Sunday Extra - Separate stories podcast
Episodes
The Nightline wants to hear your late-night thoughts
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Nightline is an instalment work coming to the Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne, and the creators are calling on night owls, shift workers, insomnia...
Tweet of the week, 24 May 2026
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's colourful wetland caller is found across the north and down the east — the Azure Kingfisher.
The Year that Made Me: Sheila Fitzpatrick, 1989
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Acclaimed Soviet historian Professor Sheila Fitzpatrick reflects on the experiences and historical and personal events of 1989 that shaped her life a...
A childhood book, reimagined
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
100 word including guest & book
Rediscovering Australian fantasy novel The Land Behind The World - and its intriguing author
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Australian author Anne Spencer Parry's debut 1976 fantasy novel The Land Behind the World was described by the Sydney Morning Herald as "weird, compl...
The Library No One Alive Will Read
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Future Library is a long-term literary project based in Norway. It currently holds 11 unpublished manuscripts and a growing forest of spruce trees, p...
The bizarre story of Honduras-gate
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A strange international scandal known as “Honduras-gate” has raised allegations of a covert disinformation campaign targeting left-wing Latin Ame...
Ukraine's new Minister for Defence goes all in on killer drones
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A bitter disagreement has emerged between Ukraine's Ministry of Defence and military leadership over the use of autonomous weapons. Ukraine is emerg...
The Melbournian running for parliament in Cyprus
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Costa Constanti, who was born and bred in Melbourne - is running for parliament in Cyprus with the Volt Party, which calls itself “the first Pan-E...
Welsh Labour defeated for first time in over a century
23 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Welsh nationalist party Plaid Cymru - which translates to the Party of Wales - is forming government for the first time after an historic electo...
The Year that Made Me: Warren Entsch, 1996
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Warren Entsch was the Federal member for the seat of Leichhardt in far north Queensland from 1996 to 2025 with a gap between 2010 and 2013. He was in...
Fashion, art and the body in between
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Behind the Met Gala's red carpet "Fashion is Art" theme this year is a more nuanced interpretation of how fashion and art collide. The Met's Costume ...
Sisters under fire
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The heroic accounts of Australian Army Nursing Sisters Margaret Anderson and Vera Torney who survived the perilous evacuation of Singapore in 1942....
Sisters Under Fire: The extraordinary courage of two Australian nurses at war
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The heroic accounts of Australian Army Nursing Sisters Margaret Anderson and Vera Torney who survived the perilous evacuation of Singapore in 1942....
Dreaming Inside
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In 2012, the South Coast Writers Centre organised a writing workshop in Junee Correctional Centre. The collection was published in a volume called D...
Dreaming Inside: poetry by inmates and young people in the justice system
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In 2012, a group of writers organised a workshop in Junee Correctional Centre with funding from the South Coast Writers Centre. The collection of wri...
The case for being reasonable
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In her new book Being Reasonable: the case for a misunderstood virtue, Professor Krista Lawlor describes reasonableness as 'one of the essential flui...
Is this the end of the Thaksin era in Thai politics?
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The release of former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra after eight months in jail has prompted debate over whether Thailand's long-dominant 'Th...
Art detective recovers painting looted by Nazis
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A painting looted by the Nazis has been discovered hanging in the home of a Dutch SS-Commander's descendants. Portrait of a Young Girl, a modernist ...
“Indiana Jones of the art world” recovers painting looted by Nazis
16 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A painting looted by the Nazis has been discovered hanging in the home of a Dutch SS-Commander's descendants. Portrait of a Young Girl, a modernist ...
The Year that Made Me: Frances Rings, 1988
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Dancing was always part of Frances Rings' childhood, helping her make sense of the world around her in a small country town. But when, at just 17, sh...
The neuroscience of awe, and why it's good for us
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A growing body of research suggests that experiencing awe has positive effects for our sense of wellbeing - an idea that might make intuitive sense, ...
The seven personalities who led Australia's "era of dramatic political flux"
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
How did the formative experiences, personality traits, world views and leadership styles of Australia's last seven Prime Ministers influence the inst...
The history of direct action and democracy
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Proponents of direct action say it’s part of democratic life. It’s detractors say it's a threat to safety, a violation of majority rule and rule ...
Data breach affects 275 million students
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Approximately 9,000 educational institutions and 275 million of their students have been affected by a data breach involving the 'learning managemen...
China's influence suspected after Zambia cancels human rights conference
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The major human rights conference RightsCon was due to convene in Zambia this week but was cancelled at the last minute, with some suggestion the...
How One Nation trimphed in Farrer
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
ABC election analyst Casey Briggs not only called the seat for One Nation at 8pm, he also called Farrar as now a safe seat for One Nation. Guest: Cas...
High Court hears goat slaughter footage case with implications for press freedom
09 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Human Rights Legal Centre and the Alliance for Journalists’ Freedom have intervened in a case being heard in the High Court to raise what the...
Tweet of the week, 3 May 2026
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Can you guess this week's tweeter?
The Year that Made Me: Kon Karapanagiotidis, 2000
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Kon Karapanagiotidis struggled to belong as a Greek-Australian kid in a town of Smiths and Jones. It wasn’t until he began volunteering as a young ...
Translators gear up for slam event at MWF
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
There is a new form of cultural event appearing at writers festivals and literary gatherings: the translation slam. The quiet mental task of translat...
Saplings: humour and tragedy in a play about youth social justice
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Saplings is a play highlighting the experience of the youth justice system, based on conversations with young indigenous people who have been through...
Can chimpanzees at war find a path to peace?
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It is a well known fact that chimpanzees can be aggressive and even violent, but a new research article published in Science Journal last month has d...
Can chimpanzees at war find a path to peace?
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
It is a well known fact that chimpanzees can be aggressive and even violent, but a new research article published in Science Journal last month has d...
Prepare for the sulphur shock
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
On May 1, China halted all exports of sulphuric acid, a rarely discussed but critical chemical, used in industrial processes in mining, agriculture ...
What does Palantir do, and who is its unusual CEO?
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The controversial American software and data analytics company Palantir is becoming an increasingly consequential fixture in governments and companie...
World Press Freedom Day
02 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
May 3 is World Press Freedom Day, the date harks back to a gathering of 63 people from 38 African countries in 1991 in Windhoek, capital of the newly...
Killer kites bring down an Indian tradition
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Since the 13th century, coloured kites have filled India’s early summer skies. But in the last decade, their numbers have dwindled — in part beca...
Tweet of the week, 26 April 2026
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's mystery caller is a uniquely colourful inhabitant of Western Australia's southwest – the Red-capped Parrot.
The Year that Made Me: Deborah Lawrie, 1979
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
1979 was the year Captain Deborah Lawrie fought for her wings. When her application to become a commercial pilot with Ansett Airlines was unsuccessfu...
A world of thoughts in the margins
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
After his death, Oliver Sacks left his partner Bill Hayes an unexpected gift: a library filled with his marginal notes, revealing his inner thoughts,...
Is Shaddap You Face Australia's best novelty song, or a poor ethnic stereotype?
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
When Shaddap You Face by Joe Dolce was named Australia’s best novelty song, it revived an old tension: in a comedy culture steeped in racial stereo...
Wayback Machine: The internet's archive in peril
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Thirty years ago the Internet Archive was created to digitally preserve content published on the internet. It claims to hold copies of 1 trillion we...
Will a landmark ruling end corporate complicity in atrocity crimes?
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A landmark ruling in a case involving a French concrete company that operated in Syria during the height of Islamic State may clear the way for natio...
Working in the Exclusion Zone 40 years after the Chernobyl disaster
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
40 years since the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant disaster, a team from the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine are researching the effect of n...
Why some female veterans don't feel recognised on Anzac Day
25 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
While there has been greater recognition of the challenges faced by women during their service, women veterans report being “under-recognised, u...
Tweet of the week, 19 April 2026
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's mystery caller hunts insects in Tasmanian woodland, farmland and heath – the Dusky Robin.
The Year that Made Me: Yann Martel, 1990
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Yann Martel might have found fame and fortune when his novel Life of Pi won the Booker Prize in 2002, but the year that shaped his path as a writer c...
On pedantry *or being pedantic
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
From ancient Greece to today’s culture wars, a new book explains why pretentious and punctilious people have always annoyed us.
A history of typos across five centuries
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
“Beauties of My Style: Errata and the Printed Mistake” explores the history of typos across five centuries.
Vasili Mitrokhin: The Spy in the KGB Archive
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Vasili Mitrokhin was sent to work in the KGB archives after failing as an intelligence operative. His disgust with the Soviet spy agency led him to s...
The complex web behind Frida Kahlo's most famous paintings
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Frida Kahlo’s works are so revered in Mexico that, in 1984, they were declared “artistic monuments” — protected as national treasures by the ...
Jeff Bezos and the decline of the Washington Post
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
When the billionaire Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post in 2013, he was billed as its ‘saviour’, and for a while, it seemed like he was. But ...
UAE struggling to navigate Hormuz crisis
18 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week, Pakistan’s Prime Minister crossed the Middle East, meeting with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Türkiye about a second round of peace talks bet...
Tweet of the week, 12 April 2026
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's common, conspicuous and colourful caller inhabits the east and the south-east – the Crimson Rosella.
The Year that Made Me: Omar Musa, 2023
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Queanbeyan raised, Bornean-Australian poet, visual artist, and award-winning author Omar Musa says his "hyperactive mind" keeps him looking for the n...
'Reds under the bed' - 75 years on from the Communist Party case
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In 1951 the High Court witnessed one of Australia's most high profile legal battles: the Communist Party case. The case saw future Chief Justice of A...
Trust, betrayal and family - the Framing by Fernanda Dahlstrom
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In her new book The Framing, lawyer Fernanda Dahlstrom unpacks her past and the crime that sent her mother to jail when she was eight years-old.
48 down: America's largest crossword puzzle tournament turns 48
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The oldest and largest crossword event in the United States, The American Crossword Puzzle Tournament is celebrating its largest attendance ever th...
What's in the Children’s Online Privacy Code?
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner has published a draft of the Children’s Online Privacy Code. It contains new rules to create ...
New Gang Suppression Force arrives in Haiti
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A new UN-backed Gang Suppression Force, led by Chad, has begun its deployment into Haiti. The new force hopes to succeed where its predecessor — th...
Canada's secularism law tested in the Supreme Court
11 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A constitutional brouhaha is brewing in Canada as the Supreme Court weighs legal arguments presented in a landmark case known as English Montreal Sc...
The Year that Made Me: Archbishop Kanishka Raffel, 1986
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The Most Reverend Kanishka Raffel is the Anglican Archbishop of Sydney. Kanishka was born into the Buddhist faith, but a chance conversation with a ...
Tweet of the week, 5 April 2026
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's mystery caller likes woodland and open country right across mainland Australia — the Jacky Winter.
Melbourne institution Snuff Puppets could be snuffed out
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
For over 30 years, the Snuff Puppets have brought all manner of giant puppets to streets and communities of Melbourne and beyond. But a recent fund...
The Aussie cinema that was ranked the 30th best in the world
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In March, Time Out magazine released its list of the The 100 greatest cinemas in the world right now, and 6 Australian cinemas made the cut.Sun Pict...
Hereditary Peers are getting the axe
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
For more than 700 years, the upper house of British parliament, House of Lords, was largely made up of hereditary peers. Seats in the House of Lords ...
Is Viktor Orbán's rule in Hungary about to end?
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hungarians will go to the polls on April 12 in what is shaping up to be a historic election.Incumbent president, Viktor Orbán, Europe’s most right...
60 years of the National Folk Festival
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Held every Easter long weekend at Exhibition Park in Canberra, the National Folk Festival is still going strong for it's 60th year running. To mark t...
How North Korea deploys forced labour in Russia
04 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
North Korean workers in Russia work up to 16 hours a day with no day off and earn as little as 10 USD per month, according to a report titled A Day i...
40 years of Adelaide's "Frankenstein bus-rail hybrid"
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Adelaide's O-Bahn was the second guided bus railway in the world, and is now one of only four on the planet. But it has been an enormous success, and...
Tweet of the week, 29 March 2026
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week's mystery caller occupies wooded habitats across the south and up the east – the Golden Whistler.
The Year that Made Me: Emily Strasser, 2009
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Emily Strasser was in her late teens before she began to realise the depth of her family's secret. Her grandfather, George, whom she had never met, h...
Slavery and sex trafficking: uncovering the secrets of Australia's first Hollywood icon
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Much has been written about Errol Flynn, whose extraordinary life took him from Hobart, to Papua New Guinea, to Hollywood's Golden Age where he becam...
The cost of living too long
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Is the longevity of Australians in the 21st century actually a curse for future generations? Government spending on the elderly is predicted to grow ...
Is it OK to drink in front of your kids?
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Are refugees still welcome in regional Australia?
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
With the rise of popularity of One Nation with rural and regional Australians, what is the effect on refugees who have settled in regional areas? Do ...
The growing health burden of type 5 diabetes
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Type 5 diabetes is fast becoming a significant public health issue in parts of sub-saharan Africa, rivalling infectious diseases like Malaria and HIV...
Why aren't China and Russia helping Iran?
28 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Why have Russia and China offered only tepid support to Iran in the form of statements criticising the US and Israel, and might that change if the Ir...
What's on at the Africa Film Fest?
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
After two years of sold-out shows in Sydney, in 2026 the Africa Film Fest is making its Melbourne debut. From Friday March 27 until the 29th, films f...
The Year that Made Me: Dr Olivia Ong, 2008
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Early in her medical career, Dr Olivia Ong decided that instead of becoming a neurosurgeon, she would go into rehabilitation medicine. Little could ...
All aboard the Freedom Plane for America's 250th birthday
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The United States National Archives is celebrating the 250th anniversary of the founding of America with a lofty, high-altitude initiative called the...
What would you pay to visit the Twleve Apostles?
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
The State government of Victoria has announced that later this year, a fee will be introduced for tourists visiting the Twelve Apostles along the Gre...
Seeking the elusive ghost elephant
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Werner Herzog's documentary Ghost Elephants takes us deep into the remote Angolan Highlands, following conservationist Dr Steve Boyes and a team of I...
Why spies still use WW1-era encrypted radio broadcasts
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Short-wave radio enthusiasts have eagerly reported the appearance of Farsi-language encoded messages being broadcast out of Western Europe. The messa...
Medicinal Cannabis no better than placebo for some mental health conditions
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
A major new study from the University of Sydney, published in The Lancet Psychiatry, has found medicinal cannabis is no more effective than a placebo...
Unpacking the Tillies v Japan Asia Cup final
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Julian speaks with former Matildas vice captain Moya Dodd about the outcome of the Matildas Asia Cup final against Japan.Guest: Moya Dodd, former Mat...
A South Australian election result with 'massive national implications'
21 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
“A political earthquake” with “massive national implications”: that was the verdict of ABC Election Analyst Casey Briggs on the outcome of Sa...
The rich history of Australian artworks about Antarctica
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Antarctica has long captured the imaginations of artists and poets, as well as explorers and scientists.Since 2023, The University of Tasmania has be...
The Year that Made Me: Adam Elliot, 2004
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Adam Elliot is an auteur writer and director of animated films, who has carved his own path in the Australian film industry with his idiosyncratic fi...
30 years since Port Arthur, a meditation on the aftermath returns to the stage
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Australia will mark the 30th anniversary of the Port Arthur massacre in April 2026. The process of dealing with the grief and its ongoing effects are...
Have human emotions changed through history?
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever wondered what your ancestors were feeling decades or centuries ago? Rob Boddice is an historian who argues that differences in our cont...
How the global economy is used as a weapon of war
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As an official in the US State Department, Edward Fishman worked on imposing sanctions on Russia. Eddie discusses his latest book Chokepoints, which...
Deep Impact averted by a shove in the right direction
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
NASA crashed a spacecraft into an asteroid in 2022, hoping the kinetic impact would nudge it off its orbit. The mission was called the Double Asteroi...
Iraq's hard-won stability threatened by Iran conflict
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As the conflict in the Middle East enters its third week, Iran continues to launch attacks against US allies in the Gulf. Iraq, which borders Iran, i...
Tooba Khan Sawari: A sporting chance in Australia
14 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This week seven members of the Iranian women’s soccer delegation were given humanitarian visas to stay in Australia rather than returning to Iran a...
India through Indigenous eyes
07 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Julie Janson is a Burruberongal woman, novelist, playwright and poet. In her new book, Letters from India, she writes about the profoundly moving exp...
The Year that Made Me: Deborah Cheetham Fraillon, 2023
07 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Deborah Cheetham Fraillon AO is a soprano and composer whose extensive CV includes Artistic Director of Short Black Opera and Dhungala Children's Cho...
Gatz is a play worth the numb backside
07 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Gatz is a six-hour theatrical reimagining of The Great Gatsby (eight and a half hours with intervals), which The New York Times called “the most re...
Dr. Bot - The future of AI in medicine
07 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
As doctors are weighed down by increased demands, reduced support and the fast pace of change in medical research, could AI help save the health syst...