Journalist Neil Mercer and the true stories of wrongful convictions in Australia

Nothing exposes the flaws of a justice system more than the wrongful conviction of an innocent person for murder. Adelaide man Henry Keogh languished in prison for two decades after being wrongfully convicted of his fiancée’s drowning, while Andrew Mallard – a vulnerable, troubled outsider – had hi…

Comedian Arj Barker on Letterman, the Conchords, and 'babygate'

Arj Barker has been a fixture on the local comedy scene for decades, headlining our comedy festivals and turning up on shows including Thank God You’re Here and Spicks and Specks. But the San Francisco-born stand-up began telling jokes at open mic nights in 1989, before appearances on American late…

‘I know enough to be dangerous’: Boost Juice founder Janine Allis on failure and success

Starting a business is one thing, running it successfully is another – but doing it with your spouse and four kids is a different kettle of fish. Janine Allis has done all of the above, after founding Boost Juice as a single store in the 2000s and growing it into a global empire. She’s since become…

‘I’ve mellowed a little bit’: Peter Singer on the limit of free speech and his guidance for giving

Peter Singer, often called the world's most influential philosopher, is turning 80, and he's returned home to Melbourne too, after almost 25 years as a professor of bioethics at Princeton University. Singer's practical ethics has had a huge impact and caused controversy across issues as diverse as …

'Accomplishment flows into courage': Rob de Castella on the Indigenous Marathon Project

Rob de Castella, otherwise known as “Deeks” - or, to his opponents, “Tree”, due to his sturdy limbs and unshiftable calm - is a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medal winner and Australian running royalty. He joins Good Weekend Talks to chat about his Indigenous Marathon Project, in which he takes …

Anna Funder on telling untold stories – and the blowback it sometimes brings

Australian author and intellectual Anna Funder specialises in telling the stories of people forgotten or ignored by official histories. She began her writing career with Stasiland, detailing the state surveillance of the people of the former East Germany, which was followed by her prize-winning nov…

Pulitzer novelist Andrew Sean Greer on ‘charm novels’, the Italian life and travel wisdom

Picture this: a crumbling Italian mansion in the Tuscan hills, an eccentric aristocrat, sun-soaked lunches, too much wine and a house humming with secrets. That’s the delightful world into which we’re heading today as we talk to writer Andrew Sean Greer, whose new novel, Villa Coco, is loosely insp…

John Safran on growing up Jewish, free speech, race - and Race Around the World

John Safran burst into the public consciousness in 1997 as a contestant in the ABC TV show Race Around the World, where young filmmakers travelled the world making four-minute films in just 10 days. Safran won the popular vote on the reality show after running through Jerusalem naked, and asking a …

What childless Gen Xer Katrina Strickland wants those stuck in today's baby-making vortex to know

There's a profound grief associated with not having kids if you really wanted them, one that's rarely acknowledged, even less understood. But there's also an unexpected joy when you come out the other side. In today's conversation, Good Weekend senior writer Katrina Strickland discusses the ups and…

From two-up to bingo halls and gaming apps  – Shaun Micallef on our gambling obsession

Shaun Micallef has graced our TV screens since 1989 – from crime caper Mr and Mrs Murder to long-running game show Talkin' About Your Generation and weekly satirical news comedy Mad as Hell. But he's not averse to tackling the big issues, either: his latest series, Going for Broke, examines our nat…