Conversations
ABC Australia
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.
Conversations Live is coming to the stage! Join Sarah Kanowski and Richard Fidler for an unmissable night of unforgettable stories, behind-the-scenes secrets, and surprise guests. Australia’s most-loved podcast — live, up close, and in the moment. Find out more at the Conversations website.
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.
Conversations Live is coming to the stage! Join Sarah Kanowski and Richard Fidler for an unmissable night of unforgettable stories, behind-the-scenes secrets, and surprise guests. Australia’s most-loved podcast — live, up close, and in the moment. Find out more at the Conversations website.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 14, 2026 • 53min
How I decentred men and fell in love with my friends instead of another f*ckboy
Dee Salmin, Australian broadcaster and author of It’s Not Love, Actually, explores how her parents’ turbulent love story shaped her ideas about romance. She revisits toxic dating patterns, a life-changing car crash, and three years of going “boy sober” during lockdown. Along the way, friendship, family repair, self-worth, and slower, healthier romance take centre stage.
Oct 13, 2026 • 50min
A little girl with a life split in three — how Mimi made it [PART II]
Mimi Kwa, an Australian journalist, broadcaster and author of House of Kwa, recounts her extraordinary path into television news. She recalls confronting racism, winning an ABC cadetship and disastrously ambushing Russell Crowe. Her family story takes a dramatic turn through her mother’s mental illness, a contested will, a court battle and an unexpected journey from forgiveness to gratitude.
Oct 12, 2026 • 49min
A little girl with a life split in three — how Mimi made it [PART I]
Mimi Kwa, an Australian journalist, former ABC and Channel Nine news presenter, and author of House of Kwa, recounts a childhood split between three worlds. She explores her mother’s schizophrenia, her father’s extraordinary family history, racism, parentification and working at a backpackers’ hostel. Hong Kong offered glamour and sanctuary, while journalism became her route to a new life.
Oct 9, 2026 • 52min
Mick Fanning on surfing, punching a great white shark, and losing three brothers
Mick Fanning is an Australian surfing legend and three-time world champion. He recounts the Gold Coast family that shaped him, the sponsorship that launched his career, and the devastating loss of three brothers. He revisits a career-threatening injury, punching a great white shark at Jeffrey Bay, flood rescues, love, fatherhood, and finding a way to carry grief.
Oct 8, 2026 • 52min
Encore: A family story of growing up poor in Outback Queensland
Rick Morton, an Australian journalist and author of 100 Years of Dirt, recounts growing up poor in Outback Queensland. He explores his grandfather’s tyranny, a devastating family accident, and his mother’s struggle to raise three children in public housing. Morton also discusses class, trauma, addiction, sexuality, and the barriers poverty creates, even for those who manage to escape it.
Oct 7, 2026 • 49min
My poo transplant, ayahuasca trip and other wellness quests
Judith Lucy, the beloved Australian comedian, author and TV presenter, reflects on burnout, workaholism and the childhood pain beneath her jokes. She recounts an ayahuasca retreat in Peru, wellness fads, debilitating illness and a gruelling faecal transplant. Along the way, she explores anxiety, insomnia, alcohol, grief and what it means to finally listen to her body.
Oct 6, 2026 • 51min
Encore: Why I became a teacher at the school where I was bullied
Brendan James Murray is an Australian high school English teacher and author of The School. He returns to the school where he was bullied, reflecting on teenage honesty, anxiety, school refusal and the emotional weight of teaching. He shares moments involving panic attacks, creative writing, inspiring mentors and the power of empathy, boundaries and genuine care in the classroom.
Oct 5, 2026 • 52min
Richard Glover on the strange, hilarious and heartbreaking rules of Australian parenting
Richard Glover, an Australian journalist, broadcaster and author, explores a century of bizarre parenting advice. He recalls ears being sticky-taped, newborn toilet training, thumb-sucking restraints and the vanished language of corporal punishment. Along the way, he examines maternal blame, strict routines, baby “tyrants,” imperial ideas and the uneasy role of grandparents.
Oct 2, 2026 • 52min
Monica McInerney's five year rollercoaster ride
Monica McInerney, the Australian-Irish novelist known for warm, witty family fiction, recounts a five-year rollercoaster of pandemic separation, an aggressive breast cancer diagnosis and gruelling treatment. She shares the unexpected intimacy of lockdown with her mother and rescue cat Nicholas, the extraordinary care of family and friends, post-cancer trauma, grief for her brother Stevie, and how Taylor Swift and tiny moments of kindness helped her write again.
Oct 1, 2026 • 52min
Encore: The pilot shot down by enemy fire and how he survived
Frank Dell, a British WWII RAF pilot and author of Mosquito Down, recalls witnessing the Battle of Britain and flying bombing raids over Germany in a De Havilland Mosquito. After cannon fire sent his plane crashing into Nazi territory, he parachuted to safety and relied on Dutch farmers and resistance fighters. He also remembers hiding, coded messages, captured soldiers and an emotional return home.
