Podcast Episodes

A bulldog on the ice -- Eric's journey from the South Pole to Outer Space

Eric Philips has always loved cold weather and from young age became fixated on the idea of polar exploration and following in the footsteps of the adventurers he read about in National Geographic.

An…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Encore: Love, sex and the secret life of retirees

Screenwriter Samantha Strauss on her grandmother's vibrant last years in a Gold Coast retirement home where love, sex and startlingly pragmatic conversations about dying were all part of daily life. …

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Making peace and finding laughter in my family's dark past

Reuben Kaye has always known he was going to be a performer and grew up a house that encouraged his love of the limelight.  But in the background was the weight of his family history full of complica…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Loving and losing three good men—the story of a ballerina called 'Blossom'

Petal Ashmole Winstanley was just a teenager when she left Perth on her own to sail to London. There, in the swinging 1960s, she began her wild adventure of dance, love and heartbreak.

Petal got her f…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

The conspiracy that brought down the Whitlam Government in the 1975 dismissal

Editor-at-large of The Australian, Paul Kelly looks back at the most profound crisis in Australia’s democracy, including the off-the-record information he was given five days before it took place.

In …

Published on 1 month, 4 weeks ago

Silverchair’s Ben Gillies on his life as a teenage rock god, and what happened next

When Ben Gillies was 15 he began touring around the world in his band called Silverchair. After the band broke up, Ben had to work through anxiety and addiction to make an entirely new life for himse…

Published on 1 month, 4 weeks ago

Encore: Meet Ash Barty's mindset coach — Ben Crowe

How does Ben Crowe get elite athletes to the top of their game? What he asks footballers, surfers and tennis players to do seems counter intuitive, and a lot of the work happens off the field. (R)

Ben…

Published on 2 months ago

Uncovering the heart of my Nana’s saltwater stories

Actor and author Tasma Walton was enjoying her big break on TV show Blue Heelers in the 1990s in Melbourne when a transformative visit from her grandmother launched her in a new direction.

Boonwurrung…

Published on 2 months ago

William Dalrymple's own curious history, from the Scottish coast to Mughal Delhi

Historian William Dalrymple had a rarefied childhood on the windswept coast of Scotland. As an adult he fell in love with India, and later discovered his family's own deep ties to the country.

Born in…

Published on 2 months ago

The drama and the grit behind Michelle Payne's ride into Melbourne Cup history

Ten years ago, Michelle Payne became the first woman to win The Melbourne Cup but in the years since she's had to face many challenges, including a life threatening injury and family heartbreak.  For…

Published on 2 months ago