Afternoon Light

How did Australians first commemorate the Anzac spirit, when the men were still fighting overseas?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Rae Frances & Bruce Scates, the authors of the new biography Mary Booth: The Woman who Shaped the Anzac Legend. A conversation uncovering the story of a pioneering feminist and nationalist, who helped devise Australia's most significant annual tradition and a mythology that continues to define Australia's national identity.
Raelene Frances is Emeritus Professor of History at the Australian National University. She is internationally recognised for her contributions to social, gender and labour history, particularly to the understanding of the intersections between work, gender, class and war.
Bruce Scates is a Fulbright Scholar and Emeritus Professor of History at the Australian National University. He has pioneered new forms of life writing, published widely on the culture of commemoration and the human cost of war, and is a major contributor to debates in social, labour and gender history.
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How old is the sordid Australian phenomenon of 'trial by media'?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with renowned biographer Patrick Mullins about federation era lawyer and politician Richard Meagher. A man who sold his soul and reputation, then spent decades desperately trying to claw them back. His story has remarkable parallels with the defamation cases and news sensations of today, revealing deep seated aspects of our national character that we may need to reckon with.
Patrick Mullins is a Canberra-based writer and academic who has a PhD from the University of Canberra. His first book, Tiberius with a Telephone, won the 2020 NSW Premier’s Non-Fiction Award and the 2020 National Biography Award. He is also the author of The Trials of Portnoy: how Penguin brought down Australia’s censorship system, and has just released The Stained Man: a crime, a scandal, and the making of a nation. Frank Bongiorno has dubbed Patrick ‘the most accomplished Australian biographer of his generation’.
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Why might your religious affiliation determine which political party you were likely to vote for?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Jeff Kildea to chart the rise and demise of the Catholic-Labor alliance. One of the defining features of Australian politics for much of the 20th century, it did much to shape our political history, reveal the limits of Australian pluralism, and ultimately entrench the electoral dominance of one Robert Menzies.
Dr Jeff Kildea is a retired barrister and honorary professor in Irish Studies at the University of New South Wales. In 2014 he held the Keith Cameron Chair of Australian History at University College Dublin. He has written extensively on the history of the Irish in Australia. His books include Tearing the Fabric: Sectarianism in Australia 1910-1925, Anzacs and Ireland, Wartime Australians: Billy Hughes, Hugh Mahon: Patriot, Pressman, Politician, and Leaving Home: Stories of my Emigrant Ancestors. With Richard Reid and Perry McIntyre, he co-authored To Foster an Irish Spirit: The Irish National Association of Australasia 1915-2015. His most recent book is Iron Law No More: The Rise and Demise of the Catholic-Labor Alliance in Australia.
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How can you capture Sir Robert's life and legacy in just two rooms?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Alex McDermott, the curator of the Robert Menzies's Institute's latest and greatest museum exhibit, about the process of distilling Menzies's story into a message of inspiration for a general audience. Giving them an appreciation of the man, his role in fostering the Australian way of life we all know and love, and their own place in 'the great procession' of our liberal democracy.
Alex McDermott is the Curator at the Robert Menzies Institute. An author, historian and Executive Producer, his passion is writing histories which tell the pivotal stories that help us understand how we came to be who we are today. He was Historical Curator for the “Democracy DNA” exhibition [2022] at the Museum of Australian Democracy, authored Australian History For Dummies [2022] and various commissioned histories which explore the crucial role played by civic associations in Australia’s democratic history, such as Of no personal influence: how people of common enterprise unexpectedly shaped Australia [2015] to mark the 175th anniversary of Australian Unity. Across more than two decades as public historian he has contributed his expertise to Screen Australia, State Library of Victoria, La Trobe University, the Institute of Public Affairs, Channel 7, SBS, ABC, Sky News Documentaries and many other organisations.
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Has the Southern Hemisphere always been viewed as the 'bottom' of the globe?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Rohan Howitt to explore how Antarctica shaped Australia's economic history and cultural imagination. As generations of politicians, explorers and entrepreneurs dreamed of turning Australia's southern frontier into an empire of our own.
Rohan Howitt is a lecturer in environmental history at Monash University. His research focuses on the interconnected histories of Australia, New Zealand, Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. His work has been published in leading scholarly journals such as Australian Historical Studies, History Compass, and The Journal of Global History. The Southern Frontier is his first book.
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How do we get high school students excited about Australian history?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Tania Ragusa to unpack why fewer and fewer high schools now teach Australian history at the year 11 & 12 level, and offer crucial insights as to what we can do to reverse the trend. Looking beyond simplistic culture war denunciations, to reveal how teachers are confronting real challenges in their quest to inform and inspire a new generation to embrace our nation's story and their own place within it.
Tania Ragusa is a History, English and Religion Teacher at Mercy College, Coburg. A school which recently ‘made the switch’ to teaching VCE Australian History.
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Does a well-developed 'sense of history' help provide people with a sense of purpose and wellbeing?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Sarah Irving-Stonebraker to unpack the causes and effects of the modern world's historical amnesia. Revealing how our 'ahistoric age' cuts individuals off from their roots, robs them of their place in a broader story, and may even be an unrecognised cause of many of our current anxieties.
Sarah Irving-Stonebraker is Associate Professor of History and Western Civilisation at Australian Catholic University in North Sydney, which is part of the Ramsay Centre’s Western Civilisation Program. She previously served as co-editor of the Journal of Religious History (2021-2024). She is the author of Natural Science and the Origins of the British Empire and Priests of History: Stewarding the Past in an Ahistoric Age.
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Are the destinies of English-speaking nations intrinsically linked?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Jesse Clark to dissect what the term 'Anglosphere' actually means. Debating the similarities and differences between the various English-speaking liberal democracies that have emerged from the Westminster tradition, how relevant the grouping remains, and what lays behind the populist political trend each is currently grappling with.
Dr Jesse Clark is an Australian political scientist based in Denver Colorado. He has a PhD from the University of Adelaide, for which his thesis explored ‘Network Homogenisation and Party Disengagement: The Political Sociology of Post-Industrial Democracies’. His recent research interest has been on developing a comparative history of Anglosphere political development.
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How would an Australian cope with being locked up in an Iranian prison?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with Kylie Moore-Gilbert about the conflict in Iran and her own personal experience with the Iranian regime. After 804 days in incarceration, she offers insights that few other Australians could imagine (or would want to imagine).
Kylie Moore-Gilbert is an Australia-based academic with a research background in Middle East political science. In 2022 she published a bestselling memoir titled The Uncaged Sky: My 804 Days in an Iranian Prison. She has written for local and international media including The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, The Saturday Paper, The Australian Financial Review, The National, iNews, CNN, Foreign Policy and The Atlantic, and have been profiled by outlets including The New York Times, 60 Minutes, Sky News and Australian Story. She campaigns for democracy and human rights in Iran, and advocates for other victims of state hostage-taking via the Australian Wrongful and Arbitrary Detention Alliance.
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What can you tell about a country through the words it invents?
On this week’s Afternoon Light Georgina Downer speaks with lexicographer Amanda Laugesen to tell Australia's story in 100 words. From bushmen to Sheilas, and larrikins to wowsers, it will change your perspective on the Australian language and make you appreciate the uniqueness of our culture.
Amanda Laugesen is a historian, lexicographer, and author. She is director of the Australian National Dictionary Centre at ANU and chief editor of the Australian National Dictionary: Australian words and their origins. She has published extensively on US and Australian history. Her most recent book is Australia in 100 Words (2024).
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