In this episode, we speak with Sydney chef Neil Perry, and we're asking a specific question - can one restaurateur single-handedly lift a suburb from the doldrums? Perry now has three Double Bay eateries, Margaret, Next Door, and the Melbourne import Baker Bleu, with two more scheduled to open in August. Hosting this episode about the Perry family business, his experience in the food scene over many decades and what it takes to renew an entire suburb is Sydney editor for The Sydney Morning Herald, Michael Koziol. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we discuss the wave of anti-gay murders that struck Sydney from the late 1980s to the mid 1990s and beyond, and why so many have still not been solved. The police have long been accused of inaction over these murders but thanks to a special inquiry into anti-gay hate crimes held last year, it's become clear that much more the simple police indifference is responsible. Criminal lawyer Nicholas Stewart joins Good Weekend deputy editor Greg Callaghan to discuss the murders, answer the question, "what makes it a gay hate crime?" and analyse more recent gay hate crimes across Australia. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we speak with Tom Elliott, host of Melbourne's top rating Mornings program, about what makes morning radio tick - and what doesn't, growing up with his infamous father John, and how (and why) he swapped a career in finance for the power of the microphone. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we speak to para surfing star Joel Taylor. At 21, Joel was a pro bodyboarder left paraplegic after a freak wave dumped him at the famous Pipeline break in Hawaii. Two decades on, he’s a world surfing champion. Joel speaks with senior Good Weekend writer Tim Elliott about his early life as a Jehovah’s Witness, his love of the ocean, that life-threatening injury and his phenomenal comeback. Also joining the conversation is Joel's wife Lorin, who discusses how they got together, her husband's obsessive compulsive disorder and life with their young two sons. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After releasing his first book of short stories, The Boat, Nam Le was branded a "criminally talented" young author of "a singular masterpiece". That was back in 2008, and he hasn't released another book ... until now. Returning to the literary stage with a book of poetry - 36 Ways of Writing a Vietnamese Poem - Le talks to Good Weekend senior writer Konrad Marshall about what happened in the interim, and how he found his way back to writing his first literary love - writing in rhyme and verse. He also chats candidly about his family's refugee origins, his upbringing in suburban Doncaster, his short-lived legal career and his love of poker. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

David McBride is awaiting sentencing for the leak of classified military documents from his time as an army lawyer in Afghanistan. In a candid conversation with senior Good Weekend writer Jane Cadzow, he speaks about what led him to do it, the personal fallout and his complex relationship with his father William, who blew the whistle on problems with thalidomide in the 1960s before his own fall from grace. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we take an exclusive peek into a groundbreaking Melbourne trial into the use of psychedelics for the terminally ill, to help ease their end-of-life angst. Joining us to discuss the trial are psychiatrist Dr. Justin Dwyer, one half of the clinical research team coordinating the three and a half year effort, and journalist Kate Cole-Adams, who has been following the process and has written our cover story this week, ‘My brain was being reworked’. Hosting the conversation is Good Weekend deputy editor Greg Callaghan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As CEO and founder of national charity organisation The Man Cave, Hunter Johnson helps young men build self-esteem and emotional resilience, while arming them with the tools to navigate the sometimes toxic 'manosphere'. In this episode of Good Weekend Talks, senior writer Melissa Fyfe talks to Johnson about his youth at an elite high school, his journaling practice, visiting Buckingham Palace - even working with Harry and Meghan - while creating a brand of toiletries for young men. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He's toured the world as a rock star, but ended up in Hobart running an arts festival. In this episode of Good Weekend Talks, Brian Ritchie, bass player for American folk punk band Violent Femmes speaks to The Age arts editor Elizabeth Flux about his career in music, how he became artistic director for Mona Foma, his friendship with the eccentric head of MONA, David Walsh, and how the Shakuhachi flute keeps him grounded. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with actor Eric Bana and director Robert Connolly about their new film, Force of Nature, a sequel to their 2020 smash it, The Dry. Hosting this conversation about their shared work experience, leeches on location, and filming in frigid and wet Victorian forests, is senior culture writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Karl Quinn. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with neuroscientist Joel Pearson, author of a new book, The Intuition Toolkit, about the science behind intuition and how we can harness that to make better decisions. Joel explains what happens when we experience the powerful gut feelings and hunches or as he prefers to define them, the learned productive use of unconscious information. Hosting this conversation is Good Weekend senior writer, Amanda Hooton. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Good Weekend Talks, we go to Melbourne Park - home of the Australian Open - and speak to former tennis star, author, and now inspirational Nine commentator, Jelena Dokic. Jelena burst onto the scene in 1999, when she was just 16. Ranked 129 in the world, she knocked over then world number 1, Martina Hingis, launching a career full of promise. But behind closed doors, she had already survived a decade of abuse at the hands of her father. She famously overcame (or survived) that adversity, to eventually become the number four player in the world, before retiring from the game 10 years ago. She speaks with Good Weekend senior writer Konrad Marshall about fleeing war, mental health, body positivity, online abuse, and who will win the women's final this year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll be back in late January 2024 with plenty of exciting interviews booked in the calendar. But for now enjoy one of our most popular episodes from the past year. And remember to subscribe and share. Do affairs run in families? Are there seven stages to go through after discovering your spouse has cheated on you? What is the best way to move on? Journalist Kate Legge delves into these questions and more - with Good Weekend editor Katrina Strickland - after discovering not only that her husband had cheated on her, but that their son had cheated on his partner too, and that her husband's father and grandmother had both also had affairs. This episode first aired on February 18, 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll be back in late January 2024 with plenty of exciting interviews booked in the calendar. But for now enjoy one of our most popular episodes from the past year. And remember to subscribe and share. We talk with Hugh Van Cuylenburg, a former teacher turned podcaster and public speaker who founded the Resilience Project and co-hosts The Imperfects podcast. Van Cuylenburg talks to Good Weekend senior writer Konrad Marshall about the twists and turns in his own life, the lessons he wants to impart to others and why he loves a good long run. This episode first aired on April 14, 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll be back in late January 2024 with plenty of exciting interviews booked in the calendar. But for now enjoy one of our most popular episodes from the past year. And remember to subscribe and share. In this episode we speak with Nagi Maehashi, the creator of cult cooking website, RecipeTin Eats, which has grown into a global success story since it launched almost a decade ago. Nagi Maehashi talks with us about what inspired her to start cooking her obsessive testing process and how her former career as an auditor helped make her business so strong. And hosting this discussion, which includes generous mention of Maehashi’s much loved sidekick Dozer - a golden retriever almost as popular as her food - is senior culture writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald Kerrie O’Brien. This episode first aired on April 6, 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We'll be back in late January 2024 with plenty of exciting interviews booked in the calendar. But for now enjoy one of our most popular episodes from the past year. And remember to subscribe and share. We talk with veteran Aussie actor Guy Pearce, whose career now spans four decades, from his debut as a novice straight out of high school in Neighbours, via Hollywood movies like LA Confidential and international hits like The King's Speech, to high-end TV series such as Jack Irish and Mare of Easttown and his new show coming out shortly on Disney+ - The Clearing - an eight-part thriller set in Victoria. Hosting this conversation - about everything from how fatherhood has changed him, to his itinerant global life, to how he really feels about the Neighbours reboot, is senior culture writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Karl Quinn. This episode first aired on May 19, 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, Good Weekend editor Katrina Strickland sits down with senior writer Konrad Marshall to discuss what makes a great magazine feature, what Marshall learnt from his early days working for small town American newspapers and how, in an increasingly media-managed world, the specialist craft of longform writing is changing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode we speak with Nick Bryant, author, former BBC correspondent and occasional columnist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, about the big events across the globe this year. Unlike the so-called Roaring 1920s, Bryant notes that the 2020s have gotten off to a rather wretched start. From war in the Middle East to the harsh effects of climate change, to the consolidation of power by strongmen such as Russia's Vladimir Putin and China's Xi Jinping, Bryant laments the state of play right now. And that's before we even get to the spectre of another Donald Trump term in the White House. Hosting this conversation, which also canvasses some of the high points of the year, from our fervour for the Matilda's to the Barbie and Taylor Swift phenomena, is the editor of Good Weekend, Katrina Strickland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we speak with Hollywood director, actor, screenwriter and producer Taika Waititi. The Kiwi filmmaker is the man behind New Zealand films, Boy and Hunt for the Wilderpeople, as well as global blockbusters like Thor: Love and Thunder, and critically acclaimed Holocaust dramedy JoJo Rabbit. Hosting the conversation about his latest movie, Next Goal Wins starring Michael Fassbender, and how Waititi has been, for the past 22 years, flying to NZ from wherever he is in the world to play rugby every Saturday (kidding!), is Good Weekend senior writer, Konrad Marshall. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode, we talk with Melbourne based transgender advocate Son Vivienne. Son is non binary and the chief of Transgender Victoria, which aims to improve social, economic and health outcomes for trans and gender diverse people. Hosting this discussion on affirmative care, treatments and the realities of living as a gender diverse Australian is The Age senior writer, Michael Bachelard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.