Eva Tolkovsky

* 1952

  • "We had lived across the street from the Ministry of Interior. In the morning, we could see tanks parking there. The Russian soldiers were looking around confused, not knowing where they were or what was happening. People were running to grocery shops to buy supplies. We listened to the radio which was saying goodbye to us - it was an amazing drama. I joined the mass protests. Friends were coming over to say goodbye. I remember Karel Kovanda telling us he was leaving for Austria; I felt really sorry about that. Then my sister, her husband, two kids, and my mum also packed up, decided to go to Vienna. I wasn't willing to make a move. I decided to stay in Prague because I didn't want to emigrate and because I was sure I couldn't handle it."

  • "It was in late 1969. Up until 15 September, there was amnesty. Although there were the protests that year, Palach burnt himself to death and such things, people started losing hope that there was anything to be done about the situation. Plus there was the amnesty up until 15 September when everyone could freely return from abroad. That was a challenge. I thought something would probably happen past 15 September. So I went to see my dad whom I haven't been in touch with for ages and asked him to get me a flight ticket to London. He helped me out and I left on the 13th, determined to see what happens after the 15th and based on that either return or stay. As it turned out, on 15 September they shut the borders and so I knew that it would have grave consequences. I was still a minor which meant that they'd put me in a boarding house and my study plans would have no chance of succeeding. So I ended up staying in London."

  • "In fact, for me, 1968 was traumatic in the reverse sense. It was so amazing that I was never able to really cure from it. It marked me with its beauty and awesomeness. I had my exile's dreams and was always imagining myself walking around Prague, trying to recall which way to go to get to some place, not to forget my way. Even though I hadn't hoped I'd ever get the chance to see Prague again."

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    Tel Aviv, 05.12.2016

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    duration: 02:04:36
    media recorded in project Stories of the 20th Century TV
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I ended up hanging in between two chairs and I can’t move either way

Eva Tolkovsky 2016
Eva Tolkovsky 2016
photo: natáčení ED

Eva Tolkovsky, née Kollertová, was born on 15 December 1952 in Prague. She grew up in a Czech family - her father worked as a director of the local branch of Air France, her mother was a housewife. When she was eight, her parents got divorced. Eva’s mother and her older sister Věra converted to Judaism in 1962 and Eva joined them. After finishing elementary school in 1968 Eva found a job at a bank. Following the August ‘68 invasion her sister Věra and her husband emigrated along with Eva’s mother. At first, Eva stayed in Prague but in September 1969 she left for London. Soon thereafter she continued to Israel o reunite with her mother and sister. After just a few weeks in a kibbutz she returned with her new English boyfriend whom he married to London. In England she lived with friends and met her new partner Tomáš Kulka with whom she once again moved to Israel in 1972. There, she studied African studies among other things. She got married twice and brought up a son and a daughter. She has been visiting Czech Republic regularly with her current husband - the fine artist Zvi Tolkovsky - ever since the 1990s. 2012 saw the publishing of her book Jazyky Ráje (Tongues of the Paradise) in the Czech Republic.