With Slovakia facing a significant shortage in its supply of Covid-19 vaccines, Slovak authorities are trying to come up with ways to procure enough vaccines – and procure them fast enough – to have a real impact on the country’s serious current epidemiological situation. One possibility is Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine – which, however, has not yet been approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA), nor has approval even been formally requested. Given that the Sputnik V’s efficacy is now widely recognised, there are voices calling for it to be introduced into Slovakia even before it receives EMA approval, as has already been done in Hungary. Jonathan speaks with Dr Juraj Kopáček, Scientific director of Bratislava's Institute of virology and Biomedical research centre, about why he and some of his colleagues have issued a joint statement opposing this controversial idea. How did a group of castle enthusiasts manage to restore a famous medieval castle while at the same time having a positive impact on Slovakia’s unemployment problem? Romana Grajcarová takes us to the scene of this intriguing story.