Radioactive: my great-grandad’s chemical confession
Joe Dunthorne only knew his Jewish great-grandfather to be an eccentric chemist. Hundreds of letters and a 2000-page memoir would reveal ties to Nazi-era chemical weapons.
Novelist Joe Dunthorne had always wanted to write about his great-grandfather, Siegfried Merzbacher: an eccentric scientist who made radioactive toothpaste in 1920s Germany – believing it to be a health product – and a Jewish refugee from the Nazis.
But Siegfried had already written a book of his life, a lengthy memoir that few in the family had finished. In its final pages Joe found a shocking confession that prompted a journey across Europe to trace his great-grandfather's wartime career.
The investigation would take him across Germany and Turkey, through letters, archives, and even psychiatric records. Joe's book about his journey is called Children of Radium. He also tells his story in the BBC Radio 4 podcast Half-Life.
Presenter: Jo Fidgen
Producers: Harry Graham and Helen Fitzhenry
Get in touch: [email protected] or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707
(Photo: Author Joe Dunthorne looks straight at the camera with a thoughtful stare. Credit: Tom Medwell)
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