Club Sandwich

Epizodes

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  A Life of Good Food | Maggie Beer on Ageing With Purpose and Passion | Club Sandwich 16.09.2026 43min

  Maggie Beer, cook, author and founder of the Maggie Beer Foundation, joins Sarah Macdonald to talk about why food is one of the clearest signs of whether an aged care home is doing right by its residents. She shares her one-line test for touring a home, why older palates need more salt and sugar to taste properly, and why cooking with your ageing parent, not just for them, might matter more than the recipe itself.
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  She Was The Watchdog for the Sandwich Generation | Natalie Siegel-Brown, Former Inspector General for Aged Care | Club Sandwich 09.09.2026 42min

  Natalie Siegel-Brown is the former Inspector General of Aged Care — and, like so many of our listeners, she's also raising a child while supporting her own ageing parents. In this episode she unpacks wait times, co-payments, the contested assessment algorithm, and what Denmark, Singapore and even Thailand do differently — and what it would take to fix it here.
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  Having A Play: Trying New Things In Midlife | Indira Naidoo | Club Sandwich 02.09.2026 37min

  " I always find that there's part of me here, and there's another part of me swimming with the fish in the sea at the same time." In this episode, Indira Naidoo joins Sarah to talk about her new role with the  Sydney Theatre Company, spending time under her tree, and the importance of creativity in her life. They reflect on rediscovering play and creativity in midlife, the limits of journalism in changing narratives, and how crafts, gardening, and making art can calm anxiety and restore balance. Indira shares her approach to ageing as a natural cycle, prioritising presence and family time after years of night work, and learning from nature and finding joy.  Ageing parents? You've got them. We've got you.JOIN THE CLUB: Visit clubsandwich.community to join the tribe, access resources, and find our private Facebook community.SEND US YOUR QUESTION: [email protected] Meet the regular Clubbers:Melissa Reader — CEO of Vera and expert on Australia's ageing crisis.Jo Lamble — Clinical psychologist specialising in guilt and family dynamics.Dr Ginni Mansberg — GP and women's health advocate who tells it straight.Dr Stephanie Ward — Geriatrician helping you understand when "old" becomes a crisis.Kerry Milligan — Gogglebox star bringing humour and honesty to the sandwich generation. This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services — australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide. FACES (Families for Aged Care Equity and Support) is a family-led campaign asking for one honest count of the number of people waiting for their aged care funding and the people who die while they're waiting. Add your name at vera.guide/faces. Put The Kettle On — Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.auCredits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The Sandwich Years: Caring for Parents Before Crisis | Prue Bowden | Club Sandwich 26.08.2026 38min

  "I'm alright, sweetheart. No, I don't need help." Every one of us has heard it. Prue Bowden runs home care for 50,000 Australian families, which makes her the person everyone corners at parties to ask about a parent who won't accept a thing. Today, she's in the chair talking about what to actually do next.  Ageing parents? You've got them. We've got you. Content note: this episode covers ageing parents, dementia, hospital decline and loneliness. For support: Carer Gateway 1800 422 737. My Aged Care 1800 200 422 (myagedcare.gov.au). Dementia Australia's National Dementia Helpline 1800 100 500, 24/7 (dementia.org.au). Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7.JOIN THE CLUB: Visit clubsandwich.community to join the tribe, access resources, and find our private Facebook community.SEND US YOUR QUESTION: [email protected] In this episode:The Conversation: Prue Bowden, Group CEO of Home Health at Australian Unity, joins Sarah Macdonald to talk about what actually keeps a parent at home — starting with her own mum and dad, in their late seventies, still sailing and still walking the dog, and the conversations she and her sister are already having about flat landings and handrails. From there: the loneliness hiding inside "we want to keep her at home", now the banks have closed and the shopping has moved online; the eighteen-month-to-two-year wait for home care support and why you start the assessment before you think you need it; what care workers actually notice when they're in the house; why superannuation was designed to be spent; and what she'd say to a stretched, guilty listener, one carer to another. This Week's Hack: Start the assessment before you think you need it. The wait for home care support runs 18 months to two years, so the time to get on the list is while your mum or dad is still well and still saying they're fine. And if they won't hear it from you, get the GP on side — a clinician saying it often lands where a daughter saying it doesn't. Send this to: the sibling who keeps saying "she's fine, she'd tell us if she wasn't" — and anyone who's been told "I'm all right, sweetheart" one too many times. A moment that stays: Sarah tells Prue she's the doctor at the party — the one everyone corners about a bad back, except it's always a parent who won't accept help. Prue's parents, meanwhile, are in their late seventies and doing their weights. "Everyone's doing weights." Meet the regular Clubbers:Melissa Reader — CEO of Vera and expert on Australia's ageing crisis.Jo Lamble — Clinical psychologist specialising in guilt and family dynamics.Dr Ginni Mansberg — GP and women's health advocate who tells it straight.Dr Stephanie Ward — Geriatrician helping you understand when "old" becomes a crisis.Kerry Milligan — Gogglebox star bringing humour and honesty to the sandwich generation. About Prue Bowden: Group CEO, Home Health at Australian Unity, leading the team supporting around 50,000 home care customers around the country. Topics covered in this episode:- What to do when a parent refuses help, and when to accept that no means no- The loneliness that comes with ageing at home, and why it's rising alongside dementia- Preparing the family home early — flat landings, handrails, the flat way in- The 18-month to two-year wait for home care support, and starting the assessment early- What home care workers actually notice, and why they're the first to know- Superannuation, means testing, and the families caught in the middle- Staying at home with dementia, and why institutional care can't be the only answer- Lifespan versus healthspan, and why strength training in your seventies matters This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services — australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. With thanks to NSW Trustee and Guardian — search NSW Trustee and Guardian, or call 1300 10 20 30. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide. FACES (Families for Aged Care Equity and Support) is a family-led campaign asking for one honest count of the number of people waiting for their aged care funding and the people who die while they're waiting. Add your name at vera.guide/faces. Put The Kettle On — Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.auCredits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor, for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Reviewing the Sandwich Generation on TV | Kerry Milligan and Melissa Reader | Club Sandwich 23.08.2026 34min

  In this bonus episode, Sarah Macdonald is joined by Kerry Milligan and Melissa Reader to discuss representations of the sandwich generation on screen. Ageing parents? You've got them. We've got you. This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services — australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. With thanks to NSW Trustee and Guardian — search NSW Trustee and Guardian, or call 1300 10 20 30. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide. FACES (Families for Aged Care Equity and Support) is a family-led campaign asking for one honest count of the number of people waiting for their aged care funding and the people who die while they're waiting. Add your name at vera.guide/faces. Put The Kettle On — Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.auCredits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor, for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  "Grief Is A Wave" | Kerry Milligan: One Year After Emmie | Club Sandwich 19.08.2026 37min

  Everyone treats the first anniversary as a finish line. A year on from her mother Emmie's death, Kerry Milligan had the candle lit and the chats going and thought she was managing well — until a trip to Hobart with Sarah, a small plastic container of ashes and a wrong turn underneath an art gallery knocked her sideways. Kerry and Sarah Macdonald talk about grief as a wave rather than a staircase, the triggers nobody warns you about, and what happens when losing your mother swings you around to face your own mortality. Plus the question they asked Kerry at the emergency desk that she couldn't answer — and the ten seconds of admin that would have fixed it.
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  Grandpa in the Granny Flat | A 'Compass' Follow-Up with Janelle and Nicole | Club Sandwich 12.08.2026 34min

  Legendary ladies Janelle Adams and Nicole Bennett are looking after Janelle's 94-year-old dad Ernie, Ernie's dog Bella, and their two boys Max and Sam – all under one roof. They shared their story with Sarah on last Sunday's episode of Compass (available on ABC iView), and on today's episode of Club Sandwich, they join us with an update about how life has changed since Sarah visited them. For support: Carer Gateway 1800 422 737. Griefline 1300 845 745. Lifeline 13 11 14, 24/7. JOIN THE CLUB: Visit https://clubsandwich.community to join the conversation.SEND US YOUR QUESTION: [email protected] Meet the regular Clubbers:Melissa Reader — CEO of Vera and expert on Australia's ageing crisis.Jo Lamble — Clinical psychologist specialising in guilt and family dynamics.Dr Ginni Mansberg — GP and women's health advocate.Dr Stephanie Ward — Geriatrician helping you understand the ageing brain.Kerry Milligan — Gogglebox star bringing humour and honesty. Watch the Compass episode 'Sandwiched' on ABC iView: https://iview.abc.net.au/show/compass/series/40/video/RN2511H023S00 Put The Kettle On, Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.au. Our FACES campaign: Last year, 4,812 older Australians died waiting for the aged care they'd already been approved for, about 13 a day. Vera started FACES to count the people waiting, and count the ones we lose, every quarter, published. If you're sitting in that wait with your mum or dad right now, add your name at vera.guide/faces. This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services: australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. With thanks to NSW Trustee and Guardian. Search NSW Trustee and Guardian, or call 1300 10 20 30. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide.Credits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor, for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Stand Up. You Don't Have Time To Sit Down. | FACES with Melissa Reader | Club Sandwich 09.08.2026 10min

  Melissa Reader provides an update on Vera's FACES campaign.FACES (Families for Aged Care Equity and Support) is a family-led campaign asking for one honest count of the number of people waiting for their aged care funding and the people who die while they're waiting. Add your name at vera.guide/faces.Ageing parents? You've got them. We've got you. Put The Kettle On — Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.au This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services — australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. With thanks to NSW Trustee and Guardian — search NSW Trustee and Guardian, or call 1300 10 20 30. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide.Credits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor, for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Caring in Crisis: How An Expert On Ageing Got Toasted | Gohar Yazdabadi | Club Sandwich 05.08.2026 40min

  Gohar Yazdabadi found out she was a carer from a line in her dad's hospital discharge papers, not from anyone asking her. As CEO of Council on the Ageing (COTA) NSW, she'd spent her career around the aged care system. Then in the space of six months, she lost both her parents, her father to a brain tumour, her mother to ovarian cancer, while raising two young daughters and running a full-time advocacy organisation. She joins Sarah Macdonald to talk about the year-long wait for an approved home-care package, being refused compassionate-grounds after-school care, and the administrative burden that continues long after a parent dies. Also this week: Gohar features in an ABC Compass special on the sandwich generation, airing w/e 8–9 Aug. This is heavier than most episodes; content note for grief and terminal illness.
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  The Paperwork: Power of Attorney, Wills and Estates | Marie Brownell | Club Sandwich 29.07.2026 38min

  A will is only useful when you're dead, but the rest of the paperwork is critical long before that. Marie Brownell, Director of Estate Planning and Administration at NSW Trustee and Guardian, joins Sarah Macdonald to explain what a power of attorney, an enduring power of attorney, an enduring guardianship and a will actually do, and who needs each one.
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  Launching the FACES campaign | Melissa Reader | Club Sandwich 26.07.2026 8min

  Melissa Reader on the launch of Vera's new FACES campaign.FACES (Families for Aged Care Equity and Support) is a family-led campaign asking for one honest count of the number of people waiting for their aged care funding and the people who die while they're waiting. Add your name at vera.guide/faces.Ageing parents? You've got them. We've got you. Put The Kettle On — Vera's free conversation guide: the five questions worth asking your ageing mum or dad, at putthekettleon.com.au This episode was supported by Australian Unity, home health and care services — australianunity.com.au/clubsandwich. With thanks to NSW Trustee and Guardian — search NSW Trustee and Guardian, or call 1300 10 20 30. Vera is your candid companion as you care for an ageing parent. Have a look at https://vera.guide.Credits:Sarah Macdonald – Host + Executive ProducerMelissa Reader – Commissioning Editor, Executive Producer + ClubberJustin McArthur – Executive Producer + Editor, for P. Zinner Podcasts (https://pzinner.com.au)Thanks and kudos to Sean Wayland for our theme music Club Sandwich — hear more at https://seanwayland.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Kidults: When the Nest Doesn't Empty | Jo Lamble | Club Sandwich 22.07.2026 37min

  Your kid finished school years ago. They're 22, or 27, or 33. So why are you still doing their washing? Clinical psychologist Jo Lamble joins Sarah Macdonald for the layer of the sandwich generation nobody names: adult children still at home, or back home again. The fix isn't stricter rules, it's a mindset shift, treating them like a good flatmate instead of a child, plus the four-layer club sandwich (parents, yourself, adult kids, grandkids), and why we've got to advertise adulthood, not just survive it. Warm, funny, and useful. No heavy content warnings this week.
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  Young Kids, Old Parents: The Double Squeeze | Maggie Dent | Club Sandwich 15.07.2026 39min

  What do you do when your kids are still little and your parents are already old? Beloved parenting educator Maggie Dent joins Sarah Macdonald for the double squeeze — COVID's developmental hangovers, what's really under a tantrum, burnt chop syndrome and the 90-minutes-in-the-diary rule, giving little kids a real job in Grandpa's care, and why children need the real words for death. Warm, wise and very funny. Content note: discusses death and dying, children's grief and dementia.
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  Divorce, Grief, and a Coven of Witches | Katie Noonan | Club Sandwich 08.07.2026 37min

  What happens when your marriage ends in the exact season your parent needs you most? Five-time ARIA Award winner Katie Noonan joins Sarah Macdonald to talk about divorce in the sandwich years — the end of her 26-year marriage, losing her dad in the same chapter, holding her family steady, and turning all of it into her new album Alone But All One. Honest, warm and full of hope for anyone starting again in the middle. Content note: discusses separation, grief and the death of a parent.
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  After the Diagnosis: Caring for a Parent with Dementia | Dr Stephanie Ward | Club Sandwich | Dr Stephanie Ward | Club Sandwich 01.07.2026 40min

  The same conversation, again and again. The strange ideas. The day they don't know your face. In part two of our dementia special, geriatrician and regular Clubber Dr Stephanie Ward joins Sarah Macdonald for the harder half — how you cope when a parent is becoming someone else, therapeutic fibbing, aggression and your own safety, and why a held hand still counts even when they forget the visit. Content note: discusses advanced dementia, carer grief and changed behaviour.
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  Forgetful, or Something More? Dementia, Delirium or Normal Ageing | Dr Stephanie Ward | Club Sandwich 24.06.2026 39min

  You walk into a room and forget why — is that it, or is it ageing? In part one of our two-part dementia special, geriatrician and regular Clubber Dr Stephanie Ward helps Sarah Macdonald untangle normal forgetting from dementia from delirium: the real early signs, why around one in five memory worries turn out to be something treatable, and what to do next. Content note: discusses dementia, memory loss and caring for an unwell parent.
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  Tender Conversations | Live with Dr Kathryn Mannix | Club Sandwich 17.06.2026 1h 5min

  "Most of us have a conversation we're avoiding." Recorded live at our Stay For Supper evening in Sydney, Sarah Macdonald sits down with palliative care physician Dr Kathryn Mannix (With the End in Mind, Listen) for a warm, funny, honest hour on the talks we keep putting off with our ageing parents – and why they're tender, not difficult. The questions that actually work, and the secret ingredient: being quiet. Content note: discusses serious illness, dying and grief.
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  Human Forever | The man who moved into a dementia ward, with Teun Toebes | Club Sandwich 10.06.2026 38min

  At 21, Teun Toebes moved into the locked dementia ward of a nursing home and stayed three and a half years. Sarah Macdonald meets Club Sandwich's youngest ever guest on his first day in Australia to talk about what living alongside 130 housemates with dementia taught him: that we don't lack beds or money, we lack humanity. It's practical, hopeful and quietly radical, and it will change the way you visit.
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  One text away from falling apart | Bianca Dye on caring for a parent with dementia | Club Sandwich 03.06.2026 36min

  "I can't human for two." Broadcaster Bianca Dye joins Sarah Macdonald to talk about caring solo for her 81-year-old mum, who has dementia — with no kids and no siblings to share it. Why you don't need children to be in the sandwich generation, how friends become family, the hack of choosing kind over right, and the hardest part: loving a mum who wasn't always there. Content note: includes discussion of dementia and suicidal thoughts. Support: Lifeline 13 11 14, Dementia Australia 1800 100 500.
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  Driving Us Crazy | Taking The Keys with Dr Joanne Bennett | Club Sandwich 27.05.2026 34min

  "They say they're fine. You can see they're not." Sarah Macdonald sits down with Dr Joanne Bennett to unpack one of the hardest conversations in the sandwich generation – getting an ageing parent off the road. Why license loss is grief, when to "dob them in," and how to help your parent thrive without driving.