Mailbox

In Mailbox this week: The Winton Train arrives in London; your comments on the new Radio Prague website; response to a programme on Zbiroh chateau. Listeners quoted: David Eldridge, Jonathan Murphy, Michael Binz, Chad Evans Wyatt, Stefan Smith, Mogire Machuki, Jonathon Pukila, Sheila Nazerali.

Hello and welcome to Mailbox. A large share of your feedback this past week concerned the brand new design of Radio Prague’s website. We’ll get to that soon, after this e-mail from England. Our regular listener David Eldridge watched the Winton Train that had set out from Prague on September 1 as it was nearing its final destination in London, carrying some of those who had been saved from the Holocaust by Sir Nicholas Winton in 1939:

Photo: Archive of Radio Prague

“The Winton train has arrived in London and I attach a little video clip I made of it on my mobile phone as it passed through my home station, Ilford, which is about 10 km from Liverpool Street Station, the train's final destination. I am a bit concerned about my personal image because I was waiting at the station thinking I looked like an ordinary passenger but a British Railways staff member introduced himself to me telling me exactly where the train was and its expected time of arrival. And I wasn't even wearing an anorak!”

It’s a shame we don’t get to see Mr. Eldridge in the short video, so we can’t comment on that.

Now onto your views of our new website. This comment was sent in by Jonathan Murphy from Ireland:

“Nice work with the website! It is much improved for listening to the audio of your reports, so much easier now. I love the download function for your programmes.”

Illustrative photo: Kristýna Maková

Michael Binz from Australia was taken by surprise:

“Your new look for your webpage snuck up on me. I visit your page everyday and suddenly it's changed. I did like the old one but there is a saying ‘a change is as good as a holiday’. Make sure you still keep with your top class programming (I am still listening to your podcasts) and telling the world about your beautiful country and I'll forgive you this time!”

Here’s what Chad Evans Wyatt said about the new look:

“Excellent re-design. I won't miss the old fonts at all. Very good job!”

Stefan Smith from Prague is much less enthusiastic:

“I have been a daily user of the Czech Radio website for all of its existence. To click on yesterday and see the new format was a step in the wrong direction. The design of the previous pages was one of the best sites, visually and practically, that I use. Why did you bother to change it? I hope you did not spend too much money to a web-designer that made it worse! The layout is terrible and the previous blue background pages were much easier on the eyes than the bright white with small letters on the new design. Please change it back! Better yet, put a survey on your main page asking if people want the old or new version!”

Photo: Kristýna Maková

Mogire Machuki from Kenya was not impressed either:

“Today I checked on the internet café only to realise that you have a new website. So glad that it is now information packed. I was used to the former pages that looked so nice but this later version is not appealing to the eye. Do something and make it more lovable. More colour and a fresh design, of course, will keep me on my toes as always.”

But Jonathon Pukila from the Canadian province of Ontario is among those who welcome the change:

“Just writing to offer some comments on the new website. So far I am really enjoying the new design of the website. One feature I really enjoy is the embedded audio on the articles. This makes listening to certain features all the more easier since I don't have RealPlayer on my computer.”

Are you happy with the change to Radio Prague’s webpage or do you have some reservations? All your ideas are welcome – whether they concern the new website or our broadcasts – such as this e-mail from Sheila Nazerali from Canada:

Zbiroh chateau, photo: www.czechtourism.com

“I listen to your nightly programmes broadcast on CBC worldwide from near Toronto, Canada. I have a wonderful, Czech, adopted daughter and visit her whenever I go to Europe. I am going in two weeks and intend to try to visit Zbiroh chateau, featured in your broadcast. I love to keep in touch with Czech through you and thoroughly enjoy your half-hour programmes. Thank you.”

Thank you for sending us your comments regarding both our new website and our broadcasts. Please, do keep them coming. Of course, our monthly listeners’ competition is still running so if you’d like to be included in the lucky draw, all you need to do is send us one name:

This time we’d like you to tell us the name of the woman who was born in Prague in 1896 and together with two other colleagues won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1947.

Your answers are already coming in but there is still time until the end of September. The address is Radio Prague 12099 Prague or [email protected]. Thanks for listening today and until next week, take care.