Conversations draws you deeper into the life story of someone you may have heard about, but never met. Journey into their world, joining them on epic adventures to unfamiliar places, back in time to wild moments of history, and into their deepest memories, to be moved by personal stories of resilience and redemption.
Hosted by Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski, Conversations is the ABC's most popular long-form interview program. Every day we explore the vast tapestry of human experience, weaving together narratives from history, science, art, and personal storytelling.
Whether it's an exploration of Australian and American politics, the intricacies of mental health, or the mysteries of ancestry and origin stories, our episodes offer a conversational approach that brings topics to life.
We uncover epic tales of war and peace, the complex dynamics of relationships and family, and the profound impact of grief and loss.
Follow Conversations for thought-provoking discussions, heartfelt stories, and a deeper understanding of the world around us.
Conversations explores the meaning of life, history, relationships, motherhood and fatherhood, love, religion and the origins of human life through a contemporary and conversational Australian lens.
From distinctive accounts of crime, mental health, ancestry, cults, grief, family and parenting, to discussions about science, books, art, music, war, spies and economics, Conversations traverses myriad topics.
Our interviews focus on pioneers of the natural world, wildlife, oceans, fungi, archaeology, palaeontology and megafauna.
Our guests speak about geopolitics, being a refugee and the experience of migration. They come from all walks of life — First Nations, Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander peoples, CALD communities and ancestors of Australia's first fleeters. We explore Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Catholic, Buddhist, Sikh and Hindu faith traditions, among other beliefs, including atheism.
We look at social history as well — close encounters with the ancient world, the Stolen Generations, and adventurers on an explorative odyssey.
In a Conversations interview, you will hear personal stories of secrets, lies, adoption, and living with disability, neurodiversity or chronic illness.
We traverse a person's life story, full of human interest topics, including redemption, love at first sight, spirituality, poverty, having children, family dynamics and even hidden families.
We hear from individuals who have struggled with drug addiction, jail, family violence, political imprisonment, persecution, abuse, depression, anxiety and mental health issues.
Conversations also speak to the public figures of Australian and international society — leaders, artists, politicians, authors, sports stars, actors and musicians.
A writer, a builder, a neurologist, a Paralympian, an Olympian, an amputee, a historian, a comedian, a funeral director, a bird photographer, an ethicist, a doctor, a spy, a pilot, a choreographer, a firefighter, a bookseller, an astrophysicist, a martial artist, a principal, an oud virtuoso, an ecologist, a carer, a demographer, a chess master, a forensic archaeologist, a biologist, a chef, a surfer, a button shop owner, a costume and set designer, a boxer, a drummer, a conductor, a dog behaviourist, an AFL player, a longevity expert, a barber, a Matilda, and a psychologist have all appeared on our program.
After almost 20 years of digging into the lives, stories and worlds of thousands of people, Conversations continues as the ABC's most popular podcast, providing Australians with a social history of our country and paying close attention to the small, personal details that make up a life.
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Sarah's most memorable guests through out the years. Robyn Davidson on her adventures high in the Himalayas, her love affair with an Indian prince, and her late in life reckoning with her mother's story. In 1977, when Robyn Davidson was in her twenties, she set off with a dog and four camels to cross 1,700 miles of Australian desert to the sea. Her book about the journey, called Tracks, brought her a taste of fame. But that life wasn...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Sarah's most memorable guests through out the years. Archie tells of writing Took the Children Away and playing it in public for the first time, of his belated reunion with his siblings, and his love story with Ruby Hunter. Archie passed away in 2022. Help and support is always available You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14 Widely admired for his powerful lyrics and the grace of his pin-drop performances, Archie overcame ...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Sarah's most memorable guests through out the years. Brendan James Murray tells the story of the hunt to capture the Australian coastal taipan, and the quest to create the world's first taipan antivenom in his book Venom. Listen here to Sarah's other Conversation with Brendan James Murray The story of George Rosendale, a 19-year old from Hopevale North Queensland, became the stuff of legend when he survived being bitten by a coastal ...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. This time it's Peter Hoysted. Peter Hoysted, known in print as 'Jack the Insider', tells the incredibly strange story of the Fine Cotton affair. The story includes a vicious gangster, a used-car salesman, a hapless horse trainer and a bucket of hair dye. 'The Fine Cotton Fiasco Conversations Bonus' is available to listen to here . Richard's other Conversations with Peter Hoysted:...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. Gill Hicks lost both her legs in the London bombings in 2005. But from the start of her recovery, she was determined not to dwell on hate or revenge, instead focus on the love that surrounded her, from family, police, doctors and nurses and complete strangers. She formed a charity called MAD for Peace, which invites us all to look for peace in our lives. Gill Hicks was living in ...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. Ross Gittins is one of Australia’s most popular newspaper columnists. For five decades, he has explained the inner workings of the Australian economy to readers in plain English through his three weekly columns in the Sydney Morning Herald. Ross Gittins is one of Australia’s most popular newspaper columnists. For five decades, Ross has explained the inner workings of the Australi...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. After a cruel and abusive childhood and an adulthood full of unemployment and homelessness, Gregory Smith decided to step out of society and into the solitary life of a hermit, living in the elements in a forest in Northern NSW. Gregory is an academic in the School of Arts and Social Sciences at Southern Cross University in New South Wales. He recently completed his PhD highlight...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. Uncle Jack was forcibly removed from his mother as a baby and denied his Aboriginality. A one-off trip to Fitzroy connected him with a family he didn’t know about, and promptly landed him in jail. Jack died in 2022. Help and support is always available You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14 In a career spanning more than half a century, Uncle Jack Charles used the stage...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. When Sandy Mackinnon set of through the waterways of England towards Gloucester in a Mirror dinghy, he little imagined he would find himself crossing the English Channel, the river systems of Europe, and eventually the Black Sea, on an adventure full of friendly strangers, amazing scenery and even a threat to his life. Listen here to Sarah's Conversation with Sandy MacKinnon Sand...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. Elizabeth Chong has spent the last 90 years teaching Australian's the delights of cooking real authentic Chinese food. Chef, author and teacher Elizabeth Chong was born in China's Guangdong Province in 1931. When her heavily pregnant mother was expelled from Victoria under the White Australia Policy in the 1920s, the whole family returned to China. Years later her family returned...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. William McInnes is a much-loved Australian actor and an author, whose childhood in the sunny Queensland left him fluent in the peculiar, funny and colourful words and phrases unique to Australian English. Over the years, he's continued to collect them to celebrate how much they say about who we really are. William McInnes’ Stories of Fatherhood William McInnes on life after the d...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. Shaun Christie David grew up eating the Sri-Lankan recipes his mother brought with her from Sri Lanka. After a life-change trip to his parent's homeland, Shaun left a successful career in finance to open a social enterprise restaurant, Colombo Social, giving jons to refugees and serving food from his mother's cookbook. Shaun Christie-David's family migrated to Australia during th...
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat - a collection of Richard's most memorable guests through out the years. This time it's Magda Szubanski.At the height of her successful career, behind closed doors, Magda was coming to terms with the past of her Polish-born father, whom she loved dearly, and who was an assassin in his early life. Magda is well known for her comic performances across film and television, and is perhaps most beloved by Australians for her role as Sharon in Kath & Ki...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. The child of doctors, Bhawani followed her parents footsteps into medical school without a second thought. But after the dissatisfaction of decades as a GP, Bhawani discovered the field of voluntary assisted dying and it changed the course of her life. Help and support is always available You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14 Bhawani O'Brien grew up in Malaysia with Sri Lankan...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Ruth Shaw runs a collection of three tiny bookshops at the southern tip of New Zealand's South Island. Even more than the books on her shelves, Ruth's life has been a high adventure full of danger, tears, heartbreak and love. Help and support is always available You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14. Ruth Shaw runs a collection of three tiny bookstores at the southern tip of N...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Ken Wyatt was the first Indigenous minister for Indigenous Affairs. When he made his first speech to parliament, he wore a kangaroo skin cloak given to him by Noongar elders in Perth and he shared with his government colleagues the extraordinary journey he took from a boy in a remote Western Australian settlement, to Canberra. Ken Wyatt has Yamatji, Wongi and Noongar ancestry. He came in...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Kasey Chambers grew up surrounded by country music, singing around the campfire with her family, and listening to her father's cassettes of old country classics. She now makes her own country music, which has won her a devoted following and recognition as one of Australia's favourite country music stars. Kasey Chambers started singing around the campfire as a little girl. She and her fam...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Candice Fox is one of the world's most successful crime writers, but she when she is not at her writing desk, you can find her rushing around Sydney rescuing stranded and injured wallabies, cockatoos, lizards, frogs and ducks. Listen to Richard's first Conversation with Candice Fox here. Candice Fox is one of the world's most successful crime writers. Her latest work is about a female ag...
Gideon Haigh is a prolific author, but it took him decades to write down the story closest to his heart — the life and tragic death of his brother, Jaz, who was killed in a car crash at just 17 years. But eventually, on a hot summers evening, it all came pouring out onto the page, and became his book My Brother Jaz. Gideon Haigh's brother Jasper was 17 years old when he died in a car crash. Until this year, Gideon and his mother were the only two people who really knew what happened to Jaz on th...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Pauline McGrath's life changed forever when her husband of 30 years, David, was diagnosed with an incurable brain tumor. Together Pauline and David set out to take advantage of the incoming Voluntary Assisted Dying laws about to come into effect in Queensland. Since David's death, Pauline has been has kept her promise to him to speak openly about their experience and be an advocate for V...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024.At the make or break moment of his choreography career, the last person Rafael expected to hear from was Australia’s pop princess, Kylie Minogue. Rafael Bonachela was born in the dying years of Franco’s Spain, into a patriarchal culture that didn’t appreciate little boys who wanted to dance. As the eldest of four brothers, his father expected him to be an example of academic achievement a...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Anita Heiss is a Wiradjuri woman and a prolific author. Her latest novel, Dirrayawadha, brings together Indigenous and colonial history, as well as Wiradjuri language, into a 19th century love story between an Irish convict and a brave Wiradjuri woman. Anita Heiss is a Wiradjuri woman, an author of many books and a Professor of Communications at The University of Queensland. Many of Anit...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Jack Beaumont (not his real name) grew up in a turbulent family in Paris before joining the French Air Force as a young man. After a devastating mid-air accident, he joined the DGSE and became a French secret agent and he now uses his first-hand knowledge to write spy thrillers set in the world of international espionage. Jack Beaumont (not his real name) is a former intelligence operati...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Rebecca Huntley spent 50 years trying to process PTSD brought on from a traumatic childhood. But it was only when she decided to experiment with MDMA as a treatment that Rebecca's life began to change. Rebecca Huntley's public life as a broadcaster, an author and a social researcher made her well-known to many Australians. But in private, Rebecca spent years grappling with complex PTSD a...
Reflecting on a year of phenomenal guests, we are bringing you a selection of the Best Conversations of 2024. Troy Cassar-Daley is one of Australia's most beloved country music stars, with a string of awards and albums to show for it. But his latest album, Between the Fires, is a reflective, deeply personal exploration of grief, love and his childhood, caught between the two worlds of his Indigenous mother and his Maltese-Australian father. Help and support is always available You can call Lifel...
When writer Helen Garner began following her grandson’s under-16s football team, she gained a new appreciation for 'the ordinary beauty of human society'.
Finance journalist Alan Kohler and Patricia Collins, who had just joined the Women's Royal Australian Naval Service, recall their vivid memories from the night that irrevocably changed Darwin It's been half a century since Darwin was nearly completely razed by Cyclone Tracy. On Christmas Day in 1974, the monster cyclone bore down on the city, killing at least 66 people. Both Alan Kohler and Patricia Collins survived that night in very different circumstances. Alan was living in a share house on ...
Lech Blaine with the strange true story of his childhood, shaped by love, religious zealotry, and four wildly different parents. CW: descriptions of foster care and child removal. Lech Blaine grew up in a big family in country Queensland, where his Dad Tom ran pubs for a living. He had six older siblings, who had come to the family as foster kids before he was born. It was a happy, knockabout, sports-obsessed childhood. But in the midst of all the love and warmth, Lech's mum Lenore lived with a ...
When Richard's team developed pioneering treatment for melanoma, he didn't expect he would become the first person in the world to use this experimental therapy on his own, terminal brain tumour. Joint Australian of the year Professor Richard Scolyer has spent his medical career saving the lives of people with melanoma. Then suddenly last year, the life he had to save was his own. A tumour was discovered in Richard’s brain and the diagnosis was terminal. So Richard and his colleagues decided to ...
When Dr Gillian Deakin became a GP, she knew she didn’t want to work behind a desk. Instead, she travelled overseas to make a difference. More recently, she has focused on treating patients with functional illnesses — symptoms that come and go despite all tests and scans showing up as normal. Dr Gillian Deakin grew up close enough to hear the lions roaring at night in Sydney's Taronga Zoo. She was part of a large, Catholic family and learned social justice and critical thinking from a young age....
