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
- 2025
- Years Active
- 2017 - 2025
Translating adolescence and speaking Teenage Girl
When Dannielle Miller became a teacher, she was given the classes no one else could handle. She was given a whistle on her first day, to call for help. She didn’t need it — in fact, she had something…
00:51:12 |
Wed 19 Feb 2025
The Bark Petitions — how Yolngu tradition changed democracy
Historian, Professor Clare Wright tells the story of a formative moment — before the Mabo decision — in Australia’s democracy that you may not have heard of.
Historian Clare Wright moved her fami…
00:51:30 |
Tue 18 Feb 2025
Encore: the life of songwriter Jimmy Webb
Singer-songwriter Jimmy Webb on how growing up as the child of an Oklahoma preacher opened up a door to music, and inspired his songwriting (R)
Jimmy Webb grew up poor in Oklahoma, where his moth…
00:42:30 |
Fri 14 Feb 2025
Surviving bombs and starvation on a Mediterranean island paradise
When Linda Peek's mother Margaret died, Linda collected the scraps of handwritten notes strewn around the home and put together Margaret's remarkable tale of survival on Malta during WWII.
When Lind…
00:47:36 |
Thu 13 Feb 2025
How tiny crystals reveal the secret history (and future) of volcanic eruptions
Volcanologist Teresa Ubide opens volcanoes up from the outside, like a doll's house, searching for tiny crystal balls to help her predict when the next eruption might occur
Humans have always had a …
00:46:00 |
Wed 12 Feb 2025
Birtles, Brown and Bean: Warren's madcap world tour, in a vintage car
Warren Brown drove through 80 countries in searing heat and pouring rain in a vintage Bean car to recreate the 1927 world tour of Australian motorist, Francis Birtles.
Today we bring you the next ch…
00:50:42 |
Tue 11 Feb 2025
Encore: The making of Nazeem Hussain
Nazeem Hussain honed his comedy in Melbourne's suburbs in the 1990s. After his father left the family, his fearless mother taught Nazeem how to use humour to get bullies off his back. (R)
…
00:52:30 |
Fri 07 Feb 2025
Drug bazaars, hitmen and hackers — why Eileen went deep into the dark web
Lawyer turned journalist Eileen Ormsby on her journey deeper and deeper into the internet's 'evil twin', where, under the cloak of anonymity, people sell buy and share anything a person is willing to…
00:50:00 |
Thu 06 Feb 2025
The family secret that inspired 'The Teacher's Pet'
Journalist Hedley Thomas grew up knowing that his grandmother Gladys had vanished in the sea off Sydney in the 1950s when she was just 35 years old. Decades later, her story spurred him on to begin a…
00:52:30 |
Wed 05 Feb 2025
Lucinda Light on MAFS, living with ADHD, and her search for love
Lucinda Light was running a speed dating company in Byron Bay when she auditioned for 'Married At First Sight'. While on the show, she became a huge hit with fans because of her emotional intelligenc…
00:44:00 |
Tue 04 Feb 2025
Encore: The Toilet Warrior's origin story
Mark Balla was on a business trip to India when he met two young men on a train. They invited him back to see their home, one of the world's biggest slums. This meeting changed the course of Mark's l…
00:51:36 |
Fri 31 Jan 2025
The spy who kept secrets for the self-made man
Belinda Probert knew her father as an English war hero named Bill. What she didn't know, was that he was born Roy and that his spying did not end when the war did.
Belinda Probert knew her father…
00:53:00 |
Thu 30 Jan 2025
Dressing drag queens in Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
A chance find at age 14 at Flinders Street Station led Tim Chappel to a life of silver lamé, sequins, girdles, and an Oscar.
Costume designer, Tim Chappel can’t remember all the places he lived,…
00:50:18 |
Wed 29 Jan 2025
Singing as 'sweet relief' — Meg Washington on stuttering, spirituality and song
The musician reflects on the epic evolution of her singing from practical childhood speech therapy to sacred musical fluency.
Meg Washington was born in a musical home in Port Moresby, where her par…
00:53:12 |
Tue 28 Jan 2025
Encore: From Yugoslavia to Australia — Jelena Dokic on tennis and the truth
Jelena Dokic on the trauma and violence which underscored her extraordinary life in tennis, and how she worked to change her own story(CW: discussion of family violence, eating disorders) (R)
Aft…
00:53:00 |
Fri 24 Jan 2025
How a teen father used the local skate park to change the world
Jayden Sheridan was just 17 years old when he found out he was going to be a father, and immediately he knew he needed to give his son better opportunities than he had.
Growing up in regional Victor…
00:51:18 |
Thu 23 Jan 2025
43 carolling magpies, CPR on a blue tongue lizard and Claire's animal ambulance
The first sound Claire Smith heard when she landed in Australia from the UK was the carolling song of a nearby magpie. That was enough to make her fall in love with Australian wildlife.
Very quickly…
00:53:30 |
Wed 22 Jan 2025
Bite Club: Surviving a shark attack, and the aftermath
Dave Pearson runs Bite Club, a support service for anyone who has survived a shark attack. Dave’s own brush with death came in 2011, when a three-metre-long bull shark almost tore his arm off. Dave l…
00:52:30 |
Tue 21 Jan 2025
Voicing velociraptors and capturing the dawn chorus
Meet Doug Quin, sound designer and naturalist who makes field recordings all over the world. Hear what Doug heard when he got up close to emperor penguins, lions and vultures. (R)
Sound design…
00:50:00 |
Mon 20 Jan 2025
Sarah's Most Memorable Guests — Shanelle Dawson
Conversations is bringing you a summer treat — a collection of Sarah's most memorable guests through out the years.
In 2018, Shanelle Dawson's family were the subject of a hit true crime podcast wh…
00:53:00 |
Fri 17 Jan 2025
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