Seeking Sydney

Kathy Prokhovnik
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‘Seeking Sydney’ is a ten-episode podcast that looks at the people and events that have shaped modern Sydney. Through interviews and research, Sydney’s landscapes and landmarks become places of connection. ‘Seeking Sydney’ is written and directed by Kathy Prokhovnik. Featuring interviews with Grace Karskens, Julie Gibson, Diane Minnis, Wendy Bacon, Gary Dunne, Bette Mifsud, Ben Ewald, Naomi Parry Duncan, Paul Irish, Matthew Doyle, John Richardson, Lucy Taksa, Joss Bell, Felicity Castagna, Deborah Lennis, Steven Penning and Jing Han. Sound design by Martin Gallagher. Artwork by Bettina Kaiser. Produced by Spineless Wonders on the unceded lands of Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.

Episodes

  1. Episode 10: Survival and adaptation

    11/06/2025

    Episode 10: Survival and adaptation

    In episode 10 we’re wrapping it all up. We’ll go as far west as the Hawkesbury River and talk more about survival and adaptation. And we’ll look at what the people I’ve interviewed have to say about Sydney. It’s really surprisingly sweet. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 4m
  2. Episode 7: Change and the river

    10/16/2025

    Episode 7: Change and the river

    In this episode we’re on the river – the Parramatta River – looking at it from both sides now, from Hunters Hill to Homebush, Silverwater to Rydalmere. The first green ban will come into view, as well as a story about mowing. But really, it’s the river that’s the star of this episode. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 5m
  3. Episode 9: Time travel

    10/16/2025

    Episode 9: Time travel

    In this episode we’re talking about travellers, and time travellers. We’ll move in place from Parramatta and Westmead to Blacktown and Penrith, and we’ll move in time through the past 200 years, and more. We’ll consider stolen children, and stolen lives. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 7m
  4. Episode 8: What must it take?

    10/16/2025

    Episode 8: What must it take?

    In this episode we spend some more time in Parramatta, discussing migration and identity and racism. Jing Han will explain why subtitlers are happy to see a kung fu fight break out. And, at the end of Episode 7 I promised that this is where we will hear Naomi Parry-Duncan’s story about Skippy. I accidentally set myself a difficult task in saying that, but wait and see my intricate solution. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 19m
  5. Episode 6: Leichhardt, a case study OR The history’s not fabulous

    08/27/2025

    Episode 6: Leichhardt, a case study OR The history’s not fabulous

    In this episode we’re in the Sydney suburb of Leichhardt. We’ll be welcomed to that part of Dharawal land by Deborah Lennis. We’ll look at that land as an example of Sydney’s suburbs, carved up by the colonists into estates that are still visible today. It won’t be a surprise to anyone to hear that Parramatta Rd is classified as a ‘highly degraded’ high street, but we’ll find out what that means. And Deborah Lennis will also bravely enter the ‘first coffee machine in Sydney’ debate. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 1m
  6. Episode 5 Power At Work

    06/15/2025

    Episode 5 Power At Work

    In this episode we’ll look at activism in Sydney – from the Eveleigh railway workshops to Glebe Point Road; from freedom for women to the Freedom Ride. We’ll hear from a feminist post-punk band with reggae and ska influences, and hear how Frank Sinatra couldn’t sing himself out of trouble with the unions. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    1h 15m
  7. Episode 4 Sydney Growing Up

    05/01/2025

    Episode 4 Sydney Growing Up

    In this episode we travel down George Street to the harbour, and the Opera House. They’re the backbone of most descriptions of Sydney – good reason to slide over them – but I’ve been talking to some people who’ve got some interesting things to say about them. Like the way that the early Aboriginal / British encounters seemed to cluster around the harbour. And the way the Opera House, nearly 200 years later, transformed how we saw that big body of water that Sydney has gathered into its heart. For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the 'Seeking Sydney' blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    56 min
  8. Episode 3 That's how Sydney got going

    04/08/2025

    Episode 3 That's how Sydney got going

    In this episode we’re in inner Sydney. We touch on Sydney’s flirtation with planning and hear about social engineering that took people out of Surry Hills, and a social experiment that took people out of Britain. We move from the nest of alleyways that was Surry Hills to the higgledy-piggledy place built by convicts that was The Rocks. We hear how The Rocks were home to Chinese artisans, and saved for us to wander in when its residents joined forces with a union. And we ask, was high quality champagne really the best import to Sydney in 1825? For extra notes and acknowledgements please go to the ‘Seeking Sydney’ blog. Seeking Sydney is written and presented by Kathy Prokhovnik. It is produced by Spineless Wonders in Sydney, Australia on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Sound engineer, Martin Gallagher. Artwork, Bettina Kaiser.

    56 min
  9. Seeking Sydney Ep 2 A Big Visible Beacon

    03/09/2025

    Seeking Sydney Ep 2 A Big Visible Beacon

    ‘Seeking Sydney’ is a ten-episode podcast that looks at the people and events that have shaped modern Sydney. Through interviews and research, Sydney’s landscapes and landmarks become places of connection. ‘Seeking Sydney’ is written and directed by Kathy Prokhovnik. Featuring interviews with Grace Karskens, Julie Gibson, Diane Minnis, Wendy Bacon, Gary Dunne, Bette Mifsud, Ben Ewald, Naomi Parry Duncan, Paul Irish, Matthew Doyle, John Richardson, Lucy Taksa, Joss Bell, Felicity Castagna, Deborah Lennis, Steven Penning and Jing Han. Sound design by Martin Gallagher. Artwork by Bettina Kaiser Produced by Spineless Wonders on the unceded lands of the Gadigal people from the Eora Nation.

    48 min
  10. Episode 1 The Desire To Listen

    03/09/2025

    Episode 1 The Desire To Listen

    ‘Seeking Sydney’ episode 1 starts with a white-knuckle rideto Bondi then moves down the coast to Bronte, with a quick detour to Bronte in Sicily. Up through Waverley cemetery for a quick hello to some literary ghosts and a sad reflection on who gets a monument, and who doesn’t. Into CentennialPark, Gadigal land, and the Guriwal Trail with Deborah Lennis. A nod to Patrick White and Manoly Lascaris. Up to Anzac Parade to talk to Matthew Doyle, then on to Daceyville and Joss Bell. Finally we’re at La Perouse with Paul Irish, wondering how someone who was there for six weeks gets naming rights while the real owners, with 60,000 years of occupation, knowledge, governance and maintenance,are ignored. Extra notes and acknowledgements at the ⁠‘Seeking Sydney’ blog⁠.

    51 min
  • 10 Episodes

About

‘Seeking Sydney’ is a ten-episode podcast that looks at the people and events that have shaped modern Sydney. Through interviews and research, Sydney’s landscapes and landmarks become places of connection. ‘Seeking Sydney’ is written and directed by Kathy Prokhovnik. Featuring interviews with Grace Karskens, Julie Gibson, Diane Minnis, Wendy Bacon, Gary Dunne, Bette Mifsud, Ben Ewald, Naomi Parry Duncan, Paul Irish, Matthew Doyle, John Richardson, Lucy Taksa, Joss Bell, Felicity Castagna, Deborah Lennis, Steven Penning and Jing Han. Sound design by Martin Gallagher. Artwork by Bettina Kaiser. Produced by Spineless Wonders on the unceded lands of Gadigal people of the Eora Nation.

Information

  • Creator
    Kathy Prokhovnik
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    10
  • Copyright
    © Spineless Wonders 2025
  • Show Website
    Seeking Sydney