Conversations

Conversations
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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.

  1. 12 HR AGO

    Encore: The hidden corners of Emma's Hong Kong — fishing villages, beaches and ancestral graveyards

    Novelist Emma Pei Yin ran away from Hong Kong as a teenager to start fresh in Australia. But she found herself repeatedly drawn back home whenever she put pen to paper. Emma grew up in England and Hong Kong. But her life in Hong Kong wasn’t so much about the neon skyscrapers as it was about her family’s ancestral village, tucked away in the New Territories. Emma spent her school holidays there with her grandparents, learning how to take care of the family cemetery and joining in Chinese Festivals. Sometimes her grandfather would share his memories of the Second World War, when the Japanese military invaded and occupied Hong Kong. As Emma became into a teenager, her relationship with her parents deteriorated. She eventually decided to leave them and Hong Kong, coming to Australia to make a life for herself as a writer. But whenever she wrote, Emma found herself drawn back to Hong Kong; to the hundreds of islands, the fishing villages on stilts, the mountains, woodlands and beaches – all the things that tourists who think of Hong Kong as a city of neon lights and free Wi-fi don’t know about. Content warning: This episode of Conversations contains discussion about sexual assault. Further information When Sleeping Women Wake is published by Hachette. Help and support is always available. You can call Lifeline 24 hours a day on 13 11 14. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris and first broadcast in 2025, the executive producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores family dynamics, multiculturalism, China, Hong Kong, modern history, writing, books, literature, historical fiction, Japanese occupation, World War 2, assault, victim-blaming, abortion, filmmaking, black sheep, family honour, London, forgiveness.

    48 min

  2. 1 DAY AGO

    'The century of foundlings'—what Cynthia found when she went looking maternal family secrets

    Writer Cynthia Banham on discovering the shocking truth about her great-grandmother, reckoning with buried family secrets, and the criticisms mothers face from others and sometimes most harshly, from themselves. Cynthia Banham grew up hearing the story of her great-grandmother, Natalina, who had supposedly been orphaned in Italy in the 19th century. But when Cynthia became a mother herself she felt compelled to look for the real story of her maternal line, which suddenly stopped three generations back. What she found shocked her -- a period of time when infant relinquishment was so common, the era became known as the 'century of foundlings', and her great-grandmother was one of them. She had not been orphaned, as the family thought, but abandoned by a nameless mother. Cynthia took off to Bologna, Italy with her own young family in tow to find the truth. Along the way she uncovered the stories of 'bastardini' (a home for bastards), literate midwives, epigenetics and possible incest. Cynthia also stood in the house where Natalina was born, and came to terms with her own harsh judgement of herself as a mother. Mother Shadow is published by Upswell. Richard also spoke to Cynthia in 2023 about surviving the 2007 Garuda plane disaster in Indonesia. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores ancestry, epigenetics, anthropology, family history, writing, books, orphans, adoption, child abandonment, truth, journalism, parenting with a disability, mothers in wheelchairs, self confidence as a mother, self criticism as a mother, marriage, love, mothers and sons, school communities, Indonesia, Garuda Indonesia Flight 200, memoir, modern history, travel, family bonding, wild gardening.

    52 min

  3. 4 DAYS AGO

    Spotting the psychopaths, sadists and narcissists in our lives and how to get rid of them

    Toxic people are around us in our workplaces, our families and our dating lives. Research psychologist Leanne ten Brinke is here to tell you how to spot them, and get rid of them from your orbit. Leanne ten Brinke is a research psychologist whose special area of expertise is what she calls 'dark personality types'. These are particularly cruel, malicious, manipulative people who lack empathy, people who are psychopaths, narcissists or sadists. Psychologists estimate than one per cent of any population shows serious levels of psychopathy. They walk among us in our workplaces and in our relationships, they could be an gaslighting partner, a narcissistic parent or a colleague who's a bully. There are also more serious cases, like abusive husbands or murderous mothers. Leanne also makes the point that any one of us is capable of losing our moral bearings or enabling malicious people by cheering them on, hiring them or voting them into office. But there are ways to resist them, and make your own life the better for it. Poisonous People: psychopathy, narcissism, manipulation, sadism: how to resist them and improve your life is published by Simon & Schuster Australia. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores toxic relationships, is my partner a narcissist, what to do about my narcissist mother, what to do about my toxic boss, how many psychopaths are there, sadism, serial killers, morality, amorality, Ted Bundy, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, sociopath, Patric Gagne, anti-social personality disorders, thriller, scammers, dating world, escaping abuse, peaceful living, finding peace. 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.

    53 min

  4. 5 DAYS AGO

    Encore: How his ex-wife's hidden letter changed everything for Teddy Tahu Rhodes

    Born with a magnificent voice, Opera star Teddy Tahu Rhodes fought against his destiny for years until a letter he'd been avoiding reading changed everything (R)

    51 min

  5. 6 DAYS AGO

    The GP clinic for patients often overlooked by society

    Dr Nada Andric wants to improve the health of people who are marginalised in the community and their access to healthcare. She works at the Reverend Bill Crews GP clinic, a place where people who might be completely off the database of society can get help. Whether they're facing homelessness, dealing with mental health issues, addiction, or simply don't have a Medicare card or passport to their name.  This year, the clinic in the Sydney suburb of Ashfield turns 40. This episode of Conversations was produced by Alice Moldovan, the Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores health care, addiction, homelessness, poverty, doctors, domestic violence, mental health, society, Reverend Bill Crews. 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.

    50 min

  6. 7 APR

    Encore: Bo Seo on good arguments and the power of disagreement

    Two-time World Debating champion Bo Seo on how love and listening can improve how we disagree, so we're not at each other's throats online and offline (R). When Bo was 8 years old, he and his parents migrated from Korea to Australia.  Bo was a quiet boy and sometimes felt overwhelmed at school.  But in Year Five, something happened which changed his life: one of his teachers introduced Bo to debating.Debating became a way for Bo to excel socially and academically.  He went on to win world titles for Australia and for Harvard University. Now Bo is sharing insights from the strategy, structure and history of debating to try to encourage all of us to disagree better. Originally broadcast in May 2023. Good Arguments is published by Simon and Schuster. This episode of Conversations was produced by Nicola Harrison. Executive Producer was Carmel Rooney. It explores keyboard warriors, how to argue well, communication skills, how to disagree without offending, writing, responding not reacting, self reflection, how to get your point across, books, agreements, disagreements, law, lawyers, legal industry, author, journalist, Harvard University, community building, how to build community, how to have constructive conversations, political divide. 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.

    52 min

  7. 6 APR

    Exploring loss, love and meaning with psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz

    Stephen Grosz has welcomed people into his office for more than 40 years, and believes our greatest task in life is to see ourselves and others with more clarity, in order to live more easily and with more please. Stephen has sat with people as they have shared their darkest fears, strangest dreams and their most explosive love affairs. Through thousands of hours of these conversations, he has tried to help patients understand themselves so they can live with more ease and with greater satisfaction. Stephen believes our greatest task in life is to see ourselves and others with more clarity. That's the quest that his driven his work dissecting compelling stories of love, desire and heartbreak from his consulting room. Love's Labour is published by Penguin. This episode of Conversations was produced by Jennifer Leake. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores therapy, love, marriage, relationships, writing, books, analysis, counselling, introspection, looking inwards, how to self reflect, how to survive heartbreak, what do I do with desire, how to live a fulfilling life, how we lose and find ourselves, United States, University of California Berkeley, Oxford, Institute of Psychoanalysis, mental wellbeing, University College of London. 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.

    54 min

  8. 3 APR

    When the magical worlds of Alice Springs and Prague collided

    Writer Tanya Heaslip on swapping life on an Alice Springs station for the fairytale streets of Prague, and the remarkable parallels she found between these two magical worlds. Tanya was in a pub in London in 1989 when she watched on the television as the Berlin Wall came down. She was the tail end of a solo backpacking trip, which didn’t quite live up to what she’d imagined it might be as a little girl growing up on a remote cattle station near Alice Springs. But Tanya booked to go to Berlin the very next day, beginning an obsession with learning about what life was like behind the Iron Curtain. Several years later she would return to Europe, this time to the East, to the Czech Republic. There in fairytale Prague, not long after the Velvet Revolution, Tanya would fall in love with the city and into a relationship with an older man. And she would draw unexpected parallels between the magic and isolation of Prague and that of Central Australia – their people and their stories. Tanya has written several memoirs about her life from the great expanse of the Northern Territory, to the cobbled streets of Prague. Alice to Prague, An Alice Girl and Beyond Alice are published by Allen & Unwin. This episode of Conversations was produced by Meggie Morris. Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. It explores country Australia, rural Australia, boarding school, Northern Territory, mustering cattle, expat Australians, Eastern Europe, Soviet Union, Fall of the Wall, travelling Australians, falling in love, grief, grieving, relationships, love for country, central Australia, Adelaide, bullying, studying law, working in the legal system, teaching English abroad.

    47 min
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Hosts & Guests

About

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.

Information

  • Channel
    Conversations
  • Creator
    ABC Australia
  • Years Active
    2005 - 2026
  • Episodes
    2.9k
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All right reserved.
  • Show Website
    Conversations

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