Saturday Extra - Full program podcast

Episoder

• Andy Burnham gets ready to lead the UK 18.07.2026 1t 16min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Fairness and Viking joy at the World Cup 11.07.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Power and popularity: Narendra Modi's Australian visit 04.07.2026 1t 15min

  The early morning heartbreak for Australia and that penalty shoot-out in Dallas where the Egyptians came out on top. A conversation with one of India's leading historians, Ramachandra Guha, on the power and popularity of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who visits Australia this week. And as America prepares to mark Independence Day — the 4th of July, we criss-cross the country, from Donald Trump's Great American State Fair to the town of Normal in Illinois, to an attempt at getting Dolly Parton on the show.   
• Is Andy Burnham ready for the UK's top job? 27.06.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• UK PM under pressure from Labour MPs 20.06.2026 1t 15min

  The likely leadership challenge in the UK.  America at 250: What is the significance of Independence Day for Indigenous Americans?  The latest on the Iran US negotiations. Pauline Hanson's speech at the National Press Club in Canberra and her hostile relationship with the media. And heartbreak for the Socceroos: what went wrong?
• Ken Burns on the lessons of America's violent past 13.06.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• A diplomatic win for Australia in the Pacific? 06.06.2026 1t 17min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Trump considers tentative US-Iran deal 30.05.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Landmark new home in the NT offers hope for remote Aboriginal communities 23.05.2026 1t 15min

  The power politics of the summit between Presidents Xi and Putin — how did it compare to Trump's visit?
• The symbolism and substance of the Trump Xi summit 16.05.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• As Reform UK surges in local council elections, will Farrer elect One Nation? 09.05.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.  
• Anthony Albanese on navigating global and political turbulence 02.05.2026 1t 14min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• The US and Iran continue their 'diplomatic dance' 25.04.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• US and Iran show signs of compromise 18.04.2026 1t 14min

  The latest on the Middle East and the clearest sign yet of a breakthrough between Washington and Tehran  -  David Rennie, the Geopolitics Editor at The Economist, and Professor David Kilcullen, one of Australia's leading military thinkers, unpack the overnight announcements and meetings. Author and journalist Katherine Stewart looks at the feud between Donald Trump and Pope Leo, and whether it points to something bigger: The fraying of MAGA? Jill Sheppard joins the show to discuss a new book, Landslide: The 2025 Federal Election. Australian journalist Cheng Lei talks about recreating her three years in Chinese detention as a live stage show at Melbourne Arts House.  And nearly 200 people, including renowned Australian artist Lucy Culliton are painting outside this weekend as part of the first ever Art Prize in the country town of Bombala.
• Iran-US peace talks face steep obstacles 11.04.2026 1t 15min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• What did the Gulf states make of Trump's prime time address? 04.04.2026 1t 15min

  As a search and rescue mission is underway for a crew member from a US fighter jet that was downed in southern Iran, Gregg Carlstrom, the Middle East Correspondent for The Economist, joins Saturday Extra with the latest news from the region. To the stars and the Artemis moon mission with Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. David McCloskey, the co-host of podcast THE REST IS CLASSIFIED takes us into the world of his fourth novel, The Persian. The Queensland outback town of Winton becomes an official Dark Sky Place making it one of the best places on earth to star gaze. Eurovision is expanding into Asia, and the power of Bach's St John Passion this Easter weekend.  
• What would it take to end the Iran war? 28.03.2026 1t 14min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Thousands more US Marines head to Middle East as conflict escalates 21.03.2026 1t 14min

  The Pentagon is sending more US Marines to the Middle East as the war with Iran escalates and widens  -  Professor Robert Pape explains how the US is falling into an "escalation trap". Economist Stephen Koukoulas on how the oil shock is hitting the Australian economy and whether the government may use the crisis to bring forward economic reform. Andrew Day from The American Conservative, on how the decision to go to war is dividing President Trump's MAGA support base.  How weight loss drugs are changing the world and might they become available to adolescents? Plus the ABC's Annabel Crabb on the South Australian election.
• Who's winning the war in the Middle East? 14.03.2026 1t 14min

  Understand Australia and the world with Nick Bryant.
• Trump demands Iran's 'unconditional surrender' 07.03.2026 1t 15min

  Yalda Hakim joins Nick Bryant from Qatar, as Iran continues strikes against Gulf states. Ed Luce, from the Financial Times discusses  how Donald Trump has moved from a "peacemaker" to the pursuit of Iranian regime change. The discovery of a possum and a glider in the forests of West Papua that were thought to be extinct with Professor Tim Flannery.  Magda Szubanski reflects on the life of Ted Emery, a much loved comedy director who died this week who was behind many Australian hit shows, such as Kath and Kim. Plus, Rick Ardon and Susannah Carr - the world's longest-serving television news anchor duo from Perth in Western Australia.