Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast

The first female head of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, often known as MI6, will take the reins in a few months. The chief of the SIS is the only role that's made public. Blaise Metreweli is a mother and just 47 but a career intelligence officer who’s held very senior roles and risen up through the ranks. Judi Dench played MI6 chief in James Bond films for many years, so reality is catching up with fiction. Why now, what does this mean, and how has MI6 changed over time? Guest: Dan Lomas - Assistant Professor, International Relations at the University of Nottingham. Soon to publish two books - a history of UK security vetting and a new history of the Secret Intelligence Service.  Producer: Sarah Allely

On the back of a monumental election victory, and with a thumping majority in the parliament, how will Prime Minister Albanese approach politics - both at home and with world leaders abroad?Guest: Tom McIlroy, Chief Political Correspondent, Guardian Australia

In the winter of 1900, Wiradjuri man Jimmy Governor and his brother Joe murdered nine people across New South Wales, in a rampage that caused panic in the colony on the cusp of nationhood. Apparently triggered by a racist incident, they killed men, women and children, evading a vast manhunt for months until they were finally captured. The story of the Governor brothers later inspired the popular book and later film The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith. Professor Katherine Biber re-animates this true crime story, using extensive archival research, as well as conversations with Governor descendants. Guest: Professor Katherine Biber, author of The Last Outlaws: The Crimes of Jimmy & Joe Governor and the Birth of Modern Australia, Simon & Schuster

Some of the same countries that are in conflict right now are sitting in United Nations meetings together to discuss the future of outer space. Steven Freeland is charged with helping these warring nations find a common sense of purpose. Guest: Steven Freeland, Australian international lawyer and legal academic. Chair of legal aspects of resources working group of the UN's Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS)  Producer: Ann Arnold

Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku has led such a rich, full life already that her memoir only covers the first 26 years of her life - from 1949-1975.  And it’s a rollicking ride. The emeritus professor was the first Maori woman to get a doctorate from a New Zealand university. She later became first Maori woman professor. But that all happens later. This memoir charts her formative years, including her founding role in Gay and women’s liberation movements and also significant Maori activism.  Among her many roles, Ngahuia's been professor of Māori Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, professor of research and development at Waikato University, and lecturer in art history at the University of Auckland – where she started her academic life as a student. Guest: Ngāhuia Te Awekōtuku -  emeritus professor and author of new memoir Hine Toa – A story of bravery  - winner of General Non-Fiction in Ockham NZ Book Awards 2025 Producer: Sarah Allely

Emmanuel Macron, the 25th President of France - a liberal centrist - is in dire political straits at home. President since 2017, his current term will end in 2027.  Despite the domestic turmoil, Macron now stands as one of the longest-serving leaders in Europe, staunchly defending the EU, NATO and multilateralism in a time of global political turmoil. Guest: Sophie Pedder, Paris Bureau Chief, The Economist

When walking through the ancient Roman Galleries at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, you'll see the bust of ancient philosopher, Socrates. His rugged face, worn, nuggety, and yet one of the greatest thinkers of our time.Like many other busts and statues in museums across the world, the likeness of this fine philosopher is missing a nose. An accident, a form of ancient graffiti, or simply a clumsy curator?GUEST: Mark Bradley, Professor of Classics and Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Curriculum Leadership at the University of Nottingham in the UKPRODUCER: Ali Benton

A year ago this week Julian Assange was released from prison after a 14-year fight for freedom. Assange accepted a guilty plea of conspiring to obtain and disclose classified U.S. documents in exchange for being returned home to Australia. But how did this deal come about and what happened in the lead-up to his return home? Journalist Andrew Fowler shares the inner-dealings and joins the dots on the backstory of the negotiations to release Assange.Guest: Andrew Fowler - journalist and author of The Most Dangerous Man in the World: Julian Assange and his secret White House deal for freedomProducer: Sarah Allely

In the wake of the US strikes on Iran, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other traditional allies are unable to offer either criticism or outright support for Trump's actions. Starmer and Trump will meet again at the NATO summit in The Hague, where NATO leaders are expected to agree on an ambitious defence spending target of 5% of GDP. Guest: Ian Dunt, columnist with i-news, co-host of the Origin Story podcast

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly accused Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons, presenting it as a major threat to regional and global security. At the same time, Israel is widely believed to have its own nuclear weapons program, although it has never officially confirmed or denied possessing nuclear arms.GUEST: Avner Cohen, Professor of Non-Proliferation studies at Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, CaliforniaPRODUCER: Ali Benton