Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast

During the 1920s, dozens of expeditions scoured the Chinese and Tibetan wilderness in search of the panda bear, a beast that many believed did not exist.  When the two eldest sons of President Theodore Roosevelt sought the bear in 1928, they had little hope of success. But they ultimately introduced the panda to the West. Guest: Nathalia Holt, author of ‘The beast in the clouds: the Roosevelt brothers’ deadly quest to find the mythical giant panda’ (Simon & Schuster) Producer: Ann ArnoldOriginally broadcast July 24, 2025

20 years on from her famous novel The Secret River, writer Kate Grenville retraces the footsteps of her settler ancestors, and asks what it means to be on land taken from other people.Guest: Kate Grenville, author of Unsettled, published by Black Inc

Leni Riefenstahl has been hailed as one of the greatest directors of all time, even though her most famous films were works of propaganda for Hitler's Reich. Her film about the 1934 Nuremberg rallies broke new ground in cinematic techniques and had a huge influence on filmmakers for years to come. Riefenstahl always claimed she was just an artist, unaware of Nazi atrocities, but a new documentary reveals secrets from her extensive archives.GUEST: Andres Veiel, Director, 'Riefenstahl', showing at the German Film Festival PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer*This show originally aired on 01 May 2025

Along the coast of Australia are hundreds of humble shacks, often with interesting stories to tell. Basic shelters for no-frills fishing, or homes for people who were forced to the margins. The stigma attached to coastal shacks has been replaced by nostalgia and a passion for these once-derided items of coastal real estate.Guest: Anna Clark, Professor at the Australian Centre for Public History, University of Technology Sydney. Anna wrote an article about beach shacks for The Conversation website. She is researching the history of the beach in Australia for a forthcoming book. Originally broadcast on 27 January, 2025

In the early seventies two Melbourne feminists hatched an idea to set up their own publishing house. Diana Gribble was a socialite working in advertising and Hilary McPhee a novice editor. McPhee Gribble Publishing was born. Soon authors like Tim Winton, Dorothy Hewett and Helen Garner were knocking at their door. But in 1989 it all came to an end when they were swallowed up by Penguin.Guest: Hilary McPhee, founder and former Publisher at McPhee Gribble and Chair of the Australia Council from 1993–96.Producer: Catherine ZengererOriginally broadcast on 19 February, 2005

Despite the promise that we were “all in it together”, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a flight from sociability. While that escape may have been a relief for some, has it intensified a culture of excessive individualism, narcissism, and disconnection from one another? Julia Baird, Geraldine Brooks and Rachel Kushner join David Marr in front of a live audience at Adelaide Writers' Week.

Writer Robert Dessaix, now based in Hobart, was named Thomas Robert Jones by his adoptive parents. His name change to Dessaix, to reflect his French family heritage, is just one of many shifts Robert has made through his long life, around sexuality, friendships, appreciating art and travel, and facing the end of life. Guest: Robert Dessaix, author of 'Chameleon' (Text)Previous books include: 'A mother's disgrace', 'Corfu' and 'Arabesques'Producers: Ann Arnold/David MarrOriginally broadcast March 6, 2025

Veteran British journalist and editor Alan Rusbridger discusses Donald Trump’s attacks on the US press, Jeff Bezos’s editorial about-face at the Washington Post, the threats to the media in the West and how the industry should respond. GUEST: Alan Rusbridger, Editor, Prospect MagazinePRODUCER: Catherine ZengererOriginally broadcast March 6, 2025. Editor's note: The barring of Associate Press from the White House Press Room in March was subsequently overturned. 

We're living in unusual times, with political history being made every week and the seemingly imminent collapse of a certain global super power on the horizon. "Once you pull on the thread of collapse, the entire tapestry of history begins to unravel," writes Luke Kemp. What can we learn from looking at the collapse of past societies?Guest: Luke Kemp, research affiliate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk at the University of Cambridge. His first book is 'Goliath’s Curse: The History and Future of Societal Collapse'.Originally broadcast on 21 May, 2025

A new history of the union movement in Australia says marginalised groups like migrants, women, Indigenous Australians and LGBTQIA+ people were often left to run their own grassroots campaigns, and were only embraced by the broader union movement once their campaigns had gained momentum. But the approach of unions reflected the broader attitudes of the Australia of the day. GUEST: Dr Liam Byrne, author of ‘No Power Greater - A History of Union Action in Australia’  published by Melbourne University Press. Originally broadcast on 21 May, 2025