Conversations

In 2007, Jeremy Austin was asked by the Royal Australian Navy to help them identify the remains of an unknown sailor from World War II. Using the best forensic DNA technology, he embarked on a quest to figure out who this man was and to track down his surviving descendants.This episode of Conversations explores DNA science, world war 2, Australian navy, history, technology, family history, HMAS Sydney, genealogy, unidentified remains 

The Masterchef graduate shares what he learned from his grandmother, who won the lottery in Malaysia when she was a 25-year-old widow with three children to care for.After Adam's parents met and married, the family emigrated to Australia when Adam was three-years-old.He and his brother sped through school in Adelaide and Adam went on to become a lawyer.In 2010, he won the second season of Masterchef with Peter Gilmore's delicate Snow Egg, and he has been travelling the world ever since, spreading love for the five different tastes.This episode was produced by Alice Moldovan. The executive producer is Nicola Harrison and it was presented by Richard Fidler.Watch The Cook Up with Adam Liaw, Adam’s Dateline episode on the new Changi Prison, and Destination Flavour: Singapore all on SBS.This episode of Conversations focuses on Adam Liaw, cook books, epic life story, family dynamics, Peranakan food, cooking, food, recipes, Malaysia, Singapore, winning the lottery, The Cook Up, Dateline, Masterchef, Changi Prison, reflection, history and Hainanese Chicken rice.

In 2023, Arnold Dix helped rescue 41 men trapped in a tunnel after it collapsed high in the Himalayas. As an engineer and tunnel expert, he was uniquely placed to assist, but Arnold also used another skill in the high risk operation: he listened to the mountain.The successful rescue made Arnold a hero to millions of people across India and it was in news all over the world, including back home in country Victoria, where the story surprised the community who knew him as a part-time truck driver and flower farmer.Arnold’s life has taken him from geology to law to tunnels, he’s been shot at in Albania, saved lives in Qatar and driven trucks to make ends meet.  He also worked in the tunnels of Ground Zero after 9/11.The episode of Conversations explores tunnels, the Himalayas, rescue, trapped workers, science, geology, law, 9/11, mountains, memoir, hero, engineering, career change.The Promise is published by Simon and Schuster

Angelica Ojinnaka-Psillakis grew up in Sydney, famous for its coastline and beachside existence. But for reasons beyond her control, she didn't learn to swim until she took the plunge as an adult.Angelica Ojinnaka-Psillakis has achieved a lot in her young life.She is a social researcher at Western Sydney University, she has represented Australia at the United Nations, she advices groups like UNESCO and a couple of years ago she was awarded the NSW Premier's Youth Medal.But for her family, Angelica's greatest achievement is learning to swim as an adult.Australia has a sense of itself as a nation of swimmers, and presents this image to the world in its tourism campaigns, films and ownership of the pool at the Olympics.But in reality, a quarter of Australian adults are very weak swimmers or cannot swim at all, including Angelica, who grew up in Western Sydney, the eldest of nine siblings in a big, blended family.Instead of going to swimming lessons after school, Angelica spent a lot of her time helping to take care of her little sisters and brothers, one of whom lives with severe disabilities.It wasn't until she was in her mid-20s that Angelica had the time to learn how to swim, so she could finally understand the calming and cooling effects of the water.Angelica's podcast documenting her quest to learn to swim as an adult is called Sink or Swim and was produced by Impact Studios.You can stay up to date with what Angelica is up to at her website.This episode of Conversations explores swimming, royal surf life saving, drowning, learning to swim, beaches, Sydney, Bondi, Western Sydney, Blacktown, Randwick, pools, public pools, climate change, summer, hot summers, carers, family dynamics, divorce, Nigeria, first generation Australians.

In 2013, Raynor Winn and her husband, Moth lost their beloved farm in Wales, it was where they'd lived for 20 years and raised their children.In the same week, Moth was diagnosed with a rare degenerative brain disease and doctors gave him just two years to live.Homeless and with their future together rapidly shrinking, Raynor and Moth decided to walk the South West Coast path.They camped wild in all weathers and often didn't have enough money for food.But amazingly, Moth's health began to improve.When they completed the walk, they found themselves in the midst of a whole new chapter.This episode of Conversations explores adventure, long walking trails, coastal trek, terminal illness, memory, Wales, marriage, writing, memoir, risk taking, Cornwall, partnership, homelessness, south west coast path, travel, wild camping.The Salt Path and The Wild Silence are published by Penguin.

Writer and tour guide Simon Tancred on the little-known ANZAC story of how a group of POWs made a daring escape on foot to neutral Switzerland.Simon Tancred fell in love with Italy as a young man, and set up a job for himself leading hikes and tours across the country, and into the Alps. So Simon was familiar with the old trails and passes that crisscross the mountains, and which have been used for hundreds of years by shepherds, traders and travellers. But one day, someone approached him with the unknown story of how a group of Australian prisoners of war from the Second World War escaped from Italy to freedom in neutral Switzerland.Four mates from Moree evaded the enemy by using these ancient, winding tracks.They didn't speak Italian, they battled wintry conditions, and never knew if the civilians they encountered along the way would help them or turn them over to the occupying German forces.Simon was so intrigued by this story, he bought some old maps and set out to follow their journey to freedom, by tracing their steps across the Alps.This episode of Conversations explores fascism, politics, war, civil war, prisoners of war, unknown stories of WWII, the Anzacs, Anzac Day 2025, Italy, Italian Alps, modern history, books, writing, walking tours in Italy, travel, Mountaineering, Partisans, Nazis, Nazi Germany, neutral Switzerland, World War Two history, religion, Madonna, Mary, Italian Catholicism, where to hike in Italy.Trails to Freedom is published by Hardie Grant.

Justin Heazlewood fled a complicated early life in Tasmania searching for fame as an artist on the mainland. Recently he moved back to his home town of Burnie, and realised community is where you find it.Justin Heazlewood grew up in Burnie, a coastal town on the North West coast of Tasmania.For years he imagined his hometown as somewhere he had to leave, especially if he was going to be any kind of artist.And there were other, more personal reasons that made staying in Burnie complicated.Justin's Mum has schizophrenia, and growing up he was often forced into the role of being her carer.It was something he did his best to hide from his friends and other people in his life.So after school, Justin headed to the mainland and began a life as a comedian and a songwriter.But a few years ago, he found himself returning to his home town for good. This episode of Conversations explores mental health, caring for parents, parents with mental illness, small towns, leaving your hometown, big city life, regional Australia, creatives in regional Australia, mother son relationships, returning home, community, fame, triple j, bedroom philosopher, radio, writing, music, musicians, learning guitar, grandmothers.Get Up Mum is published by Affirm Press and Justin's new book, Dream Burnie, celebrates the creative humans like him making art far from the big cities, and some of the teachers who recognised the young artists while they were at school.You can learn more about Justin's book Dream Burnie online.The Young Carer's Hotline is open Monday-Friday on 1800 422 737

The artist Loribelle Spirovski on her unusual childhood in the Philippines, meeting her father for the first time at 7 years old, and making her way as one of Australia's most exciting young painters.Loribelle Spirovski grew up in the Philippines, with her mum and her extended Filipino family.Her Serbian father, whom she had never met, was in Australia, driving taxis and waiting for the visa that would allow him to bring Loribelle and her mum to join him.Loribelle didn't meet her father until she was 7 years old, and when she saw him for the first time at Manila Airport, she was shocked by how hairy his arms were and the way he smelled just like she did.Eventually, the family was properly reunited in Sydney, Australia, where Loribelle had to navigate family and cultural ties, where she found love and where she made her way as one of Australia's most exciting young artists.This episode of Conversations explores painting, creativity, writing, books, love, marriage, Simon Tedeschi, William Barton, the Archibald Prize, art education, art teaching, chronic pain, chronic injury, identity, memoir, family dynamics, origin stories, refugees, Serbia, former Yugoslavia, music, piano, singing, language, mothers, fathers, long-distance relationships.White Hibiscus is published by Upswell.You can see some of Loribelle's art at her website and on her Instagram page.

As a child, before she escaped communist Hungary, Bo Remenyi had no ambitions. But when she got to Australia all of that changed. She's gone from cruising the casino floor as a high-stakes professional poker player, to saving the lives of children in remote Australia. (R)In 2018, Dr Bo Remenyi was made the Northern Territory’s Australian of the Year for her work as a paediatric cardiologist. But her path to receiving that honour,  and to her work in remote communities, has been filled with unexpected twists and risks.After escaping communist Hungary as a child, she got her first job flipping burgers in a Townsville Hungary Jacks. From there, she put herself through medical school by cleaning the very lecture theatres in which she was studying. Somewhere along the way, Bo decided to play 60 hours of professional poker a week, and she was very good at it.This episode of Conversations explores Aboriginal health, Indigenous health outcomes, closing the Gap, Soviet Union, Communism, fleeing the Iron Curtin, Putin, medicine, studying medicine, studying medicine in Australia, university life, gambling, multiculturalism, migrant stories, first generation Australians, the Northern Territory, remote Australia, FNQ.

Journalist Kerrie Davies with the story of how novelist Miles Franklin went undercover as a maid for a year, in Sydney and Melbourne's wealthy houses, well before gonzo journalists became household names.The real-life story of novelist Stella Maria Miles Franklin had an unexpected chapter after publishing My Brilliant Career.In 1903, Miles became a 'girl stunt reporter' by going undercover as a servant.For a year, she lived as a maid in Sydney and Melbourne's wealthy houses and wrote about the humiliations and drudgery in the daily lives of servant girls, or 'slaveys'.During her experiment she hand-rolled heavy, wet clothes through a washing mangle; served her employers pre-breakfast tea and toast in bed, which she thought was an obscene indulgence; she cleaned guest rooms and parlours; helped at high-society balls and kept fires burning in winter.The manuscript Miles wrote about this year pre-dated George Orwell's Down and Out in Paris and London by three decades, yet it never found a publisher.Journalist Kerrie Davies has investigated this little-known chapter of Miles' life, finally bringing this story to life in her own book.This episode of Conversations explores feminism, suffragettes, biography, books, servants, writing, Australian fiction, boy sober, class warfare, adventures, adventurous women, risk-taking, origin stories, gonzo journalism, Nellie Bly, Rose Scott, early 20th century Sydney, Chicago, women's rights, trad wives, motherhood, partnership, self-partnering.Miles Franklin Undercover is published by Allen and Unwin.