New UK ambassador to Czechia shares video of his first morning commute in Prague

The new British ambassador to Czechia, Matthew Field, began his mission in Prague on Monday.

To mark the occasion the new diplomat released a video on Twitter in which he's featured stepping off the number 22 tram at Malostranské náměstí as he heads to his new office.

Field replaces Nick Archer in the post. Prior to arriving in Prague, he held the ambassadorial post in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He also worked at the British embassies in Brazil and Croatia, and was a political adviser to the EU's special representative in Macedonia.

He also spent some time in Japan teaching English and had been part of the 2002 World Cup organizing committee.

Archer left the post of ambassador after five years. Prior to that, he headed the British embassy in Denmark. He arrived in Prague in January, and was the first male British ambassador to Czechia in almost 17 years, succeeding Jan Thompson who held the post from 2013–17.

In 2020, Archer praised the Czech government's steps in reaction to security services' information that Russian intelligence had likely been involved in the two devastating blasts of ammunition stores in the Vrbětice compound in South Moravia in 2014.

The information resulted in a diplomatic rift between Prague and Moscow in the spring of 2020. At the time, talks with Archer were held by then-Czech Foreign minister Jakub Kulhánek.

The two also met a few months later to discuss the offending of Czech children by media in connection with controversy surrounding a football match between Sparta Prague and the Glasgow Rangers.

In his Monday video, Field introduces himself by saying in Czech "Hi, I'm Matt and I'm new here." The new ambassador then goes on to mention the cooperation between the two countries during World War II and now Ukraine.

On a lighter note, he says, "It's great that I can be with my family in the country of Kafka, Zátopek, Horákova, and also Jára Cimrman."

The new ambassador closed by saying that he looked forward to working together to make both countries safe and prosperous. "I look forward to your advice, tips, and recommendations," Field said.