Conversations

Stephanie Wood was a successful, confident journalist when she fell for a romantic fraudster (R)

Natasha Trethewey was 19 when her mother Gwendolyn was brutally murdered. During this great rupture in her life Natasha began to garner acclaim for her poetry. In 2012 she was named America's Poet Laureate

Peter O'Brien was a new minted teacher in 1960 when he took a job at a one-room bush school in Weabonga, NSW. The living was hard, but the job was incredibly sweet

The stories which preceded modern iterations of Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Little Red Riding Hood were often much more disturbing (R)

Irish novelist Paedar O'Guilin weaves old myths into startling new stories (R)

Historian Jill Lepore untangles the secret history of one of the 20th Century's most striking superheroes. She explains the myths, politics and eccentric genius behind behind the Wonder Woman story

Neil explores some of the stories from Nordic mythology which have captivated him since childhood (R)

Sarah's life took a gothic turn as she crafted her version of Melmoth (R)

Author Bart van Es with the story of the young Jewish girl Lien de Jong, hidden by Bart's Dutch grandparents during WWII when they joined the resistance

How zooarchaeologist Melanie Fillios uses the remains and fossils of animals, including dingoes, to understand more about ancient humans

Writer Favel Parrett’s grandmother fled Prague as a teenager, but her sister stayed on, and then lived through both Nazism and Stalinism (R)

Stan Grant on his life as a journalist, author and filmmaker from the Wiradjuri, Kamilaroi and Dharawal First Nations of Australia

At 15, Rebecca McCabe was on track to compete in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics for swimming. As swam, she would often ask herself big questions about the meaning of life. When her life in the pool ended abruptly, she decided to take a huge leap of faith

Biologist Merlin Sheldrake's extreme experiments, many of which involve his physical body and varying forms of fungi, have led to equally remarkable discoveriesEnglish biologist Merlin Sheldrake, son of Rupert Sheldrake, became fascinated by fungi when he was a boy.He grew mushrooms in his cupboard and brewed bog myrtle beer under his bed.He went on to study fungi at Cambridge University, and his research explores the interconnection between fungi and plants in what’s known as ‘the Wood Wide Web’.Merlin's extreme experiments, many of which involve his physical body and varying forms of fungi, have led to equally remarkable discoveries.Further informationEntangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures is published by Random HouseMore about Merlin and his workTo binge even more great episodes of the ‘Conversations podcast’ with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

David Hepworth charts our fascination with that most earth-bound of gods, the rock star; and discusses some of music history's striking examples

Despite never really liking maths at school, Eddie made up his mind in the teaching sign-on queue, to become a maths teacher. This split-second decision changed his life, and the lives of many of his future students (R)

Cave diver Stefan Eberhard has spent decades exploring the vast underwater caves of the Nullarbor Plains, where the water teems with blind shrimp and colourless fish, and curtains of bacterial slime hang glistening from the ceiling

Paul Haller grew up Catholic in Belfast, and his pursuit of meaning has since taken him around the world. Now a Zen priest, Zen practice and teaching became Paul's calling: from retreating to a cave in Thailand; to teaching meditation, to the incarcerated, and the dying, in San Francisco

Keith Banks spent twenty years in his dream career with the Queensland Police. He was awarded for bravery several times, but left the job angry and disillusioned. He now reflects on what the job and police culture were like in the 1980s and the cost of lying for a living

Why is scratching an itch so pleasurable? How can someone leap from a burning plane in the sky and survive with a few bumps and scratches? A journey through the wondrous complexity of the human body (R)

Jared spent his childhood behind the scenes at the Museum of the Northern Territory, up close to prehistoric kangaroo fossils, opulent trading pearls, and sacred crocodiles flown in from Arnhem Land. Then he became the museum's taxidermist

Yuwaalaraay writer, storyteller and performer, Nardi Simpson of the Stiff Gins talks about her life, art and the meaning of country

Lennie Gwyther was 9 years old when he rode Ginger Mick from country Victoria to Sydney to be at the opening of the Bridge (R)

Pico was a journalist in New York when a 20-hour layover at Narita airport in Japan made him question everything. He decided to begin again as a monk at a Zen temple in Kyoto. But things didn't go entirely to plan

Peggy McDonald has spent much of her life as wildlife carer who specialises in helping wedge-tail eagles, falcons, owls and other raptors recover their ability to fly

How Michael Pollan 'shook the snowglobe' of his mind by investigating the therapeutic effects of psychedelic substancesIn 2006 writer Michael Pollan became aware of new research into the therapeutic effects of psychedelics.He found that drugs such as LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) can help to alleviate depression, anxiety and addiction.Then he met terminally ill patients who administered large doses of these substances, and who then found themselves to be happy and at peace. Michael was nearly 60 when he took LSD for the first time, and some time later he smoked the venom of the Sonoran Desert toad.To binge even more great episodes of the ‘Conversations podcast’ with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.Further informationFirst broadcast July 2019How to Change Your Mind is published by Penguin

Brendan James Murray on the elusive copper-coloured snake species which terrorised post WWII North Queensland (R)

Sharonne Zaks was working as a dentist when an encounter with a patient named Anna led her to develop a radical new branch of dentistry (R)

Throughout the 1930s and 40s, Arthur Stace rose before dawn to write a one-word sermon in chalk on the footpaths of Sydney. Writer Roy Williams unearthed the truth about Arthur Stace's life story with the help of those who knew him personally (R)

Leigh went through an event in 2014 which changed her profoundly. She was left questioning how we cope when the unimaginable happens (R)

The frontman of You Am I on his life in music, his Kalgoorlie childhood, and his battles with anxiety (R)

Glennon made a big name for herself in the US as a ‘Christian mommy blogger’ with her candid and often hilarious writing when she fell wildly in love with U.S Women's Soccer star Abby WambachAlongside her blackly funny posts about the challenges of parenting, Glennon wrote about her recovery from alcoholism and bulimia.She encouraged her growing tribe of followers to feel their feelings rather than numbing them.Glennon then used her platform to create an all-women-led non profit organization.Together Rising has raised $27 million for women, families, and children in crisis.A few years ago Glennon's husband Craig confessed he'd been unfaithful to her for years.She decided to stay in the marriage and fight for it.In 2017 Glennon was at a conference launching her book Love Warrior about recommitting to her marriage.When she saw US women’s soccer star, Abby Wambach, Glennon immediately fell madly in love.She upended her life to be with her, and had to rethink many of her ideas about marriage and motherhood in the process.Further informationUntamed: Stop Pleasing and Start Living is published by VermillionLearn more about Together RisingTo binge even more great episodes of the ‘Conversations podcast’ with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Writer Deborah Feldman grew up inside the claustrophobic world of an ultra-orthodox Jewish sect in Brooklyn, and as a teenager she was married off to a man she barely knew. In her 20s she fled to Berlin to make an entirely new life

Lawrence Ryan grew up in a dilapidated Victorian-era homestead called Monte Cristo. From when he was young, he knew he'd grow up to become a professional stuntman, jumping his motorbike over cars, buses and planes

Matt Norman's late uncle Peter won a silver medal at the 1968 Olympics, then was notoriously cast out of Australian sport (R)

Philippe Sands on how a cache of letters sent him on the trail of Nazi war criminal Otto Von Wachter, who escaped to Rome on the 'Ratline'

Robynne Murphy, film-maker and former steel worker, on the Wollongong women who took on BHP for the right to work alongside men at the steelworks

How a Birmingham boy became best-selling thriller writer, Lee Child (R)

When Johnathan was a boy he was written off as too skinny and too wild for rugby league (R)

The late writer with the story of a terrible accident in 1976 which completely changed her family (R)

Dan Richards follows his curiosity to some of the most remote habitable places in the world including an Icelandic cabin and a monastery high in the mountains of Japan

Hearing their Tongan mother’s powerful voice rise above the congregation in church, primed Vika and Linda for a life in song. Their distinctive harmonies and dazzling energy have seen them grace stages and studios for thirty five years

In the midst of Lisa Millar's brilliant career as a journalist, she found herself in the grip of aviophobia, a crippling fear of flying (R)

Historian Lucy Inglis on humankind's greatest painkiller and how its trade and cultivation are threaded through the story of civilisation, and the lives of every one of us

The co-creator of Absolutely Fabulous says her success rests on a series of happy accidents and calls herself an extreme procrastinator (R)

When Danna Young's husband Mike received a terrible diagnosis, she found herself drawn to conspiracy theories in the search to find someone, or something to blame

Australian comedian on Nanette, her 'farewell' to stand up comedy; being diagnosed with high-functioning autism as an adult; and on Douglas, the show and the dogHannah made an instant impression with her first comedy set, winning a national contest in 2006. She quickly became a regular on the Australian and UK festival circuits, and on television shows including Adam Hills Tonight and Please Like Me.After a decade of consistent work, Hannah wrote a show called Nanette, which she billed as her 'farewell' to comedy. In it, Hannah used the familiar context of stand-up to talk powerfully about trauma, her own trauma, and what her life's been like from the inside. It was confronting and raw, as well as tough for Hannah to perform, and made a huge impact with audiences, critics and other comedians.Nanette was filmed for a Netflix comedy special, becoming one of the most popular ever. It earned Hannah prestigious Peabody and Emmy awards and a level of fame she never expected.Hannah's most recent show was Douglas. In Douglas, Hannah explains that shortly before writing Nanette she received a diagnosis of high-functioning autism.Further informationDouglas and Nanette are available on NetflixTo binge even more great episodes of the ‘Conversations podcast’ with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, singers, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

When Pasi was a boy he would sneak into his father's empty schoolroom in northern Finland and pretend to be a teacher. Now he's one of the world's leading voices in education, encouraging schools to help kids find their passion in life, and to follow it

Gisela Kaplan fell under the spell of birds when she hand-reared a magpie nestling. When it learned to speak, she was so intrigued she switched careers to study avian behaviour. Her books on Australian native birds have been ground-breaking (R)

Meet a sound designer and naturalist who makes field recordings all over the world. He then puts them to use in soundscapes for film and television, galleries, museums and apps (R)