In January 1994, two presidents enjoyed a memorable night in the Czech Republic – ending with an impromptu jazz performance.
Five years after the fall of communism, the US president Bill Clinton visited Prague to share his hopes for a new transatlantic alliance.
Key to his vision was his friendship with the Czech president Vaclav Havel, a playwright who had been imprisoned for dissidence during the Cold War.
During the visit, Havel arranged a series of surprises for Clinton including a reunion with the family he had stayed with on a visit to Prague in 1970.
The final surprise took place at the city’s famous Reduta jazz club. Havel presented Clinton with a saxophone and the two friends performed together on stage – a moment which came to symbolise the new partnership between East and West.
Vicky Farncombe uses archive from the Vaclav Havel Center and the William J Clinton Presidential Library to relive the big night out.
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(Photo: Presidents perform at the Reduta jazz club. Credit: Office of the President of the Czech Republic)
