Blog
Dialogue on the airwaves
Elizabeth, Sharmaine and Vincent
Dialogue Berlin is very pleased to announce its forthcoming radio debut on Wednesday 27 January. Dialogue owner and resident Book Doctor Sharmaine is guest of Berlin-based Motor FM, and will be talking about the shop’s exciting opening weeks, as well as forthcoming events, on Vincent and Elizabeth’s Off the Record show. Other topics up for discussion include the future of reading in the wake of the Kindle and the eReader, the latest recommended reads from Dialogue, and even British potato chips. What is more, Sharmaine will be taking the opportunity to share some of her own musical tastes. Expect to hear psychedelic soul and some South London baselines among Vincent and Elizabeth’s regular selection. Sharmaine will also be announcing a very special offer available to Motor FM listeners.
When not doing the ‘day job’, Dublin-born Elizabeth is resident DJ at Berlin’s White Noise Club and Death By Pop. Native New Yorker Vincent is promotes various club nights around Berlin. Keep up to date with both at Twitter, and don’t forget to follow Dialogue’s tweets, too.
Of course, creating dialogue is what this project is all about, and what better way of doing this than hitting the airwaves. Tune in to Off the Record with Vincent, Elizabeth and Sharmaine on Wednesday 27 January from 22:00.
Dialogue Berlin on Motor FM
Radio:
In Berlin and Brandenburg on 100.6 MHz
In Stuttgart on 97.2 MHz
Player:
http://www.motor.de/extern/motorfm/motor
Webstream:
http://www.motorfm.de/stream-berlin.
Join the Dialogue
Team Dialogue: (clockwise from top left) Thomas, Sharmaine, Julian, Hannah, Katrijn
It’s been an exciting period for the Dialogue team, with final preparations made for the bookshop opening, interviews in the media, correspondence with distributors and publishers, as well as planning for two successive Christmas shopping events.
Rather than entering the Berlin book scene with all guns blazing, Dialogue opted for a ‘soft’ approach to its launch when it threw open its doors for the first time on 8 December. After weeks of planning and close cooperation with our friends, co-workers and partners at the T Room, the shelves were finally all stocked, and the hand-picked titles priced. The Dialogue could begin. The proprietors toasted the new enterprise with their closest friends on the evening of the 8th, before retiring for a well-deserved Mexican (grateful as ever to Maria Bonita for their enlightened opening hours!)
David in Dialogue with a mince pie
On 10 December Dialogue marked its opening rather more officially, hosting an evening of late-night shopping and traditional English mulled wine and mince pies. Guests came from as far afield as London and Cologne. Mince pies were hand-made, with the able assistance of Dialogue’s Hannah Murgatroyd in the kitchen. Even in-house illustrator, web-designer and Dialogue’s creative linchpin Julian Mills got out his apron, and provided the pastry. Mulled wine, meanwhile, courtesy of Rebecca Scott — who had flown in especially from England to attend — was especially well received. Dialogue plans more of the same for Thursday 17 December, with English Christmas classics to eat and drink, and a 10 per cent discount on all orders and purchases.
Martina feeling at home in the bookshop
It has certainly been a busy few weeks since Dialogue began its collaboration with the T Room. The books began to arrive from the UK just a week before opening, the floorboards were prepared, shelves were put up, furniture sourced, and then began the exciting work of unpacking stock, helped by Helen McKenna — over 2,000 titles to begin with, ranging from Berlin classics to contemporary political thought and poetry. Critically, resident interior design expert Simon Kennedy erected our innovative ‘salkım’ hanging shelves — aided by some impressive German plumbing. The end result has been well worth the effort: Berlin has its first shop dedicated exclusively to new, English-language titles, and the city has a unique new bookshop, tearoom and gallery space in one. Thanks to all those, in Berlin and elsewhere, who helped make it happen.
And, the first book to be sold to a paying customer? Somewhat ironically, Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief. Let’s only hope that’s not a portent of things to come…