20 Square Blocks

You know when you’ve had one of those nights, where in the early hours of the morning you find yourself pondering the big questions of life ... until it does your head in? Now imagine if your entire life was doing exactly that. I sat down with Ben Numquam a PHD candidate studying philosophy at federation University.

At the end of the show I mention the Podcast 'The Volume knob: The Songs that saved your life'. The host, Keith Serry', spoke to me about the song 'Pore Jud Is Dead' which was actually a song that nearly ended my life. Keith's podcast is a weekly exploration of personal storytelling through song and I hope you will have a listen and binge all of the episodes as I did. You can find it at volumeknob.net or search for 'The Volume Knob' on your favourite podcasting program.

Merv Romeo spent 16 years performing rock n’ roll Christmas carols on his front porch and became an icon of the Ballarat Christmas scene. I spoke to him about where the tradition came from, what it meant to locals and visitors alike and what it meant to him.

Gardens provide us many things - flowers, fruit, weeds and at certain points in our lives, free therapy. I spoke with Kim Nolan, a member of the Friends of the Ballarat Botanical Gardens about what the garden means to her and how, when we're at our most vulnerable, a beautiful garden can offer a peace and tranquility to help us to heal.

What happens when things start to go wrong -  all around you? I sat down with Chris and Lucy Frith and spoke about when they met, when they got married and how when things started to crumble, they  reevaluated and swivelled.

Moving from the UK to Australia in the mid 1960’s, an aspiring young drummer found himself living in Melbourne during the hey day of sharpies, rockers & mods. Geoff Hassall chatted to me about his love of music and what led to an unexpected yet possibly the most fulfilling chapter in his music career.

Ask anyone what Ballarat is known for and you’d probably hear gold, amazing architecture, freezing cold weather and pubs.

Torquil Neilson, a former film and tv actor, spoke to me about hanging up his actors hat, moving to Ballarat and opening an intimate bar 'The Comfort of Strangers' and how this decision changed his life.

http://thecomfortofstrangers.com

Katrina Hill is a talented performing artist, events manager, podcaster and registered celebrant. But more than that, as many of her friends can attest, Katrina is a truth seeker both on and off the stage.

Ghosts, Ned Kelly and Eureka are all a part of Dana Street Primary school’s history. I sat down with Paul Nolan, the former principal and asked him to tell us about his time there and what he learnt about it’s 160 year history. Find out about how, when locking up the school one night, he took a photograph of a ghost that scared the living daylights out of him and his teachers.

The Mechanics Institute's building in Ballarat, perhaps by design, has a feeling of exclusivity and although I walk past it almost every day, I never knew what went on inside. So one day I went in to find out.

Several months ago, before we were all locked down, I spoke with Trav Munro.  Trav is an inspirational youth educator, life coach and motivational speaker. In our conversation we explored his upbringing, his relationship with his father and his Rite of Passage program that he designed for Fathers and Sons.