Late Night Live - Separate stories podcast

Johann Hari discusses the health risks and rewards of the new weight loss drugs. What does the huge demand for these drugs say about our troubled relationship with food? Guest: Johann Hari, author of Magic Pill: The Extraordinary Benefits and Disturbing Risks of the New Weight Loss Drugs (Bloomsbury)

Bruce Shapiro has been watching the protests taking place at Columbia University over the last ten days from his office window. 100 students were arrested at the Gaza Solidarity Encampment which has triggered similar protests at campuses across America. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with the Nation Magazine and Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

Over the last thirty years, watching wildlife in nature became Satyajit Das' gravitational centre. His new book Wild Quests is a literal and metaphorical record of these travels.

In the Middle Ages, the rich were expected to use their fortunes as ‘private barns of money’, helping local communities through plague, famine or war. Economic historian Guido Alfani asks whether 21st-century billionaires have a moral duty to contribute to the common good.

Could the ocean offer us a way to make ethical and emotional sense of the past, and help us re-imagine our relationship to the world? Australian writer James Bradley thinks so. James joined Phillip Adams to talk about his new book Deep Water: The World in the Ocean, which explores the deepest recesses of the natural world and weaves together science, history and personal experience.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's attendance at a rally against gendered violence has backfired as one of the rally organisers claimed he lied about not being asked to speak at the event. Sarah Williams, founder of the 'What Were You Wearing’ organisation has called for an apology from the Prime Minister and a women's strike on May 20.  Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

The tradition of the ANZAC is almost always gendered male (and white). But what about women? They served and died for their country. Historian Melanie Oppenheimer believes they are yet to receive the commemorations they are due. Author of: The Power of Humanity: 100 Years of Australian Red Cross 100 words plus Guests name & book

In his latest book, Life so Full of Promise: further biographies of Australia lost generation , Historian Ross McMullin documents and remembers the lives of three outstanding young Australians who served and lost their lives in World War 1.

A new documentary reveals the little-known role of the Greek Island of Lemnos in the Anzac story, and the multicultural mateship that developed between the Indian, Sikh and Gurkha forces who fought alongside Australia and New Zealand's diggers. Guest: Elizabeth Kaydos, Producer/Researcher of 'Anzac. Lemnos. 1915' - a new documentary screening here on SBS On Demand.

Palestinian lawyer Hiba Husseini and Israeli politician Yossi Beilin have spent decades working towards a political solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They share why they remain hopeful that peace can be achieved and what it might realistically take to get there.

Natalie Haynes has been called a ‘very modern classicist’ for her work bringing the Greek myths to a wide audience through fiction, non-fiction and even comedy.  In her new book Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth, Natalie reclaims and re-imagines the stories of deities who have been reduced to stereotypes and bit parts.   Guest: Natalie Haynes author of Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth. (Pan Macmillan). Natalie will be a guest of the Sydney Writers’ Festival in May.

PM Rishi Sunak's looks like he has finally got his Rwanda bill through, but will it remain in place if there is a change of government?

How did Germany transform itself from a fascist dictatorship and European pariah post World War 2 to a democratic and economic powerhouse? Author Frank Trentmann joins LNL for a look at this gripping history and the role of contemporary Germany in Europe. Out of the Darkness is published by Penguin Australia

In the tradition of Prime Ministers past, Anthony Albanese heads off to walk the Kokoda trail and shore up relations with PNG. The Treasurer hints at hits to our economic growth forecasts ahead of the budget, and the Opposition changes its tune over the proposed new misinformation bill and aligns itself with government's demand that Elon Musk remove graphic violent content from Platform X.  Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

Two of the most impressive Scottish writers and thinkers are also great friends. Andrew O'Hagan and Professor Karl Miller discuss the power of landscape and history in shaping Scottish imagination and writing, and why Scotland's consistently punched above its weight in these terms. This interview was originally broadcast on 6th September 2012. Guests: Karl Miller died in 2014. Andrew O'Hagan will be at the Melbourne Writers Festival in May 2024.

Long before the satirical film American Fiction made it to our screens, writers and publishers have grappled with the idea of the ‘race novel’. And just as the Black American characters in the film confronted race and class expectations, First Nation writers in Australia find themselves at the mercy of similar prejudices.  Writer Tony Birch joins Phillip Adams to discuss First Nations writing in Australia today.

The world’s most expensive spice appears in the written record as early as 2300 BCE, and is revered by cultures around the globe. It takes between 70,000 and 200,000 flowers to produce just one kilogram of dried saffron threads. But the precious and sacred plant is under serious threat from climate change. Guest: Nina Elkadi, Plant Humanities Fellow at Dumbarton Oaks, Harvard

South Africa goes to the polls on May 29 and the ANC - the party of Nelson Mandela - which has ruled South Africa unchallenged for thirty years, is in trouble electorally.  Guest: John Matisonn, journalist and author of God, Spies And Lies: finding South Africa's future through its past, published by Ideas for Africa.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ian Johnson introduces us to the brave people inside China that are challenging the Chinese Communist Party on its most sensitive ground: its control of history.

Donald Trump spent his first day in the dock as a criminal defendant. Bruce Shapiro talks us through the day, including the reported snooze from the former President. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

Our lives are full of choices, but what if they aren't really an exercise in free will? Neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky argues that we are slaves to our biology and wrestles with what this might mean for how we govern ourselves and others.

Laura Tingle on how the media found itself in hot water over its reporting on the Bondi Junction killings and its involvement in the Bruce Lehrmann defamation trial. Plus why Labor is fast losing support in key seats over its handling of Israel's attacks on Gaza.  Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

Have you ever paused to think how and when books and text became divided into chapters? Nicholas Dames has. Nicholas Dames: Professor of Humanities at Columbia University. Author of The Chapter; a segmented history from antiquity to the 21st century ( Princeton University press)

In 2014 and 2016, two shipwrecks were found which answered a lengthy mystery – what happened to Sir John Franklin’s North-West Passage expedition, which had been missing since 1845? The wrecks were found thanks to Inuit testimony, and now people are wondering why it took so long for that local knowledge to be trusted.  Guest: Annaliese Jacobs Claydon, author of “Arctic Circles and Imperial Knowledge - The Franklin Family, Indigenous Intermediaries, and the Politics of Truth” published by Bloomsbury Academic press

The Anglican Church systematically buried complaints about sex abusers in Newcastle during the 1970’s onwards.  Author and social philosopher Anne Mann's new book looks at this infamous era in the Anglican Church.   Author of: Crimes of the Cross: The Anglican Paedophile Network of Newcastle, Its Protectors and the Man Who Fought for Justice

Tim Faulkner dreams of a day when national parks across mainland Australia are free of feral predators, and where now-extinct mammals like the eastern quoll or Tassie devil roam freely.  That dream may soon come one step closer to reality when a small number of eastern quolls are released in New South Wales, more than half a century after they became extinct on the mainland.   Guest: Tim Faulkner is managing director of not-for-profit Aussie Ark.

The Spanish Civil War (1936-39) is remembered as a dress rehearsal for World War 2, a class struggle, a religious struggle, a battle between left and right, between fascism and communism. While the conflict left deep scars on Spanish society, the impact of the war went far beyond its borders. To document and discuss the conflict and the international response, a new  Virtual Museum of the Spanish Civil war is being created by historians from some 30 countries. Judith Keene: Association Professor, History department, University of Sydney.

The NSW Labor government promised to establish a huge koala sanctuary on the mid North Coast to be known as the Great Koala National Park. A desperately needed habitat to shore up rapidly dwindling koala numbers. Now a year into office, the park is still not established and the reasons are to do with carbon credits. Guest: Stephen Long, Senior Fellow and Contributing Editor at The Australia Institute

The debate over British arms sales to Israel, Tory MP William Wragg resigns after a honey trap blackmail scandal. Rishi Sunak's inappropriate laugh. Keir Starmer marks 4th year as opposition leader. Ian Dunt: Regular LNL commentator and iNews columnist.

Playwright David Williamson has come out of retirement to write a new play about the housing crisis and the increasing divide between the haves and have-nots in Australia. He says neoliberal ideology, which has been embraced by both major parties, has made the wealthy ever richer and seen many Australians lose hope of ever affording their own home. Guest: Playwright David Williamson

The Prime Minister has responded to the Israeli Defence Force inquiry into the death of aid worker Zomi Frankcom and her colleagues, saying their explanations are unsatisfactory. Meanwhile former Labor Minister Craig Emerson recommends multi-million dollar fines for the supermarket duopoly if they step out of line.  Guest: Bernard Keane, political editor, Crikey

Eco-feminist and food sovereignty activist Dr Vandana Shiva welcomes the news that the International Criminal Court will this year consider whether it can add ecocide as a prosecutable crime under international law. She says ecocide is a form of genocide and ecological apartheid has been occurring in many places around the world, including Gaza, to separate people from their land. Guest: Dr Vandana Shiva, environmental activist, physicist, and author. Co-Founder of Navdanya, the seed-saving centre and movement for the protection of biological and cultural diversity in India.  The Seeds of Vandana Shiva documentary can be seen here

Finding a car park can sometimes seem a challenge, particularly in big cities, but could there actually be too many car parks in the world? Henry Grabar argues that there are many unintended costs and impacts of parking your car including making housing more expensive and having a negative impact on the environment. Henry Grabar: a staff writer at Slate who writes about housing, transportation, and urban policy. A 2024 Loeb Fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. Author of: Paved Paradise: How Parking explains the world

It sets our species apart and has enabled us to create great civilisations but if our most defining characteristic is our intelligence and capacity to learn - should we keep it for ourselves or should we develop, program and teach it to  machines and computers? Guest: Leslie Valiant: Professor of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at Harvard University. Author of The Importance of Being Educable

We last spoke with Professor Viet Thanh Nguyen nine years ago about his debut novel The Sympathizer, which went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. His new memoir covers his family's journey from Vietnam in the 1970's fleeing war, to life as a refugee in America. The memoir is called A Man of Two Faces, published by Grove Press. You can hear Viet speaking at the upcoming Sydney and Melbourne Writers Festivals.

Anna Funder's interventions in history have seen her notch up numerous literary accolades - a Miles Franklin, the Samuel Johnson Prize, and now a long-listing for the inaugural Women's Prize for Non-fiction.  Anna Funder is the author of Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life. Funder spent six years meticulously untangling the threads of history to uncover the extraordinary life of Eileen O’Shaughnessy, wife of George Orwell. Guest: Anna Funder. Her earlier books are Stasiland and All That I Am.

Bruce Shapiro explains the significance of the Comstock Act from 1871 and how it is being used in arguments about contraception and abortion in 2024. And Robert F Kennedy chooses a running mate. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

Jack Thompson, actor, activist, poetry aficionado, Bob Dylan fan, sits down with Phillip to talk about family and films and living with dialysis. This program was originally broadcast on 1 October 2018.

The man who helped launch Extinction Rebellion, Rupert Read, says for too long the choices on climate action have been limited to either consumer choices or radical protests. He says there needs to be a space for action between these two alternatives. So Read has started The Climate Majority Project – a new approach to gain broad-based consensus on how to meaningfully respond to the crisis. And he plans to take it to the world. Guest: Emeritus Professor Rupert Read, co-author and editor of 'The Climate Majority Project — Setting the Stage for a Mainstream, Urgent Climate Movement,' published by London Publishing Partnership.

Ice, ice baby... Max Leonard explores how we have interacted with ice through the ages.

Surrealism, the movement that gave us disembodied eyeballs, melting clocks and lobster phones, turns 100 this year. Mark Polizzotti, from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, argues that Surrealism was much more than an artistic or literary phenomenon. The Surrealists also delved into Marx and Freud and remain relevant today.  Guest: Mark Polizzotti, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His new book is ‘Why Surrealism Matters’ (Yale University Press)

With more and more migrants and asylum seekers showing up at the US-Mexico border everyday and no solution to America's broken immigration system in sight, this could be the single most important issue in the US presidential race.  Guest: Dara Lind - Senior Fellow at the American Immigration Council.

Dick Tamimi was an Indonesian pilot who was caught for smuggling gold into Thailand to buy the fledgling Indonesian government’s first plane in the 1950s. He went on to become a legendary record producer in Jakarta in the 1960s, producing Indonesia’s first all-girl rock band ‘Dara Puspita’. They were likened to Indonesia’s Beatles, and now their story is being turned into a musical. Guest: Julien Poulson, musician, arts producer and founder of the Cambodian Space Project.

After a string of losses there's yet another by- election for PM Rishi Sunak. Labour's Keir Starmer is poised for victory in the next UK election. What is he offering voters and who is he hoping will be his new MPs?  Ian Dunt: columnist iNews and regular LNL commentator on UK politics

Dr Kirsty Sword Gusmao’s life has been marked by the most astonishing, cinematic twists and turns. From a quiet childhood in regional Victoria to clandestine work smuggling East Timorese men to safety, from falling in love with an imprisoned resistance fighter to First Lady of Timor-Leste.  Now settled back in Australia, Kirsty joins Phillip Adams to reflect on an incredible thirty years of service to her adopted nation.   Dr Kirsty Sword Gusmao (AO) is the founder of the Alola Foundation.

Laura Tingle analyses state election results in Tasmania and South Australia, and what they might mean for the major parties. Plus Labor conflict over gas project permissions legislation.  Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

Vesuvius has attracted many visitors over the years, from Goethe, Mozart and Lord Byron to a host of lesser-known lava-chasers who trooped to the summit, scorching their shoes and quaffing the local wine.  Guest: John Brewer, Emeritus Professor at the California Institute of Technology His new book is ‘Volcanic: Vesuvius in the Age of Revolutions’ (Yale University Press)

In his new Quarterly Essay, journalist Lech Blaine delves into Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's family history, his work as a Queensland police officer, his life as a property developer and politician, and how these experiences have shaped him as a political leader.

The female investigator has been a staple of popular culture for over 150 years, from Victorian lady detectives to plucky Miss Marple and tattooed hacker Lisbeth Salander. But what about the real-life women behind these fictional tales? Caitlin Davies traces the history of female private eyes who investigated everything from fraud and shoplifting to international espionage. Guest: Caitlin Davies, journalist and author of 'Private Inquiries: the Secret History of Female Sleuths’ (The History Press)

Investigative journalist Joey Watson has spent the last three years trying to work out who the KGB mole in ASIO was - only to find out that there was likely a nest of traitors operating in ASIO during the cold war.  Guest: Joey Watson, producer of the podcast series Secrets we Keep: Nest of Traitors

One of ‘the most intriguing and least known footnotes in Australia-Indonesia relations’ is the relationship between President Soeharto and a man whose name has been kept secret from the public for more than fifty years. But a new reveals the story of the Aussie bloke from Geelong who became Soeharto’s closest adviser and confidante, and what he knew about corruption, power, East Timor and the Balibo Five. Guest: Dr Shannon Smith, author of ‘Occidental Preacher, Accidental Teacher – the enigmatic Clive Williams’, published by Big Hill Publishing. His second biographic volume on Williams will be out later this year.

There are divisions on both sides of politics in America with the young voters critical of Biden's response to the war in Gaza. And on the right, questions of censorship, the 1st Amendment and social media have been dividing conservative voices both on and off the Supreme Court. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

In the late 19th century, Joseph Conrad made a number of visits to Australia whilst working as a merchant seafarer. In his book Marlow’s Dream, Martin Edmond recounts these voyages and explores the origins of Conrad’s stories.

Surprisingly little is known about how Australian troops were sent to fight in the Iraq War. Thanks to Dr David Lee, ‘missing papers’ have now been released that help reveal what really happened in 2003.

Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong will meet her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, in Canberra this week,  the Liberals push their message on border control while confusion reigns over Palestinian visas and Tasmania heads to the polls.  Guest: Rachel Withers, Editor-in Chief, The Politics

Back in 1977, the double murder of two young women in their homes in Easey Street in suburban Collingwood shocked the people of Melbourne. No-one has ever been charged over their deaths. Journalist Helen Thomas has been investigating the murders and believes there is enough new evidence for a new coronial inquest. Guest: Helen Thomas, producer of the podcast series The Easey Street Murders

Historians Tony Moore and Hamish Maxwell-Stewart guide us through Unshackled: a multi media touring exhibition that tells a new and different story about convicts, transportation and colonial Australia. A/Prof Tony Moore: Head of Communications and Media studies, Monash University. Lead Chief Investigator, ARC Linkage Project 'Conviction Politics: the convict routes of Australian democracy' Hamish Maxwell-Stewart: Professor of Heritage and Digital History, University of New England.

What is micro history and what can an unremarkable cargo ship from the 19th century tell us about the foundations of our modern age. Boyd Cothran: Associate professor of History, York University, Toronto. Co- author of The Edwin Fox: How an Ordinary Sailing Ship Connected the World in the Age of Globalization, 1850-1914

Liam Pieper took up ghost writing after he became unemployable following the release of his first book in 2014. The book was a memoir about growing up with bohemian dope smoking parents and his early life as a drug user and petty criminal. 10 years on he has ghost written several global best sellers as well 4 more books in his own right.  Guest: Liam Pieper, whose latest book is called Appreciation

Prominent Israeli journalist Gideon Levy has received death threats and been shunned by some of his best friends for his coverage of Israel’s operations in Gaza. Yet he continues to strive to report fearlessly on the war and the toll it’s taking on both Gaza and Israel.

An underwhelming budget, Ex Senior Tory Lee Anderson joins Reform party and former PM Theresa May to leave parliament.

Former Finance Minister of Greece, Yanis Varoufakis discusses his long relationship with Australia, the latest from Greece and Europe as well as the ongoing influence of America on our foreign policy, on Europe and on the Middle East. Guest: Yanis Varoufakis, economist, author and founder of Diem25

Amy Remeikis brings the latest issues from Canberra which in an effort to be green, are recycled. Nuclear energy, the demise of the ute and the Liberal Party's ongoing women problem.  Guest: Amy Remeikis, Political Reporter, The Guardian

This International Women's Day while debate rages about the latest gender pay gap figures, LNL looks back at the women of Australia's history who led the fight for better wages and conditions, writing letters, leading protests and strikes, taking on male-dominated jobs and challenging our governments and our biggest employers to do better.  Guests:  Sally McManus, Secretary of the ACTU Wil Stracke, Assistant Secretary at the Victorian Trades Hall Council and Tik Tok star Robynne Murphy, former steel worker, union delegate and producer and director of the documentary “Women of Steel” This story contains an excerpt from the film FOR LOVE OR MONEY: A History of Women and Work in Australia by Megan McMurchy, Margot Nash, Margot Oliver & Jeni Thornley, 1983. Guest Presenter Kylie Morris is also PRIMER's gendered violence reporter.

Do doctors really make the worst patients? Beloved Australian writer Peter Goldworthy was forced to reflect on this, and a lot else besides, when he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma - a cancer of the bone marrow - in 2018.

The march to the 2024 Presidential elections continues apace with the Super Tuesday primaries and Supreme Court deliberations. Bruce Shapiro unwraps all the latest from the USA. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

As Bob Brown heads into his 80th year, he talks to Phillip about a life of activism on forests, fish farms and the role independents might have in the upcoming Tasmanian election. He also talks about his work in East Timor and Tibet, and why he wants a statue of forgotten Tasmanian opera singer, Amy Sherwin.  Guest: Former Greens Leader and Senator Bob Brown

Youth crime is once again on the political agenda in several Australian states and territories in the lead up to elections. Matt Noffs - grandson of the trailblazing Reverend Ted Noffs and CEO of the Ted Noffs Foundation challenges prevailing narratives on youth crime, punishment and drug use and considers how to break these cycles - for the good of young people and the community.  Guest: Matt Noffs, CEO Ted Noffs Foundation

Maritime security and responding to the climate and energy challenge shape up as the key issues of the ASEAN leaders summit, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong warning of the most confronting set of circumstances in decades. Plus why the Dunkley by-election got so nasty, and what it says about campaign tactics. Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee has often been described as an outspoken darling of the Left. She describes herself and her famous family as posh left-wingers. Her latest book, part memoir, part social history traces her family's high profile links to social justice and other left-wing causes while exploring the guilt of coming from privilege.  Guest: Polly Toynbee, journalist, author. Polly Toynbee will be appearing at the Adelaide Writer's Week, to talk about, An Uneasy Inheritance, my family and other radicals which is published by Allen and Unwin /Atlantic Books.

Oxford historian Peter Frankopan sits down in the studio with Phillip Adams to discuss his life, why we need to shift our Western-centric way of thinking and how history informs the moment of global chaos we find ourselves in.

Marwan Barghouti is the most popular Palestinian leader alive and has been hailed as their version of Nelson Mandela. Barghouti is seen as the only person who could bring the two factions of Fatah and Hamas together, to create a sustainable governing structure. But Barghouti has been in prison in Israel for murder for the last twenty-two years. Guests:  Sophia Scott – Co-director, Tomorrow's Freedom Sawsan Asfari – Producer, Tomorrow's Freedom Tomorrow's Freedom is screening at the Palestinian Film Festival

In 2012, a school bus crashed on a neglected road in the West Bank killing six children and one teacher. One of the children was five year old Milad Salama. Journalist and author Nathan Thrall spoke to his father Abed, and through his story he reveals the difficulties and dangers of daily life for Palestinians in the West Bank. Guest: Nathan Thrall, author of A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy (Hachette) For more information on Nathan Thrall's appearance at the Adelaide Writer's Festival click here.

Opium had long been used sparingly in India and China as a valuable and useful medicine. When Britain's dependency on Chinese tea created a balance of trade problem, the East India company turbo-charged the opium industry and found an infinitely expanding market for opium in China. Guest: Amitav Ghosh, author of Smoke and Ashes: Opiums Hidden Histories (Hachette)

More headaches for Rishi Sunak after by-election loses and Tory MP Lee Anderson suspended. Also, chaos and the Gaza motion in the House of Commons last week.  Naomi Smith: CEO, Best for Britain

Belly or oriental dancing can be traced back to the Ottoman empire, when it was performed by both women and men. Even now, it’s not uncommon to see men wiggling their hips in private, at weddings or other family functions.  However, public performances have really been the domain of women until recently.  Now male belly dancing is enjoying a comeback. Guests: Rachid Alexander Chris of Melbourne

Journalist and former LNL correspondent Margo Kingston returns to reflect on how the rise of Pauline Hanson's One Nation in the late 1990's ultimately led to the split in the Coalition which has now manifested as the number of Teals and other independents in the Australian parliament. She also looks at the poltical influence of "Advance" and what effect they may have on the Dunkley by-election.  Guest: Margo Kingston, journalist and author.

Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest has challenged political parties to step up their action on renewables, telling them to stop "bickering", but what's in it for him? How much will it cost to bring in the necessary reforms to higher education? And why cost-of-living is the only issue that counts in the Dunkley by-election, despite Advances attempts persuade voters otherwise. Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

The Moon, our closest celestial neighbour, is almost 400,000 kilometres away and only twelve people have walked on its surface to date. Yet, Rebecca Boyle believes the Moon is responsible for every giant leap humankind has ever made.

The new film Damage is the story of an Iraqi taxi driver Ali, and his elderly passenger Esther. Initially suspicious of each other they eventually form a bond. Filmmaker Madeleine Blackwell cast Ali Al Jenabi as the taxi driver after seeing him at a writers festival. Guests: Damage director Madeleine Blackwell and actor Ali Al Jenabi

The populist Law and Justice party (PiS) was voted out in October 2023. What is the legacy of their 8 years in office and what lies ahead for Poland? Radoslaw Markowski: Professor of Political Science, Center for the Study of Democracy (Director), University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw.

Anand Patwardhan is an Indian documentary filmmaker whose films have explored the rise of religious fundamentalism, sectarianism and casteism in India. Others have been banned for investigating nuclear nationalism and unsustainable development. His most recent film reflects on his family’s role in fighting for freedom from Britain, and how Modi’s India is not the country his pro-unification family fought for.   Guest: Anand Patwardhan, Indian documentary filmmaker. His work can be found here

Bruce Shapiro unravels the possible consequences of the $355 million fine imposed on Donald Trump for fraud and looks at what the Democrats can learn from winning back the seat in Long Islands from Republican fraudster George Santos. Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

Someone who epitomises fearless reporting, is the Sydney Morning Herald’s chief investigative journalist Kate McClymont.  Kate has been a journalist for nearly 40 years.   She’s exposed corruption at the highest levels of politics, she’s also lead investigations into financial conwoman Melissa Caddick, high profile neurosurgeon Charlie Teo, High Court Judge Dyson Heydon, and media personalities Don Burke and Alan Jones.   Kate is a winner of many writing awards, including the coveted Gold Walkley as well as recently being honoured with the Walkley for outstanding contribution to journalism. Guest:  Kate McClymont,  SMH chief investigative reporter

The Opposition is claiming the government has lost control of its borders after the arrival of an asylum seeker boat in WA. Meanwhile a review of our naval ship capabilities is expected to recommend we increase the number of warships in our fleet.  Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

John Clarke, was one of New Zealand and Australia’s comedic geniuses. He died of a fatal heart attack while bushwalking with his wife  in 2017.    John’s eldest daughter Lorin recently  wrote a memoir about her family’s life, titled,  Would that be funny? Growing Up with John Clarke  Guest: Lorin Clarke, writer

We tend to think of books and war as being at opposite ends of the spectrum. Books rank among humanity’s greatest inventions; war amongst its most terrible. Yet literary historian Andrew Pettegree argues that throughout history books and conflict have been deeply intertwined.

Human Rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson has been representing Julian Assange for many years. Next week he is requesting leave to appeal against the decision to extradite him to the USA which was made over a year ago. If leave to appeal is denied he could face imminent extradition to a high security prison in the United States. Guest: Jennifer Robinson, human rights lawyer representing Julian Assange

These days, hitchhiking is discouraged by authorities and concerned parents alike, but in the 1930s it was seen as an opportunity for good manners, generosity and youthful adventure.

The appointment of Sinn Fein leader Michelle O'Neil as First Minister in Northern Ireland is an historical moment for the party which was once called a terrorist organisation unfit to lead. So what does this augur a new step for the reunification movement? Guest: Fintan O’Toole, author and columnist for the Irish Times

The politics of the U-turn as Labour ditches a by-election candidate and walks back from a 28 billion pound green fund pledge. Meanwhile it's a week from hell for PM Rishi Sunak's Tories.

At a time when thousands of languages are vanishing linguistics professor Caleb Everett explores how language shapes the way we think and feel about the world, as well as our perceptions of fundamental life experiences — and what linguistic diversity can tell us about human culture. Guest: Caleb Everett, Professor of Anthropology and Psychology at the University of Miami. Author of "A Myriad of Tongues — How Languages Reveal Differences in How We Think," published by Harvard University Press.

Shocking revelations about Home Affairs awarding contracts to companies with suspected links to drugs, firearms and bribery. Do we have double standards when it comes to white men's drinking habits? And will the government make an announcement about closing the gap on the anniversary of the apology? Guest: Laura Tingle, Chief Political Correspondent, 7.30

Sugandha Srivastav recounts the story of the fantastic sun ray machine and how its creator George Cove was allegedly kidnapped, setting back the development of solar panels for decades.

As the world transitions to green energy and electric vehicles, demand for metals like lithium, copper and nickel is on the rise. Mining for these metals in the past has resulted in environmental degradation and in many cases human rights abuses. Can we do better in the future? Guest: Christopher Pollon, Award winning journalist and author of Pitfall: The Race to Mine the World’s Most Vulnerable Places (University of Queensland Press)

A name synonymous with social welfare particularly when it comes to asylum seekers and refugees is Sr Brigid Arthur. Sr Brigid is the co-founder of the Brigidine Asylum Seekers Project which was set up in 2001 and has helped thousands of refugees since then. She’s been in court protecting the interests of indigenous children and teenage climate activists Sister Brigid recently received an Order of Australia, and at 89,  has no plans to retire. One might say she’s a rebel with a cause. Guest: Sr Brigid Arthur, Coordinator Brigidine Asylum Seekers Project

The International Court of Justice found that there was a plausible risk that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. What should the global response be to the finding, and in particular what should Australia's response be? Could the defunding of UNRWA be seen as collective punishment? Guests: Regina Weiss, barrister and former prosecution trial lawyer at the International Criminal Court Ben Saul, Challis Chair of International Law, The University of Sydney, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Counter-terrorism

Bruce Shapiro examines the arguments in the case brought by Colorado to the Supreme Court to have Donald Trump removed from the presidential primary ballot.  Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.

It's an incredibly dangerous time to be a journalist, whether you are reporting from one of the world's many conflict zones or from seemingly democratic countries. Three of the world's great press freedom advocates join Phillip Adams to discuss why this moment is so particularly challenging for journalists and how freedom of the press can be better protected.