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Sydney Writers' Festival
Hosted by Sydney Writers' Festival · EN
Australia's largest celebration of literature, stories and ideas. Bringing together the world's best authors, leading public intellectuals, scientists, journalists and more. Subscribe to our channel for new releases.
14episodes
Episodes
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Florence Knapp: The Names
6d ago00:53:02Tap to summarize[Content warning: Family violence] Instant bestseller and “best debut novel in years” (The Sunday Times) starts in a literal and metaphorical storm. While registering her son’s birth, Cora faces a decision that could change his life: what will she name him? Her options – Bear, Julian or Gordon – each come with their own legacies, expectations and risks. In The Names, novelist Florence Knapp tells a powerful story of darkness and hope through three vastly different versions of a boy’s life. Explore the profound force of family with Florence, in conversation with ABC Radio National’s Claire Nichols (The Book Show). This episode was recorded live in May at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media: Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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David Szalay: Flesh
2w ago00:55:24Tap to summarizeIn a novel, the words on the page are our entrance into another’s mind. But sometimes it’s the space between the lines that define a character. In David Szalay’s 2025 Booker Prize–winning Flesh, István is caught between the boundaries of Hungary and England, his teenage years and adulthood, his body and sense of self and desire and indifference. With spare, propulsive prose, David paints an intimate portrait of a man slowly unravelling as he asks profound questions about the strangeness of being. Hear David trace the evolution of his singular novel and its protagonist, in conversation with Michelle de Kretser. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media: Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Lyse Doucet: The Finest Hotel in Kabul
3w ago00:58:34Tap to summarizeThe history of the Kabul Inter-Continental Hotel is the history of a nation. Built in 1969, it has stood through Soviet occupation, multiple coups, a civil war, a US invasion and waves of Taliban control. Legendary international war correspondent Lyse Doucet arrived at the ‘Inter-Con’ for the first time in 1988. The Finest Hotel in Kabul chronicles 40 years of visits, during which Lyse reported on events that made world news and formed intimate connections with the people of Kabul. Listen as Lyse reflects on the story of modern Afghanistan as told by its people, in conversation with Debbie Whitmont. This episode was recorded live at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media: Instagram: @sydwritersfest Facebook: @SydWritersFest TikTok: @sydwritersfest See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Mick Herron in Conversation
4w ago00:58:18Tap to summarizeIn the latest instalment of Mick Herron’s internationally bestselling series, palms are itching among Jackson Lamb’s cohort of misfit spies.A legendary former spy’s missing book, a state secret and some mischievous blackmail: which underhanded action will rock the carefully calibrated boat of Slough House? An instant Sunday Times bestseller and continuation of the adapted Apple TV+ series Slow Horses, Clown Town is a spy thriller with a witty twist and an unforgettable band of characters. Listen as Mick reveals details about the evolution of the Slough House thrillers and what comes next, in conversation with Michael Williams. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media: Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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2026 Program Announcement: Yumi Stynes and Ann Mossop
Mar 1000:42:19Tap to summarizeJoin Yumi Stynes and Artistic Director Ann Mossop as they discuss the 2026 Sydney Writers’ Festival program. The pair talk about the 2026 Festival theme, Show Me The Truth, and how fiction, poetry and creative writing and bring us closer to the truth. Unpack the program and get a glimpse behind the scenes of the Sydney Writers' Festival office. The 2026 Sydney Writers' Festival is out now. Head to our website to explore the program: https://www.swf.org.au/ Tickets on sale Saturday 14 March at 10am. Thank you to 2SER for facilitating the recording of this podcast.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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A.C. Grayling on Cancel Culture
Feb 2400:52:29Tap to summarize‘Cancel culture’ may seem like a 21st century invention sparked by contemporary politics and stoked by social media, sometimes with deadly consequences.However, as philosopher A.C. Grayling illustrates in Discriminations: Making Peace in the Culture Wars, disagreement and public shaming are ancient traditions. Learn how ‘cancel culture’ evolved and what effect it’s having on intellectual discourse. Festival favourite A.C. Grayling searches for a middle ground in an environment where everything is up for debate. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media:Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Ian Rankin: Master of Crime
Feb 1100:50:19Tap to summarizeDetective Inspector John Rebus first hit bookshelves in 1987 as a witty Scottish crime fighter but now the legendary detective is behind bars himself, living a literal locked-room mystery. Midnight and Blue is Ian Rankin at his tense and thrilling best, mixing the police procedural genre with a literary character study of his best-known detective and his home city of Edinburgh. Explore the latest instalment of the Inspector Rebus series and reflect on Ian’s bestselling career in crime writing, with television adaptations and translation into more than 20 languages. In conversation with Michael Williams. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media:Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Your Favourites’ Favourites: Michael Robotham and Chris Whitaker
Feb 400:54:32Tap to summarizeIn Your Favourites’ Favourites, our most loved writers introduce one of their favourite authors. Bestselling Australian crime writer Michael Robotham speaks with British crime novelist Chris Whitaker about his sensational new thriller, All the Colours of the Dark, described as a “must-read” by favourite thriller writer Gillian Flynn. Over decades, Saint Brown has been hunting the man who kidnapped her best friend, Joseph ‘Patch’ Macauley, when they were teens. Meanwhile, Patch is on his own hunt for a girl named Grace, who saved him in a dark room years ago. But his search turns to obsession with little evidence that Grace ever existed. Hear Michael and Chris discuss his unforgettable story, already in development for the screen. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media:Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Maggie O’Farrell: Portrait of a Writer
Dec 1600:55:36Tap to summarizeOver a masterful career spanning 10 novels, a memoir and various children’s books, Maggie O’Farrell has established herself as a modern literary monument. Her two latest novels, Hamnet, inspired by Shakespeare’s family, and The Marriage Portrait, set in 16th-century Italian court, represent a turn into historical fiction. The former won the UK’s Women’s Prize for Fiction, while the latter was shortlisted for it. In conversation with Kate Evans, Maggie teases out the details of her writing life, including her interest in the depth of women’s stories and the intricate intimacy of families, and the wild popularity of Hamnet. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media:Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Spies, Lies and Secrets
Dec 1200:55:49Tap to summarizeUndercover agents aren’t just the stuff of stories for writers Jack Beaumont and Ben Macintyre. A French intelligence officer turned spy thriller writer, Jack (Dark Arena) has all the insider knowledge to craft true-to-life operations in his novels. Ben (The Siege) is an espionage expert and he’s written the definitive account of the siege that put the SAS on the world stage. Hear these two connoisseurs of the clandestine share the truth behind the spy stories that thrill us. With Michael Williams. This episode was recorded live in May at the 2025 Sydney Writers’ Festival. If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and follow our channel. Sydney Writers’ Festival podcasts are available on all major podcast platforms. After more? Follow Sydney Writers’ Festival on social media:Instagram: @sydwritersfestFacebook: @SydWritersFestTikTok: @sydwritersfestSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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