The Local Germany

Betraying Berlin

Tue, 19 Jul 2011 17:11:00 +0200

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British daily The Times, is going back to London. In his last column for The Local, he explains why he had to end his stay in the ‘narcoleptic’ German capital.

The unhealthy cult of ageing

Wed, 15 Jun 2011 18:59:00 +0200

Are there limits to age and experience? When is it time to call it quits? Roger Boyes, Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, explores Germany’s unhealthy age fetish.

All in the (royal) family

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 13:37:00 +0200

With William and Kate wedding mania reaching fever pitch, Roger Boyes, Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, looks at Germany’s bad case of royal envy.

The rime of the ancient minister

Wed, 09 Mar 2011 16:28:00 +0100

Can Thomas de Maizière, Germany’s new defence minister, break the curse hanging over his job? Roger Boyes, correspondent for British daily The Times, takes aim at a ministerial albatross.

The Greening of Berlin

Tue, 23 Nov 2010 12:27:00 +0100

The popular Green party aims to take over Berlin's government in 2011. But Roger Boyes, Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, warns they must find ways to implement the necessary “eco-dictatorship” on a tight budget in the debt-ridden capital.

August, nein Danke!

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 19:34:00 +0200

Not much happens in Germany during the summer holidays in August. But that’s just enough to annoy Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British newspaper The Times.

Why every dentist needs a Prussian finca

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 12:19:00 +0200

What do the country homes of dentists in eastern Germany have to do with the election of country's next president? Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British newspaper The Times, explains.

Germany's golden future

Wed, 26 May 2010 18:11:00 +0200

With skittish Germans fearing the imminent collapse of the euro, Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British newspaper The Times, decides it’s time to buy gold. Or sell it.

Germany’s humour crisis

Tue, 06 Apr 2010 16:48:00 +0200

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British newspaper The Times, laments the lack of laughs on German television.

Giving English the big kiss-off

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:02:00 +0100

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, doesn’t lament the end of Deutsche Bahn’s troubled romance with the English language.

Portnoy's Podcast: Roger Boyes, the Pinkelwurst and Guido

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 12:33:00 +0100

The Local is proud to present the second podcast of Portnoy’s Stammtisch, our regular column about life in Germany.

Big-boned in Berlin

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:12:00 +0100

Faced with post-holiday bloat, Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, parses the decision by German women’s magazine Brigitte to stop using skinny models.

Yuletide greetings from China

Sun, 20 Dec 2009 17:16:00 +0100

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, gets in the Christmas spirit with toxic Chinese toys and Yuletide pawnshops.

The (second) breakfast of champions

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:51:00 +0100

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for the British newspaper The Times, explores the more mystifying rituals of Teutonic breakfast culture.

Germany's citizens in uniform

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:10:00 +0100

Roger Boyes, Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, believes German society’s fascination with authority belongs confined to where it once was lacking: the country’s military.

Taxiing for takeoff at Berlin's Tempelhof

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 18:28:00 +0200

Berlin’s Tempelhof Airport might be closed to air traffic, but Roger Boyes, correspondent for British daily The Times, believes it could still help the German capital soar.

A nation of 80 million Merkels

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 20:48:00 +0200

With less than a week before Germany’s election, Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent for British daily The Times, muses that the country’s voters like being bored by Angela Merkel and her political cohorts.

Escaping in Berlin

Wed, 26 Aug 2009 13:59:00 +0200

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent of British daily The Times, knuckles down to write his new book – but only after a valiant effort to escape work.

The super nanny state

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 16:07:00 +0200

Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent of British daily The Times, expresses concern about the titillating yet terrifying prospect of a “super nanny” state in Germany.

Taking a bite out of voter apathy

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 17:12:00 +0200

What do finger-chomping chimps at the zoo have to do with voter apathy in Germany? Roger Boyes, the Berlin correspondent of British daily The Times, has the answer.