Something To Talk About

11 women have been killed at the hands of their spouse or domestic partner so far in 2021. 55 women were killed at the hands of their spouse or domestic partner in 2020. Domestic & Family Violence is the leading preventable cause of death and injury for women between the ages of 15-44. One woman is killed every nine days by their spouse or domestic partner in Australia. 10 women a day are hospital...

In this episode Tommy Berry opens up about the sudden and tragic loss of his twin brother at the age of 23, Tommy and Sam talk about his idyllic upbringing in the lap of horses, living the rural life (with four kids!) in Dural, his thoughts on the Melbourne Cup and Tommy tells a great yarn about starting out working with Gai Waterhouse #toughasnails Episode notes -  Tommy tweets: @TommyBerry21  Yo...

In an emotional and honest episode Sam opens up about her first Mother's Day without her mum Libby, who passed in November of last year at the age of 68. Clinical Psychologist Dr Sarah Hughes and Sam discuss themes of loss, celebration, grief and also touch on the feelings of people who don't have a relationship with their mother, or are looking to become a mother.  Ultimately, Happy Mother's Day...

Gary Jubelin is very much the modern Australian hero. In this episode Gary opens up about the public support he received after charges were laid against him by the NSW Police, how a young delinquent teenager became one of Australia's most revered cops, the Bowraville murders and he answers the question posed by Sam: 'do you know who killed William Tyrrell?' Episode notes -  Season 3 of Gary's podc...

It seems fitting that given all of the royal news at the moment the guest on this episode is someone who has been front and centre at a royal wedding. Many listeners will know Amber Petty as Princess Mary's bridesmaid, but there is so much more to the person behind the headlines. Sam and Amber discuss the impact of losing parents, the lows associated with being trapped in a toxic relationship, the...

Paul Murray is someone who is not shy when it comes to offering an opinion. In this episode he and Sam talk about the recent controversy surrounding Magda Szubanski and Jenny Morrison, Christine Holgate's comments on the Prime Minister, the phenomenon of mediocre blokes, Paul's strong connection to regional Australia, how politics played out in the COVID pandemic and towards the end of this episod...

Kate Ellis is a former Australian politician who represented the Division of Adelaide for the Labor Party from 2004 - 2019. In this episode Sam and Kate discuss in depth the toxic culture in Parliament House, how she dealt with the constant rumours about her private life whilst in office, the dangers of warfare politics, Brittany Higgins and Kate opens up about the challenges she sees in raising t...

Madonna King is a journalist, author and media commentator. In this episode Sam and Madonna talk about many themes that are of the moment. Teenage anxiety, consent and the dangers of demonising young men are discussed in depth, they applaud young women such as Brittany Higgins for speaking out and later in the episode Madonna discusses her work on domestic violence particularly around the death of...

Pastor Jon Owen is the CEO of the Wayside Chapel in Sydney's Kings Cross area. In this episode for the Easter weekend Sam and Jon talk about his experiences growing up in Australia after emigrating from Malaysia, his time spent working in the slums of India, and a wonderful life dedicated to helping people. Themes of loneliness, isolation and grief are touched on - but ultimately is it true that a...

With the AFL and NRL back in full swing, in this episode Sam catches up with a legend of the NRL, Steve 'Blocker' Roach. Blocker was the country's leading prop during the late 1980s, playing 185 games for Balmain over 11 years, he ran out for Australia, and was an original Blues enforcer for State of Origin. Blocker has a fascinating life off the field, he's open about needing to see a psychiatris...

Sunrise weatherman Sam Mac joins Sam on this episode. Lots of topics covered as two good friends catch-up, the guys discuss how often they've been declared a love item in the press, how good tiger mums are when you need someone to police those trolls, the challenges of being in a relationship and then having a relationship break up in the public eye, Sam M's amazing band with Dr Chris Brown, and t...

Australian of the Year Grace Tame joins Sam in this episode. In a wide ranging interview Grace opens up on the responsibility she feels toward other survivors of childhood sexual abuse, and describes how her abuser manipulated her into hating her own womanhood, and the ongoing effects of that. Grace also shares the news on the work she's beginning with Los Angeles Human Trafficking Task Force. In...

In this very timely episode former Minister for Foreign Affairs and deputy leader of the Liberal Party Julie Bishop is Sam's guest. In the first half of this episode Sam and Julie discuss the recent events that have made headlines from Canberra, #metoo, Julie's thoughts on the need for independent counselling at Parliament House, Julie responds to the rumours that her leadership bid was blocked by...

In this episode Hugh Sheridan opens up about what it is to be Australia's favourite son, his time as Rosa The Cleaning Lady just as Rafters was blowing up, coming out (sort of twice), his relationship with his Tik Tok star/billionaire banker boyfriend, his feelings around the cancellation of Hedwig and The Angry Inch and make sure you listen through to the end for a great Liz Taylor story!  Episod...

In this preview episode Stellar's Editor In Chief Sarrah Le Marquand and Sam discuss the challenges Sam faced in 2020, with the death of her mother and her father's health issues through to the happiness she now has with her marriage to Richard Lavender. Sarrah and Sam also discuss the importance of female mentors and male allies, and the challenges they both see in the development of cancel cultu...