Conversations

The story of The Snowy 14.05.2019 52:12 ↓

Tales of drowned towns, pugnacious unionists, terrifying brumbies and a love story in a laundry floor came to light in Siobhan McHugh's history of the Snowy Scheme

Revealing the scars: the life of Kate Mulvany 13.05.2019 48:18 ↓

Kate has used tragic events in her own life as creative fuel to write more than 25 plays (R)

When the library burned 10.05.2019 49:09 ↓

Writer Susan Orlean on the enduring mystery of who set fire to the Los Angeles Central Library

The brutal and beautiful world of Australia's native bees 09.05.2019 49:09 ↓

The Sugarbag bees who headbutt their queen to her death are among the many Australian bee species which fascinate ecologist Toby Smith

How a milkmaid with cowpox changed history 08.05.2019 50:12 ↓

David Isaacs on the surprising history of human vaccination

This is your captain speaking 07.05.2019 46:24 ↓

On 9/11 Captain Beverley Bass diverted her American Airlines jet to a tiny town in Newfoundland, along with thousands of other airspace refugees

Monsters and morals: Sarah Perry 06.05.2019 52:17 ↓

Sarah’s life took a gothic turn as she crafted her version of Melmoth

The power of Less: Andrew Sean Greer 03.05.2019 49:05 ↓

The Pulitzer Prize winner was working as an odd-jobs man for an Italian Baroness when a phone call upended his life

How George Saunders became 'a genuinely freaky person' 02.05.2019 49:12 ↓

George Saunders was a knuckle puller in a slaughterhouse and drove a chicken delivery van before he became a writer

Hunting the turquoise-blooded frog 01.05.2019 52:30 ↓

Biologist Jodi Rowley has identified 26 new species of frogs in South-East Asia and Australia (R)

Taking the pulse of a dopesick nation 30.04.2019 49:26 ↓

The opioid crisis is destroying hundreds of thousands of American lives and Beth Macy has been up close to it

An erratic family saga 29.04.2019 52:00 ↓

Vicki Laveau-Harvie was estranged from her parents for decades, before she was summoned to their isolated ranch on the Canadian prairies (R)

Mary Bryant: no ordinary highwaywoman 26.04.2019 51:23 ↓

The epic life story of a First Fleet rebel as told by Meg Keneally

Questioning the line of duty 25.04.2019 53:29 ↓

Why Gwen Cherne became an advocate for war widows after the death of her husband Pete (R)

Listening to China 24.04.2019 53:06 ↓

Professor David Walker on the history of the Australia-China relationship

Stan Grant on Australia Day 23.04.2019 51:30 ↓

Reflections on what it means to be Australian

Vasilisa the Wise and the witch Baba Yaga 22.04.2019 48:01 ↓

Kate Forsyth explores a classic Russian folk tale and delves into the romantic life of the Brothers Grimm (R)

Diving bells, gangsters and the women of the Brooklyn Navy Yards 19.04.2019 52:10 ↓

Acclaimed novelist Jennifer Egan dives into the chaos, romance, and hard graft of the old Navy Yards (R)

Melina Marchetta: that Italian girl 18.04.2019 52:04 ↓

The real story behind Looking for Alibrandi

Mark Scott on stepping outside the echo chamber 17.04.2019 51:06 ↓

Mark led the ABC through a decade of dramatic change. Now he's on a quest for digital minimalism

How the iPhone rewrote the teenage brain 16.04.2019 45:54 ↓

David Gillespie on how Fortnite and Instagram are altering the neural pathways of a generation

The ethics of everything: Simon Longstaff 15.04.2019 52:09 ↓

Simon Longstaff's life was changed by one of the most searing ethical dilemmas imaginable

Climbing K2, custody and other extreme challenges 12.04.2019 52:24 ↓

Adventurer Adrian Hayes on what he learned while attempting the world’s second tallest summit

Sam Thaiday: how to build a Bronco 11.04.2019 52:03 ↓

An NRL champion talks candidly about his challenges on the road to football fame

The truth about space junk 10.04.2019 51:30 ↓

Space archaeologist Dr Alice Gorman on the unexpected artefacts of the space age