Podcast appearances and mentions of Richard Fidler

Science writer David Epstein on why freedom can be the enemy of success and how we can all benefit from less choice, not more.We live today with vastly more freedom of choice than our ancestors.But there's also plenty of research telling us all this choice is making us more anxious, overwhelmed and less creative.In his book, Inside the Box, David makes the case for how constraints can unlock creativity and satisfaction.And why after writing this book he now believes that narrowing your options can truly set you free.Further InformationInside the Box: How Constraints Make Us Better is published by MacmillanYou can learn more about David Epstein hereThis episode was produced by Jen Leake and the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores creativity, innovation, creative burnout, relationships, technology, art, music, rules, deadlines, science, General Magic, Apple, Iphone, sport, choice, anxiety, creative thinking, rules.

Anna Dombkins was 25 years old, when she and her husband happened on a television program about adoption which would completely change their lives. CW: this episode of Conversations discusses adoption.It was a documentary investigating the unimaginable conditions of some orphanages in China.The newly married couple felt compelled to adopt, but because they already had biological children, it was near impossible to adopt in Australia.The newly married couple felt compelled to adopt children who had no other family support, but because they already had biological children, it was near impossible to adopt in Australia.While living in the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro for a number of years, Anna saw how many children were coming into local orphanages not because they were unwanted or because their biological parents had died, but because their families simply couldn't afford to take care of them.So, since returning to Australia and becoming a mother to her sixth child, Anna became the founding director of Forever Projects, a charity supporting Tanzanian women in poverty, so they can live independently, care for and keep their babies without having to resort to adoption.Forever Projects has since helped more than 3,000 babies remain with their families.Home Forever: Adoption, hope and the mountains we're all climbing is published by Pepper Press, Fair Play Publishing.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores families, motherhood, fostering, overseas adoption, fatherhood, siblings, blended families, cultural awareness, Australian adoption policy, faith, religion, Christianity, serving the community, marriage, love, intergenerational, grandparents, grief, cancer, Moshi, Forever Angels Baby Home, five under five, lawyers, legal system.

Country music artist Kasey Chambers has spent her life making music and connecting with audiences.  It's what she believes she was put on the earth to do.Growing up Kasey and her family spent much of the year camping and roaming the Nullabor Plain where her dad would hunt for foxes and rabbits.She started singing around the campfire as a little girl and went to sleep to the sound of her father's rifle as he worked through the night.Singing came naturally to Kasey, and she loved all the old country classics, as well as some Cyndi Lauper and Bruce Springsteen.The title of Kasey's memoir is a tribute to her father and the most important piece of advice she's ever received.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2024.Further Information Just Don't Be A D**khead is published by Hardie Grant.You can learn more about Kasey's music hereThis episode of Conversations explores family, childhood, growing up in rural Australia, music, singing, country music, camping, hunting foxes and rabbits, fathers, guitar, Cyndi Lauper, Bruce Springsteen, ARIA Hall of Fame, eating disorders, 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, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

James O'Loghlin had only just reconnected with one of his best and oldest friends, Jum Wallner, when Jum received some terrible news. What began next was a high stakes race with a fatal deadline.The two men had grown up in Canberra, where thousands of homes had been filled with asbestos, which was often carelessly installed and removed.Jum himself had grown up in one of these so-called "Mr Fluffy" homes, named after the local company that had installed the carcinogenic insulation.When Jum felt a pain in his side, it wasn't long before the father of two and husband was diagnosed with mesothelioma and given months to live.Jum had discovered that if you got sick from being exposed to asbestos in your workplace you were entitled to compensation, but if it came from your home, you got nothing.So Jum asked his old friend James for some help to petition the powers that be to help asbestos victims like himself and their families.James began a race against time, trying to convince both the ACT and Federal governments to help Jum and others, in the middle of a pandemic, before it was too late.Along the way, James and Jum reconnected deeply as friends who desperately wished they had more time together.The Missing Piece is published by Echo Publishing.More information about the Loose-Fill Asbestos Disease Support Scheme can be found at the ACT Government's website. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores friendship, male friendship, university days, terminal disease, James Hardie, cancer, terminal diagnosis, how to grieve a friend, activism, petition governments, Covid, pandemic, Greg Hunt, Angus Taylor, compensation, accidental activist, dying friends, mourning, funerals, Andrew Barr, ALP, Labor party, Liberals, bipartisan, Albanese, politics, Auspol, burnout, diagnosis.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.

Peter Hoysted, AKA Jack the Insider is back with a look at the humorous and bizarre stories of the newspaper founded in 1979 by a former CIA officer.“174 MPH SNEEZE BLOWS OFF WOMAN'S HAIR”, “BABY BORN WITH TATTOO”, “GARDEN OF EDEN FOUND!”These were some of the fantastical headlines that led the comedic black and white US tabloid, Weekly World News (WWN).Peter Hoysted, AKA Jack the Insider is a true crime writer and a columnist for The Australian. He was a fan of the nonsensical reporting during its hard copy days, and even started his own journal along similar lines in Australia.Peter tells the story of Generoso Pope Jr, the ex-CIA officer who founded WWN in 1979 and entertained readers with fictional news stories, often with a paranormal slant.Further informationYou can read Weekly World News online.Listen to previous Conversations interviews with Jack the Insider: Chow Hayes, Australia's first gangster (2017), the Fine Cotton affair (2019) and the disgraced former police detective Roger Rogerson (2024).This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.This episode covers aliens, alien love child, Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton, satirical news, fake news, comedy, giggle, Elvis, newspapers, newsgathering, bigfoot, mermaids, man-fish, CIA, conspiracy theory, David Icke, lizard people.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go ABC listen (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.

Gonzo journalist and writer John Safran on why he decided to squat in a Hollywood mansion belonging to Kanye West.John Safran has made a career out of getting into places he probably shouldn't be, from breaking into Disney Land, to infiltrating fascist strongholds in Australia.A couple of years ago, one of his journalistic expeditions saw him squatting in an abandoned Hollywood mansion belonging Kanye West.John had seen a clip of the hip hop start denying the Holocaust, defending Adolf Hitler, and claiming that Black people cannot be anti-Semitic because they are actually Jewish.His week writing and snooping in this strange house, with no running water and a vulture in the roof, made John go increasingly loopy as he tried to understand what pushed this critically acclaimed artist from celebrity eccentric to seriously 'out there'.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2024It explores Kanye West, Judaism, antisemitism, Hollywood, hip hop, Christianity, Nazism, racism, hip hop, squatting, the Donda Academy, journalism, Adidas, money, fame, documentary, writing, the Holocaust, mental health, celebrity, mansionsFurther informationSquat is published by Penguin.

Everyone knows the story of the Titanic. But one quintessentially Australian story of survival, love and adventure lay dormant for more than a century before journalist and author Lisa Wilkinson raised it from the depths of the Atlantic.Everyone knows the story of the Titanic - the biggest, most magnificent, most expensive ship ever built.It was meant to be unsinkable. But when it hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic, it sank, killing 1500 people.For more than 100 years, the tragedy has inspired filmmakers, historians and explorers to unearth the incredible human stories of love, survival and class warfare.But for much of that time, there was one story that seemed to have been hidden amongst the wreckage, until journalist and author Lisa Wilkinson raised it from the bottom of the Atlantic.This is the story of Evelyn Marsden, the only Australian survivor of the sinking of the Titanic, and the real Titanic love story that shaped the rest of her life.The Titanic Story of Evelyn is published by Hachette.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores history, Australian stories, Jack and Rose, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, shipwrecks, survival stories, love stories, non-fiction books, modern history, David Cameron, OceanGate, submersible, submarine disaster, Bondi, 20th century Australia, nurses, nursing, doctors, working on cruise ships, adventurous women, falling in love.

Molly's niche career began over a decade ago when she entered a whistling competition on a whim and she now performs all over the world. Her music sits somewhere between birdsong and the soundtrack to a film noir.Born in Sydney, Molly moved to Hollywood as a baby before returning to Australia for high school in Byron Bay. Once she realised her talent was more than just a hobby for family and friends, she began performing live with musicians in LA and has collaborated with the likes of Dr Dre, Beck and Karen O. Mark Ronson even asked her to whistle on the Barbie soundtrack.Now Molly is at the centre of a new documentary, Whistle, which follows whistlers from around the world as they prepare for the Masters of Musical Whistling competition.This episode of Conversations was produced by Jen Leake, the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores whistling, music, art, film soundtracks, Hollywood, LA, Byron Bay, whistling competitions, African Grey Parrots, Mark Ronson, Barbie, Alessandro Alessandroni, Ennio Morricone, The Good the Bad the Ugly, Harry Dean Stanton, Cafe Molly, John C Reilly,African Grey Parrots, Mark LewisTo 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.

Marele Day is a novelist, but as a young woman looking for adventure, she hitchhiked on a catamaran sailing from Darwin to Sri Lanka.The skipper was a Frenchman, named Jean Day, who revealed on board that he had once done jail time for hijacking a plane.What she only found out later, was that Jean was a fugitive on the run from another high-profile crime.Further informationMarele Day's memoir is called RecklessThis episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2023The producer was Sinead Lee and the EP was Carmel RooneyIt explores sailing, risk taking, adventure, young women, the ocean, criminals, hijacking planes, deception, being French, lies, Sri Lanka, writing a memoir, high profile crime, financial fraud.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.

Clinical psychologist and men's mental health researcher Zac Seidler on how boys are being fed increasingly inflammatory content online, and what men can do IRL to offer a version of masculinity that is healthy and vulnerable, instead of hard and dangerous.Many young men are taking a journey on the internet right now which starts with inoffensive self-improvement videos on platforms like YouTube and TikTok, but quickly becomes something else entirely.Young guys are searching the internet for fitness, grooming or relationship advice, looking for self-esteem and self-discipline. The algorithm then tries to sustain their attention by offering them more inflammatory and more dangerous content, presented by influencers with cigars and sunglasses, who give them an ideology that blames women for all of their problems.This is the loose digital ecosystem that has been named the 'manosphere', and it's leading people to wonder what exactly is going on with men that they're being drawn into a dark place and ideology that completely alienates them from women and from real life experience.Zac Seidler is a clinical psychologist and the director of research at Movember, the men's mental health charity, and he is particularly interested in men's issues.Zac has conducted some world-first research into this online world, asking the questions 'What need is this content meeting?', and how can men be empowered to pull themselves, their sons and their mates out of this dangerous cycle.Keep up to date with the research Zac is doing via Movember, the leading charity changing the face of men's health.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores manhood, masculinity, toxic masculinity, sons, fatherhood, men's mental health, men's suicide rates, depression, Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson, Myron Gaines, Rollo, Joe Rogan, social media algorithms, Instagram, chronically online, touch grass, grief, death, sex and relationships, isolation, vulnerability, how to talk openly about mental health struggles, men and boys, mothers and sons, Looksmaxxing, Clavicular, becoming a father, marriage, love, husbands, how to be a better man, empathetic accountability, Breadtube, Contrapoints, Hbomberguy, and PhilosophyTube.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 former Australian of the Year and pioneering cancer researcher, died from brain cancer on Sunday evening.Richard was a world-leading melanoma pathologist and cancer researcher.After his own aggressive brain cancer was diagnosed in 2023, Richard volunteered to be 'patient zero' in an experimental medical approach, which applied some of the discoveries he and his team had made in melanoma treatment. Richard credited much of his determination, optimism, and humility, to his childhood in Tasmania.Sarah spoke with Richard in 2024.Richard's memoir is called Brainstorm.This episode of Conversations explores cancer research, melanoma treatment, brain tumour, neurosurgery, recovery. radiation, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, Australian of the Year, death, grief, terminal illness, pioneering research, family, great Australians, open letters.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.

Growing up in Tokyo, Hiroko Yoda  never thought of herself as religious, but after her mother died, she began exploring the spiritual traditions of her homeland.She was inspired by the Shinto idea that there are '8 million spiritual beings', animating everything we encounter.In the different practices of Shintoism, Buddhism, and Shugendo, Hiroko found practical means of emotional support, and also ways of making her everyday life more beautiful.Further informationHiroko Yoda's book is called Eight Million Ways to Happiness This episode explores Japan, spirituality, psychology, Shintoism, Buddhism, Shugendo, family, grief, healing, religion, walking, parents, death, Tokyo, emotional 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.

Dan Rankine (aka 'trials') was the only little Aboriginal boy living in his rural Welsh village when he woke up shaking from a nightmare. That's when he and his mother knew they needed to go home to Adelaide.Dan is now one of Australia's most respected hip hop producers, writers and rappers.Born in Adelaide, Dan spent his early years on the other side of the world - in the rolling, green hills of rural Wales - with his mum, who had fled there from Dan's violent father in the middle of the night.Far from his Ngarrindjeri connections, and with no one around who looked like him, Dan felt isolated.After an unexplained nightmare, he and his mum decided to move back to Adelaide, where things didn't suddenly become perfect.But a car crash, which could have been tragic, became an incredible turning point in Dan's life, allowing him to buy his first set of turntables.And at 16 years old, Dad set himself on the path to becoming 'trials', performing, writing and producing with and for artists like the Funkoars, Hilltop Hoods, Archie Roach and A.B. Original.Dan has recently stepped out on his own, to release his debut solo album Hendle - something of an origin story, full of honesty, pain and passion.Hendle is out now. Dan is set to publish an accompanying memoir later this year.Keep up to date with Dan's music, art and tour dates at on his Instagram page.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores First Nations excellence, substance abuse, family violence, domestic violence, cultural education, blended families, Briggs, Paul Kelly, Gurrumul, childhood trauma, art, expression, alcoholism, fatherhood, love, grief, estrangement, Australian hip-hop, Dune Rats, DZ Deathrays, TV and film soundtrack, systemic racism, justice system, violent crime, art as therapy, painting, memoir, writing, book, sobriety, poetry, Dan Sultan, triple J, Reclaim Australia, Aus Music Month, how to write songs, dark humour, growing up, becoming a man, journalling, self improvement, metaphysical, the Dreaming, belonging, prison, incarceration, beats, NWA, Wu Tang Clan.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.

Erna Walraven was one of the first female zookeepers to work at Sydney's Taronga Zoo in the 1980s. She ignored practical jokes from her male colleagues, like animal dung in her gumboots, and this led to career highlights like travelling the globe to select the zoo's next gorilla patriarch. (R)Erna was born in The Netherlands, to parents who were involved in the Dutch resistance during World War II.Erna's love of languages took her to Spain, where she lived for many years with her widowed sister and young nephew.It was there she met a penniless Australian backpacker and fell in love, starting Erna on the path to the rest of her life.Further informationOriginally broadcast May 2025.Hear Me Roar was published by Affirm Press in 2025.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer was Nicola Harrison.This episode touches on feminism, sexism, animals, breeding gorillas, zoos, captive animals, Dutch resistance, marry an Australian, Spain, love of languages, history and Europe.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 Gamilaroi journalist on the tiny coalmining town that made her and still sustains her, how eating worms led to a job on breakfast TV, and why she's aiming to be a good ancestor in the deep future.Brooke grew up in Muswellbrook, a coal mining town in NSW.She was a smart, high-achieving kid, doing every extra-curricular activity she could fit in.Despite this, she dropped out of high school and didn't finish her education.After a couple of lost years, a kind boyfriend introduced Brooke to the idea of journalism, and suddenly, she was raring to go, earning jobs in the press gallery in Canberra for NITV, and on triple j, reading the news.Brooke was at the height of her career, doing entertainment news on the Today show on Nine, when she made a decision that seemed to come out of left field.In 2024 Brooke suddenly quit her high-profile job to take up an offer to study at Oxford University.Oxford presented the opportunity to complete the unfinished business of her education after being robbed of her academic potential in high school. In continuing to study, Brooke is focused on a life to be a not only a good auntie and sister but also a good ancestor for future generations.Further informationBrooke's book of essays, All of It: Notes on public life, private joy and everything in between was published by Joan, an imprint of Allen & Unwin.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.This episode touches on the Voice to Parliament referendum, Aboriginal, language, climate change, Indigenous knowledge systems, aunty, ancestors, single mum, DV, domestic violence, work experience, political reporter, Tony Abbott, the news cycle, Canberra, the press gallery, parliament house, UTS, family, nieces, nephews, deep time, deep future, raise the age, age of criminal responsibility, children in prison, children in detention, Socratic method, philosophical argument, economics and politics.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 advisor Ed Coper on the cold-blooded machine that is feeding angry people angry content online to make them even angrier, and what we can do about it.Ed Coper is a political advisor and communications consultant who has worked for the Australian Labor Party, and for progressive lobby groups.Over the past few years, he has noticed what everyone else has - people on both sides of the divide becoming increasingly vocal and angry about their politics online.While there's no shortage of things to get outraged about in today's world, no matter where you lie on the political spectrum, Ed argues our rage is being monetised cold-bloodedly by social media platforms.This digital, online machine has planted us in what he calls the era of 'angertainment', where an entire outrage industry is harvesting our worst impulses with algorithms that deliberately trigger the caveman switch in our brains that keeps us alert for potential threats.But there is an antidote.Ed says we need to understand this machine in order to build guardrails that preserve democracy, heal divisions and protect future generations from the "angry clowns" who currently rule the attention economy.Angertainment is published in Simon and Schuster.This episode of Conversations explores politics, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, divisive society, social cohesion, left versus right, attention spans, war, Trump, Putin, Gaza, Israel, Ukraine, elections, World War 3, the future, chronically online, rage bait, internet trolls, keyboard warriors, content farming, bots, Russia, Musk, Zuckerberg, Bezos, Get Up, populism, political ideology, transgender issues, attention economy, MAGA, the woke left, polarised society, family violence, violence against women, misogyny, entertainment industry, Hollywood, nihilism, conservatives, progressives.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 former Canberra Raiders player on hiding his fantasy reading habits as a kid in Western Queensland, the joy of doing hard things, and how books brought him back from the brink. Warning: Discussion of suicide.Luke was a sensitive kid, growing up on a cattle station in Western Queensland. He loved being transported by fantasy novels — following the quests, battles and magic they offered him.Luke found release in these books, beyond the hard work and zipped lips of the strong men he saw around him.Luke didn't fit into that mould, though he did plenty of work on the farm and loved playing footy. The sport helped him find a place to belong in his world.As a young man, he scored a place in the Canberra Raiders NRL team, and was introduced to the world of gambling.This quickly spiralled into an addiction, and Luke abused drugs and alcohol to numb the pain of this period.Despite being at the height of his young life, and earning hundreds of thousands of dollars each year, Luke couldn't pay for his groceries. He couldn't put fuel in the car. He was spending all his money on betting.When things hit rock bottom, Luke relied on the strongest, most loving person he knew — his mum.He understood, somehow, that to get out of the deep hole he was in, he had to find his way back to reading.Further informationLuke is writing his first two fantasy novels, which will be released in early 2027 under Atria Books Australia, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.If you need someone to speak to, you can always call or chat online with Lifeline on 13 11 14.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.This episode touches on suicide, gambling, having a flutter, addiction, rehab, love mum, strong mum, single mum, horse racing, the trots, syndicate, racing horse, borrowing money, Newcastle, rock bottom, hitting rock bottom, powerless over addiction, hero's journey, MDMA, cocaine, alcohol abuse, relapse, recovery, non-linear journey, toxic masculinity, self help, sensitive man.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.

Jayden Sheridan was just 17 years old when he found out he was going to be a father, and immediately Jayden knew he needed to give his son better opportunities than he ever had growing up in regional Victoria. (R)In Seymour, which is one of the most disadvantaged postcodes in Australia, Jayden experienced homelessness, substance abuse, violence and a general lack of direction. He had no male role models in his life, but he did have the local skate park.It's where he went to feel safe and to feel himself, and Jayden wanted to create that same feeling for his son, and all the other kids in his town of Seymour.What started as adhoc skate lessons quickly turned into Gnarly Neighbours, something far bigger and more impactful than 17-year-old Jayden could have imagined.Jayden has recently been selected as a 2026 Westpac Social Change Fellow. His fellowship involves travelling across the US, Europe and the UK to learn from organisations doing similar work in creative and trauma-informed mentoring for young people.You can learn more about Gnarly Neighbours here.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.This episode of Conversations explores substance abuse, drug use, drug dealing, expulsion, troubled children, mental health, bipolar disorder, teen parenting, teen fatherhood, teen motherhood, skateboarding, skating, streetwear, origin stories, family dynamics, male role models, father figures, dysfunctional families, single parenting, rural and regional Australia, masculinity, manhood, rites of passage, mentoring.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 Wikipedia co-founder has developed seven rules for building trust to create a better world, both on the internet and IRL.Growing up in Huntsville, Alabama, Jimmy was enamoured with his family's Encyclopaedia Britannica.The city was home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Centre, and the energy of the place gave a young Jimmy a robust enthusiasm for technology and the future.As a young man, Jimmy developed the idea to start a free, online encyclopaedia, built by strangers and shared across languages.In 2001, Wikipedia was born, and for a time it was derided.Now, the website is a mainstay of the internet and a resource trusted by many.Jimmy says Wikipedia is all about strangers working together on the internet, in pursuit of a common goal, powered by their shared enthusiasm, and that is something to celebrate.Further informationThe Seven Rules of Trust: Why It Is Today's Most Essential Superpower is published by Bloomsbury.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It covers Twitter, X, trolls, vandalism, respect, civility, not-for-profit, tech bros, volunteers, social media ban, nupedia, servers, bots, AI, meconium aspiration syndrome, authenticity, empathy, logic, abortion, internet traffic, shouting online and civil discussion.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.

Joh Jarvis was a high-flying boss when grief from a terrible loss began to overwhelm her. She tried therapy, exercise and healthy eating. Then she found Vedic meditation, and the experience was 'psychedelic'. (R)Joh Jarvis is a Vedic meditation teacher in New York City.On a regular basis Joh travels to the notorious Rikers Island Prison in the Bronx.There, she teaches meditation to men waiting on remand.Inside a prison which is often violent and chaotic, she aims to give them a new way of coping.Joh grew up in Adelaide, and always wanted to live amidst the bright lights of New York.After a stint as a bicycle courier, she worked her way up to management at the ABC.As she approached 50, she had a well-paying job, a nice house, and strong connections with friends and family. But long-term grief had hollowed her out, and she asked herself, is this all there is?Then she was introduced to Vedic meditation, and she says her first encounter was 'psychedelic'.Read more about Joh's work at Rikers Island and other US prisons at her website The Light Inside.And you can see Joh in action on ABC TV's Compass.This episode of Conversations was produced by Alice Moldovan. Executive Producer was Nicola Harrison.It explores epic life stories, family dynamics, grief, loss, reflection, Vedic meditation, meditation, personal stories, origin stories, death, career, giving back, New York City, Rikers Island prison, incarceration, justice system, prison system, mindfulness, mantras, health and wellness, suicide.

Staff writer at The New Yorker, Patrick Radden Keefe tells the story of Zac Brettler, who inexplicably changed from a charming and hilarious boy into a money- and status-obsessed young man, who mixed with gangsters and shady businessmen.Patrick's new book begins with the description of a scene that was picked up by a surveillance camera in London in the early hours of a November morning in 2019.The footage showed a grainy image of a shadowy figure, anxiously moving about the balcony of a luxury apartment. That young man's name was Zac Brettler. He was 19 years old, and hours later his body was discovered on the banks of the River Thames. Patrick Radden Keefe's investigation explores Zac's secret life posing as the son of a Russian oligarch, and delves into the true identities of the wealthy gangsters who were there in his final hours.Further informationLondon Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City, and a Family's Search for Truth is published by Pan Macmillan Australia.This episode covers grief, fantasy life, con artists, London underworld, Boris Johnson, family tragedy, luxury, Holocaust survivors, rabbi, Mill Hill school, young men, making money, raising boys, Roman Abramovich, oligarch, plutocrat, MI6 and true crime.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 philosopher argues that as a culture, we'd be happier and saner if we re-examined our view of love, because our romantic notions can actually work against the relationships we want most. (R)Alain De Botton's novel from 2016 called The Course of Love challenges many assumptions about falling in love and what comes next.Alain first tackled the subject when he wrote Essays of Love in his early 20s.The episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2016The producer was Michelle Ransom-Hughes and the Executive Producer was Pam O'Brien.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.

At 48, Bill Hayes moved to New York. He took up photography, and never anticipated the surprise of falling in love with his neighbour, Dr Oliver Sacks,  a neurologist, a naturalist and a university professor. (R)Doctor Oliver Sacks became famous for writing case histories of his patients in books, including The Man Who Mistook his Wife for a Hat, and An Anthropologist on Mars.At 75 years old, Oliver had never been in a relationship, until he fell deeply in love with his neighbour Bill Hayes, who was decades younger than him.Bill and Oliver lived together until Oliver Sacks died in 2015, in his early eighties.Further informationBill's memoir Insomniac City was published in 2017 by Bloomsbury.This conversation was recorded at the 2017 Sydney Writers' Festival.The producer was Nicola Harrison and the Executive Producer was Pam O'Brien.

At 25, Peter Goers lost both of his parents after the commercial plane they were travelling in crashed into a suburb of New Orleans shortly after take off.Suddenly, he was required to drop everything to fly to America and identify their bodies, he also spent time the relatives of the other 143 passengers that died in the tragedy.For many years Peter's reaction to losing his parents was expressed through a reckless regard for his own life, before finally learning how to live with himself and the defining tragedy of his life.Peter Goers is a retired ABC broadcaster, he presented The Evening Show on 891 ABC Adelaide for over 20 years.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2023.It was produced by Nicola Harrison and Eliza Kirch is the Executive Producer.Further InformationPeter's memoir, In the Air of the Afternoon is published through Wakefield Press.

For 45 years, George Palmer harboured a secret. He spent every spare moment composing classical music, and then shoving his scores in his bottom drawer. Until one day, almost by pure chance, that music saw the light of day.As a young man, George had dreams of becoming a renowned classical music composer, but when he walked into university, he didn't feel like he belonged in the music department.George left after his first week, and followed a school friend into the law department.At first, George was not inspired by the law, but he ended up falling in love with the human side of the justice system.For the next 45 years, he climbed the ranks from barrister, to Queen's Counsel, and finally to judge in the NSW Supreme Court, where he had ultimate responsibility for all adoptions in the state.But through all those years in public life, George had a secret "vice".Every spare moment he had was spent at his piano, scribbling down choral works and orchestral scores that he never intended anyone to see or hear.He never spoke about composing with his colleagues, friends or family, until one day George's talents were uncovered through chance and tragedy.George's latest work The Drover's Wife - The Opera is playing at Brisbane's QPAC until 22 May, and then will be staged at Sydney's Opera House in August, 2026.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores World War Two, family origin stories, spies, British intelligence, hearing loss, late in life career changes, second career, protective list, adoption, foster care, Supreme Court, legal system, justice system, judicial system, commercial law, Beethoven, Bach, Wagner, opera, contemporary classical music, contemporary Australian composers, Indigenous stories, Leah Purcell, stage adaptations, books, writing.

From muscle paralysis and sleepwalking, to the power of our subconscious, Dr Sutapa Mukherjee takes you into the secret world of sleep.Dr Sutapa Mukherjee is a sleep specialist fascinated by how the time we spend awake is built on the hours we spend horizontal, and totally withdrawn from the world. She trained initially as a respiratory specialist, but moved into sleep research when she realised how little was known about what happens to us when our conscious mind switches off at night. Sutapa helps people to overcome sleep disorders, like insomnia, sleepwalking and narcolepsy, which can sometimes come with a condition known as cataplexy: when laughter or another strong emotion causes someone to instantly collapse into sleep. This episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2024The producer was Meggie Morris and Carmel Rooney was the Executive Producer.It explores sleep, insomnia, sleepwalking, narcolepsy, sleep apnoea, consciousness, cataplexy, mental health, physical health, mental clarity, energy, mood, snoring, respiratory illness, mindfulness, anxietyTo 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 AFLW star Moana Hope has spent her life caring for others, including her dying father and her beloved sister Vinny, who has an intellectual disability. It wasn't until Mo was in her 30s that she realised she needed to learn how to love herself.Content Warning: this episode of Conversations contains discussion of childhood abuse, domestic violence and suicidal ideation.Moana Hope grew up with 13 siblings in a two-bedroom housing commission home in Melbourne's north west.As a little girl, she played football with the boys and then with grown women, and in her 20s she took on full-time caring responsibilities for two of her nephews, as well as her sister, who lives with an intellectual disability.This backstory, along with her natural talent for the game and charisma off the field, helped Mo stand out as a star of the women's game when the AFLW was launched in 2017.Mo was a marquee player for Collingwood in the women's debut season.But she retired earlier than she had planned to.Post-AFLW, Mo had a lot of time to think about herself outside of football, and about the chaos and violence that was normalised in her childhood home.But it wasn't until Mo became a mother herself, that she fully reckoned with her understanding of love.Mo shares intimate snippets from her life on Instagram.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores AFL, the Pies, Melbourne, Glenroy, Maori heritage, Cancer, death, grief, caring, queerness, footy, Hawthorne, women's sports, cricket, mother daughter relationships, mother father relationships, personal work, therapy, inner child work, sisterhood, engineering, female business owners, motherhood, sons and mothers, violence, abuse, financial abuse, Essendon, GWS, Richmond, Adelaide.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.

Australians are living longer and longer, which is on one hand a beautiful thing. But on the other, prolonged old age is wreaking havoc. So how might we respond to this new demographic situation we find ourselves in?Lucinda Holdforth is a writer who specialises in looking at what makes good societies flourish, everything from manners to politics and equality.Most recently, she's set her sights on the unintended negative consequences following the extraordinary increase in life span around the world, particularly in Australia.In the past 50 years, human life expectancy across the globe has jumped from 46 years old to 73, and in Australia that number is even higher -- an Australian born today is likely to live until they are 84 years old.On the surface, living longer is a very good thing. It means more time spent with our loved ones, looking at the stars, feeling the sun, living.But prolonged old age can also be very lonely and painful, and, as Lucinda argues, it is costing society as a whole in many ways.She has seen this firsthand, as a daughter who supported her own parents in their long old age, and has some surprising suggestions about how we could do things differently to ease the impact on our economy, our medical system, our elderly and our youth.GOING ON AND ON: Why our longevity threatens our future is published by Simon & Schuster.This episode was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores the sandwich generation, carers, women caring for parents, the elderly, dementia, Alzheimer's, Bryan Johnson, biohackers, Blue Zone, how to live longer, Mediterranean diet, tech bros, longevity, muscle mass, aging, deterioration, aged care, death, grief, how to live well, writing, books, old age, diseases of the elderly, tax, taxation, ageism, voting rights, voting age, lower the voting age.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.

It was love at first sight, when Jack Ashby first set eyes upon a platypus specimen as a young university student.The introduction set him on a lifelong mission to meet these quintessentially Australian creatures in the wild, and redefine their reputation as "weird" or "primitive".He's met many other animals along the way, coming face to face with an elusive snow leopard family in the Himalayas, with wombats and echidnas, and seeing only the eyes of a sloth bear, reflecting his torchlight in a pitch black forest.Further informationPlatypus Matters is published by Harper CollinsThis episode of Conversations was first broadcast in 2022, the producer was Meggie Morris and the Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores platypus, mammals, zoology, echidnas, Australian animals, Winston Churchill, animal behaviour, Indigenous Australians, baby platypus, the biology and anatomy of platypus, weird animal facts.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.

Antoun Issa grew up quietly aware of a profound grief in his mother's eyes. As an adult, after living and working in the Middle East, he finally knew how to ask her about surviving the Lebanese Civil War.Antoun is a journalist who grew up in the outer suburbs of Melbourne, after his parents had escaped the civil war in Lebanon in the 1970s.Growing up in Craigieburn as the baby of the family, Antoun was particularly close with his mother.He was always conscious of a deep sadness in his mother's eyes, but was wary of asking her too many questions.As an adult, Antoun went to live and work in Lebanon.There, in the Middle East, where he worked as a journalist, Antoun saw firsthand what happens when the trajectory of human life is interrupted by conflict and violence.Upon returning home to Australia, he was finally ready to ask his mother about the source of her quiet and enduring grief, and what came out of her was a remarkable story of true love, true loss and resilience.Upon returning home to Australia, he was finally ready to ask his mother about the source of her quiet and enduring grief, and what came out of her was a remarkable story of true love, true loss and resilience.REBIRTH: A Love Story from the Depths of War is published by Hachette.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores the Middle East, War, Conflict, Beiruit, Israel, PLO, Palestine, United States, civil war, conflict, refugees, religious conflict, Lebanese Christians, Sunni Muslims, Shia Muslims, Mountains, Maronite Christians, politics and religion, proxy wars, Iran, Iraq, Arab-Isreali, Saudi, Cold War, Arab Cold War, Taif Agreement, political power, relationship, origin story, writing, books, memoir, novel, survival, death, violence, sliding doors.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.

Specialist rural doctor, Damien Brown on dramatic rescues, slow interventions and the cases that moved him, including attending to two badly burnt men after a fuel tank exploded on a remote Queensland cattle station.As a young boy in South Africa, Damien Brown was always interested in science and medicine.His neighbour, the local veterinarian, would let him observe surgery in the workshop, so it was predictable that Damien would end up as a medical doctor.After his parents moved the family to Australia, the call to help others drew Damien back to the very things his parents had tried to shield him from — civil war, crime, absolute poverty and inequity.Damien joined Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) as soon as they would take him as a junior doctor.He worked in Angola, Mozambique and South Sudan. When he returned to Australia, working for the Royal Flying Doctor Service in remote communities in Central Australia and Far North Queensland, he found challenges that were more similar to his previous experience in Africa than he expected.Further informationBush Doctor: A memoir from the beautiful, rugged heart of outback Australia is published by Allen & Unwin.This episode was produced by Rebecca McLaren. The Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.This episode touches on remote Indigenous communities, rural doctor, Royal Flying Doctor Service, South Africa, Angola, South Sudan, civil war, gunfight, safe room, grab bag, remote work. 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.

Filmmaker Kasimir Burgess travelled to Mongolia to follow two young men on their gruelling journey to bring 2000 horses to safer pastures during an exceptionally brutal winter.For centuries, the herders of Tsakhir Valley in Mongolia have protected their horses from the harsh winters by nominating their bravest young men to move them.But the ancient practice has been forced to stop in recent years due to climate change.  Iron Winter documents one community's attempt to revive the tradition by initiating two friends into a rite of passage in danger of being lost.Further information The documentary Iron Winter had a national cinematic release earlier this year.This episode of Conversations was produced by Jen Leake, the executive producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores Mongolia horse culture, the Mongolian Steppes, severe weather, ancient traditions and culture, family, mental health, art, films, documentary, viral meningitis, childhood leukaemia, adventure, grief.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.

Award-winning Australian author, poet and essayist David Malouf died last week at the age of 92, he  spoke with Richard in 2014.The first son of a Lebanese family, David spent his early years in South Brisbane, his vivid memories of life as it was then are captured in his classics, Johnno and 12 Edmondstone Street.Although his father played representative rugby league and was a champion boxer, David pursued a life of letters and during his career he published numerous highly-awarded novels and collections of essays.This episode was first broadcast in March 2014To 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 ABC journalist explains how competing, overlapping narratives and outright myths form our understanding of events of the past, featuring an impersonation of Winston Churchill talking about a lemon tree.Matt presents and writes the ABC TV show and podcast “If You're listening”, where he says he explains the world's most important stories while hiding in his basement from assassins and authoritarian regimes.He applies his Australian lens on major turning points in history; the villains, visionaries and vanquished and invites us to question what we think we know about the world. From the assassination of Julius Ceaser to the collapse of the Soviet Union, Matt has uncovered unknown, often bizarre and at times laughable tales swirling in the murky waters of history.Further informationIf You're Listening: Declassified is published by HarperCollins.You can watch and listen to Matt's program, If You're Listening. This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It covers world politics, Trump, Putin, Winston Churchill, Matthias Rust, Red Square, Iron Curtain, Soviet Union, Chernobyl, M Gessen, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner Group, Cessna, Yalta Conference, Stalin, Alexander Downer, Papadopoulos, Hillary Clinton, hinge moments, the butterfly effect, 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.

Bonnie Hancock got the idea to paddle around Australia after she stumbled on a book in her local library, the wild adventure ended being a gruelling 12,700 kilometre journey took almost a year to complete.Along the way, Bonnie met sharks, crocodiles, and sea snakes, she battled unrelenting seasickness and some serious storms. She also met some fascinating characters and saw the whole of Australia from a very unique vantage point.Further informationThe Girl Who Touched The Stars is published by HarperCollinsThis episode was first broadcast in 2024The producer was Meggie Morris and Carmel Rooney was the Executive Producer.It explores, sea kayaking, Australia, sharks, crocodiles, sea snakes, dangerous storms, hypothermia, endurance, adventure, physical challenge, mental challenge, competition, psychology, mental health, support and friendship.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.

Professor Daniel Reynaud on the incredible true story of an assuming vicar who turned out to be the most decorated military chaplain in Australian history, who had at one point lived his life on the edge.During World War Two, a self-effacing man named Walter Dexter served as the vicar of a church in West Footscray.Walter was in his 60s and his attempts to take up a career as a farmer and a teacher had failed, and so he'd returned to his earlier vocation as a clergyman.His children regarded their father as apathetic and unambitious, who left a lot of half-completed projects around the house. But the people who knew Walter when he was younger, called him "terribly brave" and "larger than life" as Walter's earlier life was full of adventure, travel and great danger.Walter's adventures began when he first boarded a ship at 14 years old.By the end of the 19th century, and still a teenager, he'd seen Calcutta, New York, South Africa, Bombay and Tierra del Fuego.Then, during World War One, Walter's courage and compassion under fire made him the most decorated military chaplain in Australian history.Historian Daniel Reynaud has set the record straight about the improbable life of this unassuming vicar, known by the soldiers who loved him as 'The Pinching Padre'.Sailor, Soldier, Vicar, Farmer: The Improbable Life of Anzac Chaplain Walter Dexter is published by Simon & Schuster.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores military history, war, ANZAC Day, Dawn Service, military ethics, world war three, Egypt, Middle East, France, Europe, Germany, travel, sailing, maritime history, fathers, religion, Christianity, Church, biography, books, writing, Australian history, modern history, farming, agriculture, books for father's day.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.

At 23 years old, Stephanie Browitt willed herself to stay awake long enough to survive a volcano eruption on New Zealand's Whakaari / White Island. More than six years later, her resilience and sanity remains as strong as ever.The rescue mission to White Island in November 2019 was led by three civilians, who immediately flew from the mainland, as the emergency services deemed the island too dangerous for their trained paramedics to get there.Stephanie clung on to consciousness, despite severe burns to 70 per cent of her body, because she knew she had to get back to her beloved mum, Marie.The blast killed 22 people, including Stephanie's little sister Krystal. Eventually their father Paul also succumbed to his injuries in hospital.During the early stages of Stephanie's fight to recover, her sister's fate was kept a secret to give her something to fight for.After dozens of operations, years of physical therapy, grieving the sudden loss of half of their family, and growing even closer to her mum, Stephanie decided together wither her mum, Marie, to take on the cruise company that allowed them to go to this island despite knowing there was a warning in place.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores natural disasters, survival, grief, death, burns recovery, Turia Pitt, memoir, writing, books, mother daughter relationships, ICU, coma, body positivity, resilience, heartbreak, family bond, love, stories of survival, incredible stories, grief, death, losing a father, big sister, losing a sibling, sisterly bond, Melbourne, cruise ships, near death experience.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 Danish-British author, broadcaster and comedian recalls her unusual early life with glee, including how she came to be holding the hand of Neil Armstrong's assistant at NASA's headquarters on July 20, 1969. (R)Sandi's interest in the world was stoked from a young age by her father, Claus, who was Denmark's first Foreign Correspondent, and who was incredibly famous in his homeland.It was her dad who believed experiences were more important than day-to-day schooling, which is how Sandi came to be holding the hand of Neil Armstrong's assistant at NASA's mission control on the day of the Apollo moon landing.Sandi's irrepressible curiosity in the world and its people has been a source of renewal for her, from moments of crippling loneliness and homophobia to joyful occasions and performances.Further informationOriginally broadcast November 2022.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney. This episode references LGBTQIA+, Cambridge, Footlights, QI, The Great British Bake Off, Danish news, NASA, astronaut, moon, space, ovarian cyst, two mums,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.

When the world's most famous dancer offered a young sailor a job as his assistant, Blue Robinson thought it was a joke at first. But what followed was the most fascinating and formative year of Blue's life.Simon 'Blue' Robinson grew up sailing and playing rugby on the idyllic island of Jersey, between England and France.In his 20s, he went further a field, first to London and then Blue started working on yachts sailing around the Caribbean.One evening at a restaurant in St Barts, Blue spotted a man whose face he recognised, and invited him on board the yacht the next day.That man was Rudolf Nureyev, hugely famous for his talents as a ballet dancer, his volatile temper, and for defecting from the Soviet Union.Nureyev took an immediate liking to Blue and spontaneously offered him a job as his assistant.The two next met months later, when Blue found himself side stage in Cleveland, Ohio, helping the legendary dancer undress, and preparing him a thermos of hot tea.This began an extraordinary and transformative year for Blue as the assistant, dresser, masseur, driver, cook, and trusted confidante of history's most iconic and legendary male ballet dancer.Blue's book, A Year with Rudolf Nureyev, is currently being turned into an audio book.He is still working as a writer, helping people write their private memoirs.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Eliza Kirsch.It explores ballet, Russia, USA, famous people, the secret lives of celebrities, Tatar, Red Army, Margot Fonteyn, classical dancing, defection, Soviet Union, USSR, The Royal Ballet, HIV-AIDS, health, decline, homosexuality in the 20th century, caring for sick people, carers, memoir, writing books, biography, boats, super yachts, below deck, sexual health, queer icons, STI, first jobs, amazing jobs.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.

Alex Braczkowski is a big cat expert and for years he's been following a rare group of tree-climbing lions, including the charismatic, enigmatic, three-legged Jacob.Alex fell in love with animals by accident, he'd just been expelled and while his parents were trying to find him a new school, they made him use his time wisely by volunteering at the Johannesburg Zoo.From there he went to game ranger school, and onto university at a campus nestled in forests at the base of the Outeniqua Mountains, which he shared with dwarf leopards. It was at university that Alex really fell in love with big cats.Eventually Alex became a National Geographic explorer, and for years now has been following a rare group of lions who spend almost all day up in trees, only coming down at night to hunt.One of the lions that has a special place in Alex's heart is known as Jacob.Jacob has already used up many of his nine lives. He has survived been poisoned, trapped, snared and gored by a buffalo, and now gets around on three legs, but is still able to climb trees.This episode was first broadcast in 2023, the producer was Meggie Morris and Carmel Rooney was the executive producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores animals, big cats, lions, animal behaviour, animal photography, South Africa, National Geographic, dangerous animals.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.

Hannah Clarke and her three children were killed in an horrific attack that shocked Australia but for Dave Kramer their deaths were personal, he knew her ex-husband and had witnessed their relationship up close.But Dave's own childhood exposure to domestic violence had blinded him to some of the signs that Hannah and her kids were in danger.After Hannah's death, Dave began the difficult work of confronting his past and educating himself on how to recognise abuse and have the confidence to speak out and help.He now helps educate teenagers and young men about respectful and safe relationships and healthy masculinity.If you need to speak to someone 1800respect or 1800 737 732 for the national domestic violence hotlineBeyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36Lifeline on 13 11 14MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978Further informationsmallsteps4hannahThis episode was produced by Jen Leake, the executive producer was Eliza Kirsch.It explores domestic violence, coercive control, violence against women, violence prevention, safe and respectful relationships, grief, mental health, trauma, drug use, behavioural science, psychology, 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.

Author Helen Pitt has written a history of the iconic fun park and it's a tale bound up with con men, crooked cops, and developers who have long wanted to snatch up the prime piece of waterfront real estate.Millions of people have happy memories of walking through the teeth of the gigantic face on the edge of Sydney Harbour but it wasn't the first Luna Park in Australia, that honour goes to the Melbourne version which opened a decades earlier.But the tale of Sydney's Luna Park is arguably the most dramatic and it's one of only two amusement parks in the world protected by government legislation.  Helen Pitt's book is called Luna Park: the extraordinary story of the showmen, shysters and schemers who built Sydney's famous funk park is published by Allen And Unwin.This episode of Conversations explores Luna Park, amusement parks, Sydney, Sydney Harbour, history, show rides, engineering, the Great Depression, the Ghost Train fire, tragedy, historical preservation, waterfront real estate, protest, Martin Sharp, the Big Dipper, protein spills.

Jane Messer grew up with a loving father who never really understood why as a child his mother left him and his older sister at a boarding school, so she decided to find out the full story and prove that he was in fact, loved.Her father Michael was born in Berlin in the years between the two world and to escape Nazi Germany he was sent to live in England as a child.There were a few fleeting visits but then Michael didn't see his mother again for another 13 years and he always said she never loved him.As Jane grew older and became a mother herself, she knew there had to be more to Bella's story and so she went on the trail from pre-war Berlin to Tel Aviv to Melbourne, to try to understand the choices made in extraordinary circumstances. Further informationJane Messer's family memoir is called Raven Mother This episode of Conversation explores family history, the Holocaust, Nazi Germany, suicide, boarding school, Palestine, the Nakba, Berlin, World War 2, immigration, the British Mandated Palestine, memoir.

Novelist Emma Pei Yin ran away from Hong Kong as a teenager to start fresh in Australia. But she found herself repeatedly drawn back home whenever she put pen to paper.Emma grew up in England and Hong Kong. But her life in Hong Kong wasn't so much about the neon skyscrapers as it was about her family's ancestral village, tucked away in the New Territories.Emma spent her school holidays there with her grandparents, learning how to take care of the family cemetery and joining in Chinese Festivals.Sometimes her grandfather would share his memories of the Second World War, when the Japanese military invaded and occupied Hong Kong.As Emma became into a teenager, her relationship with her parents deteriorated. She eventually decided to leave them and Hong Kong, coming to Australia to make a life for herself as a writer.But whenever she wrote, Emma found herself drawn back to Hong Kong; to the hundreds of islands, the fishing villages on stilts, the mountains, woodlands and beaches – all the things that tourists who think of Hong Kong as a city of neon lights and free Wi-fi don't know about.This episode of Conversations was first broadcast last year.Content warning: This episode of Conversations contains discussion about sexual assault.Further informationWhen Sleeping Women Wake is published by Hachette.Help and support is always available. You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris and first broadcast in 2025, the executive producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores family dynamics, multiculturalism, China, Hong Kong, modern history, writing, books, literature, historical fiction, Japanese occupation, World War 2, assault, victim-blaming, abortion, filmmaking, black sheep, family honour, London, forgiveness.

Writer Cynthia Banham on discovering the shocking truth about her great-grandmother, reckoning with buried family secrets, and the criticisms mothers face from others and sometimes most harshly, from themselves.Cynthia Banham grew up hearing the story of her great-grandmother, Natalina, who had supposedly been orphaned in Italy in the 19th century.But when Cynthia became a mother herself she felt compelled to look for the real story of her maternal line, which suddenly stopped three generations back.What she found shocked her -- a period of time when infant relinquishment was so common, the era became known as the 'century of foundlings', and her great-grandmother was one of them.She had not been orphaned, as the family thought, but abandoned by a nameless mother.Cynthia took off to Bologna, Italy with her own young family in tow to find the truth. Along the way she uncovered the stories of 'bastardini' (a home for bastards), literate midwives, epigenetics and possible incest.Cynthia also stood in the house where Natalina was born, and came to terms with her own harsh judgement of herself as a mother.Mother Shadow is published by Upswell.Richard also spoke to Cynthia in 2023 about surviving the 2007 Garuda plane disaster in Indonesia.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores ancestry, epigenetics, anthropology, family history, writing, books, orphans, adoption, child abandonment, truth, journalism, parenting with a disability, mothers in wheelchairs, self confidence as a mother, self criticism as a mother, marriage, love, mothers and sons, school communities, Indonesia, Garuda Indonesia Flight 200, memoir, modern history, travel, family bonding, wild gardening.

Toxic people are around us in our workplaces, our families and our dating lives. Research psychologist Leanne ten Brinke is here to tell you how to spot them, and get rid of them from your orbit.Leanne ten Brinke is a research psychologist whose special area of expertise is what she calls 'dark personality types'.These are particularly cruel, malicious, manipulative people who lack empathy, people who are psychopaths, narcissists or sadists.Psychologists estimate than one per cent of any population shows serious levels of psychopathy.They walk among us in our workplaces and in our relationships, they could be an gaslighting partner, a narcissistic parent or a colleague who's a bully.There are also more serious cases, like abusive husbands or murderous mothers.Leanne also makes the point that any one of us is capable of losing our moral bearings or enabling malicious people by cheering them on, hiring them or voting them into office.But there are ways to resist them, and make your own life the better for it.Poisonous People: psychopathy, narcissism, manipulation, sadism: how to resist them and improve your life is published by Simon & Schuster Australia.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores toxic relationships, is my partner a narcissist, what to do about my narcissist mother, what to do about my toxic boss, how many psychopaths are there, sadism, serial killers, morality, amorality, Ted Bundy, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, sociopath, Patric Gagne, anti-social personality disorders, thriller, scammers, dating world, escaping abuse, peaceful living, finding peace.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.

Dr Nada Andric wants to improve the health of people who are marginalised in the community and their access to healthcare.She works at the Reverend Bill Crews GP clinic, a place where people who might be completely off the database of society can get help.Whether they're facing homelessness, dealing with mental health issues, addiction, or simply don't have a Medicare card or passport to their name. This year, the clinic in the Sydney suburb of Ashfield turns 40.This episode of Conversations was produced by Alice Moldovan, the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores health care, addiction, homelessness, poverty, doctors, domestic violence, mental health, society, Reverend Bill Crews.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.

Two-time World Debating champion Bo Seo on how love and listening can improve how we disagree, so we're not at each other's throats online and offline (R).When Bo was 8 years old, he and his parents migrated from Korea to Australia. Bo was a quiet boy and sometimes felt overwhelmed at school. But in Year Five, something happened which changed his life: one of his teachers introduced Bo to debating.Debating became a way for Bo to excel socially and academically. He went on to win world titles for Australia and for Harvard University.Now Bo is sharing insights from the strategy, structure and history of debating to try to encourage all of us to disagree better.Originally broadcast in May 2023.Good Arguments is published by Simon and Schuster.This episode of Conversations was produced by Nicola Harrison. Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney.It explores keyboard warriors, how to argue well, communication skills, how to disagree without offending, writing, responding not reacting, self reflection, how to get your point across, books, agreements, disagreements, law, lawyers, legal industry, author, journalist, Harvard University, community building, how to build community, how to have constructive conversations, political divide.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.

Stephen Grosz has welcomed people into his office for more than 40 years, and believes our greatest task in life is to see ourselves and others with more clarity, in order to live more easily and with more please.Stephen has sat with people as they have shared their darkest fears, strangest dreams and their most explosive love affairs.Through thousands of hours of these conversations, he has tried to help patients understand themselves so they can live with more ease and with greater satisfaction.Stephen believes our greatest task in life is to see ourselves and others with more clarity.That's the quest that his driven his work dissecting compelling stories of love, desire and heartbreak from his consulting room.Love's Labour is published by Penguin.This episode of Conversations was produced by Jennifer Leake. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores therapy, love, marriage, relationships, writing, books, analysis, counselling, introspection, looking inwards, how to self reflect, how to survive heartbreak, what do I do with desire, how to live a fulfilling life, how we lose and find ourselves, United States, University of California Berkeley, Oxford, Institute of Psychoanalysis, mental wellbeing, University College of London.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.

Writer Tanya Heaslip on swapping life on an Alice Springs station for the fairytale streets of Prague, and the remarkable parallels she found between these two magical worlds.Tanya was in a pub in London in 1989 when she watched on the television as the Berlin Wall came down.She was the tail end of a solo backpacking trip, which didn't quite live up to what she'd imagined it might be as a little girl growing up on a remote cattle station near Alice Springs.But Tanya booked to go to Berlin the very next day, beginning an obsession with learning about what life was like behind the Iron Curtain.Several years later she would return to Europe, this time to the East, to the Czech Republic.There in fairytale Prague, not long after the Velvet Revolution, Tanya would fall in love with the city and into a relationship with an older man.And she would draw unexpected parallels between the magic and isolation of Prague and that of Central Australia – their people and their stories.Tanya has written several memoirs about her life from the great expanse of the Northern Territory, to the cobbled streets of Prague.Alice to Prague, An Alice Girl and Beyond Alice are published by Allen & Unwin.This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison.It explores country Australia, rural Australia, boarding school, Northern Territory, mustering cattle, expat Australians, Eastern Europe, Soviet Union, Fall of the Wall, travelling Australians, falling in love, grief, grieving, relationships, love for country, central Australia, Adelaide, bullying, studying law, working in the legal system, teaching English abroad.