Late Night Live - Full program podcast

To mark International Day Of People With Disability, December 3rd, the ABC is showcasing content featuring people with lived experience of disability. On Late Night Live, we revisit the conversations we had with legally blind writers from either side of the Atlantic, Andrew Leland and Selina Mills.

Trump and war - Bruce Shapiro looks back on the year in US politics. And the woman was not anti-social, but anti the social order: the life of Sydney 'originalist' Bee Miles.

Laura Tingle and Nikki Savva look back on 2023 and give a report card for Canberra Politicians. Jock Given and Virginia Madsen help us celebrate 100 years of Radio National and its transformation from ABC Radio 2 to the present day.

Journalist Adam Welz shares his plea to save what's left of the Earth's magnificent biodiversity, before its too late. And documentarian Mary Haverstick on the mysterious life of Jerrie Cobb - the would-be astronaut who became a spy.

A UNESCO award for the Gunditjmara people of Western Victoria but the campaign for Indigenous people to care for their own country carries on, plus how true are the legends about Roman Emperors?

Ian Dunt reflects on an eventful year in UK politics and looks ahead to the 2024 election. Joseph Sikulu and Wesley Morgan preview COP28 from a Pacific perspective and Zahra Hankir explains why kohl eyeliner has long been a marker for the intersection between beauty and power.

Laura Tingle on the sacking of Mike Pezzullo, and Tanya Plibersek's win on the Murray Darling Basin Plan. And what a close study of oil paintings from the past couple of centuries tells us about colonial, and later, times.

Why focusing on identity groups is the wrong prescription to overcome injustice and build a fairer society. Also, moral philosophy and how love can lead to hope.

Phillip spends an hour revisiting the life of Charlie Chaplin with biographer Scott Eyman, author of Charlie Chaplin vs. America: When Art, Sex and Politics Collided.

Bruce Shapiro asks whether Joe Biden's influence on the Prime Minster of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu is waning while Dahlia Scheindlin discusses the political ramifications of the war in Gaza on Netanyahu's future. Historian Jim Haynes recounts the stories of some of the more notorious convicts that were transported to Australia.

Laura Tingle discusses the political fallout from the sonar incident in the South China Sea. Could China help to negotiate a Palestinian peace deal? Plus, what role did the CIA play in the 1961 assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Congo.

Richard Flanagan talks with Phillip Adams about his latest book Question Seven which addresses the questions we should be asking as both writers and readers in the nuclear era.

What the huge advances in facial recognition technology mean for privacy. How the ancient city of Alexandria  shaped modern philosophy, science and religion.

'I' news columnist Ian Dunt unpacks the explosive UK cabinet reshuffle, UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories Francesca Albanese talks about the human rights violations occurring on both sides of the Israel-Gaza war and author Yepoka Yeebo reveals the story of one of the 20th century's most unbelievable financial scams.

Laura Tingle on Penny Wong's fine line on Israel-Gaza. And Australian economist Sean Turnell in a long chat about his 650 days of imprisonment in Gaza, and what Myanmar could be like under a democracy.

A century after the British Empire's zenith, historian Matthew Parker discovers a ruling power be-set by debt and doubt, and on the ground, the sounds of shackles being shrugged off.

Scott Simon recounts the chilling story of how Joseph Goebbels used his own swing and jazz band to create musical propaganda during WW2 and Tess Newton-Cain explains why there are so many observers at this years Pacific Islands Forum in Rarotonga.

Bruce Shapiro on US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's desperate diplomatic mission to the Middle East. Journalist Vincent Bevins explains why the mass protest movements of the 2010s have largely failed to achieve their ends. And Brett Mason shares the riveting story of when John F. Kennedy was rescued in the Solomon Islands during WWII, with the help of Australian Reg Evans.

Laura Tingle reports on the PM's trip to China, Nic Maclellan reports on the ongoing impacts of 50 years of nuclear testing in the Pacific and Sandy Winterbottom tells the sad history of whaling in the Antarctic, for both the whales and the young whalers.

Analysis of current events to the hottest debates in politics, science, philosophy and culture.

Wendy Harmer has lived a life full of 'firsts' - she was the first female news cadet in an all-male newsroom in Geelong, the first Australian female stand-up comedian and the first female co-host on a commercial radio breakfast program. How did she go from a little girl with a cleft palate growing up in rural Victoria to a household name? She reveals all in this broad-ranging interview with Phillip Adams.

Naomi Smith on the tensions rising in the UK over the war in Gaza, Scott Bennet talks about the threats to the Great Southern Reef by an approaching marine heatwave and Emma O'Kelly tells the steamy history of the sauna.

Laura Tingle analyses PM Albanese's visit to the US, and how Australia is navigating its Israel/Gaza war response. The low profile Atlas Network  has 500 neo-liberal think tanks in its orbit. And the wild story of the anti-avocado militia in provincial Mexico.

American essayist Phil Klay reflects on the realities of the Israel-Gaza conflict, and the broader ethics of US involvements in wars in the past 20 years. And Brisbane-based historical novelist Melissa Ashley, on the ground-breaking German/Dutch artist and insect aficianado, Maria Merian

Geographer Jay Owens takes us to just some of the sources of dust that we generate and breathe every day. Plus, Robyn Annear's rollicking history of 19th Century Melbourne - from exploding sewers to moral panics over orange-peels.

Bruce Shapiro on a tumultuous time in US politics, as the Israel-Gaza war escalates and the Speaker's chair in the US House of Representatives remains vacant. Anne Applebaum considers what Poland's surprise election result means for the European Union. Plus, why citizen scientists are critical to protecting Australia's biodiversity.

Laura Tingle on the PM's travel plans to the US and China. In Kenya, religious extremism saw 400 deaths earlier this year. But how to combat that mindset? And the push in Jamaica to have the Jamaican patois declared an official language alongside English.

Christopher Clark explains how the revolutions of 1848 changed Europe forever. Aarathi Prasad shares the history and potential of silk and its many extraordinary uses.

Former Tory MP Rory Stewart on the chaos and dysfunction within the UK Conservative party over the past decade. Plus, nature writer Harry Saddler reminds us that Melbourne's Yarra River is far from dead.

Ian Dunt is blunt about the UK's future after a high-speed rail line was axed to the north. How Singapore is working to cool down its citizens in the face of climate change. And could Australia wield greater "soft power" through art and music?

Laura TIngle and John Paul Janke talk through the hopes for reconciliation now that Australian voters have rejected the voice. James Canton meditates on the long and productive relationship between humanity and the oak tree.

Pulitzer prize winner Ed Yong reveals the astonishing world of animal senses - from dogs who socialise through smell, to fish who taste with their skin. Plus, Marion Gibson recounts the never-ending persecution of women as "witches" - from Salem to the present day.

Sean Scalmer recounts how Australian workers fought for an eight hour workday, setting a precedent for the rest of the world. Plus, Kate Fullagar unravels the story of two men who shaped the course of Australian history: Wangal man Bennelong and Arthur Phillip - the first Governor of the colony of New South Wales.

Professor Brendon O'Connor on the US response to the Hamas attacks on Israel. Kristin Surak investigates the lucrative global market for citizenship and passport papers. And Nick Hordern tells the story of Lorraine Murray - the Australian-born Shanghai sex worker who became a counter-intelligence informant.

Analysis of current events to the hottest debates in politics, science, philosophy and culture.

Michael Palin shares what he learnt from the 'murderous and mundane' war diaries of his Great-Uncle Harry and Julia Ebner explains how the extremists are moving from the margins to the mainstream.

Bruce Shapiro explains the ousting of US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and what comes next. Elizabeth Rush shares her journey to Antarctica's 'Doomsday Glacier' and how it shifted her feelings on becoming a mother. Plus, Greg King exposes how forestry barons covered up the logging of California's iconic redwood forests.

Ian Dunt dissects UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman's attack on multiculturalism. New research reveals the vast extent of the nuclear fallout from America's Trinity nuclear bomb test in 1945. Plus, the original Luddites of the 1800s, and their rebellion against Big Tech.

In his lifetime, ground-breaking historian Henry Reynolds has seen many changes in the telling of Australian history.  Some of the most important truths, such as what really happened on the frontier, were instigated by him.

Adam Welz tells the shocking story behind the booming lion breeding program in South Africa and Otto English examines some of the heroic figures of our age to reveal them as much more complex flawed humans than they appear.

World-leading intelligence historian Calder Walton takes us on a tour through the 100-year Intelligence war between East and West, and historian Tamson Pietsch tells the story of a grand educational experiment conducted in the 1920's, called ‘The Floating University’.

Bruce Shapiro on the 'tentative' agreement reached between Hollywood studios and striking workers. Historian Gina Anne Tam explains why the Chinese state is cracking down on minority languages. And the powerful legacy of the Yirrkala Bark Petitions, 60 years on.

Journalist Clare Armstrong on the government's new employment white paper, and what it means for pensioners keen to work more hours. Why are undersea cables becoming a source of geopolitical tension? Plus, the improvisational creativity of artist Lonnie Holley.

Yanis Varoufakis explains why he thinks capitalism has been replaced by Technofeudalism. Keith Houston takes on a trip through humanity's history of counting - from fingers and toes to the pocket calculator.

Robert D. Kaplan challenges Western ideas about the Middle East and tries to offer a broader picture of the future of the region that looks beyond the binaries of democracy and authoritarianism. Plus, Loren Grush tells the story of the six extraordinary women that smashed the glass ceiling of NASA's space program back in 1978.

Ian Dunt on the efforts of former Prime Ministers Theresa May and Liz Truss to defend their legacies. What role has religion played in the strengthening of ties between Israel and Papua New Guinea? Plus, from Shakespeare to Louis Armstrong - the importance of cheerfulness in Western Art.

Amy Remeikis is this week's Canberra sage, as the Voice campaign heads into its final weeks. Nuclear energy has been put back on the political agenda but no-one has solved the problem of nuclear waste. And writer Sheila Ngọc Phạm loves offal, and wonders why Australians stopped eating it.

In a special episode of Late Night Live, Phillip is joined by two legally blind writers from either side of the Atlantic. Both Andrew Leland and Selina Mills have recently penned insightful memoirs which will challenge and change the way you think about blindness.

Karla Grant shares her experience of the Sami parliament in Norway, Rodrigo Acuña questions why Australia remains tight lipped on their rumoured involvement in the Pinochet coup in Chile 50 years ago and historians Laura Rademaker and Mavis Kerinaiua tell some surprising stories from the history of the Tiwi Islands.

Bruce Shapiro reflects on Joe Biden's historic visit to Hanoi, and US-Vietnam relations. Plus, Sarah Ogilvie celebrates the thousands of people who helped create the original Oxford English Dictionary - the greatest "crowd-sourcing" achievement in human history.

Bernard Keane canvasses the Government and Greens' housing deal, and the Qantas political missteps. Taiwanese journalist Brian Hioe says the rest of the world should stop amping up the geopolitical pressures on Taiwan. And Anya von Bremzen on six national dishes that aren't all they appear to be.

America was a land born in paranoia, and it's coloured people's thinking ever since, Colin Dickey argues. And what would Charles Dickens make of the literary tourism trend he has sparked? Lee Jackson joined the Dickens trail.

Three experts in regional journalism offer solutions to the rapid decline of local news in both Australia and North America. Plus, Harvard physicist Avi Loeb on why humanity should be preparing for a future in the stars.

Ian Dunt gives an F for the UK governments management of the crumbling school system, how Indonesia and Australia will work together to  make electric vehicle batteries and the life of Dorothea Mackellar who wrote those iconic words - I love a sunburnt country...

George Megalogenis and Matt Qvorstrup discuss what's been key to referendum success in the past, both in Australia and overseas. Plus, 100 years on, Roger Pulvers says the tragic Kanto earthquake has an enduring legacy in Japan. And Sarah Goldbloom Zurbo talks about what it was like to grow up with a communist father.

Two stories of trickery that prove the truth is stranger than fiction. Karina Urbach reveals how her grandmother's famous cookbook was stolen and expropriated by the Nazis, and Richard Evans unravels the story of the explorer who claimed to be the first to reach the North Pole.

The Lowy Institute's Sam Roggeveen lays out a bold new plan for Australia's foreign policy, and journalist Laura Trethewey takes us on the quest to map the entire ocean floor by 2030. Plus, we hear about an unsung Australian dynamo and one of the pioneers behind 'Meals on Wheels' - Doris Taylor.

Bruce Shapiro dissects the first Republican presidential candidates debate, where Trump was a no-show. After a devastating fire season in the northern hemisphere, what might be in store for Australia this summer? And the phenomenon of "tradwives" - the young women shunning modern feminism.

In his latest book Knowing What We Know award-winning writer Simon Winchester explores the history of how humans have passed on knowledge and whether the emergence of 'smart' technology will disrupt this age-old process.

Before you get in the water again, hear TIm Flannery talk about the Megalodon, Morgan Ody on why we need a global peasant revolution and James Hannam explains how the world became round (or is it?)

Ian Dunt asks why the British PM and Prince William did not attend the Women's World Cup Final in Australia to support the English team. Professor Jamie Pittock explains what the government's new Murray-Darling deal means for the river basin. And writer Allison C Meier explores the history of American graveyards.

Laura Tingle debriefs on the ALP Conference and the national Cabinet housing meeting. Best-selling author and academic Lea Ypi on the treatment of Albanians in the UK. And how Andrew Sneddon escaped an unhappy childhood among the sleazier residents of Qld's Gold Coast.

The coup in Niger will likely lead to regional instability as the neighbouring countries disagree on a response and Wagner hopes to benefit from the situation. And philosopher Costica Bradatan explains why he believes we should all embrace failure.

Our regular US correspondent Bruce Shapiro discusses a landmark climate trial in Montana and the latest Trump indictment. Plus, Afghan academic Farkhondeh Akbari on the fate of women two years after the fall of Kabul. And we meet nature's greatest lairs and cheats with biologist Lixing Sun.

7.30's Chief Political Correspondent Laura Tingle brings the latest news from inside the Canberra bubble. Food security expert Joseph Glauber discusses how developments in the Russia-Ukraine war and El Nino threaten global food supplies. Plus, a story about how a group of snow monkeys found themselves in America's deep south that has to be heard to be believed.

Award-winning historian Tom Holland recounts one of the most dazzling chapters in Roman history - the Pax Romana - when the Empire reached the heights of its predatory glory. The year 69AD was one of civil war, when four Caesars in succession ruled the Empire. But from the chaos emerged an era of unrivalled Roman peace and power.  Guest: Tom Holland, historian and author of Pax: War and Peace in Rome's Golden Age. Co-host of The Rest is History podcast.

Three years on, Dalal Mawad talks about the women who survived the Beirut bomb blast, and their lives now. Plus Australian musician David Bridie and Papuan musician George Telek tell Phillip about their enduring friendship, which is the subject of a new documentary.

Ian Dunt discusses whether the privatisation of the public service is as extensive, and worrying, in the UK as it seems to be in Australia. Drew Rooke discusses how online sports betting got its start in Australia, in Alice Springs of all places. Plus, we meet two women who are fighting poaching and gender stereotypes in South Africa.  Guests: Ian Dunt, columnist at the “i” newspaper. Drew Rooke, freelance journalist and author. Leitah Mkhabela, Black Mambas’ supervisor and Ops room Manager. Felicia Mogakane, Black Mambas’ Ops room Manager and Sergeant.

Laura Tingle on the Prime Minister's visit to Garma, and calls to delay or modify the Voice to Parliament Referendum. Can Amazonian leaders save their rainforest, for the sake of the planet? And the story of Operation Hurricane - when the British first tested their atomic bomb in Australia.

The Murdoch media mogul that we've come to know is almost unrecognisable from Rupert Murdoch, the youth. Author Walter Marsh discusses the era that shaped young Rupert, the radical who espoused socialism, kept a bust of Lenin in his uni accommodation and then went on to build his empire from 1950s Adelaide.

Two incredible true crime tales of the powerful women behind Latin America's drug trade, and the unlikely women who formed a notorious murder ring in rural Hungary. Plus, we get an update on the situation in Myanmar.

Plus, Bruce Shapiro discusses Donald Trump's mounting legal woes, and how the climate crisis is hitting home this American summer.

Laura Tingle on whether the double dissolution could really happen. Cambodia's longest serving PM hands over to his son. And flour mill photography, flour bag art, and many other things you might not know about flour in Australia.

How are we going to deal with an ever-heating planet? Plus the hidden history of phrenology - it was used by white colonisers to justify their claims of superiority, but it was also taken up by other groups in surprising ways.

Journalists Tess Newtown-Cain and Robert Iroga provide an update from the Pacific, 20 years since Australia's peacekeeping mission to Solomon Islands. Why does Honduras want to build a new prison island? And from child-eating demons to singing mermaids - we trace the ancient origins of female monsters.

Constitutional experts Megan Davis and George Williams explain why they believe putting the Voice in the constitution will result in the best outcomes for Indigenous Australians. And Alex Andreou dissects what the latest UK by-elections mean.

Laura Tingle on Kathryn Campbell's resignation from her position on the AUKUS advisory panel, Ronald Reagan's surprising role in the Hollywood strike of 1960 and how the Sami people's fight against damming the Alta river was a turning point for Indigenous rights in Norway.

As Christopher Nolan's new epic Oppenheimer hits cinema screens, Professor of Philosophy and biographer Ray Monk recounts the true story of scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer - the complicated genius and reluctant father of the atomic bomb.  This interview originally aired in 2013.

The Japanese view of NATO possibly opening an office in Japan. Germany's commitment to massively extend its military spending - with Australia contributing - follows decades of a prevailing pacifist ethos. And why owls have fascinated writers, artists and ecologists.

Bruce Shapiro discusses the conspiracy loving Robert F Kennedy, the Ugandan President and his son are in trouble with International Criminal Court and we find out about the many talents of the termite in Gurindji country.

7.30's chief political correspondent Laura Tingle on the new Reserve Bank governor of Australia; and the future of the big four accountancy firms. Plus veteran political analyst Norman Solomon on how America's endless war in the Middle East has been made largely invisible to the public.

As well earning him multiple Walkley and Logie awards, the work done by investigative journalist Chris Masters PSM has arguably changed Australia, for the better. He speaks to Phillip Adams about his distinguished career, which culminated in his latest book Flawed Hero: Truth, lies and war crimes.

Why forming a position on the Voice referendum can be very complicated. Might Spain be about to elect a far-right coalition? And how the fatty contents of a sperm whale's entrails make their way to luxury perfumes.

Ian Dunt spills the tea on what's happening in Westminster, we discuss the impending and controversial release of water from Fukushima, and we remember Charlie Flannigan - Aboriginal stockman and the first person to be executed in the Northern Territory.

Laura Tingle on the ongoing political fallout from the report into the Robodebt scheme. Journalist Polina Ivanova on how the Arts sector in Russia has become another casualty of war. And the strange survival of the Guinness Book of World Records.

Two in every three souvenirs claiming to be Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander are fake, and Indigenous artists in some of the poorest communities are missing out on a market worth $250 million.  So what can be done to protect Indigenous culture and knowledge from exploitation?  Plus the fascinating stories of those who got inked to show love, loyalty, status and even religious devotion.

Will the Maldives stick with its India First foreign policy in th eupcoming election, what is the historical and cultural context to the battles erupting on the streets of Frances cities, towns and villages, and enjoy a feast of treats from Torres Strait Islander Chef Nornie Bero.

The latest from Bruce Shapiro on the US Supreme Court, and what those rulings mean for university students across the country. Indonesia's endless struggle with corruption. Plus, Thai cave diving hero, Richard ‘Harry’ Harris, on why we take risks.

Laura Tingle on the first week of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC). Will Mexico's next president be female? Plus, how reporting on war can have a devastating impact on your relationship.

Dr Jordana Silverstein reflects on Australia's treatment of refugee children that arrive at our borders. And Ben Miller and Huw Lemmey, co-authors of “Bad Gays: A Homosexual History” discuss what can we learn from the more complex queer figures of the past.

Another Trump presidency is still a real possibility. What will it mean for Australia? Plus, we celebrate the anniversary of the first printed edition of Shakespeare's collected plays, and we kick off the episode with an update on how the global economic woes are being felt in the Pacific.  Guests: Tess Newton-Cain –Pacific Hub, Griffith Asia Institute.   Dr Neelesh Gounder - Senior Lecturer in economics at the University of the South Pacific, Suva.   Bruce Wolpe – Senior Fellow (non-resident) at the United States Studies Centre and author of ‘Trump’s Australia’. Emma Smith - Professor of Shakespeare Studies at Hertford College, Oxford.

What lies ahead for the UK Conservative Party after Boris Johnson's exit? Kim Jong Un's sister - Kim Yo-jong - has emerged as the nation's most powerful woman and a possible successor. Plus, the pivotal role of Sierra Leone's African leaders, in ending the transatlantic slave trade.

Laura Tingle reflects on the life of former Labor leader Simon Crean, Anatol Lieven on whether the Wagner group's revolt spells disaster for Vladimir Putin, and the bizarre stories behind the pigments in some of our greatest works of art.

The extraordinary whistleblower Daniel Ellsburg, who has died at 92, did an interview with Late Night Live only last year. And Man Ray's muse, Kiki of Montparnasse - a forgotten bohemian icon.

Will anything come from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's meeting with Chinese President Xi in Beijing? Have we learned from the great financial crashes of the past, or is history doomed to repeat? And how does a grandson reconcile his love for a grandfather with a dark past?

Analysis of current events to the hottest debates in politics, science, philosophy and culture.

Laura Tingle on the Voice referendum bill's success in parliament and why the Greens delayed the Housing Future Fund bill. Plus the environmental damage wreaked by the Kakhovka dam explosion in Ukraine and the Spanish film director whom dedicated his life to art, dance and music.