Mike Williams: 100 in 24

Three Canadians start a punk band called F*cking Carnage to get through quarantine. They don't care if their mothers are offended. Sign up to the newsletter and I'll post you a band sticker: https://www.mikewilliams.com.au/punk-in-a-pandemic-fucking-carnage-band-toronto-canada-quarantine-coronavirus/ Illustrations by Ashley Ronning, check her out on instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ashleyronni...

If you see a guy walking at an incredible pace in the Gladesville area it could be Matthew Macdonald. He’s walking about 10km a day to stay active. Find out what his testicles have to do with it. Also, we grapple with the mixed emotions of life after lockdown. And Macca sings an anthem of our time that definitely doesn’t sound ‘breathy’ so don’t mention that. Credits...

At the beginning of 2020, Georgia Moodie packed her bags and moved to London on an adventure. She found a home in a warehouse with 13 others. At that time she didn’t know she’d soon be locked inside with all of them. With only three bathrooms, a strict kitchen roster and meetings where people ‘discuss their feelings’ – what could possibly go wrong? Despite the odds, G...

Tim Ritchie didn't want any friends when he was a kid. Now he cycles around Sydney in the small hours, photographing buildings and empty corridors.  He calls his ability to be alone with himself a form of 'spectacular solitude'.  Credits Guest: Tim Ritchie Episode Art: Chris Vernon - https://www.instagram.com/chrisvernon_/   Music: Mike/Blue Dot Sessions: https://www.sessions.blue/...

Did Alex Raso cheat his way onto this podcast? Probably not but I’ll definitely ask the question. Also, ‘see you in tribunal’: Raso gets fired up over a dodgy rental agreement.  Credits Guest: Alexander Raso Episode Art: Chris Vernon - https://www.instagram.com/chrisvernon_/   Music: Mike/Blue Dot Sessions: https://www.sessions.blue/   Contact Mike Twitter: https:/...

She wears a lot of hats but Chrissy Flanagan is best known for her sausage crown.  Because Chrissy Flanagan is the Sausage Queen. In this episode, Chrissy explains how she helped set up a way for small businesses in Dulwich Hill to band together and make the most of a bad situation. Credits Guest: Chrissy Flanagan, the sausage queen Sausage Factory restaurant: https://www.thesausagefactory.co...

Mike reveals a secret interview technique that sets Carmen Angerer off on a nostalgic dip into the snacks of our youth. The conversation is almost derailed when Carmen explains how it’s possible to bake a loaf of bread from vaginal yeast. We cleanse the palate with an investigation into the problematic Nesquik bunny ad from the late ‘90s. Carmen then describes how she was in Bali for a...

New York has become the epicentre of this pandemic. At the time of writing, New York state has had over 300000 COVID-19 cases and potentially 20000 deaths. Robert Smith is a reporter and master storyteller with NPR's business and economics show, Planet Money.  In this episode, Robert takes us inside New York City and explains why money doesn’t help much during a pandemic. Credits Guest:...

Last year, Cumberland Gang Show - western Sydney's favourite family-friendly, variety show (put on by scouts and guides) - celebrated 50 years. But 2020 and a pandemic has its 51st performance in doubt.  While they wait in isolation, a Gang Show friendship group has replaced rehearsals with hanging out on zoom. In a Mike Williams and Friends exclusive, we take you inside one of these zoom mee...

Geoff McQueen was shattered when he learned the 2020 London Marathon was postponed due to coronavirus.  After months of training, and a looming deadline to run a marathon before he turns 50, he decided a pandemic wouldn't stop his goal. So this Sunday - on the date the London Marathon should have taken place - Geoff will run a marathon (42km) in his backyard. Guest: Geoff McQueen Listen to Ge...

Could virtual reality be the answer surviving isolation? Creative technologist, Warren Armstrong, doesn’t want to speculate but I ask him to anyway. After I pretend to know the difference between virtual and augmented reality, Warren makes the case for ‘fully automated gay-space communes’. Because, as he says, “the world is changing, or maybe it's not changing. We've got no...

Lia Tsamoglou bought a mask to protect her unborn baby from thick bushfire smoke that engulfed Sydney throughout our horrific summer. Now, she’s using the same mask at the supermarket to protect against Covid-19.  It’s been a tumultuous nine months outside of the womb.  In the final days before the birth of her second child, Lia reflects on this period and the unknowns that w...

Joe Jackson doesn’t regret the ridiculous look he rocked in high school. The sideways baseball cap and over-sized Kanye glasses don’t bother him. But Year 12 does. Specifically, the end of school exams, and the way we were taught to 'learn-by-memorising'. While reflecting on his commitment to vegetarianism, he remembers the time he humiliated a bully in front of the whole school. Fourt...

Colette Kinsella i s a radio documentary maker based in Dublin Zoo. She literally lives in Dublin Zoo. I found out how she fell for radio, her passion for animals and one of the all-time greatest love stories. It’s a lot of love. But it’s not surprising, considering I love Ireland, I love Irish people and I loved this catch up with Colette. Guest: Colette Kinsella Check out Colette&rsq...

Newtown Performing Arts high school was a melting pot of extraverted dancers, actors and musicians. But even amongst a school full of characters, Eric Avery stood out.  He now works as a professional artist. I found out about that, as well as a new relationship that’s lead him to Darwin, and his experience as a gay, Indigenous man. Credits Guest : Eric Avery Music : Mike/Blue Dot Sessio...

When she’s not competing in triathlons (or posting photos about competing in triathlons)  Ellen Leabeater  is a producer for The Guardian’s daily podcast, Full Story. Today we’re getting the full story on Ellen’s love life. Specifically, the challenges she faces as she tries to navigate Sydney’s dating scene as the city goes into lockdown. After a romantic f...

Lewis McKirdy  changed the way Australian youth radio presenters think about talking on the radio. His unique style, instantly recognisable voice and unflappable temperament allowed him to cut through the airwaves. In 2016 he decided to take a break from radio and move to London. He’s mixed it up career-wise since then, spreading his wings. But he’s still the same loveable larriki...

I’m pretty sure Tristan Dabbs use to have a velcro wallet with a chain on it. He’s also the first person I know to own an MP3 player – before the iPod.  We sat next to each other in Year 8 homeroom at St Pats, Dundas, in Sydney’s north-west. Coincidentally, St Pats was one of the first schools in Sydney to have a Covid-19 case. A good 15 years later, it’s time to...

As well as camping and playing with a pocket knife, during scouts I met a bunch of interesting people.  My first memory of James Munro was when we were 12 years old. Another kid said something about his mum and James went over and punched him. The Munro's are a tight unit. Ruth is the quintessential Australian Mum. Pete is the reserved Dad whose beers we stole. There’s James, who now li...

I met  Rachel Worsley  at a wedding when she wrote a poem about pickles on a typewriter. Rachel gambled a successful career in law to try her luck with a poetry business called Typepolar. Her parents weren’t excited about it. But exactly one year after starting – armed with only a typewriter and her imagination – Rachel has proven her dream can turn a profit. Instead of...

Hi friend, it's Mike. Hope you're well wherever you are. I'm jumping into the calls, but I wanted to leave this as a little holder. One day soon, when I've had a bit more time to think, I'll update this file with a proper intro. In the meantime I hope you can check out the first episode featuring a 'breaking news poet'. Take care. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.