Saturday Extra - Separate stories podcast

US politics roundup with Katty Kay and Jon Sopel

06 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A big week in US politics has been capped off by Donald Trump sharing a racist post about Obamas.Katty Kay and Jon Sopel join Nick Bryant to talk thr...

The impact of Isaac Herzog's Australia visit

06 Feb 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Israel's President Isaac Herzog is about to arrive in Australia. He will meet with bereaved families and members of the Jewish community following th...

The Last Thing: Sam Koslowski

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Sam Koslowski, the co-founder of the social media news company, The Daily Aus, joins Nick Bryant on The Last Thing.

A messy January in Australian federal politics

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

January used to be a pretty quiet time in Australian politics, something of a partisan ceasefire. But not anymore.

The women drivers breaking up a boys' club

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Old Girls On The Road is a women-led community of classic car owners in Brisbane. Classic car culture is very male-dominated, so this group offers i...

Will Iran strike a deal with the US?

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

President Donald Trump is amassing US military forces in the Gulf, as Tehran seeks a deal to ease tensions.Meanwhile, this week doctors inside Iran r...

What is Donald Trump's endgame in Minnesota?

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Amid the turmoil in Minnesota, President Donald Trump has given conflicting statements on whether or not he will pull back immigration enforcement ef...

The downfall of China’s top military general

30 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

China's top military general, Zhang Youxia, has been put under investigation and accused of "grave violations of discipline and the law."The purge is...

Bush poets, buskers and big stars takeover Tamworth

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's that time of year — when die-hard country music fans make their annual pilgrimage to the New South Wales town of Tamworth.For ten iconic days,...

How other countries deal with their contested days

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

For many, Australia Day is a time to celebrate the very best of this country. For others, it's a day of reflection, mourning or protestBut this annua...

Is another interest rate hike on the way?

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

There's been a January surprise for economists, with an unexpected drop in the country's unemployment rate.According to figures released by the ABS t...

Malcom Turnbull on Coalition chaos

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

After the Coalition split, Malcolm Turnbull examines how it all went so wrong. The former prime minister also discusses a major week in international...

How will conservative parties reform after the Coalition's rancorous split?

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

When hate crime legislation was tabled in parliament this week, few predicted the rancour and division it would unleash on the conservative side of p...

Where do transatlantic relations go from here?

23 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Greenland issue has underscored America's determination to challenge the international order as part of its "America first" vision.Where do trans...

Geraldine Brooks on love, loss and ghost writing for Kamala Harris

12 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Geraldine Books is a Pulitzer Prize winning author whose work spans foreign affairs, fiction and politics.Her most recent books bring readers somewhe...

Behind the scenes of journalist Gary O'Donoghue's exclusive interview with Trump

12 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Gary O’Donoghue is the BBC's North America correspondent who made headlines due to an sudden, exclusive interview with President Trump, he was also...

David Gonski reflects on 20 years as Chancellor of UNSW

12 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

David Gonski is one of Australia's most respected and connected leaders — known as the "chairman of everything". After 20 years at UNSW as its lon...

Rifts between Europe and America as intense talks on Ukraine war continue

12 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The struggle between the US and the Europeans over the Ukraine war and the security of the continent is at a historic turning point — for the first...

Did Saturday Extra fulfil its promises to you?

11 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At the start of this year, we said we would bring you the best commentators, the biggest brains, and people with lived experience on the ground. We p...

Overland from England to Adelaide for the Ashes

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

18-year-old Tommy Lamb has been on the road for over 100 days, making his way from Manchester in England through Europe and Asia in the hope of makin...

Australia's biggest social experiment: a ban on social media for under-16s

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Next week, Australia will become the first country in the world to ban social media accounts for users under 16, a rare bipartisan move, with both si...

Governor-General Sam Mostyn "there is so much good in this country."

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sam Mostyn took up the role of being the Governor-General in Australia in July last year, and she’s only the second woman to perform the role. Nic...

Mass prisoner release in Myanmar ahead of sham elections this month

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Myanmar's late-December elections are unfolding in what UN rights officials describe as an atmosphere of fear, violence.Ahead of that poll, which has...

Military build-up off Venezuela as US security strategy pledges "lethal force to defeat drugs cartels"

05 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Trump administration has released an updated National Security Strategy, which warned, among other things, that Europe faced what it called "the ...

The Rest Is History podcast back in Australia

28 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It’s a chart topping podcast with millions of downloads around the world. Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland are distinguished historians — Oxford...

What political trends are revealed in the 2025 Australian Election Study?

28 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This week saw the eagerly anticipated release of the Australian Election Study (AES), compiled by academics at the Australian National University and...

Rising death toll in Hong Kong’s ‘avoidable’ fire

28 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

At least 128 people have died and 200 people are still missing. It's the city's deadliest fire in 70 years, and it ripped through a housing complex w...

Washington attack and Trump's America with David Frum

28 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

To discuss the Washington attack and the broader trajectory of the Trump presidency we’re joined by one of the most influential observers of Americ...

Is peace finally possible? The new Russia–Ukraine deal explained

28 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As US negotiators head to Moscow next week, doubts are mounting over what - if anything - Russia is willing to concede in a Ukraine peace deal. New ...

How China is ruled by engineers and America is run by lawyers

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

China is an engineering state, obsessed with building megaprojects, while America is a lawyerly society, reflexively blocking everything, good and ba...

Australia and India seal major film Industry pact as Bollywood booms down under

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As the popularity of Indian films surge in Australia,  a new era of bilateral film collaboration is being cemented through a cultural trade deal in ...

Jamal Khashoggi's widow devastated by President Trump's defence of Saudi Crown Prince

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The widow of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi says she is hurt and disappointed that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received a warm welcom...

One Nation surges in the polls as the Liberal Party searches for meaning

21 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As we enter the final parliamentary sitting week of the year Sussan Ley seems to have just survived the political killing season. The Liberal Party ...

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...