MID

Protein, weights, sleep, oh my. Does it feel like you hit a certain birthday with a zero and everyone started yelling at you about chicken breast and dumbbells? For this last episode of MID for Season 5, we wanted to ask someone smart to tell us exactly why that is. And so we found a woman called Louisa Nicola, an Australian neurophysiologist and human performance coach based in the US - and got h...

Chances are, you’ve read at least one Marian Keyes book, and that if you've read one, you’ve read many. Since her first novel, Watermelon , was published in 1995, Keyes has written 24 books - all with guts and heart, wicked humour and her her trademark Irish wit. Not only is Marian one of the most successful novelists of her generation, she’s also shared the ups and downs of her...

Do you need a fashion overhaul? Some grown-up clothes. Grown-up attitude. Grown-up advice? Holly Wainwright did, and she knew exactly who to call for a gentle roasting and some no-bullshit advice: Grace Lam. You might remember Grace because she’s our first-ever repeat guest on MID. The fashion stylist, former Senior Fashion Editor of VOGUE China for a decade, was on MID Season Two talking ab...

In the 80s & 90s - they didn’t come any cooler than Ione Skye. You remember her from Say Anything, the iconic 80s teen movie, or from River’s Edge or Gas Food Lodging or The Rachel Papers…But while Ione was busy making some of the most era-defining films, she was also living the most aspirational 90’s life imaginable - Teenage friends with River Phoenix, teenage girlfr...

From Foundation to Filler, Leigh Campbell on beauty "hell yesses" and "f*ck no's". Whether you have a 12-step skincare routine and a "derm" on speed-dial, or whether you still use the same one pot of moisturiser you’ve used since you were 20, chances are, your face has changed. And however you feel about that, the beauty world, and its messages around ageing are confusing. Enter, our no-BS b...

Melinda French Gates knows everyone wants to talk about her divorce. She gets it, and she's covered it her new book, Next Day, about handling life's transitions. But also, what she wants to talk about is change. How we pick ourselves up after those big moments that knock us off course, whether it's the end of a relationship, losing a job, becoming a parent, kids leaving home, losing someone or a a...

Rachel Ward always sensed she would need to find her purpose outside of acting - for reasons she will explain in this conversation. But she never would have guessed that she’d find that purpose on a working cattle farm in rural Australia… At MID, we like to call this time in our life the “third age” - it’s that post-work era where we’re redefining the shape of...

Gabby Bernstein is the kind of person you mention in a group chat and instantly get five voice notes back saying, “Oh my God, she changed my life.” She’s Oprah-approved, a New York Times best-selling author many times over, a spiritual teacher and the voice behind the wellness movement that’s got us all manifesting, journaling and choosing our battles. In this episode of MI...

Welcome back to MID Season Five...We have a very special guest. Mia Freedman has been in countless conversations with Holly Wainwright—on mics, off mics, in meetings, in texts. But she’s never been on MID. Until now. In this episode, Holly kicks off Season Five with someone who knows her well, and who’s read something very personal—her brand new book, He Would Never. It&rsq...

If you’ve been glued to The White Lotus this season, you’re not alone. In this exclusive episode, our Head of Entertainment Laura Brodnik sits down with two of the stars from Season 3: Natasha Rothwell and Leslie Bibb. Natasha reflects on returning to White Lotus—what’s changed since Season 1, her character’s solo journey, and going after the career she truly wan...

When Laraine’s husband died, her kids told her to stay put. Instead, she bought an RV, named her Matilda and drove away. Now, she’s a full-time “grey nomad,” looping Australia instead of ‘mowing lawns’. In this episode, Laraine shares what it takes to downsize a life into a van, what her kids really think, the most breathtaking places she&rsq...

Antonia Murphy knows more about sex than pretty much anyone I’ve ever spoken to. Antonia was raising three kids, including one with a serious disability, in a small town in New Zealand when her marriage unravelled.  A lot of women make big changes after divorce, and Antonia took that to a whole new level - she opened a legal, ethical brothel. In this shame-free conversation, Antonia sha...

It's the dream every MID woman has discussed with her best friends. You know the one. The one where you fantasise about living in a big house together, or maybe a bunch of tiny-houses on land, but the gist is the same: When we're older, we will live together and pool our resources and care for each other. But for most of us, this dream remains a dream. For Eve Grzybowski and Heather Bolstler, two...

Nicole O' Neil is a Real Housewife of Sydney. Yes, we mean the reality show. And she's also a woman dealing with a lot of what everyone else is - kids getting older, a long marriage shifting gears, friendship changing with time, a career crossroads.  She just looks much more glamorous doing it. In this conversation we talk to Nicole about how MID’s going for someone who’s in the p...

Welcome to the MID view of The White Lotus. The three 'midlife' friends in the latest season of the prestige TV show are a perfect thin-slice of the new forty-somethings. These are not your mother's foreheads. And this is not your mother's resortwear. But when Jaclyn, Kate and Laurie ventured away from the beautiful people inside their five-star bubble, they ran perfect-face-first into an uncomfor...

Faith Agugu always imagined she would be a mother. But at 45, after many, many detours, she decided it was time to recognise the reality that wasn't going to happen, and almost immediately everything changed for her. Faith wants us to make peace with the lives we're living and the ones we didn't quite get to live. In fact, she wants us live in a pro-ageing world. She knows it exists, because it's...

When Caroline Baum and her mother Judith walked into family therapy, Caroline’s first thought was: 'We are going to eat you for breakfast… we are so fucked up…' After all, they had a lot to discuss. At 90 years old, Judith had recently invited herself to come and live with Caroline and her husband and... it wasn't going well. Caroline is a writer, speaker and broadcaster. She h...

Midlife style doesn’t have to be complicated. Today, Leigh chats with Holly Wainwright ,  Mamamia Out Loud co-host and bestselling author, about how she hit her fashion stride after 50.  Holly shares her top tips for building a wardrobe that feels authentic and comfortable—without the stress of chasing trends. If you're feeling stuck in a rut or need a wardrobe refresh, Holly...

Eleanor Mills had a very fabulous job, one that she had built her life and identity around for decades. But her "midlife collision" was calling when the boss called her up to their office for a "chat". Years on, Eleanor is living a very different life, and one that has its start, as some good stories do, in a midlife mushroom trip. In this conversation, Eleanor talks about the question women...

Rachel Griffiths says she just got through her "peak mid-hell years" and she's here to tell us how. The actor, producer, and director has had many eras - from the "fast start" of Muriel's Wedding to being a Hollywood awards darling, a big-deal US TV star, the director of the Australian classic movie Ride Like A Girl, the co-creator of Total Control and now, the star of the TV show Madam. Through a...

Today’s episode is about love. Specifically, it’s about finding it in your MID years. Maybe for the second, fourth, first time. This is a story about Dr Amantha Imber, an organisational psychologist who got divorced a few years ago. When Amantha knew she wanted to re-partner, she went about it with a typical approach to efficiency - going on more than 50 first dates in her first stint...

Mia Freedman, longtime friend of Holly and co-host of Mamamia Out Loud , has stepped down from hosting No Filter after an incredible decade. She’s passing the torch to the incredibly talented Kate Langbroek, who is the perfect fit to take over a show with such a rich legacy. Over the past 10 years, Mia has interviewed everyone from celebrities and prime ministers to people with the most jaw-...

Welcome back, MIDs, and please send this episode to your best friend immediately. Because it's about the power of the most important relationships in many of our lives - the one we have with our great mates. You know Amanda Keller from her many decades as an Australian television and radio presenter, comedian, writer, actress and journalist. You might be meeting her best friend forensic psychologi...

MID is coming back to your ears on Tuesday 4th Feb. While you're waiting... Holly has some thoughts on Nicole Kidman's "controversial" new film, Babygirl, and the fact that Gen X's most iconic actresses are dominating Hollywood ATM. Is it because "old" no longer looks "old"? Or is it because... they're incredible? THE END BITS:  Share your feedback! Send us a voice message or email us at podc...

MIDs, I couldn't sign off for the year without one more little moment with you, the women who have made my year by joining me here on this podcast for Gen X women who are anything but...so please enjoy this end-of-year wrap-up and contemplation on what seems to have been a year when MID women have taken centre stage. Here's to more of us in 2025 - meet you there. xo Holly THE END BITS:  Share...