Uncommon Sense

Amy speaks with Tom Harley, great grandson of former Prime Minister Alfred Deakin, and Emeritus Professor of Politics Judith Brett. They talk about the Save Ballara campaign , which is under threat of auction and development. Tom is seeking to protect the 1.68 hectare bush garden and historic home of Australia’s second Prime Minister Alfred Deakin. Ballara is a unique early 20th century bungalow h...

Amy speaks with Ray Stefani, Co-President of the Fish Creek Football Netball Club. They chat about the small and very special farming town of Fish Creek in South Gippsland and the footy club’s long and successful history. The Fish Creek Football Netball Club is the most successful country footy club in the state, with its Seniors team winning 37 premierships since its inception in 1903 (well 38, r...

Amy Mullins returns to the airwaves. She speaks with Greg Jericho, Guardian columnist and Chief Economist for The Australia Institute, who dives into tax "reform" and the Stage 3 tax cut changes announced by the Albanese Labor government, as well as Australia's slowing inflation and the extent of the RBA's role in controlling it. Born in Chicago in 1938, author, artist, feminist, and commentator S...

We remember John Pilger, renowned Australian-born independent journalist and filmmaker, who passed away on 30 December 2023, by re-airing an interview Amy conducted with John at the Triple R studios in February 2017 on his prescient documentary, The Coming War On China (free to watch here).

Born in Chicago in 1938, author, artist, feminist, and commentator Sara Dowse speaks in-depth about her Jewish family history and how it is intertwined with the history of Zionism and specifically the dissenting voices within it who disagreed with the establishment of the state of Israel at the expense of Palestinians – those such as Asher Hirsch Ginsberg who wrote under the pen name Ahad Ha’am ("...

El Gibbs, writer, disability advocate, and editor of Bluntshovels.au joins Amy to talk about the Disability Royal Commission's final report. The commissioner's handed down their their 222 recommendations in September after extensive hearings detailing the violence, abuse, and neglect of disabled people in Australia. El analyses the Royal Commission's activities, its findings, and what should happe...

James Curran, international editor of the Australian Financial Review and Professor of Modern History at the University of Sydney, speaks in-depth about his latest essay for Australian Foreign Affairs, ' Excess Baggage: Is China A Genuine Threat To Australia?' James writes that, "Australia’s fears of China... are profoundly shaped by what is being said and discussed in Washington." Are Australia's...

Don Watson and Chris Wallace analyse the outcome of the Voice to Parliament referendum in-depth. They also examine Australia's response to the Israel-Palestine conflict and humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and Labor's unwavering support of AUKUS, as outlined in Don's recent essay in The Monthly . Don Watson is an award-winning author and former speechwriter to Paul Keating. His books include, Death Se...

Melbourne-based composer and multi-instrumentalist Claire Deak talks about her debut solo album, Sotto Voce, and the two women composers of the Baroque whose music she recovered and reimagined – Francesca Caccini (1587-c. 1645) and Barbara Strozzi (1619-1677). Some of their compositions are intuitively sensed and worked into new compositions by Claire using a range of Baroque and modern instrument...

To mark the 70th anniversary of Britain's atomic tests at Emu Field in South Australia – the first on terrestrial land in Australia – author and academic Dr Elizabeth Tynan speaks about her book, The Secret of Emu Field: Britain’s forgotten atomic tests in Australia. It was at Emu Field, SA on October 15, 1953 that a terrifying black mist spread across the land after an atomic bomb detonation (Tot...

Indigenous leader Thomas Mayo and award-winning journalist Kerry O'Brien sit down with Amy for a special in-depth conversation about the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament, which Australians will vote on in a referendum this Saturday 14th October 2023. Thomas and Kerry explain the history behind the Voice, why we should support it, and the consequences if we don't. They also...

Acclaimed writer and journalist David Marr speaks in-depth about his new book, Killing for Country: A Family Story , which details Marr's great-great grandfather Reg Uhr's involvement in Australia's frontier wars of the nineteenth century as an officer of the Queensland Native Police. Uhr also recruited his two sons into the Native Police. Marr explains how the dispossession of land and massacres...

Triple R's very own Daniel James and The Monthly's Rachel Withers sit down with Amy to delve into the Indigenous Voice to Parliament, providing an analysis and answer to every question you might have about it before you vote at the upcoming referendum. Daniel James is a Yorta Yorta man, writer, broadcaster, and host of The Mission on 3RRR. Rachel Withers is Contributing Editor of The Monthly and c...

Professor Chris Wallace from the University of Canberra talks federal politics, including the latest developments in the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum campaign, the widely criticised and newly announced COVID-19 inquiry, and reporting on the Home Affairs Secretary who has stepped aside while an investigation is conducted by the APS Commissioner. Amy's first ever interview for Uncommon...

Amy's first ever interview for Uncommon Sense was with Peter Wohlleben about his debut book, The Hidden Life of Trees. Now, the German forester, conservationist, and best-selling author returns to discuss his latest book, The Power of Trees: How Ancient Forests Can Save Us If We Let Them. Amy and Peter delve into a wide-range of themes from the book. He reveals how together trees can create their...

The Politics' Rachel Withers joins Amy to talk federal politics, including the latest developments on the Voice referendum campaign. Micheline Lee delves into the issues raised in her Quarterly Essay, Lifeboat : Disability, Humanity and the NDIS. Micheline explains that the NDIS, for all its good intentions, has not understood people with disabilities well enough. While government thought the mark...

Author and former human rights lawyer Micheline Lee delves into the issues raised in her Quarterly Essay, Lifeboat : Disability, Humanity and the NDIS. Micheline explains that the NDIS, for all its good intentions, has not understood people with disabilities well enough. While government thought the market could do its job, a caring society cannot be outsourced.

Nick Feik, freelance journalist and former editor of The Monthly explains why the federal Labor government's response to the 2023 Intergenerational Report and the climate crisis is a sad joke on us all. He also tells us about the lack of whistleblower protections and the newly launched, The Whistleblower Project, Australia’s first dedicated legal service to protect and empower whistleblowers who w...

Lucinda Holdforth, speechwriter and author, tells us what's wrong with 21st century virtues, like Authenticity, Vulnerability, Humility, Self-Care, Empathy, and Transparency, and how they've been captured by neoliberal thinking. Lucinda believes the quest for these attributes encourage people to put self before community and have replaced Courage, Truthfulness, and Integrity. To ensure a healthy d...

The NGV’s Cathy Leahy, Senior Curator of Prints & Drawings and Conservator of Paintings Caitlin Breare join Amy to discuss the exhibition, Rembrandt: True to Life , featuring the work of 17th century Dutch master, Rembrandt van Rijn. They give us insights into Rembrandt's fascinating life, his print-making, oil paintings, and drawing practice, as well as the pioneering materials and techniques...

Amy Mullins returns to the airwaves. The Guardian Australia's Graham Readfearn delves into the latest global environment news, including a mass coral bleaching event happening across the Americas, UNESCO's determination on the health of the Great Barrier Reef, Antarctic sea ice at historic lows, and more. The NGV’s Cathy Leahy, Senior Curator of Prints & Drawings and Conservator of Paintings C...

Historian Dr Emma Shortis talks about the latest in US politics, including the US debt ceiling crisis. Emma is a Research Fellow at the EU Centre of Excellence at RMIT. Indigenous leader and 'Voice' advocate Thomas Mayo and award-winning journalist Kerry O'Brien sit down with Amy for a special in-depth conversation about the proposed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament, which...

Indigenous leader and 'Voice' advocate Thomas Mayo and award-winning journalist Kerry O'Brien sit down with Amy for a special in-depth conversation about the proposed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament, which the country will vote on in a referendum later this year. Thomas and Kerry explain the history behind the Voice and why we should support it. They also debunk some of t...

World renowned forest scientist Professor David Lindenmayer discusses the breaking news that the Andrews Labor state government has announced that Victoria will end native forest logging and native forest timber production by January 2024 – 6 years ahead of schedule. David talks about the decades long campaign to end native forest logging in Victoria and the economics and science that supports cea...

Ecologist, natural historian, and environmental photographer Alison Pouliot returns to discuss her fascinating new book, Underground Lovers: Encounters with Fungi. Alison takes us into the fungi kingdom and shares her vast knowledge and global experiences of fungi with us. She talks about the conservation of fungi, indigenous uses of fungi, the role of women in fungal lore, and much more.