Conversations

Historian Katja Hoyer was born in 1985, under the old regime of the GDR and grew up in the 1990s, watching many former East Germans struggle in the years after reunification.Learning about the Nazi era was a big part of her education but Katja left school feeling unsatisfied about what she’d been taught about the period when the Nazis rose to power.She knew about all the big political moments, but not much about the lives of ordinary Germans and how they responded to the dramatic changes that unfolded around all around them.So Katja the historian traced the lives of residents in the town of Weimar from 1919 to 1939 to examine how a cultural hub of democracy transformed into a Nazi stronghold.Further information Weimar: Life of the Edge of Catastrophe is published by Penguin.Katja's earlier book is Beyond the Wall: East Germany 1949-1990Learn more about Katja Hoyer on her websiteThis episode of Conversations was produced by Jen Leake and the Executive Producer was Nicola Harrison.It explores German history, the rise of the Nazis, Weimar, the Weimar Republic, Adolf Hitler, the Stasi, secret police, the Berlin Wall, Communism, Fascism, World War II, East Germany, the GDR, democracy, Jewish persecution, Buchenwald, concentration camps, Carl Weirich, Nazi era history, the rise of the Nazis.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Journalist Hedley Thomas grew up knowing that his grandmother Gladys had vanished in the sea off Sydney in the 1950s. The mystery of what happened to Gladys helped to inspire his hit podcast 'The Teacher's Pet'.Hedley has had a storied career in journalism which has seen him win many Walkley Awards and expose a lot of corruption and dodgy dealings.But it has also placed Hedley and his family in harm's way. In 2002 Hedley and his wife Ruth were at their home when bullets were fired into their bedroom. The shooter was never found, and Hedley grappled with PTSD after the event.A couple of decades later Hedley returned to a story which had stayed with him for years.It was the about a woman named Lynette who had gone missing from her home in the Northern Beaches of Sydney. Hedley's podcast about her story became a massive hit. Five years after 'The Teacher's Pet' began, Lyn's former husband Chris Dawson was convicted of her murder. Despite his recent appeals, Dawson will spend the rest of his life in jail for Lynette's murder.Recently, Hedley has started talking about the family secret which helped inspire the podcast when it first began.Further informationHelp and support is always available. Beyond Blue provides 24/7 support on mental health issues.Hear Sarah's conversation with Lynette's daughter, Shanelle Dawson.The episode of Conversations was produced by Nicola Harrison, the Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores family, journalism, domestic violence, police investigation, murder, The Teacher's Pet, true crime, true crime podcast, Lynette Dawson, Chris Dawson, Shanelle Dawson, PTSD, home invasion, secrets, prison, Northern Beachers of Sydney, mothers, grandmothers, Walkley awards, justice, cold case.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Millie Robinson’s family had been through enough as it was before her devoted dad Jim Rogers received his diagnosis in 2021. Today they navigate the unknown together and stay in the moment to enjoy their tight-knit community.Millie is a celebrant, mum and author living in Brisbane.She also supports her dad, Jim, who has younger-onset Alzheimer’s. Millie started life in the UK, in a very tight-knit network of family and friends who wrapped their arms around Jim, Millie and her siblings when Millie’s mum died of cancer.Jim became the dad and the mum of the house, and for years put himself last to care for his babies and make sure they were alright.Then he fell in love with Tyler, and Millie gained a stepdad.The family thought they’d used up their quota of shock for one lifetime, but when Jim was diagnosed in 2021, they rallied and continue to care for him with the same devotion he showed when they were kids.Further informationHolding On To Happiness, written by Jim Rogers and Millie Robinson is published by Pan Macmillan.Watch the 2025 Australian Story featuring Millie, Jim and their family.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan and the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It covers caring for parents, Dementia Australia, living well with dementia, Hamish Macdonald, the sandwich generation, losing a mother, motherless mother, finding love again, going back into the closet, two dads, step parent, tight knit family, grandparent, Redditch, cottage, forget me not, Brisbane, moving to Australia, skin cancer, melonoma, mole, Canary Islands, celebrant, marrying, getting married, VW Beetle, high school sweetheart.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

British writer Ben Macintyre on the eerie history of Colditz Castle which the Germans used as a prisoner of war camp during World War II.Since the Middle Ages, Colditz Castle has existed in some form, perched on the edge of a cliff in eastern Germany.Colditz has served as a royal hunting lodge, a madhouse, and most famously as a prisoner of war camp during World War II.It was said to be inescapable, but that didn't stop the English officers from trying to escape the nightmare of this gloomy fortress, and the clutches of the Germans.Ben Macintyre tells the full story of Colditz and the men imprisoned there, who were as flawed as they were heroic legend.Further InformationColditz: Prisoners of the Castle is published by PenguinThis episode of Conversations explores history, World War 2, prisoners of war, Colditz Castle, Germany, allied soldiers, the officer class, escape, prison, solitary confinement, heroes, the middle ages, research, first hand accounts.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Author Tess Woods had always dreamed of her big day, growing up watching her beloved Nana create in-demand bridal gowns. The stories of these dresses became a way for Tess to understand her family’s origins in North Africa, which she left in the late 1970s. (Warning: This episode references the loss of a child.)Tess moved to Melbourne from Egypt when she was five years old.At large family gatherings, Tess dreamed of a big, fat, Egyptian wedding with 250 guests, food for days, belly dancing — the works.But after she became engaged to her sweet, mild-mannered Australian boyfriend Paul, Tess’ parents’ marriage imploded and she decided to elope to Fiji with a wedding party of just 11.Tess’ cherished and feisty Nana made her wedding dress and her wedding underwear, and the nuptials were an unexpected hit.Tess and Paul moved their young family to Perth to begin their own story, which would unfold with ambition, tragedy and religion.Further informationThe Cairo Bridal Shop is published by Penguin Random House.This episode refers to the loss of a child. Please contact Red Nose on 1300 308 307 if you need support.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores migration, getting married, homemade wedding dresses, loss of a child, stillbirth, Japanese shrines, Kyoto, philosopher's walk, near death experience, collapsed lung, intubation, fear of death, religion, Coptic Christian, Catholic, lapsed Catholic, catholicism, church, Mass, Perth, physiotherapy, physiotherapist, historic fiction, divorce, family get togethers.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Who are the Kennedys, really? And what has made the legacy of America's political dynasty so famous, divisive and enduring? The Kennedys are often described as the closest thing the United States has to a royal family, with fiercely competitive and divisive figures taking up space in American political and public life for generations.Even now, the influence of the Kennedy family continues to persist with RFK Junior, who is serving as the U.S. secretary of health and human services.There have been Kennedys who thrived with fame and power, and those who struggled greatly with that burden, with tragic consequences.The sunniest images of this famous family come from when they gathered at their rambling seaside compound in Cape Cod in the summers.One particular summer, in 1944, changed everything for the Kennedy clan, according to historian Leigh Straw, who is an internationally recognised expert on the Kennedy family and their legacy.It was the final year of World War Two—Jack, the future president, had become a war hero but his health was ailing; his brothers Bobby and Teddy were there, but their eldest brother Joe Junior was in England, preparing to embark on his final wartime mission. Their sister Rosemary was out of the picture altogether, hidden away from public and never spoken of.This was the year, Leigh says, when personal tragedies and public heroics began to shape the Kennedy legacy.The Kennedys at Cape Cod, 1944: The Summer That Changed Everything is published by Bloomsbury.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggiei Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores American politics, the United States, family dynasties, Trump, federal elections, JFK, John F Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, RFK Jr, Covid, Rosemary Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, family trauma, mental health, intellectual disability, war, veterans, assassination, car crash, accidental death, grief, Hyannis Port, modern history, American history, who were the Kennedys, why are the Kennedys famous, Maria Shriver, nepotism, nepo babies, nepo baby, political elite, conspiracy theorists, vaccines, political scandals, Jacqui Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

After Pauline McGrath's husband David was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he chose to use Voluntary Assisted Dying. Pauline supported him through the journey as he took the steps to end his life.A few years ago, Pauline came home from work and found the lights on and the dog already fed.This was something which had never happened in her 30-year marriage to David, a director of paediatric medicine at Queensland Children's Hospital.Straight away, Pauline asked David, "Who has died?"Her beloved husband told her he had a brain tumour, and that voluntary assisted dying was going to be an option for Queenslanders in six months.This moment began a heartbreaking but ultimately empowering path for David, Pauline and their family.David's wish was for Pauline to speak openly about their family experience. So that's what she's been doing while grieving her husband, supporting her two daughters, and embarking on the next chapter of her own life.Content warning: this episode of Conversations contains discussion of death and dying.Further informationHelp and support is always available. Call Lifeline on 131114 - they are available 24 hours a day.Since Sarah spoke with Pauline in 2024, the family has welcomed a grandchild, baby Margot.This episode of Conversations was produced by Nicola Harrison.It explores death, dying, brain tumour, cancer, medical treatment, medical diagnosis, family, paediatric medicine, marriage, love, children, voluntary assisted dying, medical autonomy, grief, advocacy, medical profession.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Monday Morning Cooking Club's Merelyn Chalmers her family's story of survival, and piecing together hundreds of treasured family recipes from Jewish communities around the world, including her mother's top-secret yellow cake recipe.Merelyn grew up tied to the apron strings of her mother, an Hungarian Jew who had survived Auschwitz and eventually ended up in Western Australia.In Perth, she met a man who had his own remarkable World War Two survival story, after fleeing Poland and being conscripted into the Polish regiment of the Red Army.For the couple, Perth became their Garden of Eden, where they raised Merelyn and her older brother in peace.From her mother, Merelyn learnt how to make the perfect pastry in her pyjamas at midnight; how to fry schnitzel properly; and how to make a succulent roast for Shabbat. And from her father, Merelyn learnt how to appreciate both an Aussie barbecue of snags and steaks, as well as the acquired taste of Gefilte fish.Years later, Merelyn would join a group of women who decided to raise money for charity by putting together a cookbook filled with treasured family recipes from Jewish communities in Australia and around the world.As a member of the Monday Morning Cooking Club, Merelyn finally convinced her mother to share her secret recipe for yellow cake, a chiffon cake that had become famous in suburban Perth.A Year of Jewish Cooking is published by Simon & Schuster.You can find out more about the Monday Morning Cooking Club online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores cooking, cookbooks, holiday cooking, Jewish cooking, stories of survival, origin stories, Bondi, Shabbat, Jewish holidays, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, Passover, Pesach, Hanukkah, family recipes, secret recipes, charity, books, writing, Shoah tapes, Holocaust, Auschwitz, refugees, migration, first generation Australians, Kosher kitchen, Judaism, religion, cultural identity, children of immigrants, Communism, Stalin, Hitler, Soviet Union, Spielberg.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Author and classicist Daniel Mendelsohn was teaching a university class on Homer's The Odyssey, when his elderly father decided to enrol in it.Daniel became fascinated by the stories of the ancient world as a child and grew up to study the classics and then write books and essays to share his knowledge with the wider world.Eventually he began teaching the Ancient Greek epic, The Odyssey, to first year university students at Bard College in New York State.But when his elderly father Jay asked to sit in on the course, it led to a big change in their relationship.This episode was first broadcast in 2020Further informationAn Odyssey: A father, a Son, and an Epic is published by KnopfDaniel's latest book is The Odyssey: A New Translation This episode was first broadcast in 2020.It explores the Ancient World, Homer, The Odyssey, the Classics, translation, poetry, writing, teaching, parents, family, fathers, students, New York State, memoir, Odysseus, hero, storytelling, siblings, Winnie the Pooh, emotions, love, books.

For writer Richard Flanagan, the political belief that white Australians do not belong in this land is wrong and it's damaging any progress we might hope to make as a collective people.Richard has spent the last 30 years writing award-winning pieces of fiction and non-fiction, tackling the climate crisis, the meaning of art, free speech and the stubborn necessity of hope.Threaded through all of Richard's writing is a contempt for power and its acolytes, and a great tenderness for human struggle and goodness.Richard says that while writing novels is an introspective process, and journalistic writing is very much outward-looking, they share the same fundamental purpose - telling the truth.His latest book is a collection of speeches and opinion pieces that assembled in order to contextualise and define the rest of his oeuvre as fiercely Australian.Because Richard says the story Australia tells itself as a nation must change, to include all of us as profoundly belonging to its land and history.For Richard, the political belief that white Australians do not belong in this land is wrong and it's damaging any progress we might hope to make as a collective people.Heresies is published by Penguin.This episode of Conversations was recorded live at the Byron Writers Festival in August 2026. It was produced by Jennifer Leake. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores white history, black history, Australian history, Indigenous, non-Indigenous, Aboriginal Australia, writing, books, politics, climate crisis, black arm band view of history, colonialism, settlers, invasion, national identity, bushfires, natural disasters, early onset dementia, incorrect medical diagnosis, monoculture, multiculturalism, One Nation, fedpols, federal politics, Pauline Hanson, First Nations identity, the Voice Referendum.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Micaela Sahhar grew up hearing stories of her Palestinian family's life in Jerusalem before 1948, and what happened when they had to leave.There was her grandfather’s tourism business, her grandmother’s wedding necklace, and the dramatic circumstances of her father’s birth.Most of all there was the house, built by her grandfather for his extended family, at 8 Asa Street Jerusalem.This was the house her family had fled in 1948.And one midnight, many decades later, Micaela found herself standing outside its front gate.Further Information Find Me at the Jaffa Gate, an encyclopedia of a Palestinian family is published by NewSouth books.This episode was recorded at the 2026 Byron Bay Writer's Festival.The producer was Jen Leake and Nicola Harrison is the Executive Producer.It explores family, memoir, Palestinians, Israel, 1948, bombings, violence, mass displacement, Christianity, religion, Arabic, Melbourne, grandparents, Palestinian diaspora, family stories, memories, trauma, history, family home, keys, memory, Nakba, church, Jerusalem, Jordan, maternity hospital, tourism.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Raising girls in an age of smartphones and early sexualisation is tough and in this complex arena, parenting educator Maggie Dent says we can't leave these lessons to chance.Growing up Maggie was a tomboy and noticed when she was treated differently from little boys, who were allowed to be their exuberant selves when she was not.She can clearly recall her indignation at being made to wear a dress as a little girl.The process of raising girls has changed since Maggie was a child, but there are new challenges today like smartphone usage and unwanted sexualisation of young girls, among others.She says there are core lessons we can learn to face these challenges and raise confident and well-adjusted girls.Further informationThis episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2022.Girlhood: raising our little girls to be healthy, happy and heard is published by Pan MacmillanThis episode explores parenting, daughters, young girls, raising girls, smartphones, early sexualisation, psychology, emotions,  mothers, fathers, aunties, friends, teachers, attention, focus, listening, guidance, self-esteem, anxiety, bullying, teenagers, support.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Political journalist, George Megalogenis has mapped key areas in our population, workforce and geopolitical standing in recent decades, and looks at how these shifts are impacting our collective political future.For the first time since Federation, Australia’s population is mostly made up of migrants and their children. Professional women have now replaced men doing blue collar jobs as the largest segment of the workforce.And on the world scale, Australia can no longer rely on our traditional allies or trading partners.These three elements have already changed the political landscape in our country, and this will only continue as time goes on.Further informationThree Shocks: Who we are becoming in the 21st Century is published by Penguin Random House.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan and the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It covers auspol, populism, John Howard, Paul Keating, Harold Holt, Pauline Hanson, One Nation, Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Western Australia, parliament, teals, Higgins, Bennelong, Chinese-Australians, Peter Costello, First Nations, Federation, convicts, migration, White Australia policy, one parent born overseas, census, data, graphs, data journalism and Prime Ministers.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Melissa Redsell was in Year 12 when her doctor told her she was going to have a baby.  After her baby was born, she was told she had 'ruined her life'. Then she set out to prove all her doubters wrong.When Mel broke the news to her parents, they were disappointed and at school, the Principal instructed her to not expect any special treatment.At 7 months pregnant, Mel graduated, and a little while later, her beautiful baby girl Breanna was born.Six weeks later, Mel moved out of home into a share house.All her friends were partying, and she was in the thick of the sleepless nights and nappy changes. So, a few months later she decided to make a big change.Further informationFirst broadcast in 2023Learn more about Mel's charity, A Brave LifeHelp and support is always available1800RESPECT is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a weekThe episode of Conversations was produced by Nicolar Harrison.It explores pregnancy, childbirth, teen pregnancy, families, divorce, education, independence, doctors, Year 12, surprise pregnancy, charity, babies, newborns, nappies, feeding, childcare, share house, domestic violence, getting help, family support, starting over, motherhood.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Paul E Mullen has spent decades interviewing and studying men who have committed unthinkable acts of violence and says these tragic events represent the endpoint of a slow-building private narrative of resentment, isolation and rage. (CW: descriptions of violence)Now retired, Paul dedicated much of his life's work to the extreme end of the human condition.First focusing on victims, researching the psychology of stalking and domestic violence.But after he was caught up in the aftermath of a massacre carried out by a lone gunman, the trajectory of his career changed.Paul began studying the minds of men who commit a mass killings, to unlock the workings of their minds and recognise the warning signs.Further informationRunning Amok: Inside the mind of the Lone Mass Killer is published by NewSouthThis episode was produced by Jen Leake, the Executive Producer of Conversations is Nicola Harrison.It explores violence, murder, lone actor mass murder, Pt Arthur, psychiatry, forensic psychiatry, resentment, rage, fame, isolation, gun violence and gun control, media, serial killers, criminally insane, fantasy rehearsal, depression, suicide, narcissistic injury, early intervention, prevention, threat assessment.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Guitarist and engineer Josie Scott battled crippling gender dysphoria for decades before finally deciding to live openly as a trans woman in her 60s.In 1984 in Adelaide, two brothers formed a pioneering alternative rock band called The Mark of Cain.They wanted to make music that was heavy and intense with lyrics about war, and death, and being misunderstood.Over the years the band gained an international following and plenty of fans at home in Australia.Earlier this year, one of the band's two founders, Josie Scott, announced on the band's website that she was a trans woman.At the age of 63, Josie wrote that she had finally decided to 'embrace rather than endure who she is'.And her decision to go public with her story was met with a huge and loving response from fans of the band.Help and support is always availableCall QLife on 1800 184 527 for LGBTIQA+ peer supportLifeline is available on 13 11 14 for 24/7 crisis supportKids Helpline on 1800 551 800 is available for young people aged 5 to 25. This episode was produced by Jen Leake and the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores gender identity, music, Australian music, living authentically, transgender issues, male to female transition, drug abuse, substance abuse, addiction issues, romance, love, relationships, mother child relationships, heavy metal, Adelaide's music scene.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Former Detective Sergeant, Deb Wallace on policing the heroin hotspot of Cabramatta in the 1990s and how Sun Tzu's 'The Art of War' gave her new ideas for clamping down on illegal gang activity.When Deb joined the NSW Police Force in 1983, there were very few women on the front line. She quickly discovered she had the cool-headed resilience ideal for police work, and she was determined to make a career of it.In the mid-1990s Deb was a junior Detective when she was given a tough assignment — breaking up the gangs who ruled the streets of the Sydney suburb of Cabramatta.At the time, Cabramatta was a vibrant place full of migrant families trying to carve out a new life in Australia, but crime was surging, and the train station was the centre of a thriving heroin trade.After reading Sun Tzu's "The Art of War", Deb met up with the gang members in person to ask them about their lives. They told her that they were lost to the world crime, but she should focus on the next generation, so she helped set up a street school with Father Chris Riley.Some years later Deb was given a new challenge — leading Strike Force Raptor, a squad charged with breaking up bikie gangs. Deb retired after 36 years on the force and now volunteers at Grace’s Place, a site of healing and restoration for young people affected by homicide.Further informationOriginally broadcast May 2023.Read more about Graces's Place.Michael Murphy, one of the men convicted for the murder of Anita Cobby, died from cancer at Long Bay Jail in 2019.This episode was produced by Nicola Harrison. The Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores gang violence, drugs, toxic masculinity, Vietnamese community, improving the next generation, street school, bikies, outlaw motorcycle gangs, culottes, female cop, bar brawls, DV, domestic violence, happy childhood, legislation, cops, Anita Cobby, murder, how policing has changed, beat, partner, colleague.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Mark Woodland is an unexpected CEO — he started his career in the Army as a tribute to his late brother, then went on to revolutionise his mum's paper-based childcare company.As a young man Mark Woodland was at a loss with what to do with his life.After years of moving around, the family — headed by Mark's single mum — settled in Ipswich, Queensland, where Mark showed himself to be a playful and enthusiastic boy, but school wasn't his first priority. When he graduated, Mark was most interested in driving around with his friends, playing music loudly with the windows down. When he needed money to fill the tank, Mark found a job at McDonald's.His younger brother was a new recruit to the Army when he was killed in a  car accident. Ben was just 18.Mark decided to honour his brother by keeping Ben's wish alive, and so Mark joined the army, and served for 10 years.He left to help his mum run her childcare business, and Mark revolutionised the business' administrative system, moving from paper to a digital world.Today Mark is the founder and CEO of tech healthcare company Kismet.Further informationRead more about the short film, Versa.This episode was produced by Meggie Morris. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It covers infant loss, NDIS, digitisation, childcare subsidy, daycare, family business, Army, Navy, not giving up, not quitting, car accident, morgue, Ipswich, Brisbane, Puckapunyal, Albury-Wodonga.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Mary Li was a star ballerina when she fell in love with her dance partner Li Cunxin.  When their daughter Sophie was born profoundly deaf, Mary walked away from dance for many years.Mary says she was the least likely girl to grow up to be a ballerina,She grew up in a family of eight kids in the rough and tumble of the Queensland country town of Rockhampton.But in a little timber hall, with cattle trains rolling by outside, Mary discovered a talent for dance.That talent, and a huge amount of hard work and family support took her to the Royal Ballet School in London at sixteen.She then became the principal dancer with the London Festival Ballet, then the Houston ballet.There in Houston Mary fell in love with her dance partner Li Cunxin.Li had also come a long way from his home in rural China, defecting to the U.S. as an adult and then becoming an internationally celebrated dancer.In Houston Li and Mary married and had their first child, a beautiful daughter named Sophie.But when Sophie was 16 months old their lives were turned upside down.This episode was first broadcast in 2020Further informationMary's Last Dance is published by Penguin

After a catastrophic car crash in the parking lot of her hospital, Dr Olivia Ong became a paraplegic. But her obsession with learning how to walk again was stronger than her incomplete spinal cord injury.When Olivia Ong was 28 years old, she had the world at her feet.She had recently qualified as a doctor, something she had dreamed of since she was a child growing up in Malaysia.She had married a man she loved deeply, and they were busy building their future together.Then, everything changed after a car crashed into her in the parking lot of the hospital she worked in.Olivia now refers to herself as a 'walking paraplegic'.She spent years working hard to walk again, using simple exercise therapies she discovered in the United States.Back On My Feet: From Doctor to Patient is published by HarperCollins.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores medicine, university, love, faith, spinal cord injuries, paraplegia, car crashes, from doctor to patient, marriage, love, motherhood, pain specialist, rehab specialist, California, Project Walk, exercise therapy, surgery, wheelchair user, people living with disability, parenting with disability, accessibility.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Lynne Shori grew up with her hero dad, thinking her Papua New Guinean mother was dead. As an adult, she discovered the truth and set about finding her lost family.When Lynne was growing up, it was just her and her dad.Lynne's dad was her hero; he was different and adventurous but she always felt safe with him when they went on hair-raising adventures together in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea.He had always told Lynne that her mum had died in childbirth.But when she became an adult, Lynne discovered this wasn't true.Just as she turned 40, Lynne set off to a remote island in northern Papua New Guinea to discover the truth of her family story.Once she started gathering all the answers to her lifelong questions, Lynne and her father then set about healing their own, very special relationship.Find out more about Wantaim PNG, and the work they're doing across remote Papua New Guinea, online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores the Pacific, Pasifika, family origin stories, Stolen Generations, charity work, tok Pisin, Manus Island, father daughter relationships, mixed race children, Australia's relationship with PNG, sanitation, education, discovering your truth, mental health, mother daughter relationship, Melanesian culture, family, siblings, blended families, Oceania, geopolitics, knowing your parents, therapy, estrangement, reunion, forgiveness, grief, identity, Sydney, finance, mid-life crisis, rehab, sense of community, family secrets.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Steve Biddulph spent decades working to understand what children need as they grow, but then in his mid-50s, Steve gained an insight that shifted almost everything about how he saw himself.Steve likes to remind us that humans are 'big sensitive mammals' with needs for connection and self awareness.As a psychologist (now retired) and parent educator, he has been at the forefront of an evolving conversation about masculinity, emotional intelligence, caring for our children and making sense of our own childhoods.His best-selling books include The Secret of Happy Children, Raising Boys, Raising Girls and Manhood.But it wasn't until he was in his mid-50s that Steve gained an insight into a huge facet of his own story.He was having a lunch with a friend, a psychiatrist, who began asking him a series of pointed questions.That conversation shifted almost everything about how Steve saw himself.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2021 The producer was Nicola Harrison and the Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.Further informationFully Human: A New Way of Using Your Mind is published by Pan Macmillan

Environmental journalist, Michael Dulaney looks at viruses and bacteria that can move between bats, horses, seals, pigs, voles and even polar bears, and the conditions that lead to human infection.These diseases are known as zoonoses.Michael says climate change, urban sprawl, animal farming and even homelessness contribute to wild animals coming into ever closer contact with people, leading these illnesses to move from creatures to us.To understand how this process works, Michael has researched the volunteers dedicating their lives to conservation. He has camped out on a freezing Victorian night to try to catch ducks with a net shot from a cannon, to test them for bird flu. He has gone frog hunting in the jungles of Indonesia, and he’s visited a suburban Melbourne apartment where a dedicated citizen gives up her master bedroom to a collection of injured flying foxes, while she sleeps in the spare room.Michael also explains how the curious case of Trench Fever fits into the zoonotic puzzle. It was found first in Edmonton, Canada in 2022, when patients developed a serious heart condition after they were given organs donated by homeless victims of the opioid crisis.Further informationSentinels: When diseases spread between animals and humans is published by Scribe.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. Conversations' Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.This episode covers H5N1 bird flu, covid-19, pandemic, lockdown, flu, cat flu, swine flu, hendra virus, horse racing, horse trainer, fly by night bat clinic, Werribee poo ponds, necropsy, chicken farms, disease-proof pigs, PRRS, CRISPR, vaccines, vaccination, smallpox, pox virus, borealpox and northern red-backed vole.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Colleen Gwynne led the investigation into the murder of the British backpacker and eventually confronted his killer in prison.In 2001, Peter Falconio and his girlfriend Joanne Lees were ambushed on a remote stretch of road in the outback and Peter was shot dead.Colleen was working as a cop in Alice Springs when she was asked to take over the complex murder case.With help from the F.B.I, her work saw Bradley John Murdoch arrested and charged.She confronted him in prison, and refused to be intimidated, despite his intense aggression towards her.Murdoch was sentenced to life imprisonment and died in 2025.After leaving the police force, Colleen took up another challenging job.She became the Northern Territory Children's Commissioner, tasked with protecting vulnerable children.Colleen's own story mean she brings a unique understanding to the work.This episode was first broadcast in 2018 The producer was Nicola Harrison and the Executive Producer was Pam O'Brien.

Nikki Goldstein was in a coma in the ICU at St Vincent's Hospital when she first 'met' Rabbi Eli Schlanger. When she woke, the pair embarked together on a project to share the wisdom, compassion and universality of several Jewish teachings.Although they were from very different worlds, when Nikki gained consciousness and met Rabbi Eli properly the two became fast friends.Then, they started writing a book together - based on the deep and expansive conversations they began having about hope, personal growth, spirituality and modern life.Rabbi Eli wanted Nikki's help to share seven ancient Jewish guidelines on living a good life, which he believed could be helpful to anyone, Jewish or not, who was looking for a way to live in a world that feels increasingly chaotic.While Nikki and Rabbi Eli didn't agree on everything all the time, they did both believe these teachings to be universal in their compassion and wisdom.The pair had just recorded their last conversation for the project in December last year, when Rabbi Eli was one of 15 people killed in the Bondi Beach terror attack.Nikki decided to honour his memory by finishing their book alone.Conversations with My Rabbi is published by HarperCollins.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores religion, faith, modern living, disconnection, hope, radical empathy, togetherness, multiculturalism, learning from others, spiritual, family, near-death experiences, autoimmune disease, anti-Semitism, terrorism, grief, tragedy, suffering, meaning of life, spiritual teachings, friendship, prayer, meditation, Judaism, secularism.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Gardening Australia's Hannah Moloney on the heartwarming and heartbreaking reasons humans continue to lovingly tend to their gardens — for healing, beauty and joy.For thousands of years, tending to a garden or a small farm meant human survival. But now, with massive commercial farms, genetically modified crops, refrigerated freight and modern irrigation, we don't need to tend to our own gardens to survive.So why, then, do so many of us still lovingly plant, water and cultivate flowers, fruits and vegetables? Or watch 'lawn porn' to relax?It's a question that Hannah Moloney has asked thousands of gardeners from around the world.Hannah is a permaculture educator, landscape designer and the Tasmanian presenter for ABC TV's Gardening Australia. Gardening is in Hannah's blood, having grown up in a herb nursery run by her green-thumbed father in the Brisbane suburbs.For Hannah, gardening remains a lifeline, a way to bond with her family and a joyful act of protest.Why We Garden is published by Simon & Schuster.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores gardening, hobbies, outdoor activities, mental health, grief gardening, why we like being outdoors, gardening as meditation, the beauty of our gardens, Australian native gardens, vegetable patches, how to grow your own vegetables, fruit trees, family origin stories, losing a parent, pregnancy, motherhood, postpartum depression, gardening for healing, creative inspiration, human history, horticulture, climate change, global warming, food scarcity, food supply, drought, flood, famine, Costa Georgiadis, green thumb, meditation.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Zenith Virago was a married mother of two, when she left her family to begin again as a lesbian.  Then she found a new path as a death walker, helping people navigate their life's end. Zenith grew up in England, and she was still at school when she fell in love with another student. At seventeen, she married Richard, Head Boy of the local Comprehensive school. They had two children, Jodie and Todd.Then at 24, Zenith had a realisation about who she really was. She left her husband and children to begin a new life as a lesbian in New Zealand,Eventually she arrived in Byron Bay, where she met a community of people who inspired her.One day, Zenith's dear friend Sylvia died unexpectedly doing yoga in her garden. Rather than outsourcing to the funeral industry, Sylvia's loved ones took over her funeral and cremation themselves.This experience launched a new path for Zenith, and she became a ‘death walker’, helping people navigate the end of life with reverence and calm.In the midst of her new chapter, the death of a former lover brought her third son Tane back into her life unexpectedly.Further informationOriginal broadcast February 2019Learn about Zenith Virago's Natural Death Care CentreHelp and information are always availableLifeline 13 11 14 24 hour counsellingBeyond Blue's telephone and online counselling 1300 22 4636

Conductor Alexander Briger has led orchestras all over the world. But his niche occupation is not the only fascinating thing about him. Alex's family history is wild.Alexander Briger has stood in front of musicians all over the world, summoning a gigantic, beautiful noise from them.Classical music was a huge part of Alex’s story growing up.He is the nephew of the famous conductor, the late Sir Charles Mackerras; and descended from the so-called "father of Australian music", Isaac Nathan.Another branch of Alex's family tree astonishingly connects him to the man who murdered Rasputin.Rasputin was a Russian peasant and mystic, whose abilities as a faith healer drew him into the inner circle of the Russian Tzars.Fearing his destructive grip on the monarchy, a posse of aristocrats led by Alex’s ancestor, Prince Felix Yusupov, drew Rasputin into a trap, luring him to his death in a Saint Petersburg basement in 1916.In recent years, Alex was invited to Russia to conduct a modern opera, coincidentally called and about Rasputin, in a full circle moment.Alex is back in Australia right now as the chief conductor and artistic director of the Australian World Orchestra, the only ensemble of its kind in the world.The Australian World Orchestra is playing in Melbourne on 19 August and in Sydney on 20 August. You can find out more about the orchestra and its performances online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores classical music, Russian revolution, family history, Paris, Munich, Berlin Philharmonic, conducting, symphony, Mahler, the great Western composers, Wagner, Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Jewish Australians, whacky history, Yusupov, how did Rasputin die, European politics, Bolshevik Revolution, the October Revolution, exile, ballet, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Australian classical music, Australian expats.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Adele Dumont was a teenager when she first started pulling out her hair, an urge that became so uncontrollable she was left with a bald spot.She would sometimes enter a trancelike state, covertly sitting on her bathroom floor, picking at her scalp for hours on end.The urge to pull at her hair was uncontrollable, and secret.When Adele finally put a name to her behaviour, she learnt that trichotillomania has a complex history and psychological understanding, much of which remains unknown.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2024The producer was Meggie Morris and the Executive Producer was Carmel RooneyFurther informationThe Pulling is published by ScribeSome helpful resources on trichotillomania include Trich Stop and The TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviours

Ralph Jackman was a sports journalist who retrained as a teacher in midlife, and got his first job at Melbourne’s Parkville Youth Detention Centre, where he was tested by the troubled and bright, charismatic young men.At the centre he found students who struggled with basic literacy, and he also met boys who were yearning for more than juvenile justice could provide.Ralph created bonds with some of the boys that proved his teaching was making a connection. But he also saw how hours of isolation in their cells stamped the hope out of the young men, despite the committed teachers’ best efforts.Further informationDetention is published by Allen & Unwin.Conversations' Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. Research by Alice Moldovan.This episode covers incarceration, troubled youth, youth work,  behind bars, youth detention, Tony Abbott, Hugh Jackman, To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

After a near-death experience, Kate Clinch became drawn into the astonishing, Gothic story of a young Australian woman named Eileen O'Connor, who is buried under the floorboards of a home in Coogee.Kate was working as a GP in country South Australia when an ectopic pregnancy nearly killed her.She had a vivid near death experience, which prompted her to start interrogating inexplicable and miraculous events.Kate hadn't grown up Catholic, or even religious, but years after her near death experience, she was drawn into the story of a young Australian saint-in-waiting named Eileen O'Connor.Eileen lived in Sydney at the turn of the 20th century.She lived with profound physical disabilities, standing at only 115cm tall, but somehow she managed to head up a group of nurses who delivered free medical care to people living in the slums of Sydney.Eileen's story is an astounding collection of ups and downs - suffering, tragedy, a scandalous relationship with a young priest, threats of excommunication, a wartime sea voyage to Rome and a meeting with the Pope.And she is currently being scrutinised by the Vatican for possible canonisation, which would make Eileen Australia's second saint.Every Inch a Saint is published by Monkfish.Our Lady's Nurses for the Poor has been caring for the sick and disadvantaged in their own homes for more than 100 years. You can read more about the religious order and the lay nurses who work with the nuns - colloquially known as the Brown Nurses - online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores spirituality, dying, sickness, religion, faith, Christianity, Catholic Church, World War One, Spanish Influenza, TB, Tuberculosis, history, Australian history, nuns, priests, scandal, people living with disability, sainthood, miracles, near death experiences, metaphysical experiences, motherhood, doctoring, medicine, modern medicine, x-rays, medical history, resilience, divinity, holy, the divine, sainthood, how does someone become a saint, what is a miracle, living with disability, spinal deformity, grief, death.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Costume designer Tim Chappel on the chance discovery at a train station that led him into a life of designing for films and the stage.Tim can’t remember all the places he lived, growing up on Army bases around the country, and overseas. His one constant as a kid was nature. He’d look for stick insects to pin into his collection and draw endless terrestrial orchids. Tim was ready to focus his life on botany when he found a copy of French Vogue at Flinders Street Station in Melbourne.He was entranced by the glamour of the clothes and felt an instant connection to the tailoring.Tim was creating shorts for bartenders and costumes for drag queens at Sydney's Albury Hotel when he got a new job offer.That's when he signed up to design the costumes for an Australian film called Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, work which would later win him an Oscar.More informationThere is a sequel in the works for Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. Read more about it here

Growing up, para powerlifter, Hani Watson’s passion for lifting had been ignited by her dad and the pack of Arnold Schwarzenegger-types in their string singlets who would accompany him to lift weights. The gym has seen Hani through agonising moments in life, and all the way to the Paralympic Games. Warning: discussion of sexual assault.Throughout her childhood she was having operation after painful operation, to try to straighten her bowed legs.After each surgery, the metal pins and screws would wreak havoc in Hani’s legs, and they resumed growing in the same way they always had.In high school, ruptures at home meant Hani had to move out and support herself, and she lost touch with her mum. During this distressing time, a kindly school principal gave Hani the keys to the school gym, and that place became an anchor once more.After another unsuccessful surgery in her 30s, Hani was enjoying the freedom of a wheelchair, compared to the agonising and exhausting effort of walking.She turned to powerlifting to recover, which led her to worldwide competitions, eventually earning a bronze medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 2022. Hani also competed at the 2024 Paris Paralympics.Further informationIf you need support, you can chat online with someone at Lifeline, or call on 13 11 14.Hani won a bronze medal for Australia in Glasgow at this year’s Commonwealth Games! Read more here.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. Conversations' Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.This episode covers weightlifting, powerlifting, para-powerlifting, paralympian, disability, athlete, bowed legs, osteotomies, plates and screws in your leg, divorce, marriage, trauma, domestic violence, family violence, mental health, mental illness, psychosis, weight training, drugs, drug mule, marijuana, high school, bullying, popular kids, assault, sexual assault, competition, bunnings, wheelchair, VAD, QVAD, voluntary assisted dying and chores. To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

At just 15 years old, Jarvis Cocker wrote a manifesto that laid out his vision for a band he hoped would take over the music industry.Jarvis discovered the document while sorting through the boxes of stuff from his early life that he’d stashed away in his attic.It was in an an old school exercise book from when he was a fifteen-year-old schoolboy in Sheffield.He'd filled it with detailed plans to form a band called Pulp that would storm the music industry.But it took fourteen years for his 'Pulp Masterplan' to come to fruition, when his song ‘Common People’ went to the top of the UK charts.This interview was first broadcast in 2023 Further informationThis interview was recorded at the 2023 Melbourne Writers Festival Good Pop Bad Pop is published by Random House

Hannah had a beautiful love story with her husband Matt. After he died in a surfing accident, grief broke her open and changed her life in unexpected ways As a young couple, writer Hannah Richell and her husband Matt left London for a new life in Australia. They loved the ocean, the sun, and the people.Then one morning before work, Matt went for a surf at Bronte Beach, and, in a tragic accident, drowned.Hannah was lost to grief....and overwhelmed by the responsibility of caring for their two little children all alone.But, painstaking, day by day, month by month, year by year she found her way back to life.Hannah discovered that her heart could expand to include all of it - the joy and the heartbreak, the sweetness and the pain, the love and the loss.Further information:  An Ocean And A Day is published by HarperCollins

During her two terms as PM, Jacinda gained global attention for her response to the terror attack in Christchurch and for giving birth at the same time as running the country.Jacinda grew up as a good Mormon girl who planned on making a difference behind the scenes.But when she unexpectedly became head of the Labor Party, only weeks away from a federal election, Jacinda discovered she had a talent for leadership.Jacinda's memoir about her time as PM and her life before and after is called A Different Kind of Power.This episode of Conversations was produced by Jen Leake and Nicola Harrison is the Executive Producer.Further InformationA Different Kind of Power is published by Penguin.For more information, Penguin authors Jacinda Ardern

The much-loved actor Sam Neill had an unusual path into acting. Raised in New Zealand as a shy boy with a stutter named Nigel, he was 30 when he got his big break (R) Sam, who has died at the age of 78, was an acclaimed actor, a winemaker, an author, a cancer survivor and a Dad to four children. In recent years he had cared for cows, pigs, ducks and horses on his farm in New Zealand while making Pinot Noir.In his remarkable career as an actor he starred in more than 100 films including Jurassic Park, My Brilliant Career, and The Piano.A few years ago, stuck in Sydney while undergoing treatment for cancer, Sam found himself with a lot of time on his hands to reflect on his eclectic life.Sarah spoke to him in 2023 after the release of his quirky, funny and life-affirming memoir.Further information:Did I Ever Tell You This is published by Text

Fairytale expert, Kate Forsyth travels back in time to the stories of her youth, to a dark, fantastical and eerie world where cruelty and mischief abound.As a young girl, Kate was sent to stay with her great aunts in Newcastle and there was introduced to the darkness, magic and mystery of Scottish folklore.These stories lit Kate’s imagination on fire, and let to a lifetime of study into these powerful stories and the messages behind them.One true story from this period that stayed with Kate was the treacherous and dramatic life story of Mary, Queen of Scots, who, in the telling, was only a few years older than the teenaged Kate.Intertwined with the true Scottish history were dark, fantastical and eerie accounts about cruel and mischievous fairies who would leave their young in place of human babies, as ‘changelings’. This world abounded with magic - hazelnuts that give the power of invisibility and curses that cause boys to dance to their death.These legends also feature brave and ingenious girls who figure out how to rescue the sick and cursed through their own wits and knowledge of the natural world.Further informationThe Changeling is published by Penguin Random House.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer of Conversations is Nicola Harrison.You can listen to Kate's previous Conversations interviews on the tangled roots of fairytales, the dark and violent origins of beloved fairytales, the Russian tale of Vasilisa the Wise and her nemesis, the witch Baba Yaga, the story of a blood red rose, The intrepid and curious Charlotte Waring Atkinson, Psyche, the curious and brave goddess of the soul.This episode touches on witch trials, burning of witches, neolithic stones, storytelling, violence against women, cunning folk, ken, kenning, runes, being in touch with the seasons, old women, prayers, spells, rowan tree, faeries, fairies, fairy queen, changeling, autism, neurodivergent, neurodiverse, dauphin, King James, King James Bible, To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Travel writer Pico Iyer was at the peak of his career when an accidental layover at Narita airport saw him begin to question everything.Pico began flying around the world solo at the age of nine.His parents lived in America and he had become a boarder at the Dragon School in Oxford.To get to school and from school he took several flights each year alone.The formative experience of travel stayed with him, and he grew up to become a journalist and travel writer for Time Magazine.Further informationThis episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2020.Autumn Light: a season of Fire and Farewells is published by Bloomsbury.This episode was produced by Nicola Harrison. The Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Paul Kelly, Editor-at-Large of The Australian, investigates how the country went from the great reform age under Hawke, Keating and Howard, into the tumultuous Abbott-Turnbull-Morrison era of prime ministers, and arrived at the current existential crisis facing the Liberal Party.Paul started his career as a political journalist in the 1970s and was at old Parliament House when Gough Whitlam was dismissed.In his latest book, Paul examines how the Liberal Party lost its long-standing grip on the Australian psyche between 2013 and 2022, as it cycled through three temperamentally and ideologically divergent prime ministers. He says that despite its many achievements, the Coalition in office was marked by a period of under-performance and doubts over the political system's capacity to serve the national interest.Paul looks at the factors underpinning the current crisis besetting the Coalition and the reasons why Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison all struggled to govern, in very different ways.Further informationThe Twilight of Exceptionalism: The Liberal and Conservative Era 2013 - 2022 is published by Melbourne University Press.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. Conversations' Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.This episode covers Liberal party crisis, Barnaby Joyce, One Nation, conservatism, populism, populist, same sex marriage plebiscite, postal survey, carbon tax, Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd, covid19, covid, conservative politics, conservatism, MH17, Putin, Ukraine, mossad, ASIS, budget, NDIS, Gonski, Prince Philip, knighthood, Scotty from marketing, China, AUKUS, Albanese, To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Wongaibon woman, Gayle Kennedy tells the story of her childhood, punctuated by years of treatment for polio. A bright child, she blitzed school and was drawn to comic book writing, which led to an award-winning career as an author.Gayle was two when she contracted polio. The family was living in a camp outside Condobolin when little Gayle collapsed at her aunt’s house.Gayle’s mother was in hospital at the time, where she had given birth to Gayle’s younger brother. She ran from the hospital to her sickly toddler, and brought Gayle in for treatment.Gayle was sent to Sydney and spent six months in an iron lung, a mechanical respirator that covered her whole body, leaving her head exposed.For years she would return to Sydney for follow up therapy. Gayle was a bright student who overcame racism at school and after she graduated she worked with the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, then set up the Ivanhoe Land Council.During this time, Gayle was introduced to Streetwize Comics, which inspired to give writing a go and got a job as a comic book writer.Years later, Gayle became unwell again, and she was diagnosed with post-polio syndrome.She was miserable and suffering, and when she joined the NDIS her life changed for the better.She started writing stories that were published in the Sydney Morning Herald and went on to win the David Unaipon Award for her book Me, Antman and Fleabag.Further informationThis episode was produced by Rebecca McLaren. The Executive Producer of Conversations is Nicola Harrison.This episode contains reference to father's love, mother's love, polio, post-polio syndrome, Abbotsford station, Ivanhoe, Wangaaypuwan, Royal Flying Doctor Service, rehabilitation, children's hospital, kind nurses, long drop toilet, racism, Catholic school, Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, cousins, nepotism, Balmain, NDIS, scooter, how to drink in the park, Redfern, blackfellas, saying yes, giving things a go.To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Troy grew up travelling between two very different worlds with his Indigenous mum and his Maltese Dad. At just 17 he started on his path to becoming one of Australia's biggest country music stars (R) CW: Mentions suicide, please take care when listeningTroy Cassar-Daley is a proud Gumbaynggirr and Bundjalung man, and one of Australia's most beloved country music stars.As a 17-year-old musician just starting out, Troy joined a band called Little Eagle. Soon afterwards, he won the Tamworth Starmaker Quest, and within a few years, Troy was a fully-fledged country music star.In his long career, Troy has won 40 Golden Guitars and 5 ARIA Awards, among many other accolades. In his most recent album, Between the Fires, Troy digs deep into his own family history, with songs of grief, love and connection.Further informationTroy is touring now - more details hereHelp and support is always availableIf you need to talk, 24/7 crisis support is available from Lifeline by calling 13 11 14.You can also text and chat online with counsellors here.

Writer Anita Heiss has based her novel  Dirrayawadha on stories from the 1800s during the frontier wars in Bathurst, when martial law was declared.

The filmmaker on her series which documents a period some historians call the most important war Australia has ever fought in.Rachel Perkins is one of this country's great storytellers, translating distinctively Australian stories for the screen, including a television series first released in 2022 called The Australian Wars.It tracks the bloody conflicts that broke out across the continent after the arrival of the British colonists.Rachel says these are the most important wars in our history: they were fought on Australian soil, between Australians, to determine the ownership and control of the entire country.The stories from this era are stories of violence, of peace, of epic adventures, which make up the foundational narrative of this nation.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2022 Further InformationThe Australian Wars is available to watch on SBS on Demand.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris, the Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores Aboriginal history, British colonial history, frontier wars, the Native Police, death, conflict, grief, Australian history, guns, violence, land ownership, control, documentary

Tagalaka man, Victor Steffensen on the ‘walking encyclopedias’ — dear old men he met who entrusted him with their decades of cultural knowledge and taught him to apply the right traditional burn for the right environment, so Country can thrive. Victor advocates for small, cool fires that emit white smoke. This is something Indigenous people have done for tens of thousands of years to help Country survive and thrive.Victor was a young man who wasn’t sure which direction to take when two elders in Far North Queensland took him under their wing.He was hungry for knowledge and a beautiful, trusting relationship grew between the three men. The old men poured their expertise into Victor, who captured it all on videotape.Today Victor teaches all around the country, using traditional methods on how to safely burn the landscape so plants, animals and people can flourish.Further informationThe Knowledge: Learning from ancestral wisdom to save our challenging global environment is published by Allen & Unwin.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. This episode covers Indigenous elders, cultural knowledge, doubt, backburning, bushfires, fuel load, drip torch, cool burn, mosaic burn, everything is connected, sacred knowledge, climate change, native grasses, crocodile country, knowledge sharing, Indigenous knowledge systems, NAIDOC week, lost language, mentors, Indigenous rangers, Kuranda, camping, fishing.To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

For 40 years, crime was the only constant in Lincoln Lynch’s life, until a prison stint forced him to look inward and change the trajectory of his life for good.His young mum went to prison for dealing drugs when Lincoln was little, and eventually he followed in her footsteps.Lincoln endured periods of homelessness and institutionalised abuse as a teenager, and he became a teen father, before winding up in prison himself.There, in his cell, Lincoln discovered God’s teachings about compassion and forgiveness, and he resolved to leave prison a different man.On the outside, he was given practical, real-life support to re-establish his life at a halfway house in Sydney called Rainbow Lodge.With new-found confidence and purpose, Lincoln started studying psychology, fell in love and is now working at the lodge, helping other men find their way outside of prison.Content Warning: this episode of Conversations contains discussion about childhood abuse and sexual assault.More information about Rainbow Lodge can be found online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Rebecca McLaren and Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores judicial system, justice system, recidivism, substance abuse, heroin, meth, speed, homelessness, sleeping rough, childhood abuse, sexual assault, sexuality, institutional abuse, mother son relationships, grief, drug dealing, crime, guilty verdict, prison system, prison sentence, serving time, changing your life, turning your life around, love, relationships, fatherhood, psychology, Vince Hurley, policing, criminology, intergenerational trauma, God, spirituality, reform.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

The inaugural winner of Alone Australia on her life as a creative, outrageous, nature-loving misfit who grew up to live through great depths of love and grief. Warning: Discusses the death of a child.In 2023, Gina Chick spent 67 days by herself, in the wilderness of Tasmania’s West Coast, surviving on worms, fish, and one unlucky wallaby.After those 67 days, Gina became the first-ever winner of a reality show on SBS called Alone Australia, but her approach to the competition was very different from the other contestants.For Gina, the wild was not an enemy to be overcome but a place with no hierarchy, where she feels completely herself.It’s always been that way, since she was a 'weird' little girl with a rare affinity with birds and nature.As an adult, Gina spent years inside Sydney’s queer club scene and working for an all-girl security firm, but life changed completely for Gina when she became a mother herself.Further informationIf you need support after listening to this story, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14.Gina's book We are the Stars was published by Simon & Schuster in 2024.The Executive Producer of Conversations is Nicola Harrison.This episode explores motherhood, parenting, reality television, Alone Australia, winner of Alone, hunting, survival, did Gina catch the wallaby? adoption, adoptees, Kiama, South Coast NSW, ADHD, birds, neurodiversity, bad boyfriends, debt, sexually transmitted debt, scent, pheromones, younger men, Oxford Street, survival, nightclubs, podium dancing, synaesthesia, breast cancer.To binge even more great episodes of the 'Conversations podcast' with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Nuking the moon, putting mirrors in space and blowing up the Polar ice caps are just some of history's hairbrained schemes to control the weather, an obsession man has had since the dawn of time.As a major heatwave tears through Europe, millions of people are frantically trying to stay cool, or praying for some relief. Their desperation is not new.For thousands of years, human civilisations have been obsessed with trying to control the weather, to stave off drought and famine, in order to survive.There are ancient tales of great kings who could part the oceans, and deities who would bring down the rain if they were presented with the right kind of sacrifice.But it wasn’t until the last century that we suddenly had the technology to actually do these kinds of things, or at least attempt to do them.Some of these wild ideas - to bring water to the desert, drain the Mediterranean Sea to make farmlands, simply make Russia a warmer place to live - have involved blowing up the Polar ice caps, putting mirrors in space, and nuking the moon.They sound dangerous and unlikely, but some of them have come true.And now, many people are at work on brand new gigantic geo-engineering solutions to counteract the effects of the warming planet.Palaeontologist and explorer, Tim Flannery, has been tracking the progress of some of these schemes.A Brief History of Climate Folly, written with Emma Flannery, is published by Text Publishing.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores weird science, crazy science, Elon Musk, China, Trump, feats of engineering, space exploration, the human ego, wild weather events, magic, supernatural, religion, God, divinity, human sacrifice, famine, starvation, migration, global warming, climate change, European heatwave, Paris heatwave, fossil fuel, deforestation, COP, climate change policy, sea levels, floods, Summer, water, gas, electricity, solar power, politics, renewables.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

John Hockney's memoir gives a rare insight into the unusual life of one of the world's most famous artists.He grew up in the industrial town of Bradford in Northern England and was one of five children in a creative household, led by his iconoclastic father Kenneth, a conscientious objector who always told his children to 'never worry what the neighbours think'.During the war, there were many shortages. As child, John's brother David would creep downstairs in the morning and draw on whatever paper was available.He drew figures, streets, houses, landscapes and cartoons on the white edge of the newspaper, his mother's magazines, or whatever comics arrived that day.When David got his first sketchbook at the age of 10, his parents realised his drawing was much more than compulsive doodling.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2020Further InformationJohn Hockney's memoir is called The Hockneys: Never Worry About What the Neighbours Think

For more than a century, Melbourne's Abbotsford Convent was occupied by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, and the "wayward" girls and orphans they took care of. Patricia Sykes was one of those girls.She was dropped off at the orphanage with her three sisters in the early 1950s after their mother died.Their father couldn't afford to take care of four girls at home, but wanted them to stay together, so an orphanage felt like his only option.As a girl, Patricia, a gifted student who loved music and words, desperately wanted to escape the convent.But later in life, after finally finishing school and then university as a mother and mature student, Patricia returned to Abbotsford Convent.As a poet in residence, Patricia went back on her own terms to hear and to tell the stories of dozens of women who passed through its doors, and to interrogate her own understanding of her time with the nuns.Patricia's collection of poetry is called The Abbotsford Mysteries. You can find information about all of Patricia's books online.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores religion, Christianity, Catholicism, Australia of yesteryear, modern history, Melbourne, Victoria, nunnery, orphanages, grief, sisterhood, education, women's rights, motherhood, losing a mother, the Queen, writing, books, late life career change.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.