Cologne

Cologne – September 12, 2026 -- Subway has secured a Guinness World Record for the "Largest Inflatable Sculpture of a Potato," unveiling a 9.5-meter-long, 6.6-meter-wide and 4.9-meter-tall potato installation in Cologne's MediaPark. Guinness World Records adjudicator Lena Kuhlmann measured and certified the structure, confirming no larger potato sculpture has ever been built.

The oversized spud, lit from the outside and decorated in Subway's signature branding, is walk-through and open to the public. It marks the launch of the chain's new Baked Potato, now added to the Subway menu in Germany for the first time.

A food truck hands out free Baked Potatoes next to the giant spud

Visitors to the MediaPark can pick up a free, freshly prepared Baked Potato from a food truck parked beside the record-breaking sculpture. A sauce and topping station lets guests customize their potato to taste.

Cologne – September 11, 2026 -- German broadcaster WDR has produced a second batch of 1,000 free "Maus" school-start packages for first-grade classrooms in North Rhine-Westphalia after the initial run sold out within days.

The free kits, tied to the long-running children's show Die Sendung mit der Maus, are designed to ease the transition into elementary school and introduce young children to responsible media use.

Demand exhausted two full print runs in days

The first 1,000 packages were claimed by teachers almost immediately after launch. WDR responded by printing 1,000 more, but those were also fully requested by educators shortly after.

WDR Director General Dr. Katrin Vernau said the response shows strong demand for reliable, child-friendly educational materials, and that the broadcaster plans to expand the program further in 2027.

Cologne – September 11, 2026 -- Rescue dogs got a shot at new homes at a Bark Date event held on September 6 at Beethovenpark in Cologne, where TV presenter Laura Wontorra and dog expert Jochen Bendel helped connect shelter animals with potential adopters.

Bark Date lets people meet rescue dogs on neutral ground instead of in a shelter

The initiative brings together dogs from animal welfare groups and prospective adopters on dog-friendly meadows rather than in traditional shelter settings, allowing animals to show their personality in a relaxed environment before any adoption decision is made.

Around 350 animal welfare associations and more than 1,000 active foster homes now work with Bark Date. Since the initiative launched, over 4,000 dogs have been presented and more than 1,000 have been successfully placed in new homes.

Cologne – September 10, 2026 -- Dyson has unveiled its first hot air styling brush, the Dyson Airsmooth, set to go on sale September 8 for 249 euros (RRP) through Dyson Stores, dyson.de, and select retailers.

The device combines Dyson's airflow technology with a patented dual bristle system designed to dry, smooth, and add volume in a single step, aiming to reduce the mechanical damage, dryness, and breakage common with traditional hot air brushes.

Three bristle types work together to protect hair strands

Anti-Snag bristles use a flexible loop structure to glide through hair and release strands easily, cutting down on tangling. PivotFlex bristles, shaped conically and able to bend up to 90 degrees, direct airflow precisely to reduce frizz and snagging during styling. Anti-Frizz bristles, shaped like a teardrop, stretch curls and smooth lengths while maintaining tension in one motion.

Cologne – September 09, 2026 -- "Die große Maus-Show" celebrates its 20th anniversary with a special edition airing Saturday, September 12, 2026, at 8:15 p.m. on Das Erste.

Host Esther Sedlaczek leads the anniversary broadcast under the theme "Kids Ask, Adults Marvel," featuring a lineup of quiz questions, experiments, and celebrity guests. The show began two decades ago under the title "Frag doch mal die Maus" as a one-off special before becoming a fixture of Saturday night programming on Das Erste.

Six celebrities join the jubilee lineup

Guests for the anniversary episode include Annette Frier, Wincent Weiss, Klaas Heufer-Umlauf, Axel Prahl, Beatrice Egli, and Till Reiners.

Cologne – September 09, 2026 -- Social-impact brand share and RTL Deutschland have launched a joint campaign to support equal opportunities for children, centered on a new share x RTL snack bar sold at six major German retailers.

Every bar purchased triggers a donation from the "Stiftung RTL - Wir helfen Kindern e.V." to breakfast4Kids e.V., a nonprofit that provides a healthy breakfast to roughly 1,400 children daily across 35 schools and daycare centers in the Aachen and Cologne region.

TV presenters Frauke Ludowig and Jan Köppen front new campaign spots

Two TV ads airing across RTL Deutschland channels feature Ludowig and Köppen being approached by children who highlight unequal opportunities faced by many kids in Germany. The ads frame each bar purchase as a direct contribution toward better chances for those children.

Cologne – September 09, 2026 -- After weeks of beach trips and long highway drives, cars often need as much recovery as their passengers, according to the ACV Automobil-Club Verkehr, which has outlined a five-step routine to get vehicles clean and roadworthy again.

Unloading comes first, down to the smallest crumb

ACV advises drivers to fully empty the car and any roof box, checking the glove compartment, door pockets, and under seats where small items and food get overlooked. Roof boxes and bike racks that are no longer needed should be removed too, since the added weight and drag increase fuel or energy consumption. Mounting points should then be checked for damage.

Cologne – September 07, 2026 -- German telecom provider congstar and the Gaming Ohne Grenzen initiative handed out the fourth annual Gaming ohne Grenzen Award at gamescom on August 26, expanding the ceremony to nine categories for the first time.

Three new prizes -- the Get Together Award, Best Feature, and Best Mobile Game -- joined the lineup this year, reflecting the growing range of accessibility tools built into modern games. Host Stefanie Langer led the ceremony at the Jugendforum NRW booth, with winners selected by a jury of gaming, inclusion, e-sports, and education experts, plus one community-voted prize.

Tiny Bookshop wins both the National and Community Choice awards

The relaxed bookstore simulation Tiny Bookshop took the National category for its point-and-click controls and lack of time pressure, then repeated the win in the Community Choice Award, edging out Forza Horizon 6 and Rhythm Doctor in the public vote.

Cologne – September 7, 2026 -- Roughly 170,000 children in North Rhine-Westphalia are starting school this year, and German broadcaster WDR is rolling out a package of free educational content through its long-running children's brand "Die Maus" to help them adjust.

The Maus website offers school-starter materials in six languages

Parents and teachers can access craft activities, puzzles, coloring pages, and ABC letter-learning films on the Maus website in German, Turkish, Polish, Ukrainian, Arabic, and Russian. A feature called "Maus-Schul-Weltreise" shows how children attend school in other countries, while a series of factual segments answers everyday questions about school life.

Cologne – September 04, 2026 -- Moving into a first apartment or shared flat this autumn means learning to separate household waste correctly, according to the German initiative "Mülltrennung wirkt." On average, 30 percent of what ends up in yellow bins and yellow bags across Germany doesn't belong there, the group says.

While landlords or property managers provide the necessary waste bins, tenants themselves are responsible for sorting correctly. "Improperly disposed waste can cause additional costs for all tenants. Even more important: correct waste separation is a prerequisite for functioning recycling loops," said Axel Subklew, spokesperson for the initiative. Packaging made of plastic, glass, or paper that ends up in general waste cannot be recycled.