Late Night Live — Full program podcast

Have you ever wondered about the human need to count, measure and quantify?

When did humanity start drawing borders? Why have nomadic cultures been so maligned? And how do states wield "soft power" through diplomatic gifts?  Guests:  James Crawford, author, The Edge of the Plain Anthony Sattin, author, Nomads: The wanderers who shaped our world Paul Brummell, author, Diplomatic gifts: a history in 50 presents

What are the origins of the handshake? When did smiling become fashionable? And are we hard-wired to laugh? In the first episode of this six part series we look at how social norms evolved through history. Guests:  Ella Al-Shamahi, author of The Handshake: a gripping history (2021) Colin Jones, author of The Smile Revolution In Eighteenth Century Paris (2014) Jonathan Silvertown, author of The Com...

In a special summer episode hosted by Sarah Dingle, we examine how we're flushing away one of the earth's most precious resources, and talk to forester Peter Wohlleben about the secret lives and superpowers of trees. 

When does a local plate of food become a national dish? Food writer Anya von Bremzen dissects the myths and legends behind the world's most famous dishes. Plus, historian John Simons on the origins of the modern aquarium. 

Oxford historian and bestselling author Peter Frankopan joins Phillip Adams for an in-depth discussion about his new book The Earth Transformed: An Untold History, a revelatory look at world history through the lens of climate change.  First broadcast 9 March 2023

Political scientist Sally Young discusses how media power in Australia came to be concentrated in the hands of a few men, and how this influenced politics during the period 1941-1972. First broadcast 13 June 2023.

Andrey Kurkov reflects on the invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing days and weeks. Plus, we meet the 19th century scientists whose experiments with mind-altering drugs gave us modern medicine, psychology and philosophy.  Originally broadcast in May 2023. 

In this episode we take a fresh look at Germany's formidable former leader Angela Merkel, and award-winning British author Angela Saini hunts down the roots of male domination and makes some surprising discoveries.  This program was originally broadcast in April 2023. 

Meet the colourful collectors whose singular obsession is illuminated manuscripts, and hear the incredible story of the rebels who recorded forbidden music on x-rays in the USSR during the Cold War.    This program was originally broadcast in April 2023. 

The Whitlam era saw a great leap forward for women's rights in Australia, driven by Women’s Adviser Elizabeth Reid and a host of female activists, backed by a grass roots movement across the country. Their work is being recognised in a book released to coincide with the fiftieth anniversary of Reid’s appointment. This episode was originally broadcast on 13 April, 2023. 

The 19th of March 2003 marked the beginning of the invasion of Iraq by the United States and the 'Coalition of the Willing'. 20 years on, award-winning Iraqi journalist Ghaith Abdul-Ahad reflects on how the invasion transformed his country; and former Australian diplomat to the Middle East Robert Bowker shares his own memories, and considers Australia's legacy in the Arab world.  This episode was...

The Murdoch media mogul that we've come to know is almost unrecognisable from Rupert Murdoch, the youth. Author Walter Marsh discusses the era that shaped young Rupert, the radical who espoused socialism, kept a bust of Lenin in his uni accommodation and then went on to build his empire from 1950s Adelaide. This episode was originally broadcast on 03 August 2023. 

Former speechwriter James Fallows pays tribute to the 39th President of the United States, Jimmy Carter. Plus, writer Xochitl Gonzalez on New York's unstoppable rats. This program was originally broadcast in March 2023. 

Political historian and journalist Chris Wallace investigates how prime ministerial biographies have impacted our leaders throughout Australia's history — for good and ill. This episode was originally broadcast on 09 February 2023. 

In a year when wars and the referendum on the voice all worked towards dividing us, there were moments of joy and unity that brought us together as a nation. Our end of year panel digs deep to find them. AJ Lamarque, comedian, writer, producer and host of the Kweens of Comedy Alice Fraser, writer and podcast host of Tea with Alice and The Gargle. Carly Williams, national indigenous correspondent w...

To mark International Day Of People With Disability, December 3rd, the ABC is showcasing content featuring people with lived experience of disability. On Late Night Live, we revisit the conversations we had with legally blind writers from either side of the Atlantic, Andrew Leland and Selina Mills. 

Trump and war - Bruce Shapiro looks back on the year in US politics. And the woman was not anti-social, but anti the social order: the life of Sydney 'originalist' Bee Miles. 

Laura Tingle and Nikki Savva look back on 2023 and give a report card for Canberra Politicians. Jock Given and Virginia Madsen help us celebrate 100 years of Radio National and its transformation from ABC Radio 2 to the present day.

Journalist Adam Welz shares his plea to save what's left of the Earth's magnificent biodiversity, before its too late. And documentarian Mary Haverstick on the mysterious life of Jerrie Cobb - the would-be astronaut who became a spy.

A UNESCO award for the Gunditjmara people of Western Victoria but the campaign for Indigenous people to care for their own country carries on, plus how true are the legends about Roman Emperors? 

Ian Dunt reflects on an eventful year in UK politics and looks ahead to the 2024 election. Joseph Sikulu and Wesley Morgan preview COP28 from a Pacific perspective and Zahra Hankir explains why kohl eyeliner has long been a marker for the intersection between beauty and power.

Laura Tingle on the sacking of Mike Pezzullo, and Tanya Plibersek's win on the Murray Darling Basin Plan. And what a close study of oil paintings from the past couple of centuries tells us about colonial, and later, times. 

Why focusing on identity groups is the wrong prescription to overcome injustice and build a fairer society. Also, moral philosophy and how love can lead to hope.

Phillip spends an hour revisiting the life of Charlie Chaplin with biographer Scott Eyman, author of Charlie Chaplin vs. America: When Art, Sex and Politics Collided.