She's one of the UK's most successful singer-songwriters and iconic voices: I sit down with Emeli Sande.
Emeli Sandé: sexism in music, Zambia, and Long Live The Angels
in blogpost, comedy, music, Interviews
Beauty and the Beast star Josh Gad on Robin Williams' death
in comedy, Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
Genuine triple threat Josh Gad is starring as Disney's first openly gay character LeFou in the live action Beauty and the Beast and he chatted everything from Robin Williams to Juilliard with Marc Fennell.
Kakenya Ntaiya exchanged female genital mutilation for an education
in Film, Interviews, SBS
“Our films are ambassadors for our nation” Rachel Perkins on Jasper Jones and Indigenous Recognition
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
Harts: Prince's Surprise Australian Prodigy
in Film, music, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
They say you shouldn't meet your heroes, but for Aussie musician Harts meeting his hero Prince quite literally changed his life.
Oscar-winner Danny Boyle on taking risks with Trainspotting 2
in Interviews, Film, SBS, The Feed
Oscar-winning filmmaker Danny Boyle sits down with Marc Fennell to talk about his sequel to Trainspotting, using drugs and directing the Queen.
If you don't know Lea Salonga's name, you definitely know her voice.
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
She has played a Disney princess twice, she's the first Asian woman to win a Tony Award and she's the voice behind Aladdin's A Whole New World.
Saroo Brierley: The Real Man Behind 'Lion'
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
Real-life Lion: meet the guy who inspired the hit film starring Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman
Naomie Harris explains how to get an Oscar nomination in just 3 days.
in Film, Interviews, ABC Radio
Naomie Harris has just been nominated for an Oscar for Moonlight where she plays the hate-filled drug-riddled mother of young, gay boy, Chiron, growing up in the rough end of Miami. It's an incredible performance made more so by the fact that she filmed it all in just 3 days. Yes, 3 days.
Harris built up a pretty bloody great career with the likes of Spectre, Pirates of the Carribean and Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom. She's also got a few hard and fast rules about what kinds of roles she will and won't take. And playing a stereotypical black crack addict was right up on that list. It's a rule she broke for the Golden Globe winning, Oscar nominated film.
Naomie and I chatted on ABC radio about why Harris' mother has proven to be a guiding force in her career choices, what she'd like to change about Hollywood and filmmaking. And then she promised to go win an Oscar for us.
Does Tropfest have a future in the age of YouTube? John Polson in Conversation
It was the largest short film festival in the world. A truly unique Australian media property. And then it all came to a crashing halt. In this special conversation on Download This Show, Polson opens up about how Tropfest has changed in the last year. He addresses accusations about whether Tropfest is a boys club and how they’re changing to face the future.
There are 2 bands called UB40. With brothers from the same family. And they don't talk. It's pretty awkward.
in music, ABC Radio, blogpost, Interviews
So, you know the classic 80's hits, right? I Got U Babe, Red Red Wine etc etc (and yes, they literally have their own brand of wine) Well here's the thing. Earlier this week I had the original lead singer Ali Campbell from the iconic Birmingham reggae troupe on ABC Radio. And I brought up the idea that there is, in fact *another* touring UB40 which is technically the *original* version of the band which Campbell left in 2008. He calls this other version "The Dark Side" even though at least 2 of his brothers are in it. The whole situation is very, very odd and I'll let Ali explain...
Favourite Interviews of 2016
in Interviews, The Feed, Film, SBS
These interviews are the most fun thing I do. I love getting lost in someone’s work, I love editing them and I love getting to show them to you. Here is my 2015 list.
LEGENDARY PUNK ROCKER HENRY ROLLINS ON WITNESSING DEATH, LONELINESS AND CHANNELING PURE RAGE INTO A MISSION.
"I WAS A COMPLETE DRUG ADDICT" THE MUSICAL JOURNEY OF MUSICAL SENSATION TASH SULTANA
ALAN ALDA: WHY M*A*S*H GAVE HIM NIGHT TERRORS, HIS LOVE OF SCIENTISTS AND MASTURBATION GUILT
HOW MATT PARKER AND TREY STONE MAKE AN EPISODE OF SOUTH PARK (FROM SCRATCH) IN JUST 6 DAYS WITHOUT GOING CRAZY
JODIE FOSTER'S CHILDHOOD TRAUMA AND GROWING UP IN HOLLYWOOD
MATT DAMON ON REJECTION, SURVEILLANCE & SEEING BEN AFFLECK SUFFER
QUENTIN TARANTINO'S BIGGEST LEARNING CURVES, ON PIRACY & BECOMING A "PROPER" FILMMAKER
THE SECRET ROOM INSIDE JUNEE PRISON
NONI HAZLEHURST: HOW PLAYSCHOOL CHANGED HER, HER POLITICS AND BASICALLY BEING AUSTRALIA'S MUM
AUSSIE-BORN KOREAN POP-STAR PRINCE MAK ON THE INCREDIBLE PRICE YOU PAY TO ACHIEVE K-POP STARDOM
ERIC BANA EXPLAINS WHY SPIELBERG DRAGGED HIM TO AN ABANDONED AIRPORT IN THE DESERT AND WHY HE MISSES BEING A STAND-UP
GANG OF YOUTHS FRONT MAN DAVID LE'AUPEPE ON SUICIDE, GOD AND ASS INJECTIONS
ZOLTAN ISTVAN: THE US PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE WHO WANTS TO ABOLISH DEATH, SHUT DOWN PRISONS AND BECOME A CYBORG
JON FAVREAU ON THE DEATH OF GARRY SHANDLING AND FIGHTING TO TURN ROBERT DOWNEY JR INTO IRONMAN
ALIX GENEROUS: THE APP DEVELOPER WHO WANTS TO HARNESS THE AUTISM SPECTRUM TO FIX THE WORLD'S BIGGEST PROBLEMS
AUSTRALIAN ASTRONAUT ANDY THOMAS ON HOW 117 DAYS, 9 HOURS AND 14 MINUTES IN SPACE CAN AFFECT YOUR MARRIAGE
PIPER KERMAN: THE WOMAN BEHIND ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK EXPLAINS WHY THE USA HANDCUFFS WOMEN AS THEY GIVE BIRTH
CHIDO GOVERA: THE ZIMBABWE ORPHAN WHO IS USING MUSHROOMS AS A POLITICAL WEAPON TO FIGHT POVERTY.
2016 in 10 (oh god, I'm crying) minutes
in Radio National, Film, Interviews
Every year, Madeleine Genner (my excellent wife) and I gather up the sounds of the year and I break out the old ProTools to mix a mashup of the year in news, politics, sport, power chords and dead famous people.
And hoooo boy, was 2016 a doozy.
This is the 6th year we've made the montage for ABC Radio. It always provokes much argument in our house but we still do it.
Leave a comment if this makes you cry at any point. It'll validate this whole exercise.
This man is on a mission to make Christmas cracker jokes actually funny
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
Christmas cracker jokes are renowned for being terrible, but stand-up comic and dad Andrew Barnett is making them funny thanks to a very unfunny situation.
"I was a complete drug addict": The musical journey of Tash Sultana
in Interviews, music, Film, SBS, The Feed
From drug addict to viral sensation, 21-year-old musician Tash Sultana taught herself over 10 instruments and is now taking the world by storm.
Bruce Campbell on Bill Clinton, The Evil Dead and zombie weddings
in comedy, Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
Community creator Dan Harmon uses his podcast as public therapy
Dan Harmon is the creator of acclaimed comedy shows like 'Community' and 'Rick and Morty'. He talks about why the move from traditional networks to streaming platforms has been great for tv creators. Harmon also explains why he treats his hugely popular podcast as form of therapy, why internet geek culture needs to grow up and - yes - it turns out he did have a hand in the new Marvel movie 'Dr Strange'.
FROM DOWNLOAD THIS SHOW: THE WEEKLY SHOW ABOUT TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA AND CULTURE.
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Bill Mechanic: Former head of 20th Century Fox goes to town on Murdoch, George Lucas and more
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
I took the former head of 20th Century Fox Movie studio to a video store (yes, a few still exist) so he could talk smack about Rupert Murdoch, James Cameron, George Lucas, Independence Day and hoooo boy... did he deliver.
Prison is about Survival: Inside Junee Correctional Centre
in Film, Interviews, SBS, The Feed
For the first time, Junee Correctional Centre let cameras inside their prison for an exclusive look at the surprising program that is changing the lives of inmates.
Cyndi Lauper explains how to eat a squirrel. Yes, you read that correctly.
in Film, Interviews, music, SBS, The Feed
It's very rare for me to be speechless in an interview but here we are. She also talks about her Tony-winning musical Kinky Boots and the one song that makes her see angels when she sings it.