Jul 10

Jul 10 Decades From Home - Episode 31

After 30 episodes and some hard work over the last few months, Simon deservedly has taken the week off. Nic could easily have gone off the rails, but luckily for us he decided on a clipshow instead. This week go back in time to hear conversations on a the connection between a fish and German music from episode 14, East Germany’s favourite car the Trabant from episode 15, Simon’s love of kebabs from Episode 19 and an interview with 40percentgerman.com guest contributor Dilini Algama on her experiences of German dating from episode 23.

Jul 3

Jul 3 Decades From Home - Episode 30

Nic Houghton

Simon celebrates Sebastian Vettel’s birthday and explains why the F1 driver holds British humour in such high regard. Despite their best efforts, the lads we can’t avoid talking football especially with the England v Germany fixture. A new shop in Berlin proudly selling LSD to the masses attracts Simon’s attention and finally we discuss traditional German health remedies and why going to a homoeopathic practitioners conference might be more fun than you think.

Jun 28

Jun 28 Bonus Episode - It's England vs Germany!

Nic Houghton

To celebrate the upcoming England v Germany game Nic & Simon discuss the upcoming fixture and what it means to them. They remember past meetings between the teams and try to predict who will win on Tuesday.

Jun 26

Jun 26 Decades From Home - Episode 29

Nic Houghton

We’re talking two of our favourite topics this week football and beer, although the second of these is a little tricky for Simon as he recovers from partying with his neighbours. Nic explains why JFK is unfairly remembered in Germany for claiming to be doughnut, Simon questions a recent Greenpeace protest and asks Nic how much money the podcast could knock off the value of a major soft drinks company. Finally, we end the show by deep diving into the topic of German beer and choose their own top five German beers.

Jun 19

Jun 19 Decades From Home - Episode 28

Nic Houghton

Nic comes down with a severe case of football fever and there ain’t no vaccine for that, the lads discuss the start of Euro 21 and the teams they plan on supporting. Following on from last week, Simon and Nic discuss funny German words they’ve still not fully got to grips with and explain why having a childish sense of humour is useful when speaking German. A failure in translation brings an end to a court case in the UK, Simon & Nic celebrate the return of German hero David Hasselhoff and Simon introduces us to the most rebellious musician in Switzerland, or at least the most rebellious Alpine horn player in Switzerland.

Jun 12

Jun 12 Decades From Home - Episode 27

Nic Houghton

Simons & Nic are increasingly optimistic as lockdown restrictions being to ease, Nic celebrates the end of the mask mandate in Augsburg by going on a one man pub crawl. Your hosts still find some parts of Germany a little strange, Simon bemoans the lack of mixer taps in British kitchens, while Nic explains why Germany is ready for the Zombie apocalypse. Simon introduces us to the world of Bernd das Brot, a depressed loaf of bread that has inexplicably become an award winning kids TV show character. To finish off the show, Simon & Nic look to a post-pandemic future and talk fests, Lederhosen and their favourite beer festival, the Erlangen Bergkirchweih.

Jun 5

Jun 5 Decades From Home - Episode 26

Nic Houghton

Having finished moving house, Simon tells Nic all about it. Simon explains the differences between moving in the UK and Germany, is moving house harder in Germany? The lads discuss why painting before you leave is a double edged sword and why so many Germans seem to buy kitchens but not houses. Finally, we look at a DW.com article, Nic talks housing estates vs Plattenbau and Simon questions whether we should be putting our names on our houses.

May 29

May 29 Decades From Home - Episode 25

Nic Houghton

We’re talking about shopping this week, Nic’s admits his obsession with British pork pies and Simon introduces some of the harder products to find in a German shop. We look at the curious world of high street favourite Tchibo and ask how a shop that sells an ever changing selection of random products can be so successful. Finally the lads try to find the best place to pick up the weekly shop, looking at the most popular supermarkets in Germany.

May 23

May 23 Decades From Home - Episode 24

Nic Houghton

We’re diving headfirst into music this week as Simon & Nic take you on a tour of their current playlists. Simon takes us through some of the popular genres of German music, we discuss the revelations over German musician Cro, the lads question the logic of dog licenses for pet owners and we finish on whether it’s really possible to fake your own death if you have a very photogenic dog.

May 15

May 15 Decades From Home - Episode 23

Nic Houghton

We’re discussing romance and dating in Germany this week, Simon and Nic talk about how they met their wives and look at an article about the financial realities of online dating in Germany. We ask if the British are really as suave and sophisticated as they appear with a guide to dating in Britain. Finally, we welcome our first guest to the podcast as 40percentgerman.com guest contributor Dilini Algama joins us to talk about her experiences of German dating and using dating apps in Germany.

May 8

May 8 Decades From Home - Episode 22

Nic Houghton

On the show this week, Simons and Nic discuss moving house as Simon settles into his new home. We discuss the reintroduction of wolves and other wild animals to Germany and ask what you should do if you discover a wolf wandering down your street. We talk Oktoberfest 2021, cancelled in Germany, but Simon introduces an alternative in Dubai of all places. The arrival of May gives Nic a chance to talk Maypoles and finally, Simon tries to make Nic uncomfortable with a story about finding sex toys in a tree and why a recent discovery in a German forest sparked a bomb scare.

May 1

May 1 Decades From Home - Episode 21

Nic Houghton

We’re talking work this week as we delve into what it’s really like to have a job in Germany. Is everyone really on time and what exactly do Germans wear in the office? Simon and Nic discuss how useful English is for work and do Germans actually enjoy speaking a different language in order to do their jobs. We go through the horror of English buzzwords with a quick round of bullshit bingo. We find out the truth of German business etiquette. Finally we tackle the terror inducing world of honest and direct German feedback.

Apr 24

Apr 24 Decades From Home - Episode 20

Nic Houghton

To celebrate reaching the dizzying height of 20 episodes, Simon & Nic take on the challenge of the 20 most frequently asked questions about Germany (plus a couple of twitter suggestions). We tackle the tough topics, such as: ‘Why is German so hard?’, ‘What’s the deal with the Autobahn?’, ‘Why do Germans love Paprika flavoured crisps?’ and ‘Was David Hasselhoff really the saviour of Germany?’. Plus, Simon tells us about his favourite German pork dishes and Nic explains why the Germans are more polite than many people think.

Apr 17

Apr 17 Decades From Home - Episode 19

Nic Houghton

This week Simon & Nic discuss German food, specifically sandwiches, Kebabs and cake. We search for Danish bacon in Germany and ask why is it that German sandwiches leave so many people disappointed? Simon reminisces about drunken kebab adventures in Cardiff and campaigns forcefully for high quality lunch-time Kebabs. Finally we talk cake and what the German tradition of Kaffee und Kuchen has in common with the very English afternoon high tea.

Apr 10

Apr 10 Decades From Home - Episode 18

Nic Houghton

This week Simon & Nic discuss German TV, is it really so bad? How are two German comedians making waves with an innovative idea for prime time TV? Is long running crime drama Tatort overrated? And how faithful are German TV remakes of English language TV?

Mar 27

Mar 27 Decades From Home - Episode 16

Nic Houghton

This week Simon & Nic discuss road rage and if Germany is less violent than the UK, how insulting people on German roads can lead to heavy fines and even jail time, one German who found the fines for insulting police officers can get very expensive very fast, the proposed new laws in UK to shutdown protests and why swearing in English is so popular in Germany and why many people get it wrong.

Mar 21

Mar 21 Decades From Home - Episode 15

Nic Houghton

This week Simon & Nic discuss German cartoons and the 50th anniversary of Die Sendung mit der Maus., the continued popularity of the GDRs favourite car, the Trabant, the wonders of driving a Volkswagen UP! on the Autobahn, Learning to drive in Germany and German car stereotypes.

Mar 13

Mar 13 Decades From Home - Episode 14

Decades From Home

This week Simon & Nic discuss Introducing Germans to good British food, our favourite German music, was Immanuel Kant a racist, an unexploded World War II bomb in Exeter and accent change when living abroad.

Mar 6

Mar 6 Decades From Home - Episode 13

Decades From Home

This week Simon & Nic discuss parental leave, Lucky numbers and German superstitions, the “wisdom” of football coaches, the campaign to support gay footballers and 1,200 new German words inspired by Covid.

Feb 27

Feb 27 Decades From Home - Episode 12

Decades From Home

This week Simon & Nic discuss a woman giving birth outside in -15 temperatures, Hartz IV recipients getting FFP2 masks after winning a legal battle and a father spying on his daughter’s conversations with teacher getting a heavy fine.

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