20 Minutes To Nowhere

It was worth the wait for our next ep. Meet Sami Shah, ex CD of Ogilvy’s Karachi and the first man in history to delay the taping of Stephen Fry’s global hit quiz show Qi. From what it’s like to have a loaded gun pointed at your head to being called a curry muncher by a racist cult who pay very good Christmas bonus’, you’ll love, love, love the ridiculously talented storyteller, Sami Shah.

Ever wondered what it would be like to be this close to Mick’s lips? To do small talk with a hungover Matt Damon? To witness Meatloaf’s PA wipe his nose for him? Luke Wallis has chatted with them all, and had time to write a book featuring the legends of Aussie rock, from Michael Hutchence to The Angels. Forgot the ‘Rona. Spend 20 minutes with Luke, and all will be well in your world once more. *whatever that means.

Wondering what to do this summer? Relax. Listen to some of 2019’s favourite moments in the 20 Minutes to Nowhere Summer Special. You’ll hear about Mel Kerr hiding inside a dog suit as bagpipe players get naked, the wonderful Cezary Skubizewski muse about life and music, how Nic Desira swam the English Channel and so much more. So slip slop slap, lay your towel on the sand, pop the buds in and go absolutely nowhere.

What does it take to be an Olympic gymnast at just 14? To perform before a global audience in the hundreds of millions. To be a perfectionist, only to have your dream ended by injury at 16? And then to chat about it over misschu chicken salad, years later? You’ll do backflips after having lunch with the truly amazing, most wonderful ever, Lisa Moro.

If you’ve ever despaired at the world, and wondered how to fix it, have a vegie curry with Alex Wadelton. He’s an Independent Creative Director, and, annoyingly, a chronic over-achiever. Alex co-campaigned against the Woolies plastic Ooshies phenomenon and co-created the Nicky Winmar statue, forever immortalising an iconic moment in race relations in Australia. Intelligent, passionate and motivating, prepare to have your life challenged.

Have you ever swum to France? No, same here. Ever wanted to? No, same again. Then again, you and I are not art director, elite athlete and wonderful person, Nicholas Desira. He swim the English Channel in Force 5 conditions in the middle of the night. If you’ve ever been slapped on the head by a wave, or harboured big life goals and don’t know how to achieve them, don’t miss getting waterlogged with this amazing man.

How could we not split this episode into two parts? In Part 2, we reveal what Cezary’s Skubizewski’s has for lunch. Will it be Japanese? Yet, we delve even deeper. Our charming guest tells us about his work for ad agencies, including the meeting he attended straight after a major car crash that caused him to be violently ill while presenting his music. Don’t miss a second of our catch up with this wonderful man, who ultimately attempts to take over the show.

In 1960s Warsaw, Cezary Skubizewski’s aunt returned from Italy with Ray Charles' single ‘Hit the road, Jack’. The young, classically trained pianist’s life was forever changed. Cezary discovered the blues, jazz, emigrated to Melbourne, rode a horse naked in Northern NSW and has composed the score for many Australian films including Bran Nue Dae and The Sapphires.

For decades Mike and his team at Mike Reed Post Production were the busiest editors in the business. Mike takes us back to those 80 hour weeks, smoking five packs of cigarettes a day, trying to control directors and creatives. He talks about being a father to profoundly deaf children, the fire that gutted his business, and his photography which reveals his true and honest self.

We're going hard rock this week with Mikey Tucker from Berlin, Creative Director, lead singer and rock star with Mammoth Mammoth playing to over 5000 people on the weekends.

Ever wanted to be a jury member at the Cannes Advertising Awards? In this week’s episode we chat with Fiona Leeming, just back from the 66th Festival of Creativity. She discusses the Restaurant of the Mistaken Orders, taking the Concorde from London to New York, and the joy of the work.

Is talking in a bad Japanese accent, racist? What do VO artist’s think when the creative doesn’t like their read? Meet Brett Swain, the man who was in 53 episodes of Neighbours, as three different characters, yet no one noticed.

Creative Director of Creative Technology at global powerhouse PWC. Childrens’ book author. Humanitarian. Mel is living the life of a truly creative person. In this episode she her experiences in the war-ravaged hell hole that is the DRC and what it’s like to be trapped inside a deflating dog suit.

Advertising isn’t important, unless you work on the Transport Accident Commission account for 17 years. Nigel takes us from his boarding school years at the UK’s most prestigious Jesuit school to a remarkable career in Australia, saving lives. Elegant, funny and wise, go nowhere with Nigel Dawson.

What would you do if, in your first week in advertising, a male co-worker flashes you in his trench coat? Over margherita pizza, Emma takes us through Quaker schools, pashing your art director, women in advertising, and her wonderful addiction to awesome work.