Rights, Rorts and Rants

Historian and author Prof Sean Scalmer shares his insights and discusses his book "A Fair Day's Work - The Quest to Win Back Time" with Deb Smith for Radio Blue Mountains listeners. The Blackheath History Forum have invited him to speak on Sunday 1st November 2026 from 4pm at the Gardner's Inn Blackheath. Tickets at the door, or prebooking via Humanitix . The event is called &quo...

In this interview Fran Dyson pays tribute to Stephen Jones one of the most important electronic and video artists in Australia and a pioneer of the use of video synthesiser in the famous group Severed Heads. Tragically Stephen died on the 8th of October 2026 following an assault outside his studio in Sydney. Fran was a friend of Stephen's and recorded an interview with him which she broadcast...

We talk to Thomas Costa, the newly elected Secretary of Unions NSW , the peak body for unions in NSW. The discussion covers issues such as the union campaign against the growing culture of unpaid overtime and then we ask about housing. Following this, a discussion between Wil Tricity, Nick Franklin and Peter Lammiman - members of Blue Mountains Unions and Community and hosts of this and another Ra...

How do we expand liveability, community & truly affordable housing in the midst of a World Heritage area, while resisting poor development? Speakers: Tania de Bortoli, Blue Mountains Conservation Society Sarah Redshaw, Councillor, Blue Mountains City Council Suzie van Opdorp, Councillor, Blue Mountains City Council This episode was first broadcast on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1 FM on 18th Septem...

Erst Carmichael, tireless campaigner from the recently renamed Western Sydney Airport Community Impact Alliance spoke again with Rights, Rorts and Rants' presenter Merran Maclaren on September 4th 26 about a range of concerns community groups hold about Western Sydney International Airport which will soon add passenger flights to freight. in addition to new safety concerns re air traffic contr...

Viola Morris and Muqdad Al Ghalebi are contesting the General Secretary and Assistant General Secretary positions (along with 20 Councillors) on a ticket to run in the upcoming NSW Nurses and Midwives Association elections. A contested election at the NSW branch of the nurses and midwives union hasn't occurred in 23 years! Candidates Viola and Muqdad spoke to Peter Lammiman on Rights, Rorts an...

Western Sydney University and developer Stockland have submitted a State Assessed Rezoning Proposal (SARP) under the State Significant Rezoning policy to have 98.7 hectares of land inside the Werrington Precinct. Penrith Council has grave concerns about the proposal and have voted to make a submission to SARP to outline their objections. Sandra Newham, representing the Save Western Sydney Wildlife...

Trish Doyle spoke live on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1 with RRR presenters Nick Franklin and Wil Tricity about pressing issues in the Blue Mountains electorate. This is a podcast of that 21 Aug 2026 interview. Topics ranged from measure to address the closed Great Western Highway along Victoria Pass, aspects of the current housing crisis which is exacerbated in holiday areas such as the Blue Mountain...

Koala expert Chris Moon was in conversation with Rights, Rorts and Rants' presenter Nick Franklin on the 10 July 2026 to share his knowledge of koalas on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1 FM. This conversation will teach you much about koalas. Such as, the impact of the Black Summer fires on koala numbers (not as lethal as we were lead to believe); background about the Great Koala National Park in NSW...

Deb Smith has a rant about modern slavery in Australia... What you can do if you: are trying to escape slavery know someone enduring slavery and, what the Australian government is doing to combat modern slavery. Support, contact details and other information mentioned in the show can be found via these links and in the menu of the Blue Mountains Unions and Community website under " Modern Sla...

The quantum world may seem like sci-fi and magic but, with the help of Dr Danni Holmes' field guide, we can discover how to spot it in the wild. Begin your journey into the quantum universe with this discussion between Danni and Deb Smith. On the 11 August Melbourne University Press releases  WONDERS OF THE QUANTUM WORLD: UNCOVERING THE SECRETS OF OUR UNIVERSE, LIFE ON EARTH AND THE FUTURE OF TECH...

In this update on the " Still Not a Suburb of Sydney " campaign, Tania De Bortoli of the Blue Mountains Conservation Society urges "everyone who cares about the future of the Blue Mountains to write a personal letter asking (the NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces) not to approve the proposed development at 142–150 Narrow Neck Road, Katoomba, and to exempt the Blue Mountains...

The only place in the world that the dwarf mountain pine (pherosphaera fitzgeraldii) is found is in the Upper Blue Mountains of NSW. Unfortunately, it is listed as critically endangered which is only one step away from extinction. Presenter Nick Franklin interviewed Liam Ramage, the Threatened Species Officer for the Blue Mountains Conservation Society, about the dwarf mountain pine for Rights, Ro...

Once a wonderful establishment and one of the best examples of Greek cafes in Australia the Paragon Cafe in Katoomba is boarded up and deteriorating and has been for the past 8 years. Presenter Nick Franklin spoke to Friends of the Paragon President Rob Strange for Rights, Rorts and Rants 29 May 26 show in a quiet corner of the Carrington Hotel about the current condition and status of the Paragon...

CONTENT WARNING - features discussion of political violence and oppression. In December 2024 South Koreans in Seoul prevented the imposition of martial law and dictatorship. In a world where the right to vote is often taken for granted or even disparaged, why were South Koreans so passionate– even risking their lives in defence of their democracy? The answer lies in history and in living memory, w...

On Rights, Rorts and Rants Terry Morgan talks about the Lock The Gate Alliance in conversation with Presenter Merran Maclaren. He outlines its background and past and present campaigns. For information on getting involved in current campaigns contact Jo Lynch jo@lockthegate.org or Terry Morgan djarrak@gmail.com Two tracks by Ray Dinakarri Dixon are also played during the show: The Fracking Song an...

Rights, Rorts and Rants Presenter Merran Maclaren uncovers Jim Angel's memories of community activist Muriel "Tibbi" (also known by Tibby) Whalan. Tibbi Whalan's campaigning included "Save our site", which is the site of the Tibbi Whalan Hall and Community Centre, free lunches for primary school children, creating the new Katoomba High School, Library and Senior Citizen...

The Member for the Blue Mountains Trish Doyle MP spoke to listeners from Radio Blue Mountains Katoomba studio on the Rights Rorts and Rants show on 8th May 26. Note: The first 1min 50 seconds have a track playing under the interview which was not able to be erased. We apologise for this section of poor sound quality. In a long interview Trish provided our listeners with updates on major issues of...

This podcast follows up on a November 2025 interview with Erst Carmichael from Blue Mountains Demands an Airport Curfew or BMDAC on Rights, Rorts and Rants. Erst updates listeners on the latest correspondence with BMDAC regarding noise monitors for the Mountains to monitor aircraft noise, the impacts of aircraft noise humans animals and plants in the unique Blue Mountains context and more ahead of...

Deadline looming and fast action required! On 6 March 26 Tania De Bortoli from the Blue Mountains Conservation Society (bluemountains.org.au) spoke again with Rights, Rorts and Rants on 89.1FM with an update on the "Blue Mountains - not just a suburb of Sydney" campaign to stop the proposed oversized Narrow Neck development. Blue Mountains Conservation Society have recently run community...

On 6 March 2026 Kris Newton the Executive Officer of Mountains Community Resource Network spoke to Rights, Rorts and Rants on 89.1FM about the withdrawal of all government funding by the end of March 26 and MCRN's fight to continue its work. To find out how you can help MCRN contact Kris Newton at eo@mcrn.org.au The show was first broadcast on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1 FM on Friday 6 March 202...

Presenter Merran Maclaren spoke to Brian Mackellar and Brian Coates from KRAG, a group of volunteers bringing life and colour into Katoomba in the form of Christmas trees, flowers and a new art space. This podcast was recorded from an interview broadcast on the 27 Feb 2026 on Rights, Rorts and Rants show on Radio Blue Mountains Founder Brian McKellar explains how he became sick of hearing people c...

Academic, researcher and author of "Nuked: the submarine fiasco that sank Australia's sovereignty" (2024), Andrew Fowler spoke to Rights, Rorts and Rants' presenter Fran Dyson in February 2026 to provide us with brief history and an update on Australia's AUKUS controversial nuclear powered submarine contract with the UK and USA. Andrew's informative interview provides ins...

Peter Lammiman and Dr Rodrigo Acuña discuss Venezuela and its relationship with the US. On 3 January 2026, the United States captured and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores after launching a military strike, codenamed Operation Absolute Resolve. This episode was first broadcast on Radio Blue Mountains 89.1FM on 23rd January, 2026. Dr Acuña, an expert on Latin...

The CSIRO plans to cut another 350 research jobs, on top of the 800 jobs already lost in the past 18 months, on top of people in non-permanent roles whose contracts won't be renewed. Presenter Nick Franklin interviewed Susan Tonks, Secretary CSIRO Staff Association which represents CSIRO union members and is affiliated with the CPSU (Commonwealth Public Service Union). The interview was follow...