Big Ideas

ABC Australia

Your front row seat to big thinkers at the best live events, forums, and festivals. Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. We love hearing from you about the show or events you are planning. Get in touch! Email: Bigideas@abc.net.au SMS line for ABC Radio National: 0418 226 576 Airs Monday to Thursday 8pm, repeated Tuesday to Friday 12pm, on ABC Radio National.

  1. 16 HR AGO

    Aliens exist (and the truth is out there)!? Science Smackdown at World Science Festival Brisbane 2026

    It's Team 'Aliens Alive' versus Team 'Earthlings United'. Get out of this world, hear the arguments, and you decide. Was the X-Files really a documentary, or was Mulder deluded? Join Big Ideas host Natasha Mitchell from the stage of the 2026 World Science Festival Brisbane for an hilarious hour of science and comedy. TEAM ALIENS ALIVE Dr Joel Gilmore (Team Captain)Energy specialist, physicist, science communicator, improv theatre buff, dancer Dr Sara WebbAstrophysicist, author, and science communicatorAuthor of The Little Book of Cosmic CatastrophesSwinburne University Georgina HumphriesComedian, two time Raw Comedy finalistGeorgina's show Rogue at the 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival TEAM EARTHLINGS UNITED Professor Tamara Davis (Team Captain)AstrophysicistPrincipal Investigator, OzDES (Dark Energy Survey)ABC TV documentary presenter, ultimate Frisbee and triathlon competitorUniversity of Queensland Nate ByrneMeteorologist, oceanographer. science communicatorABC TV Breakfast host and weatherman Sean ChoolburraComedian, dancer, actor Thanks to the event producers Dr Rob Bell, Jane O'Hara, Bec Redsell and the whole World Science Festival Brisbane team.

    52 min

  2. 1 DAY AGO

    British journalist Emily Maitlis on THAT Prince Andrew interview and news in a post truth world

    Former BBC presenter and host of the hit podcast The News Agents, Emily Maitlis, gives a fearless assessment of modern news coverage, public broadcasting, and the royal family's handling of Andrew Mountbatten-Windor's arrest.  The event No Spin, No Compromise was recorded live at the Sydney Opera House for the 2026 All About Women festival. Speakers Emily MaitlisCo-host, The News Agents and The News Agents USA podcastsAuthor, Airhead: The Imperfect Art of Making NewsFormer BBC journalist and longtime anchor of BBC Newsnight Janine Perrett (host)Finance and foreign affairs journalist and presenter, The Australian, Channel 9, Sky News, ABC Further information: Emily Maitlis full interview with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, BBC Newsnight, 2019

    1 hr

  3. 2 DAYS AGO

    Tennis prodigy Todd Ley on the underbelly of elite junior sport

    Todd Ley exposes a high-pressure world where talent is everything, but protection is rare; where overzealous parents, manipulative coaches, hungry sponsors and indifferent associations can push young athletes to their breaking point. It's not just a story about tennis, it's about what happens when a child's identity is consumed by a dream that may not be their own and the long road back to self-worth after the cheering stops. Presented at the 2025 Byron Writers Festival Speakers Todd LeyFormer world's top Junior tennis playerAuthor of SMASHED: Prodigies, parents and parasites Anna FeatherstoneAuthor; non-fiction advisor to the Alliance Independent Authors, publishing consultant for the Australian Society of Authors

    53 min

  4. 6 DAYS AGO

    Who's afraid of a joke? Comedy in an authoritarian age — with comedians Sam Jay, Tom Ballard, Bahaa Dabbagh and Leon Filewood

    Comedians are increasingly being forced to navigate a world where the right punchline at the expense of the wrong politician carries the risk of personal and professional consequences. So when poking fun at the powerful could get you cancelled, sued, land you in jail — or worse — who's afraid of a joke? This episode was recorded on 28th March 2026 as part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in partnership with The Wheeler Centre, Australia's first dedicated centre for Books, Writing and Ideas. Explore more discussions like this one on The Wheeler Centre podcast — available wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow @wheelercentre for updates. Speakers Sam JayComedian, TV writer Saturday Night Live, host of HBO's Pause with Sam Jay, 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival show We the People Bahaa DabbaghStand-up comedian, Syrian refugee advocate, 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival Comedy Zone Leon FilewoodStand-up comedian, winner, Deadly Funny, 2018 Melbourne International Comedy Festival, 2026 Moosehead Recipient, 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival show Holding Space Tom Ballard (host)Comedian, broadcaster, writer, former host of ABC TV's Tonightly with Tom Ballard and Triple J's Breakfast with Tom and Alex, 2026 Melbourne International Comedy Festival show Be Funny Challenge (Impossible) Further information: Jon Stewart acceptance speech, 2022 Mark Twain Prize, Kennedy Centre

    59 min

  5. 8 APR

    The science of SEX! Natasha Mitchell and guests at World Science Festival Brisbane

    Get bonkers on bonking with Natasha Mitchell and guests at the 2026 World Science Festival Brisbane. It’s a sexy, fun, and educational – what's not to love?! Sex historian Dr Esme Louise James is creator of the viral Kinky History TikTok series and does a Sextistics show with her mathematician mother. The complexity of the human clitoris can no longer be ignored by science, thanks to the world-changing work of urologist and surgeon Professor Helen O’Connell. And biologist Professor Robbie Wilson will help you channel your inner animal – masturbating monkeys, tiny testicled-gorillas, amorous antechinus and more.  This event was hosted at the 2026 World Science Festival Brisbane/Meanjin. Speakers Dr Esme Louise JamesHistorian, perfomer, author, Kinky History: A Rollicking Journey Through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future (2024)Creator, the viral Kinky History TikTok series. Professor Helen O'Connell A.OUrologist and urological surgeonUniversity of Melbourne Professor Robbie WilsonBiologist, head of The Performance LabUniversity of Queensland Thanks to World Science Festival Brisbane producer and maestros Dr Rob Bell, Jane O'Hara, Bec Redsell. Further reading Anatomy of the clitoris Helen E O'Connell, Kalavampara V Sanjeevan, John M HutsonJournal of Urology, Volume 174(4 Pt 1): October 2005, Pages1189-95 Anatomical Relationship Between Urethra And ClitorisHelen E. O'connell, John M. Hutson, Colin R. Anderson, Robert J. PlenterThe Journal of Urology, Volume 159, Issue 6, June 1998, Pages 1892-1897 Magnetic resonance imaging of male and female g******s during coitus and female sexual arousal Willibrord Weijmar Schultz, Pek van Andel, Ida Sabelis, Eduard MooyaartBMJ, 1999 The Anatomy of the Distal Vagina: Towards Unity Helen E. O'Connell , Norm Eizenberg, Marzia Rahman, Joan CleeveThe Journal of Sexual Medicine, Volume 5, Issue 8, August 2008, Pages 1883–1891 Magnetic resonance imaging of male and female g******s during coitus and female sexual arousal Willibrord Weijmar Schultz, Pek van Andel, Ida Sabelis, Eduard MooyaartBMJ, 1999

    59 min

  6. 7 APR

    Forgiveness — a generous gift or social pressure disguised as a virtue?

    You often hear that forgiveness is the key to healing and moving on — but is it always the right thing to do? This conversation explores how forgiveness is something far more complex than a simple act of letting go. Is it a generous moral gift, or a burden placed on those who've been wronged? What really happens when we forgive? And is sometimes withholding forgiveness the more honest response? 2025 Anderson Fellows Lecture — Forgiveness: Do We Really Need it? presented by the University of Sydney Speakers Lucy AllaisProfessor of Philosophy at both the University of the Witwatersrand and Johns Hopkins University Luke RussellProfessor of Philosophy at the University of Sydney

    55 min

  7. 6 APR

    The diplomats — the ups and downs of life in Australia's foreign embassies

    According to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australia has some 120 embassies, high commissions, consulates-general and representative offices located across five continents. So when an Australian gets into trouble overseas, or a politician travels abroad on government business, or other countries take actions that damage Australia's national interest, it's likely a diplomat is not far away. In their recent books, two former diplomats reveal what the job is really like as Australia's representatives abroad. This event was recorded at the 2025 Canberra Writers Festival. Speakers Lachlan StrahanFormer Australian diplomatAuthor, The Curious Diplomat: A Memoir from the Frontlines of Diplomacy Grant DooleyFormer Australian diplomatAuthor, Bomb Season in Jakarta — A personal account of a turbulent period in Australian diplomacy Karen Middleton (host)Political journalistAuthor, Albanese: Telling it Straight

    55 min

  8. 2 APR

    Six years of writing, 200 rejections — how Miles Franklin award-winning writer Siang Lu learned to live with failure

    Failure is a part of life, whether we like it or not. While most of us don't ever want to fail, failure does have things to teach us — about ourselves, about resilience, about persistence, and about doing the things we love. Over six years, Siang Lu received more than 200 rejections from publishers for three manuscripts — before going on to publish a Miles Franklin award winning novel. What did he learn about failure, and what did it teach him about success? The 2025 E.W Cole Lecture was recorded on 20 November 2025 at The Wheeler Centre, Australia's first dedicated centre for books, writing and ideas. Explore more discussions like this one on The Wheeler Centre podcast — available wherever you listen to podcasts. Follow @wheelercentre for updates. Speakers Siang LuAuthor, Ghost Cities (2025 Miles Franklin Award), The WhitewashCo-founder (with Jonathan O'Brien), The Beige Index Toni Jordan (host)Author, Tenderfoot, Addition, Dinner with the Schnabels and more

    54 min
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Hosts & Guests

Ratings & Reviews

4.7
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

Your front row seat to big thinkers at the best live events, forums, and festivals. Feed your mind. Be provoked. One big idea at a time. Your brain will love you for it. We love hearing from you about the show or events you are planning. Get in touch! Email: Bigideas@abc.net.au SMS line for ABC Radio National: 0418 226 576 Airs Monday to Thursday 8pm, repeated Tuesday to Friday 12pm, on ABC Radio National.

Information

  • Creator
    ABC Australia
  • Years Active
    2006 - 2026
  • Episodes
    1.4k
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All right reserved.
  • Show Website
    Big Ideas

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