Berlin through English Eyes maps the presence of English-speaking writers in the city. It provides information on writers who visited Berlin in the early twentieth century, and how they interacted with the spaces and culture of the city. 

More Info 

Exhibition

The exhibition Happy in Berlin? English Writers in the City, the 1920s and Beyond took place in summer 2021 across three venues in Berlin and Oxford. The Literaturhaus-Berlin featured an overview of the places frequented by English writers and an especially commissioned sound installation that recreated the soundscape of Christopher Isherwood’s Berlin novels. The display in the Bodleian Library featured Berlin-related highlights from the Stephen Spender papers. And the exhibit at Humboldt-Universität’s Grimm-Zentrum focused on pleasure, politics and psychoanalysis as experienced by British writers in the German capital.

We are currently realising a travelling exhibition based on this material.
If you would like more information, please contact us at: 

[email protected]

Podcast

A series of five podcasts featuring academics and writers explores the significance of Berlin for English authors:

↗ TORCH Website

Catalogue

Happy in Berlin?
English Writers in the City, The 1920s and Beyond

↗ Wallstein Verlag

Teaching Resources

Many of the places and authors featured on the site contain teaching resources aimed at A-level students of German, English Literature and History, which you’re welcome to download for use in the classroom. The teaching resources have been developed in collaboration with the Stephen Spender Trust.

Notes for teachers and a template for students can be found here.