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HistoryGermany

Countdown to 1989 - The Fall of the Berlin Wall

October 28, 2024

The Berlin Wall divided Germany for almost 30 years. It tore families apart and destroyed lives. Both the construction and the fall of the Wall were key moments in German history -- and beyond.

The archive photo from December 22, 1989 shows police officers from East and West Berlin talking at the open Wall at the Brandenburg Gate, while behind them a piece of the Wall is being lifted into the air by a crane.Image: picture-alliance/dpa

The film explores the history of this important structure.

Image: Looks Film

The construction of the Wall was preceded by a veritable countdown. The supporters of the Wall defended it as an "anti-fascist protective rampart” and a bulwark against capitalism. Nearly three decades later, the Wall’s supporters were taken by surprise, unable to prevent it from coming down without risking a global crisis. 

Crowds flocked to the border crossings after the Wall came down.Image: Looks Film

Back in 1961, it was just as hard to believe that a political system would imprison its own people as it seemed impossible, 28 years later, that the Wall could fall peacefully. The fall of the Wall was also preceded by a countdown. The film recounts the milestones that, starting with the autumn of 1988, culminated in the historic fall of the Wall in November 1989.
 

Broadcasting Hours: 

DW English

FRI 08.11.2024 – 01:15 UTC
FRI 08.11.2024 – 04:15 UTC
SAT 09.11.2024 – 13:15 UTC
SUN 10.11.2024 – 19:15 UTC
MON 11.11.2024 – 09:15 UTC
MON 11.11.2024 – 16:15 UTC
MON 11.11.2024 – 21:15 UTC
WED 13.11.2024 – 12:15 UTC

Lagos UTC +1 | Cape Town UTC +2 | Nairobi UTC +3
Delhi UTC +5,5 | Bangkok UTC +7 | Hong Kong UTC +8
London UTC +/-0 | Berlin UTC +1 | Moscow UTC +3
San Francisco UTC -8 | Edmonton UTC -7 | New York UTC -5

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