Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast

IN 1947, Herbert Vere "Doc" Evatt was Australia's external affairs minister and the appointed chair of the United Nation's Ad-Hoc Committee on the Palestinian Question, which was tasked with devising a plan for Palestine in the wake of World War II, as Britain planned to relinquish its mandate over the area. According to Jewish-Australian historian Dr Suzanne Rutland, Evatt's manoeuvrers at the UN were instrumental in securing the narrow two-thirds majority support required for the partition of Palestine and the creation of a Jewish state. Guest: Dr Suzanne Rutland, Professor Emeritus at the University of Sydney, Department of Hebrew, Biblical & Jewish StudiesProducer: Rebecca Metcalf, Jack Schmidt

At the turn of the 20th century, one American became obsessed with the idea of life on Mars, and carried his obsessions into a public movement that may have sparked actual space exploration and scientific advancement.Guest: David Baron, an author, journalist, broadcaster, and public speaker who writes about astronomy and other sciences. His latest book is “The Martians: A True Story of an Alien Craze that Captured Turn-of-the-Century America.” Producer: Alex Tighe

The new documentary Surviving Malka Leifer reveals the inside-story of the Malka Leifer saga, when three sisters from Melbourne's ultra-Orthodox Jewish community fought for years to bring their abuser and former-headmistress to justice. The documentary recently screened at the Melbourne International Film Festival and is available to stream on Stan from October 5. Guest: Adam Kamien, journalist and director of Surviving Malka Leifer (2025)

In the mid-1800s, Tasmanian sheep farmer James Youl embarked on a fanciful mission, to transport live Atlantic salmon eggs from the northern hemisphere to the south, thousands of miles across the seas, in the hopes of spawning a viable salmon colony in Australia. It was a mad endeavour that stretched the limits of science and technology, and defied the accepted laws of nature. Guest: Steve Harris, author of Under the influence of salmon: how a man and a fish turned the world upside downProducer: Jack Schmidt

When Nila Ibrahimi was 13 and living in Kabul, the local government banned girls from singing. She sang anyway, and was part of a protest movement that had the ban reversed. Months later Nila and her family fled to Canada when the Taliban took over Afghanistan. Nila has continued to advocate for the rights of girls in her home country, and in 2024 she won the International Children's Peace Prize. This week she's giving the Gandhi Oration at UNSW.Guest: Nila Ibrahimi, girls' education activistProducer: Alex Tighe

Ian Dunt explores the political culture surrounding the UK’s party conference season, considers whether Reform’s Nigel Farage has become the default Opposition leader in the UK, and looks at Donald Trump’s plans involving Tony Blair and Gaza.Guest: Ian Dunt: iNews columnist and regular LNL commentatorProducer: Ali Benton

For centuries, carpets have been coveted by shahs, emperors, conquerors and chieftains. Historian Dorothy Armstrong tells the stories of twelve fascinating carpets, from the 5th Century BC, to the rug under the boots of Stalin, Roosevelt and Churchill at Yalta in 1945.Guest: Dorothy Armstrong, historian of the material culture of South, Central and West Asia, University of Oxford. Author of Threads of EmpireProducer: Alex Tighe

ASIC, the Australian financial regulator, has licensed a stablecoin for the first time in its history. A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency, and we're at a moment where cryptocurrencies could change the plumbing of the global  financial system... with profound consequences for geopolitics. Guest: Ross Buckley, Scientia Professor at UNSWProducer: Alex Tighe

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is on his way home after announcing Australia's intention to run for a position on the UN Security Council at his speech to the UK Labour Party Conference. The PM pushed the importance of Australia's place on the global stage, shoring up AUKUS, and Australia's position on climate change, healthcare and the PBS in the face of Donald Trump's tariff threats. Guest: Professor Mark Kenny, Director Australian Studies Institute, ANU; columnist, The Canberra Times Producer: Catherine Zengerer

Kate Cocks was a formidable woman. Appointed to the South Australian Police Force in 1915 at the age of 40, she was given the same salary and powers of arrest as men in the force. It was a first in the British Empire.  As a guardian of morality, she marched through Adelaide’s parklands whacking canoodling couples with a five-foot cane. Husbands caught abusing their wives, were made to kneel before her and recite the Lord’s Prayer. Protecting women's virtue wasn't her only agenda though. Later in life she set up a refuge for homeless women over fifty and, with the Methodist Church, established a home for unwed mothers with the aim of helping them keep their babies. But the Kate Cocks Memorial Babies Home had a darker legacy. Aboriginal children stolen from their mothers were taken there to be adopted out to white families. Guest: Lainie Anderson, journalist, historian and author of “Murder on North Terrace” -  a book inspired by the true story of South Australian policewoman Kate Cocks. Published by Hachette.Producer: Catherine Zengerer