Conversations

• Encore: my three fathers

  American novelist Ann Patchett reflects on Frank, Mike and Darrell, the men who made her, going a year without shopping and her power to make herself invisible (R)Ann Patchett is an acclaimed American novelist and the owner of an independent bookstore in Nashville.Ann has had three fathers — Frank, Mike and Darrell, who have each provided her with material or motivation for her writing.In 1974 Frank signed up for a subscription to the “100 Greatest Books of All Time” from the Franklin Library, every page complete with gilded edges, and a sewn-in satin-ribbon bookmark.Once all three fathers had died, Ann could finally see what they had given her throughout her life — strength, adoration and acceptance.In her new book, Ann weaves the stories of her fathers into a book of essays about going a year without shopping and becoming dear friends with Tom Hanks’ assistant.Further informationThese Precious Days is published by Bloomsbury.Find out more about the Conversations Live National Tour on the ABC website.This episode of Conversations explores fatherhood, fathers and daughters, male role models, writing, Tennessee, growing up, origin stories, personal stories, parenting, life story, family dynamics, America, United States, grief, death, loss of a parent, writing, books, bookstores.

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• Inside the six-day siege of the Iranian Embassy in London

  In April 1980, a group of armed men invaded the Iranian Embassy in London, taking hostages, and issuing demands in the name of a cause almost no one had ever heard of.The 'Group of the Martyr', a collection of Iranian Arabs, wanted independence for their province of Iran, but their demands were impossible for the British Government to meet, and so the then-little known Special Air Service (SAS) were told to plan an invasion of the building to rescue the hostages.They had taken 26 people hostage, including staff, visitors and a police officer named Trevor who was guarding the building at the time of the attack.What followed was a six-day siege, that was eventually broken by the SAS.Their storming of the embassy galvanised the world, as people watched it all unfold on live television.Historian and author Ben McIntyre takes a deeper look at this dramatic siege and rescue operation, uncovering the real, powerful story of ordinary people responding as best they could to lethal jeopardy.Further informationThe Siege is published by Penguin Random House.This episode was recorded live at the 2025 Sydney Writers' Festival.It explores Iran, Tehran, terrorism, violence, threats, diplomacy, rescue missions, epic history, western democracy, dictatorship, foreign affairs, global politics, east vs west, occupation, war, civil war, BBC, journalism, live television, media ethics, Afrouz, MI5, Hyde Park, surveillance, Stockholm Syndrome, Mustapha Karkouti, Syria, Operation Nimrod, Jassim Alwan al-Nasiri, Abbas Lavasani, murder, execution, Saddam Hussein, Iraq, Iran-Iraq War, the Middle East, history books, writing.Find out more about the Conversations Live National Tour on the ABC website.

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• Mass murder, cannibalism and insanity — inside Mao's cultural revolution

  China's cultural revolution was murderously violent and culturally devastating; millions of people, artefacts and ideas went up in smoke. So what's fuelling today's Neo-Maoist movement and nostalgia for that period?In 1966, the Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong went to war against his own government.What followed was ten years of murderous violence and utter insanity, until Mao's death in 1976.Children were urged to denounce their parents, teachers were beaten to death in front of howling mobs, youths were 're-educated', the economy was ruined, and so much of the precious cultural heritage of a great, ancient society went up in smoke.The 'Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution' left such deep scars on China, that subsequent leaders have tried to bury its memory.But, still some young Chinese people — 'Neo-Moaists' — have a sense of nostalgia for the violent revolution they didn't even live through.In order to understand what's going on in China today, you need to know what happened in those strange and terrifying years, and how it affected President Xi Zinping, who had a front row seat to the terror.Further informationBombard the Headquarters is published by Black Inc.Find out more about the Conversations Live National Tour on the ABC website.This episode of Conversations explores political violence, revolution, propaganda, China, Asia, totalitarianism, Farewell my Concubine, Asia Pacific, Lenin, Marxism, Socialism, civil war, the long march, neo-Maoist movement, great leap forward, political upheaval, class warfare, status quo, drain the swamp, mass murder, infanticide, conspiracy theories, Tiananmen Square, red guards, coup, dictatorship, nostalgia.

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• How I became a brainwashed cult bride

  Liz Cameron was 18 years old when a stranger approached her in a book shop. It was the beginning of her induction into a cult, and it was an experience Liz barely survived.The process of brainwashing happened gradually, first came the love-bombing and the allure of finding a new purpose in life. Then came the isolation from friends and family, along with sleep deprivation, overwork and sexual manipulation.Liz was one of the many women chosen to become a kind of bride for the leader of an infamous Korean religious group.It wasn’t until she became critically ill, that her family were able to get the help she needed to escape and to begin the process of being deprogrammed.Liz Cameron’s memoir is called Cult Bride: How I was brainwashed and how I broke free.Find out more about the Conversations Live National Tour on the ABC website.Conversations' Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. This episode was produced by Jennifer Leake.This episode of Conversations touches on cults, brainwashing, religious groups, eating disorders, sexual manipulation, deprogramming, sexual assault, sleep deprivation, family, recovery, healing, trauma, biography, psychology, Providence, JMS, Jesus Morning Star, Pastor Joshua, Jung Myung-seok.

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• Encore: the charming Italian narcissist

  When Kerstin Pilz discovered that her charming husband Gianni had been cheating on her while he was dying, she had to decide what to do next (R)She had fallen madly in love with this Italian man when she was in her 40s.The two married and began travelling the world together.Then Gianni suddenly fell ill.As he was in the hospital undergoing surgery for life-threatening cancer, Kerstin discovered her husband was not the man she thought he was.Further informationLoving my Lying, Dying, Cheating Husband is published by Affirm Press.Originally broadcast in June 2024.This episode of Conversations was produced by Nicola Harrison and presented by Sarah Kanowski.It explores narcissism, narcissistic personality disorder, infidelity, terminal cancer, caring for your spouse, marriage breakdown, illness, betrayal, grief, writing, origin stories, love, lust, trust, couples counselling, couples therapy. cheating, dying, grief.Find out more about the Conversations Live National Tour on the ABC website.

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