Conversations
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.
- Update frequency
- every day
- Average duration
- 50 minutes
- Episodes
- 2028
- Years Active
- 2017 - 2025
Inside the dictator's mind
Frank Dikotter on the common personality traits of Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Mao and other twentieth century dictators
00:50:21 |
Tue 12 Nov 2019
Armistice: The Good Friends
The story of two men who fought for different sides on the western front, and an unexpected friendship between their descendants (R)
00:52:13 |
Mon 11 Nov 2019
Animal Behaviouralist: Talking magpies, grieving tawny frogmouths and canny galahs
Gisela Kaplan fell under the spell of birds when hand-rearing a magpie nestling. After it learned to speak, she was so intrigued she switched careers and began her research into avian behaviour. Her …
00:52:01 |
Fri 08 Nov 2019
Finding new ways to grow old
After both her parents died young, Charlotte Wood grew up believing she would never grow old. When she reached her 50s, she began to ask some big questions about aging
00:51:05 |
Thu 07 Nov 2019
My second family is in Vanuatu
Physiotherapist Sky Fosbrooke’s stint as a volunteer health worker led to a deep attachment to the people of a small South Santo village
00:50:31 |
Wed 06 Nov 2019
A life in dance after being told he wouldn't make it with David McAllister
When David McAllister was a little boy growing up in Perth he would tuck tea towels into his undies and dance around in front of the TV.
He watched his own reflection, as he twirled, and leapt aroun…
00:50:30 |
Tue 05 Nov 2019
William Dalrymple on the ruthless rise of the British East India Company
The outrageous story of a group of financiers from a poor and damp island on the outer rim of Europe, who created a private company that became the biggest military and political power in all of Indi…
00:53:19 |
Mon 04 Nov 2019
Archie Roach: turning spirit into song and connecting with family
Archie tells of writing Took the Children Away and playing it in public for the first time, of his belated reunion with his siblings, and his love story with Ruby Hunter
Widely admired for his power…
00:53:29 |
Fri 01 Nov 2019
Di Morrissey and the tragedy on Lovett Bay
Di Morrissey grew up in a tiny village only accessible by rowboat, with film star Chips Rafferty and poet Dorothea Mackellar as her neighbours. In 1954, a terrible accident on Lovett Bay changed ever…
00:52:20 |
Thu 31 Oct 2019
The writer and the Prince
While fleeing the aftermath of a failed marriage, Hilary McPhee accepted a job in Jordan to write the autobiography of a Hashemite Prince. Living alone for the first time, she was plunged into extrem…
00:49:32 |
Wed 30 Oct 2019
Murgon's shining star: Leah Purcell
Leah was a teenager working in a small-town meatworks when she discovered her true path in life (R)
00:52:25 |
Tue 29 Oct 2019
The force of Will
Winemaker Will Rikard-Bell was working at Hunter Valley winery when a catastrophic explosion knocked him off his feet. He sustained burns to 70% of his body, and his skin needed to be almost entirely…
00:47:26 |
Mon 28 Oct 2019
In the shadowlands: McMafia author Misha Glenny on organised crime
As a young man studying in Europe, Misha formed underground links that would propel his whole career. The former BBC correspondent interviews criminals all over the world to understand the all-pervas…
00:51:31 |
Fri 25 Oct 2019
Que Minh Luu doesn’t need a hug
How hot young widows, perceptive friends and twitter kept television executive Que afloat after the death of her husband
00:52:01 |
Thu 24 Oct 2019
Tara Westover's escape from ignorance
Tara was raised by parents who were radical Mormon survivalists, preparing for the End of Days. Although they didn't believe in traditional schooling, Tara taught herself in secret and made it to Cam…
00:52:03 |
Wed 23 Oct 2019
Life in the shadow of Long Bay
Patrick Kennedy on growing up next door to some of Australia's most violent criminals (R)
00:51:17 |
Tue 22 Oct 2019
Surviving kidnap in Sierra Leone
Aminata Conteh-Biger was kidnapped by rebel militia when they stormed her village and ransacked her family home. A strange series of events saw her released, but then she was still being hunted (R)
00:53:00 |
Mon 21 Oct 2019
The chair with five legs
As a girl, Davida Allen was brought up to be a proper young lady. Instead, she covered her naked body in paint and rolled around to make art. She grew up to become one of Australia's most famous pain…
00:53:10 |
Fri 18 Oct 2019
Child convicts, lost boys and the murder at Point Puer
British boys as young as nine were transported to Van Diemen's Land for petty crime. 3000 of them were incarcerated at Point Puer, the first prison in the world built exclusively for children
00:51:12 |
Thu 17 Oct 2019
Strange rescuers: my father's Holocaust
Juliet Rieden traces the story of her Czech father, who was taken as a child refugee to Britain a week before the Nazis arrived in Prague, and thus spared the fate of his extended family
00:51:00 |
Wed 16 Oct 2019
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