
Late Night Live - Full program podcast
From razor-sharp analysis of current events to the hottest debates in politics, science, philosophy and culture, Late Night Live puts you firmly in the big picture.
Latest episodes

Mar 13, 2025 • 54min
The most trusting nation on Earth, and the rise and fall of Trudeau
The Danes, alongside other Scandinavian nations, are the most trusting people on Earth - trusting of their neighbours, fellow citizens and public institutions. Why then, has trust in the Danish media collapsed? Plus, biographer Stephen Maher on the rise and fall of Justin Trudeau, the prince of Canadian politics.

Mar 12, 2025 • 54min
A new age of nuclear peril, and the Caribbean countries lining up to leave the monarchy
As alliances wobble, wars rage and world leaders talk of rearmament, are we on the precipice of a new nuclear age? Security expert Ankit Panda says our coexistence with the bomb is becoming more complicated and perilous. Plus, why are Caribbean nations lining up to leave the British monarchy?

Mar 11, 2025 • 54min
Bruce Shapiro's America, the potential of prison architecture, and Queensland's rebellious first female doctor
Bruce Shapiro is back as measles spreads in Texas, and Columbia University faces drastic defunding from the Trump administration. Criminologist Yvonne Jewkes on the myths and benefits of prisoner rehabilitation through building design. And playwright Katy Forde celebrates the life of Dr Lilian Cooper - Brisbane's first female doctor - with an award-winning musical.

Mar 10, 2025 • 54min
Laura Tingle's Canberra, the origins of DEI, and who really discovered gold in Australia?
Political Editor Laura Tingle on the potential federal implications of WA's state election result. What are the origins of the DEI initiatives (diversity, equity and inclusion) in the United States, that President Trump so reviles? And who really discovered gold in Australia in the mid-19th Century?

Mar 6, 2025 • 54min
Alan Rusbridger on the perils of political journalism, and Robert Dessaix on life, death, sexuality and more
Alan Rusbridger, the former editor in chief of The Guardian UK on Trump's push to silence dissenting voices in the media and writer Robert Dessaix has a new memoir, Chameleon, in which he reflects on his many identities and how his changing understandings of life.

Mar 5, 2025 • 54min
The State of the World: the rise of Orbán, Trump and Netanyahu
Has the rise of leaders like Orbán, Trump and Netanyahu finally put paid to the liberal fantasy that fascism, ultra-nationalism and xenophobia were symptoms of a political malaise consigned to the 19th century? Authors Wesley Lowery and John Crace join David Marr in front of a live audience at Adelaide Writers' Week.

Mar 4, 2025 • 54min
The State of the Self: Have we lost a sense of community in a post pandemic world?
Despite the promise that we were “all in it together”, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a flight from sociability. While that escape may have been a relief for some, has it intensified a culture of excessive individualism, narcissism, and disconnection from one another? Julia Baird, Geraldine Brooks and Rachel Kushner join David Marr in front of a live audience at Adelaide Writers' Week.

Mar 3, 2025 • 53min
The State of the Nation: has the myth of the 'fair go' been broken?
Has the myth of the Australian fair-go finally been broken? Are social divides deepening and widening? And in a time of great uncertainty, how does Australia see itself in the world? Bob Carr, Rick Morton and Rebecca Huntley join David Marr in front of a live audience at Adelaide Writers' Week.

Feb 27, 2025 • 54min
Trans poet and comedian Alok Vaid-Menon on being banned by Trump
Trans poet and comedian Alok Vaid-Menon on how they use humour to flip the narrative about transgender people, and how to tackle Donald Trump's transgender ban - by focusing on compassion for the people who want to oppress them.

Feb 26, 2025 • 54min
The story of Russia through Putin's eyes, and the painting that rocked Australian politics
Three years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, renowned historian Orlando Figes, delves into President Vladimir Putin's rationale for war. And we go back to 1970s Australia and America, when the Whitlam Government paid a record sum for an abstract expressionist painting - Blue Poles. There was an outcry, and the government would pay a political price as well.