Good Weekend Talks

In today’s episode, American author, speaker and blogger Mark Manson discusses how the mantra of relentless positivity, which drives so much of the self-help industry, is full of pitfalls. He explains how negative emotions have a purpose - to drive us to do something - and why the willingness to look like an idiot occasionally guards against self-entitlement. He gives us tips on how to be realistic in our lives, how to maintain hope - and what not to do with cyber stalkers.  Hosting this talk is Good Weekend deputy editor, Greg Callaghan.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Norman Swan, a former GP and ABC broadcaster, dives into the nuances of parenting in his new book. He discusses establishing healthy eating habits and tackling screen time challenges for kids under ten. Swan emphatically asserts that children should never sip alcohol, emphasizing the risks it poses to their developing brains. He also highlights the importance of authoritative parenting, balancing warmth and discipline, and the vital role of parental engagement in shaping children's mental health and social awareness.

The youngest ever editor of The Sydney Morning Herald, now owner of Private Media, publisher of Crikey, Eric Beecher has spent decades in and observing the media. In today's episode he discusses his conclusions on when it works best, and when it fails democracy, with his longtime friend, journalist David Leser. Beecher also discusses what it was like to work for Rupert Murdoch during his two year stint as editor-in-chief of The Herald and Weekly Times Group, and whether he was scared when, decades later, Lachlan Murdoch sued him.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In today's episode, singer/songwriter Tim Minchin discusses the poison that is social media, how he emerged from his bruising time in LA and why he urges students to look after their bodies. In conversation with culture reporter Thomas Mitchell, he reflects also on his infamous George Pell song, and on the impending publication of his first non-fiction book, You Don't Have to Have a Dream (Advice for the Incrementally Ambitious).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we speak with Markus Zusak, the bestselling novelist behind The Book Thief and Bridge of Clay, who has penned his first non-fiction book, Three Wild Dogs and the Truth, about Reuben, Archer and Frosty, the pound dogs he and wife Mika brought into their family. Zusak talks about the mad mayhem of sharing your life with a mongrel, and the importance of stripping away the veneer through which we so often view life, to expose its more messy reality. Hosting this conversation, in which Zusak discusses the conundrum of how much is too much to spend on a dog's dodgy knees, is the editor of Good Weekend, Katrina Strickland.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we speak with Australian singer-songwriter Missy Higgins, who broke through two decades ago with her hit debut album The Sound of White, which dealt with teen and 20-something troubles. Now 41, Higgins has just produced a new album, The Second Act, which traverses the aftermath of the breakdown of her marriage. Higgins talks candidly with Good Weekend senior writer Melissa Fyfe about taking the audience with her on her life journey, the travails of songwriting and dating whilst being a single mum - and the joys of touring with a mostly female support crew.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we speak with Jason Arrow, otherwise known as Australia's Alexander Hamilton. The South African-born, Perth-raised performer won the role for the musical's 2021 Sydney premiere, and has since played the titular character in Melbourne, Brisbane, Auckland, Manila, Abu Dhabi and Singapore. Hosting this conversation about everything from how he remembers all those words, to how he winds down post-show, to why he initially preferred the character of Aaron Burr in the story of America's forgotten founding father, is the editor of Good Weekend, Katrina Strickland.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with Anna Marsden, managing director of the Great Barrier Reef Foundation. Back in 2018, Marsden’s life changed overnight when she received news from then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull that the federal government was granting the foundation a record-breaking $443 million to help fortify the reef against the ravages of climate change. It was a controversial decision – the foundation was then a relatively small Brisbane-based conservation organisation and Turnbull’s political opponents labelled it a “captain’s call” – but six years down the track, funding has been allocated for a host of coral-saving projects. Marsden chats with Good Weekend senior writer Melissa Fyfe about what's been achieved to date, and the overall state of the reef following another bleaching event last summer, the fifth since 2016.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with best-selling author and social commentator, Roxane Gay. A decade after the publication of her much-talked-about book, Bad Feminist, Gay offers her unapologetic views on everything from body image, to writer's block, to the likelihood of Kamala Harris becoming America's first female president, to her current writing projects, which include - surprisingly - a romance novel with actor Channing Tatum.  Hosting this conversation is senior writer and columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald, Jacqueline Maley. Roxane Gay will appear at Carriageworks in Sydney, as part of the Festival of Dangerous Ideas (24-25 August) and at Melbourne Town Hall (27 August), presented by the Wheeler Centre and Now or Never. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with author Theodore Ell. From 2018 to 2021, Ell accompanied his wife on her diplomatic posting to Lebanon, and unexpectedly found himself a witness to a country on the brink. His new book, Lebanon Days, takes in an economic meltdown, mass protests and finally, tragically, the Beirut port explosion of 2020. Hosting this episode is Good Weekend deputy editor, Greg Callaghan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.