Background Briefing ABC Podcasts

When winter arrives there's nothing like curling up in front of a fire heater with a glass of wine.

But there's something disturbing in this cosy picture.

As Alison Branley discovers, there's a huge risk to our health that we seem determined to ignore, even though it's estimated to kill hundreds of Australians every year

Thousands of Australians went to India back when it seemed like coronavirus was under control.
Some went to care for elderly parents.
But, as Alex Mann discovers, their noble intentions counted for nothing when they were locked out of Australia and found themselves in a fight to survive and find a way home.

As Australians eat more and more chicken, we need to find places to raise the animals.

But as broiler sheds pop up across rural Victoria, the neighbours are learning that there are more downsides than the smell.

A chicken shed next door can stop you building on your own land.

Rachael Brown heads to Gippsland to investigate why Rosedale locals are worried that their area will soon be nicknamed 'Chickendale'.

Ballarat orphanage superintendent Hylton Sedgman was due to face nine child abuse charges.
Buried in a 1964 file is the reason he never stood trial.
Charlotte King investigates why.

It was the site of Australia's deadliest coronavirus outbreak.

This week, Ashlynne McGhee investigates how Melbourne's St Basil's Homes for the Aged has been funnelling tens of millions of taxpayer dollars into the Greek Orthodox Church.

It’s one of the last affordable caravan parks near Sydney's CBD where people can actually make a home.

Many of the residents were driven here in one of life's desperate moments, but as Mridula Amin discovers, not everyone wants to leave.