Conversations: Archive: 2015-2017

Rugby League's greatest ever grand final upset

27 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The 1969 final between the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Balmain Tigers is the stuff of footy legend

From Winston Churchill's waiter to anaesthetist in Australia

26 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Tony Atkinson's appetite for mischief and knack for being in the right place at the right time have delivered him a colourful life (R)

Etgar Keret's seven good years

25 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A writer recalls the precious stretch of time between the birth of his son, and the death of his father (R)

How to spot a psychopath and toxic people

24 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Understanding and managing the psychopaths in our midst at work and at homeDavid Gillespie is a former corporate lawyer and investor and the author o...

The world's most puzzling riddles

21 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Cryptic crossword compiler, David Astle, untangles the history of riddles (R)

Fighting the wars of others: mercenaries and private armies

20 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Percy explains the history and motivations of unconventional combatants

Beyond the canvas: the vivid, bohemian world of the Pre-Raphaelites

19 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Writer Kate Forsyth has an enduring fascination with the Pre-Raphaelites, the rebellious and progressive artists of Victorian-era Britain

How a young physicist witnessed some of the most dramatic scenes of WWII

18 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Sheila Fitzpatrick has pieced together the story of her late husband's life as a young man in war-torn Europe

Michael Robotham's fiction of fear: how true crime informs a bestseller's work

17 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Ghost-writing and true crime: how a journo cracked the thriller market

Great Barrier Reef tales: seafarers, scientists and castaways

14 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Iain McCalman shares extraordinary stories from the history of human contact with the reef (R)

Making mischief: the invention of Old Tom, Mr Chicken and Leigh Hobbs

13 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Australia's Children's Laureate creates scruffy, anarchic characters beloved by children and adults

A criminal psychologist's fall from grace

12 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Tim Watson-Munro's addiction derailed his life for a time, and nearly ended his illustrious career

Into the deep, cool blue: the fine line between life and death while freediving

11 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

How freediving helped Michael Adams understand his father's suicide

Driving while female: the defiance of Manal Al-Sharif

10 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

What happened when a woman openly opposed the Saudi cultural ban against female drivers

Rhoda Roberts: holding onto family

07 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Rhoda lives with strength of her father’s culture and the loss of her twin sister (R)

How Allan Langer and the Gospel of Matthew shaped a childhood

06 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lech Blaine grew up in a raucous family of foster siblings. But when he was ten years old, it all changed

The charlatan who mesmerised gold-rush era Australia

05 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Writer Catherine Jinks became fascinated by the true story of a famous charlatan, Thomas Carr, who mesmerised and fought with audiences from the 1860...

Linda Burney on tracing her family, and making history

04 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The first Indigenous woman elected to Australia's House of Representatives on her life in politics and her search for her father (R)

Sami Shah asks what Islam looks like in Australia

03 Jul 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Sami is a writer, a comedian and an atheist who was raised in a Shia Muslim family

Ten billion rabbits

30 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The paradoxical story of Australia's rabbit plague, as told by Bruce Munday

Musician Jen Cloher's rites of passage

29 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Giving proper, loving time to her parents changed the course of Jen's life (R)

Unfinished business: toward national pride without prejudice

28 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Mark Yettica-Paulson travels the country talking about the place of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our constitution

Coal vs coral: plunging into Australia's climate wars

27 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Anna Krien examines the climate wars playing out on the Great Barrier Reef

The greatest escape

26 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

WWII's largest mass escape of Allied POWs, as told by Stephen Dando-Collins

Behind the cake and the rain: the life of Jimmy Webb

23 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb on how growing up as the child of an Oklahoma preacher inspired his music

The lessons of Maralinga

22 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Liz Tynan explains how Australia became the toxic testing ground for Britain's nuclear program (R)

Tiger Moths, textbooks and the joys of flight

21 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Bob Tait’s enduring love of aviation has launched thousands of pilots to the skies

A good daughter defines her faith for herself

20 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Amal Awad was her Arab-Australian family's only daughter. As a teenager, so much was 'haram', or forbidden. But later in life, she surprised everyone...

Terrible treasure: 75 000 convict stories housed in a Hobart basement

19 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Deep in Tasmania’s convict archives, Maxwell Hamish Stewart pieces together life stories from meticulously recorded details

Songs of darkness with Brian Ritchie

16 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Brian introduces a collection of the deepest, darkest tunes he knows

Workplace bullying: recognising and surviving it

15 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The maximum security prisoners in Caroline Dean's workplace were the least of her troubles

How a child became the primary carer for her family

14 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Ellen Holmes became the full-time carer for her mother and her two brothers while she was at high school (R)

The unexpected history of artists' paints

13 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

David Coles is one of very few colourmen or 'pigment-whisperers' in the world

How a father brought home the Vietnam War

12 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Ruth Clare took decades to understand it was her dad's service in Vietnam that had made him aggressive and unpredictable (R)

Literacy's power to transform: Jack Beetson's story

09 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Jack surpassed all expectations, rising from an illiterate childhood to become a professor (R)

The bond between two alpine climbers which nearly killed them

08 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Simon McCartney and his climbing partner, Jack, shared a telepathic relationship

What happens to us while we're under anaesthesia?

07 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Kate Cole-Adams explores the mysteries of the in-between state we occupy on the operating table

The operation which changed everything for a girl from Wollongong in 1967

06 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Cheryl Maracic spent years in hospital as a child with kidney disease, and wasn't expected to live long. Then came a medical breakthrough.

Dangerous habits and wild ways: why substance use is different for women

05 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny Valentish road tests the pathways girls and women take into and out of drug and alcohol addiction

The mysteries of the Humpback whale — the ocean's gentle giant

02 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

What Wally Franklin's gleaned from a lifetime of observing whales, their migratory patterns, songs and sex lives (R)

Mortifying Tales: Part 2

01 Jun 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Hilarious and true tales of personal mortification, told at a live Conversations event.

Mortifying Tales: Part 1

31 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

True stories of mortification and embarrassment as told at a live Conversations event

Unlocking the meaning of Stonehenge and other ancient memory storehouses

30 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lynne Kelly believes she's found a code to describe the way non-literate peoples shared sophisticated knowledge (R)

Operating on the brink: the truth about brain surgery

29 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Neurosurgeon Henry Marsh describes the extreme risks and rewards of his four decades’ work on the body’s most mysterious organ

An unexpected later in life love story, set in New York City: Bill Hayes

26 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Bill Hayes moved to New York at 48. He took up photography, and fell in love with his neighbour, Dr Oliver SacksDoctor Oliver Sacks was a neurologist...

How to resist a military junta: the Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo

25 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Caroline Brothers explains why the search for the youngest victims of Argentina’s Dirty War continues to this day

The grief which haunted President Lincoln

24 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Writer George Saunders on his fascination with Abraham Lincoln, and Lincoln's grief for his lost son, Willie

How Hitler used heroin and methamphetamines to fuel the Third Reich

23 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Journalist Norman Ohler has uncovered a new facet of Third Reich history: a Nazi regime awash with cocaine, heroin and crystal meth.

A nurse’s tale: bedpans, bombs and everyday kindness

22 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

True stories from novelist Maggie Groff’s years as an unlikely London nurse

The rise and fall of Australia's Greek cafés and milk bars

19 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Leonard Janiszewski on the golden era and social influence of these beloved family businesses (R)

The strange reality of life with severe OCD

18 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lily Bailey spent years making lists of 400 things she'd done wrong each day

A revolutionary idea to stop good food going to waste

17 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

When Ronni Kahn realised shocking amounts of good food were going to waste, she had to act (R)

Peering into the secret society of dumpster divers

16 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Why retrieving society's discarded food will always be a good option for David Boarder Giles (R)

A powerful journalistic force: Mark Colvin

15 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The second of two conversations with the late Mark Colvin, presenter of ABC Radio's PM program (R)

Journalist Mark Colvin reveals the secrets of his father's life as a senior British spy

12 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Volume one of a two-part conversation with the late, great journalist, Mark Colvin (R)

Daniel Kish: using sound to free the blind

11 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Daniel Kish was blinded by cancer as a baby. At 2, he taught himself to use sound to navigate around the world.

A home invasion in Kenya and a new chapter in one teacher's life

10 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Susan Perrow helps others to write life back into balance

Crime reporter Paula Doneman on chasing down outlaws

09 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Paula’s decades reporting crime have honed her instincts, and sharpened her pen

Former Islamist Maajid Nawaz and his challenge to extremism

08 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Maajid understands the methods of extremist Islamist organisations better than most (R)

Jenevieve Chang: searching for home via Shanghai burlesque

05 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Actor, dancer and writer Jenevieve Chang shares a true story of three generations

Gail Bell: unearthing the sad truth of her family's long-held secrets

04 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Gail grew up thinking her grandfather, Dr William Macbeth, had poisoned two of his young sons

Mary-Rose MacColl on betrayal, motherhood and letting go of secrets

03 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A friendship formed with a female teacher, when Mary-Rose was 15, triggered a series of devastating events

The delicate and deadly world of jellyfish: from Bazinga to Shiraz

02 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lisa-Ann Gershwin discovered a new species of deadly Irukandji jellyfish. Lisa-Ann Gershwin was in her late 20s when she visited a small aquarium in...

James Rebanks and the shepherd's life

01 May 2017

Contributed by Lukas

James explains the traditions, language and quirks of shepherding in England's Lake District (R)

Archaeologist Bob Hudson on Myanmar's ancient civilisation of Bagan

28 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Uncovering the Buddhist temples and relics of Bagan

Mia Freedman: my imperfect life

27 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The personal struggles behind Mia's business success

John Safran: going rogue with Australian extremists

26 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

John Safran's journey into the world of Australia's white nationalists, ISIS supporters and anarchists

Historian Paul Ham and the bloody futility of WWI's Battle of Passchendaele

24 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Paul Ham and the bloody futility of Passchendaele (R)

Liz Gilbert on facing fear and finding creativity

21 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Liz Gilbert's creative life (R)

Australia's fear of abandonment: Allan Gyngell on foreign policy

20 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Is following in the slipstream of more powerful nations still working for Australia?

Frank Bowden and his everyday battles with infectious diseases

19 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

From Ebola to Zika, to Lyme disease, and antibiotic resistance, unlocking the mysteries behind infectious diseases (R)

Father Paul Kelly: his fight to overturn the 'gay panic' law

18 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Father Paul Kelly fought for five years to overturn Queensland's 'gay panic' law after a murder in the grounds of his church

Go-Betweens co-founder Robert Forster introduces 'adult-pop'

12 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Go-Betweens co-founder Robert Forster introduces the 'adult-pop' genre (R)

American music legend Darlene Love

11 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A great backing singer takes her rightful place in the spotlight (R)

My savage self: how Miriam Lancewood survived six years in the New Zealand wilderness

07 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Miriam Lancewood pursued a primitive, nomadic life in the South Island of New Zealand

Dr Alan Duffy is chasing the mysteries of dark matter through space and time

06 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Astrophysicist Dr Alan Duffy explains his fascination with the universe and its dark matter (R)

Lapeka 'Pekx' Nanai: world champion blind powerlifter

05 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

How Pekx re-made himself as a champion after losing his sight

Louise Williams: the real life story of "The Great Escape"

04 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Louise William's Uncle John was the real-life inspiration behind the film The Great Escape (R)

Brian J. O'Brien on studying the moon and teaching astronauts

03 Apr 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Australian physicist Professor Brian J. O'Brien was closely involved in the Apollo moon missions (R)

Lisa Peberdy: the 'accidental midwife'

31 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Lisa was a reluctant midwife, but now adores the childbirth process (R)

Neil Gaiman retells classic Norse mythology

30 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Neil Gaiman returns to the source of Nordic mythology.

Mark Cross: changing minds on mental health care

29 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Mark is driven to improve our common knowledge of mental illness. (R)

Robert Raven: the arachnologist with a fear of spiders

28 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Robert puts aside his long-held fear of spiders to collect them and uncover hundreds of new species

Decca Aitkenhead: love, loss and survival

27 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Decca Aitkenhead and the unexpected love she found, and lost.

Tim Smit: creating the Eden Project

24 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The Lost Gardens of Heligan and the Eden Project: recreating paradise in Cornwall

Brian Greene: helping the world make sense of String Theory

23 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The mind-bending physics of String Theory, decoded

Sarah Brooker: the 'lucky' car accident which changed her life

22 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Brooker was studying to be a neuroscientist, when a freak accident forced her to rebuild her life from the ground up

Scientists on mapping galaxies, black holes, and divorce

21 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A collection of true stories, told live by scientists at the 2016 World Science Festival

Geologist Gav Dear's music and misadventures

20 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Geologist Gav Dear's music and misadventures (R)

Businessman David Pescud on sailing beyond disability

17 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The surprising story behind Sailors with DisABILITIES (R)

The powerful impact of gut health on our bodies and brains: Giulia Enders

16 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

The powerful impact of digestive health on our bodies and brains: Giulia Enders

Candice Fox: how to raise a crime writer

15 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Having more than 140 foster siblings was a major influence on one of Australia's best-selling crime writers

Caroline Baum: the intensity of life as an 'only'

14 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Caroline Baum grew up as an only child to parents both orphaned in tragic circumstances

Cartoonist and artist Bill Leak on a life-changing accident (2009)

13 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Bill reflects on the strange, transformative nature of his recovery from brain surgery (2009)

Thomas Frank asks how America's Democrats got it so wrong

10 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A lively conversation about how the Democrats have got it so wrong

Andrew Harper: walking Australia's deserts

09 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Trekking the country's wild heart with a dog and a caravan of camels (R)

Joanne McCarthy: the reporter who sparked a Royal Commission

08 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Joanne McCarthy, raised a Catholic, is now giving the Church’s victims a voice

Charles Thompson IV, aka Pixies front man, Black Francis

07 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

A band called the Pixies came out of the U.S State of Massachusetts in the late 1980s.

Thordis Elva and Tom Stranger speak about rape as a survivor and a perpetrator

06 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Thordis Elva and Tom Stranger, survivor and perpetrator of a single, devastating act of sexual violence

Snail tales

03 Mar 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Dr John Stanisic has spent decades studying the secrets of native snails (R)