courtroom drama in the Netherlands as Geert Wilders calls for his race-baiting trial to be thrown out for political interference, a doctor is cleared of murder in a landmark euthanasia case, a woman seeks redress for having her baby taken away from the state in the 1960s and a key MH17 witness becomes a pawn in a prisoner exchange. We also look back at Oranje’s historic 4-2 win over Germany and try to explain why... More >

The podcast team look back over a summer of blistering heat and bristling with ophef: who poisoned the plants in Thierry Baudet’s office? Why does Haarlem have a problem with globetrotters? And was the king wise to come out as a redbeard? We also look at how Amsterdam became a paradise for cocaine dealers, why the Labour party has done a U-turn on student funding and Ronald Koeman’s return to Hamburg 31 years after he wiped the floor with the... More >

It’s been a week of big-name casualties as the law finally caught up with celebrity gangster Willem Holleeder and Frans Timmermans saw a top European job slip through his fingers. While Queen Maxima came under fire for her silence in a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, one cyclist in Groningen probably wishes she’d kept quiet when police stopped and fined her for using her phone. And it’s been a busy week for Amsterdam’s mayor Femke Halsema, who announced plans... More >

  If you’d like to back us on Patreon please follow this link – we’ll give you a shout-out and let you ask the podcast team a question. We ask the hard-hitting questions on this week’s podcast. What happened in the Eerste Kamer elections? Why are the Hell’s Angels so upset this week? How will Sinterklaas arrive next year? Does Brabant really smell like anise? And, in the discussion, is anyone at the EU riding a dragon? Ophef of the... More >

Plenty of sea changes in this week’s podcast as Mark Rutte takes the fight to Thierry Baudet, Sybrand Buma becomes the second coalition party leader to abandon ship in mid-term and Amsterdam’s mayor decides not to impose a booze ban on the city’s canals. The Hague opts out of the cabinet’s plan for legalised cannabis cultivation, there’s a poignant edge to Ajax’s title celebrations and the food safety board warns people about the dangers of eating filet americain. In our... More >

The podcast returns from a two-week break to commiserate with Ajax fans over their shock exit from the Champions League, catch up with Forum voor Democratie’s fruitless search for a senate leader and find out why the tourist board has started telling visitors to get out of Amsterdam. We also bring you the latest on the arrest of a suspected serial killer and why organic labelling is less wholesome than it sounds. In our discussion we take a deep dive... More >

This week on the podcast we try to piece together the debris after an explosive week for Forum voor Democratie, find out why so many MPs claim to live in Limburg and catch up with the campaign to ban a homophobic American Holocaust denier from Amsterdam. There’s also news of the neck-and-neck Eredivisie title race and some mysterious vandalism on Texel. In our discussion we give you the lowdown on this year’s King’s Day festivities in Amersfoort. Ophef of the... More >