Afternoon Light
Welcome to the Afternoon Light Podcast, a captivating journey into the heart of Australia’s political history and enduring values. Presented by the Robert Menzies Institute, a prime ministerial library and museum, this podcast illuminates the remarkable legacy of Sir Robert Menzies, Australia’s longest-serving prime minister.
Dive into the rich tapestry of Menzies’s contemporary impact as we explore his profound contributions on the Afternoon Light Podcast. Join us as we delve into his unyielding commitment to equality, boundless opportunity, and unwavering entrepreneurial spirit. Our engaging discussions bring to life the relevance of Menzies’s values in today’s world, inspiring us to uphold his principles for a brighter future.
Ready to embark on this enlightening journey? Experience the Afternoon Light Podcast now! Tune in to explore the past, engage with the present, and shape a better tomorrow by learning from the visionary leadership of Sir Robert Menzies.
Stay connected by signing up on the Robert Menzies Institute website: https://www.robertmenziesinstitute.org.au/. Have an opinion? Email your comments to: [email protected].
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 44 minutes
- Episodes
- 228
- Years Active
- 2021 - 2025
Bridget Griffen-Foley, ‘The Names are Familiar’ Menzies and the Media
Robert Menzies’s relationship with the Australian media was complex. He had an intense dislike for journalists, for a long time struggled to gain traction in Sydney, and a media narrative played a ke…
Jeremy Hearder, ‘People just listened to him’ The Esteemed Career of Diplomat James Plimsoll
The Menzies era was in many respects the golden age of the Department of External Affairs (now Foreign Affairs). The first Australian diplomatic postings outside of the British Commonwealth had been …
James Cotton, ‘UN 1.0’ Australia at the League of Nations
Just as the Second World War produced the United Nations, the First World War brought forth its immediate predecessor the League of Nations. Generally viewed as a failure hamstrung by the fact that A…
Chris Wallace, ‘Biography as political intervention’ Prime Ministerial Biographers
Robert Menzies had a great dislike for both journalists and biographers. In his memoir Afternoon Light, he decried contemporary history as little more than a ‘gossip column’ which could not be truste…
Nick Richardson, ‘Look out with a bit more confidence’ 1956 as a watershed moment in Australia
The 1950s are often seen as a dull and stultified period in Australian history, epitomised by the growth of suburbia, the white picket fence and indeed the fact that we had the same prime minister fo…
John Howard, ‘The Greatest Political Contributor to Modern Australia’ Howard on Menzies
In the 122 years that have passed since federation, only two of our nation’s leaders have surpassed a decade serving as Prime Minister. It is notable that the second, John Howard, had a great admirat…
Zachary Gorman, ‘Australia’s oldest political tradition’ The founding of the Liberal Party as an expression of Australian liberalism
Liberalism is Australia’s oldest political tradition. Even before the advent of democracy in the Australian colonies, Australian liberals fought key political battles that secured equal rights for ex…
Daniel Hannan, ‘A short term cost for long term gains’ Brexit and the state of UK politics
Britain’s entry into what became the European Union was very much foreshadowed during the Menzies era, when the United Kingdom attempted to join the European Economic Community only to be vetoed by F…
Frank Yuan, ‘Haunted with the statues of mediocrities’ Menzies’s views on America
Robert Menzies’s relationship with the United States was complex. While he respected their vital role as Australia’s ‘great and powerful friend’ and protector, and grew to appreciate their shared val…
Richard Pomfret, ‘The Age of Equality’ The 20th century as a contest of economic systems
The 19th and 20th centuries were some of the most momentous periods of change in human history. The former saw the immense economic power of capitalism and the industrial revolution create levels of …
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 6: David Furse-Roberts & Lyndon Megarrity
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 5: William Stoltz & David Lee
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 4: Lucas McLennan & Lorraine Finlay
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 3: Tom Switzer, Andrew Blyth, & Christopher Beer
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 2: Troy Bramston & Charles Richardson
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Summer Series 2022-3 Part 1: George Brandis, Nicolle Flint, & Anne Henderson
In this special summer series of the Afternoon Light podcast you can enjoy the presentations delivered at our November 2022 conference entitled ‘Coming to Power, Learning to Govern and Gathering Mome…
Dean Kotlowski, ‘Not going to disappear’ Comparing American & Australian Indigenous Policy
Australia is far from the only country that started out as a settler colony built on the dispossession of Indigenous peoples, nor is it alone in having a complex path in coming to terms with the resu…
Stephen Wilks, ‘This extraordinary synthesis of ideas for the Australian nation’ Earle Page
Long time Country Party Leader Earle Page was possibly the most important side character in Australian political history. He engineered the fall of Billy Hughes, won a coalition on generous terms tha…
William Cook, ‘The sheer size of it’ Menzies’s Marvelous Book Collection
One of the main reasons that the Robert Menzies Institute has been set up at the University of Melbourne, beyond the fact that Menzies was both a student and chancellor of the institution, is that he…
David Lee, ‘I don’t vote for them, but I’ll vote for John Curtin’ Labor’s Wartime Leader
John Curtin and Robert Menzies remain arguably the most revered prime ministers on their respective sides of Australian politics. The two men shared a mutual respect for one another, and a sense of c…