Saturday Extra - Separate stories podcast

G20 leaders meeting in South Africa

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

South Africa is hosting the G20 this weekend and it should be the country's big moment, a chance to showcase its diplomatic and economic potential.Bu...

Putin backs US plan for ending Ukraine war as Zelensky faces "difficult" choice

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A US proposal to end the war with Russia has been widely leaked and interpreted as favouring Moscow's peace terms.Russia's President Vladimir Putin h...

The life and architecture of Lord Norman Foster

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From an office boy in 1950s Manchester, Norman Foster has become one the world’s most admired and influential architects.He’s designed Apple stor...

The untold story of grandparenting in Australia

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Grandparenting has been an overlooked role in Australian history, and so researchers from the Australian National University (ANU) are conducting a l...

Is the future of university campuses all about collaboration?

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Are universities vending machines for degrees, or are they the a breeding ground for community and collaboration?The University of Sydney's project, ...

Calls grow to release all Epstein files

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

More than 20,000 files from the estate of the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were released this week by Democrat and Republican US lawmakers....

BBC refuses to pay President Trump compensation

14 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The UK's public broadcaster was mired in a major scandal this week, leading to the resignation of two senior executives, its head of news Deborah Tur...

Michelle Grattan's front row seat to the drama of the dismissal

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When Governor John Kerr sacked Prime Minister Gough Whitlam on 11 November 1975, Michelle Grattan was a young reporter for The Age.The dismissal had ...

Annabel Crabb's new series: Civic Duty

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia's uncontroversial electoral system and the compulsory voting requirement means that participation in elections is high – around 90 per ce...

High speed rail network on track

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been one of Australia’s most elusive ambitions - a high-speed rail network connecting the East coast of Australia, it's now starting to gain...

Does more choice give us more freedom?

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We live in a world built on the idea that freedom equals choice — and choice equals freedom. We get to choose what to buy, what to believe, who to ...

The Age of Choice: A History of Freedom in Modern Life

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We live in a world built on the idea that freedom equals choice — and choice equals freedom. We get to choose what to buy, what to believe, who to ...

Democrats sweep to victory across the US, but divided over future direction

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Democrats celebrated victories across the United States this week, including in New York where 34-year-old Zohran Mamdani convincingly defeated A...

COP30 climate talks in Brazil on how to limit global warming

07 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

International leaders are gathering in the Amazonian city of Belem, Brazil for the annual UN climate change summit, COP30.Leaders from four of the wo...

A pageant of porridge at the World Porridge Making Championships

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The 32nd World Porridge Making Championship has just wrapped up in the small Scottish town of Carrbridge. Each year, porridge makers and aficionados ...

Mark McKenna's history of Australia

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

One of the nation's most eminent historians, Mark McKenna, has written a new book - The Shortest History of Australia. It's a history of modern Aust...

Zohran Mamdani's moment in New York City mayoral race

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Zohran Mamdani appears to be on the precipice of becoming New York city's Mayor.The 34 year-old socialist is leading the polls ahead of Tuesday's ele...

Prince Andrew stripped of title, home and status

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The younger brother of King Charles III will be stripped of his title and honours as prince, and will be now known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor, ove...

The Trump Xi trade meeting

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On a scale of one to ten,, Donald Trump rated it as a twelve. The much-anticipated meeting between the US president and Chinese President Xi Jinping ...

Paramilitary group RSF carrying out genocide with impunity in Sudan

31 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week saw an escalation in Sudan's two year civil war as the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces took control of the city of El-Fasher, which...

Punjabi superstar descends on Australia

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Diljit Dosanjh is Punjab's most celebrated star.With a background in Bollywood, the singer fuses Punjabi folk with high energy pop, hip hop and dance...

Temperature check on Australia's democracy

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Amidst more noticeable signs of European and American-style populism and protest in Australia, how resilient is our democracy? How are the economics...

Bold and brazen: History's greatest art heists

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Inadequate security and a simple ruse featuring hi-vis vests saw $157 million worth of French crown jewels stolen from the Louvre this week.Audacious...

Timor-Leste finally joins ASEAN

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Timor Leste will become ASEAN's newest member, a historic moment for the nation given President José Ramos Horta once said that it was easier to get...

Donald Trump's Asia visit

24 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The US President Donald Trump is due to arrive in Malaysia this weekend to attend ASEAN, before heading to Japan on Monday and South Korea later in t...

Griffin Dunne - The Friday Afternoon Club

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Griffin Dunne is the star of the Martin Scorsese movie, After Hours, an actor in American Werewolf in London, the son of the late Vanity Fair writer,...

The Trump-Albanese White House Meeting

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Anthony Albanese will meet the US President Donald Trump at the White House next week, ending months of speculation about the failure to secure a mee...

Kate Mulvany brings Darcy Niland’s The Shiralee to the stage

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Darcy Niland's Australian classic The Shiralee is a story of family breakdown, and hard-boiled masculinity and love on the margins of 1950s Australia...

Inquiry into falling rates of Asian language study in Australia

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For decades, Australia has been grappling with the notion that our future security and prosperity relies on our integration in Asia.Yet there was a 7...

The art of the gift - What should Albanese give Trump?

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Gift-giving has been part of foreign policy since the dawn of diplomacy. It dates back to ancient Egypt. As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese embarks ...

The whirlwind week in Middle East and US politics

17 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The BBC's Tom Bateman travelled with Donald Trump for the President's day-long trip to the Middle East to clinch the Gaza agreement. Tom reflects on ...

‘Without trees we are all lost’: the ancient stories of Australia’s iconic Eucalyptus

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In his new book, Professor Stephen Hopper delves into the ancient history, biology, and cultural significance of the Australian eucalyptus tree. In a...

After the war, what is the future of Palestine?

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s been two years since Hamas’ horrific attack on October 7, which killed twelve hundred Israelis and abducted another 251. Israel’s retaliat...

Snowy Hydro 2.0 is leaking money

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There's been another major cost blow out to the Snowy Hydro scheme 2.0, first announced by Malcolm Turnbull in 2017. It commenced in 2019 and was for...

The sway of Australia’s Gen Z political influencers

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the US and Europe, young people have been central to a right wing resurgence, partly due to the presence of online influencers. While in Asia and ...

The sway of Australia’s Gen Z political influencers

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the US and Europe, young people have been central to a right wing resurgence, partly due to the presence of online influencers. While in Asia and ...

What is uniting the global wave of Gen Z protesters?

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From Indonesia to Morocco, a wave of youth demonstrations are sweeping the globe. Gen Z protesters are united in their use of technology, pop culture...

‘The nightmare can now end’: Israelis react to ceasefire

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In Israel there is a sense of cautionary optimism, families are excited to see the hostages return and are waiting for their nightmare of the past tw...

'We lost everything': How much peace will Trump’s plan bring?

10 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After a devastating two year war, Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first stage of a peace deal this week.

The death of leggings?

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week on Saturday Extra we were talking about the return of the budgie smuggler to the catwalks and beaches of the northern hemisphere.This week ...

How will AI affect our democracy?

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Peter Lewis and Lizzie O'Shea from Digital Rights Watch will be running live panels around Australia asking 'How Can Democracy Survive AI?' 

"Hope" after Hamas announces release of remaining hostages in Gaza

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Efrat Machikawa is a member of the Hostages Families Forum and her uncle Gadi Moses was released by Hamas after 482 days.She says she is grateful for...

The story of Australian restaurateur’s iconic Shanghai restaurant: M on the Bund

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For 23 years, one of Shanghai's key attractions was a restaurant run by Australian woman Michelle Garnaut.M on the Bund was known for western fine-di...

Can Trump win the Nobel Peace Prize?

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This year's Nobel peace prize is being announced in Oslo on Friday.In the past, the award has gone to Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa, the Reverend Dr...

Donald Trump orders Israel to stop bombing Gaza as Hamas agrees to free hostages

03 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Hamas has agreed to release all the remaining Israeli hostages but the group wants further negotiations on a number of key points outlined in the US ...

Budgie smugglers back in vogue in Europe 

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Spring has arrived in the Southern Hemisphere and as Australians head to the beach, we take a look back at the history of the iconic 'Budgie Smuggler...

Academics dispute state of finances at leading Sydney university

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Almost one in every two Australian universities has been restructured in the past year, and there is more to come.Thousands of jobs have been cut, an...

Jennifer Byrne on her best books of the 21st century

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

ABC Radio National is counting down the Top 100 Books of the 21st Century and you can help shape the list by casting your vote. 

The story of feminist action in Australia

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1975 the world celebrated International Women’s Year, which produced a plan to advance the rights of girls and women around the globe and Austra...

The politics at the UN General Assemby: Laura Tingle

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A look back at the UN General Assembly this week, where President Trump told the international body that it was increasingly irrelevant.In his first-...

Trump at the UN General Assembly

26 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In an eventful week in New York City, Donald Trump delivered a speech calling climate change a hoax, and attacked the United Nations as he addressed ...

Jon Sopel on the week in US and UK politics

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jon Sopel from the award-winning podcast The News Agents delivers a chilling warning: when leaders go unchallenged, authoritarianism follows.In the w...

"Here you come again": the Dolly Parton show sweeping Australia

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

he's one of the most universally loved people on the planet. The one and only Dolly Parton is being brought to life in a fictionalised story co-writt...

So you want to own Greenland? Some lessons from the past

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump’s official push to formally acquire Greenland for America has a long history. From earlier American attempts to claim the island, ...

What does the new climate target mean for regional Australia?

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the country's climate target for 2035.The PM acknowledged that everyone in government, industry a...

Anthony Albanese's crucial visit to Trump's America

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Prime Minister is set to embark on an 11-day trip to the UK and US where its hoped he will have a meeting with US President Donald Trump.There's ...

UN leaders week: vital questions on Israel-Gaza, the role of the US and future of UN

19 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

World leaders will arrive at the United Nations for their annual high-level meeting this week. Although the UN is marking the 80th anniversary of it...

25 years since Sydney Olympics: a trip down memory lane

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Cathy Freeman lighting the Olympic cauldron, then sprinting to victory in her ‘400 metres of reconciliation”. There was Thorpedo in the pool, Roy...

What language is acceptable in politics, and how has it changed?

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the Liberal Party continues to manage the fallout from Jacinta Nampijinpa Price's comments about Indian migration, we explore how the boundaries o...

Murdoch family real-life succession drama reaches finale

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The real life drama of the Murdoch family's succession battle ended this week in a closed Nevada court. Rupert's eldest son Lauchlan will take contr...

Might makes right: great power rivaly explained

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Great power competition has returned. The head of geopolitics at Cambridge University discusses the history of how great powers emerged and makes sen...

PNG marks 50 years since independence

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia's history as a British colony is well known, but our history as a colonial ruler is less familiar.Papua New Guinea is a country of 600 trib...

Is America trapped in a cycle of political violence?

12 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A 22 year old man is in custody in Utah, as the United States deals with the aftershocks of the public murder of political activist, Charlie Kirk. wh...

Dracula: Adrenaline fuelled ballet for the TikTok generation

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Blood is spilling across stages around the country, as an original production of Dracula pushes the boundaries of ballet.An adrenaline fuelled show w...

Is peak optimization of society a good thing? 

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Melbourne Innovation Week has been buzzing with a debate about whether the relentless pursuit of “peak optimisation” is a blessing or a curse for...

Could a covid-style response fix our feral animal problem?

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The population of feral cats, foxes, deer, pig, buffalo and camels - among other species - are exploding across the continent. Yet our response has ...

Four years of Taliban rule in Afghanistan: Yalda Hakim

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Just over four years ago the Taliban seized control of Kabul in a matter of days and established a de facto government, after decades of Western mili...

US Ambassador Nicholas Burns on rebranded Department of War and China's military parade

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The former US Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns is one of America’s most seasoned diplomats. He has served six presidents and nine secretaries o...

History wars: how WWII is shaping Chinese nationalism

04 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For decades China’s wartime contribution against the Japanese was not given proper credit in the West.  But now, Rana Mitter says China is picking...

The Last Thing with trail-blazing business leader Katrina Rathie

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Last Thing: our regular monthly segment where guests share the last great movie they watched, book they read, or place they visited. Katrina Rat...

Universities: Saving a sector in crisis

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The university sector is facing a widespread budgetary crisis, hundreds of job losses, and criticism of high executive salaries.  There's also been ...

The Australian World Orchestra on home soil

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Australian World Orchestra was founded in 2010 with the aim of bringing home Aussie players home to play as an ensemble. This year they've come ...

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa on the death of democracy

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Under the authoritarian rule of President Rodriguez Duterte in The Philippines, Maria Ressa was targeted online, and had 11 arrest warrants out for h...

How extremism and foreign interference threaten Australian social cohesion

29 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The threats posed by sovereign citizen views materialised again this week with the killing of two police officers in Victoria's north-east by the all...

Stop stealing our voices

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If video killed the radio star, will artificial intelligence slay the voice-over artist? It’s a serious question  - and the Australian Associatio...

Government to tackle intergenerational inequity after roundtable

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers brought together the "Economic Reform Roundtable" in Canberra to canvass ideas about to improve productivit...

Katherine Bennell-Pegg on breaking the galactic ceiling

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Katherine Bennell-Pegg is one of only about 100 “space-ready” astronauts in the world. She’s also the first to be trained under the Australian ...

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell bites back at President Trump

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump has called Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell a "numbskull" and a "stubborn mule," as he bunkers down on pressure to reduce interest...

Israel preparing expanded assault on Gaza City

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Israel is calling up tens of thousands of extra reservists as it prepares to send troops to occupy Gaza City.Human rights groups and the UN warn the ...

Where to next in Ukraine's fight for peace

22 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

After the Putin Trump summit in Alaska, Europe's most influential leaders travelled to the White House with Ukranian President Zelensky.Talks of a se...

Plan for bridge between Sicily and Italian mainland meets fierce opposition

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Italy has approved plans to build the world's largest suspension bridge, to link the mainland with Sicily. The 13.5 billion Euro infrastructure proje...

Uncovering Trump's backchannel to Putin

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This morning Trump and Putin will give a rare joint press conference, a coup for the Russian leader who has long been isolated by the West. But how ...

Can the productivity roundtable deliver genuine economic reform?

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Federal Labor government is insisting it will not deviate from its election mandate when it comes to economic reform.The government has instead a...

Scientists unlock ocean secrets through environmental DNA

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Currently, only a small percentage of known marine fish species have had their genomes sequenced. Scientists from The Minderoo Foundation in WA and ...

Did World War II fail to deliver on the promise of independence for the colonies?

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Friday 15 August is the 80th anniversary of VP Day.But the end of World War II didn't necessarily mean peace. It ushered in a new era of conflict and...

Is Trump falling into Putin's Alaska trap?

15 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When President Trump meets Vladimir Putin today, he will be hoping to forge in person what he hasn't been able to accomplish by phone — a commitmen...

Professor Richard Scolyer runs in City to Surf

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Richard Scolyer is marking an incredible milestone this weekend.The world renowned pathologist was last year's joint Australian of the year...

Inter Alia: a new play by Suzie Miller at the UK's National Theatre

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The UK's National Theatre is now showing a hit production from one of Australia's most impactful playwrights, Suzie Miller.Inter Alia is a searing ex...

The debate: hatred of poetry

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Poetry has the power to move, to inspire awe, and to irritate.August marks National Poetry month, and we are debating whether the form is elitist or ...

Fact checkers overwhelmed in era of falsehoods

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There was another loss in the war on truth this week when longtime fact-checker Glenn Kessler stepped down from his role at The Washington Post.A pio...

Global plastic treaty talks in Geneva enter make-or-break stage

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, delegates from around the world gathered in Geneva to try to hammer out a global treaty on plastic pollution.Without a binding treaty, pla...

Will Ukraine be side-lined by a Trump-Putin peace deal?

08 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A highly anticipated meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will take place next week. The aim for the...

Will the world recognise a Palestinian state?

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In just one week, France, Britain and Canada have all said they will recognise a Palestinian state, marking a major policy shift.The Albanese governm...

Hands off our Humanities - calls to scrap the Job Ready Graduate package 

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Some of Australia's leading writers, academics and thinkers have signed an open letter by the Australian Historical Society asking the Albanese gover...

New EVs hitting the market as Chinese brands gain dominance

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Australia has lagged behind other developed nations when it comes to EVs — but we may just be catching up.One month ago, penalties were introduced ...

Shock waves continue five years on from Port of Beirut explosion

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It is five years since a fire ignited a storage warehouse in the port of Beirut, causing a massive explosion in the Lebanese capital.With shock-waves...

Has Trump successfully up-ended global trade?

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

President Trump's August 1 deadline for tariff deals has passed with a flurry of agreements as countries rush to avoid punitive levies.The European U...

First Nations fashion on show at Darwin's 10th Country to Couture

01 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week, one of the country's most unique fashion events kicks off in Darwin: The 10th Country to Couture, which brings together First Nations desi...

How a French spy became a bestselling author

25 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

ack Beaumont is a former French intelligence operative who has used his real life experience to write two spy thrillers with a third, Liar’s Game ...

AI boot camps taking off in corporate Australia

25 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

AI Boot camps are a growing trend in big business. Staff are being asked to down tools to experiment and learn new AI systems in one short week rath...