Bonafide with Luke Bona

Luke Bona
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Bonafide with Luke Bona is the unfiltered voice of everyday Australia. After decades in national radio, Luke brings his legendary no-BS approach to the podcast world. We tackle the real issues the mainstream media ignores: Australian politics, the cost of living, motoring, technology, culture, and the transport industry. From the realities of the road on Truckie Tuesday to wild true crime in the Man Cave, get the raw, unhinged truth you’ve been looking for. No censors. No apologies. Subscribe to join the conversation.

  1. 1d ago

    Why Do Trucks Keep Hitting Bridges? Plus, Bridge Strikes & Tanker Chains

    This week's Truckie Tuesday: a new independently-verified report finds heavy-vehicle bridge strikes are costing the Australian economy $101 million a year — 1,220 incidents in the last 12 months, up 38% since 2018. Rod Hannifey and Luke Bona dig into why, including Rod's own story about a bridge clearance sign that was never updated after the road underneath it was resurfaced. Plus: copper thieves targeting EV chargers and streetlights around the country, a new industry survey seeking every transport worker's voice on mental health, Rod's take on whether the NHVR's fatigue-blitz statistics tell the full story, a visit from NSW Minister Jenny Aitchison, Senator Bridget McKenzie confirmed for a coming episode, an update on the Great Western Highway works, a heartfelt tribute to trucking legend Toots Holzheimer, and a Legal Win of the Week from Hughes Law's Belinda Hughes. Guests: Rod Hannifey (Truckie Tuesday co-host, National Road Freighters Association) · Belinda Hughes (Principal, Hughes Law) (00:00) Cold Open & Where's Rodney (01:30) Feedback Of The Week: The Truck Chain Mystery (06:45) Mobile Blackspots On The Highway (08:16) Copper Thieves Target EV Chargers (13:00) NatRoad Connect 26 & Industry Structure (15:01) NSW Minister Jenny Aitchison Visits Dubbo (16:37) Great Western Highway Works & Bathurst 1000 (21:33) Tribute: Toots Holzheimer (24:07) Mental Health Survey & The Fatigue Blitz Debate (29:13) $101 Million A Year In Bridge Strikes (32:01) Hughes Law: Two Wins Of The Week (36:01) Where's Rodney? Plus Rod's Rant (39:35) Sign-Off 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com

    Why Do Trucks Keep Hitting Bridges? Plus, Bridge Strikes & Tanker Chains

  2. Aug 24

    Brown Paper Bags Backhanders & 3 Truck Licence Assessors Referred To Police

    Three heavy-vehicle licence assessors have been pulled from the NSW scheme and referred to police after a joint Transport for NSW/NHVR crackdown across Tweed Heads and Lismore. Rod Hannifey and Luke Bona ask what it means for every driver those assessors trained — and a listener writes in with an anonymous, unverified account of "brown paper bag" backhanders allegedly pushing safe local trucking contracts to cheaper, non-local operators. Plus: a $100 million funding boost for the Great Western Highway's Blue Mountains rebuild, a $10,000 free training pathway launching for Cairns jobseekers, the NHVR's latest fatigue blitz results (6,100+ heavy vehicles checked, non-compliance on the rise), a Legal Win of the Week from Hughes Law's Belinda Hughes, and Rod's rant on logbook fines that treat honest paperwork mistakes as deceit. Guests: Rod Hannifey (Truckie Tuesday co-host, National Road Freighters Association) · Belinda Hughes (Principal, Hughes Law) (00:00) Cold Open & Intro (01:04) $10,000 Free Training For Cairns Jobseekers (03:30) $100M For The Great Western Highway (06:27) NHVR Fatigue Blitz Results (09:31) 3 Licence Assessors Referred To Police (12:07) A Listener's Backhander Warning (17:09) Hughes Law: Win Of The Week (20:59) Rod's Rant: Weighbridge And Logbook Fines (24:06) Sign-Off 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com

    Brown Paper Bags Backhanders & 3 Truck Licence Assessors Referred To Police

  3. Aug 20

    The Last Australian Showman, The Sydney Swans Scandal & Penguins vs. Bird Flu

    He's the last touring boxing-tent showman left in the world, and 74 years old hasn't slowed him down. Outback legend Fred Brophy joins Luke Bona and vice captain Adam McDonald in the Man Cave for the full story — jail time at Pentridge, a run-in with Mark "Chopper" Read, deliberately cutting off his own finger, and why he says he's still got a few more years left in him. Also this episode: is it really the worst time in 56 years to buy a first home in Australia? Motley Fool Chief Investment Officer Scotty Phillips joins Luke Bona to explain why the deposit — not the mortgage repayment — is the real barrier for young buyers, and the case against early access to superannuation. Dr Rob Zammit on the world-first program racing to vaccinate Phillip Island's penguin colony against H5N1 bird flu. Legal eagle James Glissan breaks down the Sydney Swans investigation and the presumption of innocence, plus the latest on Erin Patterson's appeal against her conviction. ⚠ Content warning: this episode's Man Cave segment includes a guest's own account of jail time, a serious injury, and past self-harm, with strong, unbleeped language. Also discusses a Victoria Police investigation into an alleged incident involving Sydney Swans players (unconfirmed, no charges laid) and a separate criminal matter involving minors. Listener discretion advised. Guests: Fred Brophy · Scotty Phillips (The Motley Fool Australia) · Dr Rob Zammit · James Glissan (Glissan & Associates) · Adam McDonald (Evans Hastings Auctions) 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com Support: 1800RESPECT 1800 737 732 · Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7)

    The Last Australian Showman, The Sydney Swans Scandal & Penguins vs. Bird Flu

  4. Aug 18

    Truckie Tuesday: Tax, Close Calls, & Australia's Biggest Trucking Collapse?

    This week's Truckie Tuesday: container logistics giant ACFS Port Logistics — the operator behind Coles, Kmart and Bunnings' freight — has collapsed into external administration owing the ATO an alleged $60 million, with up to 1,500 jobs on the line. Luke Bona and Rod Hannifey break down what it means for the industry, and Hughes Law's Belinda Hughes joins with her Legal Win of the Week: a trucking company client's 37 charges and $2.54 million in maximum penalties, negotiated down to 8 charges and $549,000, all before it reached court. Plus: a postmortem on the Casino Truck Show, the physics of why a triple road train can swing its back trailer a metre sideways from the smallest steering input, the story of a 44-year veteran driver who just walked away from the industry over new heavy-vehicle fines, New South Wales' roundabout and U-turn rules explained properly, and Rod's question of the week for the NHVR's new CEO, Nicole Rosie. Guests: Rod Hannifey (Truckie Tuesday co-host, National Road Freighters Association) · Belinda Hughes (Principal, Hughes Law) (00:00) GME Sponsor Open & Intro (00:51) Checking In With Rod From Dubbo (01:16) A Postmortem On The Casino Truck Show (06:49) A Listener's Dashcam Near-Miss (09:45) Inside A Triple Road Train's Physics (15:58) New Fines: Why A 44-Year Veteran Just Quit (19:00) Listener Mail: Roundabouts And U-Turns (30:04) ACFS Port Logistics Collapses (35:57) Hughes Law: 37 Charges Down To 8 (42:14) Rod's Question For The NHVR's New CEO (46:02) Sign-Off ❤️ Cheers to GME for making Truckie Tuesday possible! Outfit your rig with the very best, Australian-made communication technology here: https://www.gme.net.au/au/ 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com Support: Griefline 1300 845 745 (Mon–Fri 9am–6pm, Sat–Sun 12pm–6pm) · Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7)

    Truckie Tuesday: Tax, Close Calls, & Australia's Biggest Trucking Collapse?

  5. Aug 17

    2,800 Missing Australians, A Cambridge Tragedy & NSW's New Gun Laws

    Every year, 49,000 Australians are reported missing — most are found within weeks. 2,800 are not. True-crime author and Australian Missing Persons Register founder Nicole Morris sits down with Luke Bona to tell the stories behind the numbers: a crossbow murder on Sydney's northern beaches, the still-unsolved 2001 disappearance of Janine Vaughan, the 1978 case of Trudy Adams that stopped a generation of girls hitchhiking, and the hundreds of unidentified bodies still sitting in Australian morgues today. Channel Seven's UK bureau chief Ben Downie joins live from London to unpack the tragic academic scandal dominating British headlines — a Cambridge professor's resignation, and his death days later, and the very real question of who's to blame. Former National Party leader David Littleproud breaks down NSW's sweeping new gun laws in the wake of the Bondi attack, and weighs in on Pauline Hanson's latest Mardi Gras comments. Then it's Truckie Tuesday with Rod Hanafi: a national truckers' apprenticeship push, the extraordinary story of driver-advocate Sharon Horne, and a live legal fight with Hughes Law over a trucking company shut down overnight. Guests: Nicole Morris (author, Australian Missing Persons Register) · Ben Downie (Channel Seven, UK) · David Littleproud MP · Rod Hannifey (Truckie Tuesday) · Sharon Horne · Belinda Hughes (Hughes Law) ⚠ Content warning: this episode discusses real missing-persons cases, murder and abduction (non-graphic, historical), a recent death by suicide, and gun violence in a policy context. Listener discretion advised. 00:00:00 Welcome to episode 134 00:01:43 Luke's off to Vietnam 00:05:09 Coming up this episode 00:11:49 Pauline Hanson wants to scrap compulsory super 00:16:20 Sam Pang wins the Gold Logie 00:17:13 NSW's gun buyback begins 00:18:33 Listener mail 00:24:23 Ben Downie live from London 00:44:28 Nicole Morris — Australia's missing 00:45:06 49,000 go missing a year. 2,800 stay missing 00:45:33 Peter Rolfe and the murder of Stephen Dempsey 00:51:22 Janine Vaughan — missing since 2001 00:55:49 Trudy Adams — the disappearance that ended a generation's hitchhiking 01:00:59 Hundreds of unidentified bodies in Australian morgues 01:04:24 Christopher "Mr Rentokil" Flannery and Australia's hitmen 01:17:58 David Littleproud on NSW's new gun laws 01:28:44 Pauline Hanson on Mardi Gras 01:37:39 Truckie Tuesday begins 01:45:20 An angry driver's voicemail 01:50:06 Sharon Horne — trucking's mental health advocate 01:51:12 The crash that changed everything 02:15:08 Belinda Hughes — a trucking company shut down overnight 02:23:19 Rod's rant of the week 02:26:02 Sign-off 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com ❤️ Cheers to GME for making Truckie Tuesday possible! Outfit your rig with the very best, Australian-made communication technology here: https://www.gme.net.au/au/ Support: Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7) · 1800RESPECT 1800 737 732 (24/7, pending Decision 6)

    2,800 Missing Australians, A Cambridge Tragedy & NSW's New Gun Laws

  6. Aug 14

    Pauline Hanson on Protests, Truckies, & Beetroot on Brugers

    She's home for one night between flights, and Senator Pauline Hanson isn't pulling any punches. Luke Bona sits down with the One Nation leader for a full solo interview, starting with yesterday's nationwide student walkout against her and One Nation — and her blunt response to it, including a secret recording of a teacher she says abused students in class, which she says she's about to release. From there: whether she could genuinely become Prime Minister off the back of One Nation's poll surge, how she'd handle Donald Trump one-on-one, the AUKUS tightrope between the US and China, Albanese's awkward melon moment with Japan's PM, her friendship with Gina Rinehart, the real cost of Nauru, overtime tax reform, a push for a national truckies' apprenticeship scheme, and the fish and chip shop she ran for a decade before politics. Guests: Senator Pauline Hanson (Leader, Pauline Hanson's One Nation) ⚠️ Contains a protester's sign quoting strong language (not repeated in these notes) and a brief, non-graphic reference to self-harm in immigration detention. 00:00 Welcome back, Senator Hanson 00:34 The National Union of Students walkout 01:29 The high school protest sign that went viral 04:53 Are the kids being led, or thinking for themselves? 05:19 "I'm going to release it" — the secret teacher recording 06:11 Marked down from an A to a C- for writing about Hanson 07:26 Should classrooms run CCTV? 10:11 Could Hanson become PM? The poll surge to 26% 11:26 Targeting Coalition seats at the next election 14:07 Her relationship with Matt Canavan 15:33 Albanese's melon gaffe with Japan's PM 19:12 How Hanson would handle Donald Trump 21:20 AUKUS, China and Australia's "two masters" 25:16 A national truckies' apprenticeship scheme 28:23 Overtime tax and the true cost of Nauru 31:31 On Gina Rinehart: "no one buys me" 34:20 Left school at 15 — Hanson's first job 41:26 A legend: Fred Brophy's boxing tent 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com

    Pauline Hanson on Protests, Truckies, & Beetroot on Brugers

  7. Aug 13

    Alan Jones's 5-Year Sentencing Shock, Tim Costello vs. Gambling, and Melon Gate

    Local court, no jury, and a maximum sentence nowhere near what most people assume — even if every charge sticks. Criminal lawyer James Glissan joins Luke Bona to break down how Alan Jones's 22-charge hearing actually works, why the cap is five years, and what "tendency evidence" means for a case built on unproven allegations. Then Reverend Tim Costello returns to unpack why Australia has the world's worst gambling losses, three decades of policy failure, and who's funding both sides of politics to keep it that way. Plus: Kelsey and Adam McDonald in the Man Cave on Anthony Albanese's "Melon Gate" — the PM's undiplomatic gift-giving story about the Japanese Prime Minister that's now made international headlines — a self-checkout stealing debate, a sex doll mistaken for human remains, and What's In Adam's Hand. ⚠ Content warning: this episode discusses an active, unresolved criminal matter involving allegations of sexual misconduct (the accused has pleaded not guilty; the matter is before the courts) and gambling-related financial harm. Listener discretion advised. Guests: James Glissan (Glissan & Associates Lawyers) · Reverend Tim Costello · Adam McDonald [Timestamp chapters — one per line, HH:MM:SS, first 00:00:00 — withheld pending Decision 5, same as the YouTube chapters above] 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com Support: 1800RESPECT 1800 737 732 (24/7) · Lifeline 13 11 14 (24/7)

    Alan Jones's 5-Year Sentencing Shock, Tim Costello vs. Gambling, and Melon Gate

  8. Aug 11

    Truckie Tuesday: Live From The Casino Truck Show, Meet Trucking With CJ

    (Replay) Truckie Tuesday goes on the road for the first time at this scale, broadcasting live from the Casino Truck Show, one of the biggest truck shows in the Southern Hemisphere. Luke sits down with Richmond Valley Council's Vaughan Macdonald on what it takes to grow a truck show from 150 trucks to a capped 550, then talks with Casuarina "CJ" Smith, the truck driver and creator behind Trucking with CJ, about her path from insurance broker to fuel tankers to road trains, why fewer than 2% of Australian truckies are women, and a live crowd vote on who's actually the better driver. Plus: a new Heavy Vehicle National Law lands the very next day and Rod Hannifey isn't impressed, 14-year-old Fergie tells Luke why he's chasing a truckie apprenticeship, a trucker's mental health project that started with a sign on the back of a trailer, and a look at how the show's judges pick a winner out of 550 trucks. Guests: Vaughan Macdonald (General Manager, Richmond Valley Council) · Casuarina "CJ" Smith (Trucking with CJ) · Rod Hannifey (Truckie Tuesday co-host, National Road Freighters Association) (00:00) GME Sponsor Open & Intro (00:31) Live From The Casino Truck Show (02:29) Vaughan Macdonald On Running The Show (05:38) Why Casino Runs One Of The Biggest Truck Shows In The Country (08:01) Meet Fergie, 14 (Teaser) (09:02) The New Heavy Vehicle Law: Rod's Verdict (11:51) A Trucker's Mental Health Project (14:35) Trucking With CJ: Insurance Broker To Big Rigs (16:04) Why Are Only 2% Of Truck Drivers Women? (16:30) The Crowd Weighs In: Who's The Better Driver? (21:29) CJ On The New Law: "No Carrot, Only Stick" (22:08) The Demerit-Points Debate (29:49) Steering The Future: Getting Kids Into Trucking (32:38) Back To Vaughan Macdonald: Casino House Prices (33:43) Fergie, 14, On Chasing His Truckie Dream (39:22) An O'Brien Co Heavy Driver On Life Behind The Wheel (47:26) A Listener's Email On Truckie Etiquette (48:46) How The Judges Pick The Winner From 550 Trucks ❤️ Cheers to GME for making Truckie Tuesday possible! Outfit your rig with the very best, Australian-made communication technology here: https://www.gme.net.au/au/ 🫶 Join The Bonafide Family Get Your Bonafide Merch here: https://bonafidepod.com/en-aud Follow Me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LukeBonaThatRadioGuy/ Catch Up On Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lukey.bona/ Subscribe to us on YouTube to stay updated with LIVE SHOWS: 🎙️ Get Involved Leave us a digital voicemail here: https://www.speakpipe.com/Bonafide Call the Bonafide Hotline to leave a voicemail: (02) 9128 9311 Want to be a guest or suggest a topic? Reach out at: community@bonafidepod.com

    Truckie Tuesday: Live From The Casino Truck Show, Meet Trucking With CJ
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Hosts & Guests

About

Bonafide with Luke Bona is the unfiltered voice of everyday Australia. After decades in national radio, Luke brings his legendary no-BS approach to the podcast world. We tackle the real issues the mainstream media ignores: Australian politics, the cost of living, motoring, technology, culture, and the transport industry. From the realities of the road on Truckie Tuesday to wild true crime in the Man Cave, get the raw, unhinged truth you’ve been looking for. No censors. No apologies. Subscribe to join the conversation.

Information

  • Creator
    Luke Bona
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    199
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Luke Bona
  • Show Website
    Bonafide with Luke Bona