Why does Warsaw look so different from every other European capital? In this episode of Talk Eastern Europe, Nina Panikova speaks with British writer and journalist Owen Hatherley about the dramatic history that shaped Poland’s capital – from wartime destruction and communist-era rebuilding to modern skyscrapers and experimental urban planning.
They discuss Warsaw’s modernist housing estates, socialistrealist architecture, the iconic Palace of Culture and Science, and why the city remains one of Europe’s most misunderstood capitals. Is Warsaw chaotic, visionary, unfinished – or all three at once?
If you’re interested in architecture, urban history, Central Europe, communism, post-socialist transformation, or the future of European cities, this episode is for you.
Places in Warsaw (and beyond) mentioned in the interview:
Żoliborz, one of the northern districts of Warsaw.
Narkomfin building, a block of 25 flats known for its constructivist architecture in Moscow, Russia.
Praga, a district of Warsaw, Poland. It is on the east bank of the river Vistula
Constitution Square, a monumental urban square in Warsaw built in the 1950s as a flagship project of socialist realism.
Muranów, a special area in Warsaw’s history located adjacent to the Wola and Śródmieście districts. Most of it was incorporated into the Warsaw Ghetto during the Second World War.
Palace of Culture and Science, a notable high-rise building in central Warsaw, Poland. With a total height of 237 meters, it is the second-tallest building in both Warsaw and Poland
Nowy Świat (New World Street), one of Warsaw’s most famous and vibrant historic streets.
New Belgrade (Novi Beograd) is the largest and most modern district of Belgrade, Serbia
Central Department Store, ‘Smyk’, a modernist building in Warsaw.
Koło Housing Estate of the architects Szymon and Helena Syrkus.
Sady Żoliborskie, a celebrated modernist housing estate and sub-district in northern Warsaw.
Palace of the Soviets, was a project to construct a politicalconvention centre in Moscow on the site of the demolished Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. It was never built.
The Palace of Parliament ( previously People's House ), the seat of the Romanian parliament and the heaviest building in the world.
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