In this extra special crossover episode, Julia is joined by Sophie Gee, co-host of The Secret Life of Books podcast, for a joyful conversation celebrating their shared love of books and reading.

Julia and Sophie compare notes on hosting book podcasts, share their lifelong love of literature, and reflect on their experiences chairing two of the world's leading literary prizes for women and non-binary writers – the Women's Prize for Fiction and the Stella Prize.

Sophie is a Professor of English at Princeton University, author of The Scandal of the Season, Chair of the 2026 Stella Prize judging panel and of course, hosts The Secret Life of Books, alongside her co-host, Jonty Claypole.

Show notes

If you enjoyed this conversation, you can find The Secret Life of Books, hosted by Sophie Gee and Jonty Claypole, wherever you get your podcasts.

Julia and Sophie reflect on this year's Women's Prize for Fiction and Stella Prize, celebrating outstanding books by women and non-binary writers. You can explore the 2026 Stella Prize shortlist here: https://stella.org.au/the-stella-prize-2026-shortlist/ and find out more about the Women's Prize for Fiction here: https://womensprize.com/.

They also discuss this year's winning titles: The Correspondent by Virginia Evans, winner of the Women's Prize for Fiction, and Cannon by Lee Lai, the first graphic novel to win the Stella Prize. Find out more about The Correspondent here: https://womensprize.com/library/the-correspondent/ and Cannon here: https://stella.org.au/the-stella-prize-2026-winner/.

The episode also explores the future of reading in the age of AI, including trends in reading for pleasure in Australia. You can read more in Creative Australia's latest National Arts Participation Survey here: https://australiareads.org.au/news/naps-2025/.

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In this month’s episode of Julia’s Book Club, Julia Gillard and Sarah Holland-Batt discuss a truly iconic novel that became a cultural phenomenon, The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood.

First published in 1985, the story follows Offred, a woman who has been assigned as a Handmaid to a household in the Republic of Gilead, a religious totalitarian state that has overthrown the United States government amidst environmental catastrophe, political instability and declining birth rates. Offred’s sole function is to produce children. 

Julia and Sarah discuss why this book has continuously resonated with readers over the four decades since it was released. 

They also delve into its wider cultural impact, through the hugely successful television series starring Elizabeth Moss and at present day political protests.

Show notes:

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood is available online and at all good bookstores. 

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In a special live recording from the 2026 Women Deliver conference in Melbourne, Julia Gillard interviews Australia’s eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman-Grant. 

Julie began her career working in Washington at the dawn of the digital age, and went on to work for Microsoft, Twitter and Adobe.

Over time she became increasingly concerned about what technology companies could do to keep people safe, and what they were actually doing.

Now, as Australia’s eSafety Commissioner, she’s working to close that gap by leading world-first efforts to regulate social media, protect children online, and hold some of the world’s most powerful companies to account.

Show notes:

To learn more about the work of the eSafety Commission visit https://www.esafety.gov.au/

To learn more about Women Deliver visit https://womendeliver.org/

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In this month’s episode of Julia’s Book Club, Julia Gillard and Kathy Lette discuss Yesteryear, the hit debut novel from Caro Claire Burke.

Yesteryear follows Natalie - a wife and mother living on a ranch in Idaho and promoting a traditional lifestyle to her many millions of followers on social media. One day Natalie wakes up in a strange version of reality, where her home and family look similar but different.

What follows is a fascinating examination of tradition, fame, faith and the performative way so many of us live our lives. 

Julia and Kathy discuss how the book delves into some of the biggest issues facing our world today, the real life phenomenon of ‘tradwives’ on social media, and how well they each thought the twists and turns of the book played out. 

Show notes: 

Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke is published by Harper Collins and is available in all good bookstores.

To learn more about the tradwives research at the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership visit https://www.kcl.ac.uk/giwl/assets/giwl-tradwife-report.pdf

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In this special episode recorded live at the 2026 Hay Festival in Wales, Julia Gillard sits down with Thangam Debbonaire to discuss their roles as judges for this year’s Women Prize.

Julia is chairing the judging panel for the Women's Prize for Fiction, while Thangam is the chair of judges for the Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction.

In this entertaining conversation the pair take listeners behind the scenes of judging one of the world’s most prestigious literary prizes. 

The prizes are awarded annually to a female author of any nationality for the best novel and non-fiction book of the year written in English and published in the UK.

Julia and Thangam talk about the rigours of reading dozens of books in a short time frame, heated debates amongst judges and the exceptional books on each shortlist. 

The winners will be announced in London on June 11.

Show notes: 

To learn more about the Women’s Prize and the books on the long and shortlists visit https://womensprize.com/

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In this very special episode of Julia’s Book Club, Julia Gillard and Sarah Holland-Batt discuss the work that inspired the name of this podcast.

Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own was originally delivered as two lectures at Girton College, Cambridge almost a hundred years ago.

Despite the passage of time many of the themes and ideas Woolf explores in this short but weighty book remain startlingly relevant today. 

Julia and Sarah discuss what has and hasn't changed for women since the 1920s, the evolution of women's writing and Virginia Woolf herself.

Content warning: this book and episode includes themes of mental illness, sexual abuse and suicide. Please take care while listening and if you need help or information please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit https://www.lifeline.org.au/

Show notes: A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf is published by Penguin Australia and is available at all good bookstores.

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Former AFLW player and gender equality advocate Akec Makur Chuot has lived an extraordinary life.

Born in South Sudan, she spent her early years in a refugee camp in Kenya before moving to Australia at age 11. She went on to become the first African woman drafted into the inaugural season of the AFLW, the national professional league for women’s Aussie rules football, helping to shape the game from the very beginning.

In this episode, Julia Gillard and Akec discuss her journey to Australia, how football became a bridge to belonging, and the responsibility of being a trailblazer in women’s sport.

They also explore her advocacy work beyond the field, including raising awareness of child marriage, supporting girls’ education, and using her platform to speak about the experiences of refugee communities.

Show notes

In this episode, we discuss Akec’s work with the 1,000 Girls World Vision campaign and her role as a Gender Equality Ambassador for Plan International. You can find out more about this work using the links below:

• https://www.worldvision.com.au/sponsor-a-child/1000-girls
• https://www.plan.org.au/our-work/

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In the first Book Club episode of 2026 Julia Gillard and Kathy Lette delve into The Names, the hit debut novel by British author Florence Knapp.

The story begins in 1987 when a woman named Cora arrives at the registry office for what at first glance seems like a simple task: naming her newborn son. But for Cora it is a deeply complicated decision. Her husband expects her to follow family tradition and name him Gordon; she likes the name Julian; and her young daughter thinks her baby brother should be called Bear.

The story unfolds in three alternate narratives, each based on the name Cora chooses. Spanning 35 years, the book begs the age old question - what's in a name?

Julia and Kathy discuss the book's unique structure, generational trauma and their own sliding door moments.

Content warning: this book and discussion includes themes of physical and emotional abuse. Please be mindful of that and take care while listening today. If you need help or information please call 1800RESPECT or visit www.1800respect.org.au

Show notes:

See What You Made Me Do by Jess Hill is published by Black Inc Books https://www.blackincbooks.com.au/books/see-what-you-made-me-do-0

To learn more about the research discussed by Kathy and Julia please visit these sites:

https://www.unimelb.edu.au/newsroom/news/2024/july/radical-anti-feminism-the-most-prevalent-form-of-violent-extremism-in-australia,-report-finds

https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/almost-a-third-of-gen-z-men-agree-a-wife-should-obey-her-husband

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In this special episode recorded live at the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London, Julia Gillard interviews author and broadcaster Caitlin Moran.

They delve into her hippy childhood, how she found her voice, the future of feminism and her book What About Men.

The event also launched the latest GIWL research into global attitudes towards gender equality, produced in conjunction with IPSOS UK. 

Julia and Caitlin are joined by Kelly Beaver, the Chief Executive of IPSOS UK and Ireland, for a fascinating discussion about the research findings, which highlight the growing generational divide in attitudes toward gender roles and the gap between personal beliefs and perceived social expectation.

Show notes:

Caitlin Moran’s books including What About Men are published by Penguin and are available in all good bookstores.

You can learn more about the GIWL/IPSOS UK research here: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/news/almost-a-third-of-gen-z-men-agree-a-wife-should-obey-her-husband

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To kick off our new season, Julia sits down with award-winning playwright and former criminal defence lawyer Suzie Miller.

Suzie’s work sits at the intersection of law, storytelling and social change. Before becoming one of the most influential voices in contemporary theatre, she spent years working inside the justice system as a criminal defence lawyer – an experience that would later shape many of her plays.

She is best known for her groundbreaking play Prima Facie, a one-woman production that premiered in Sydney before becoming a global phenomenon on the West End and Broadway. The play won major international awards and sparked powerful conversations about sexual assault, consent and the limits of the legal system.

In this conversation, Suzie reflects on her journey from the courtroom to the theatre, the responsibility of artists to engage with difficult truths, and why storytelling can sometimes shift public thinking in ways that policy and law cannot. She also discusses her latest play, Inter Alia, which continues her exploration of justice and power through a new lens — masculinity, parenting and accountability.

Together, Julia and Suzie discuss the power of theatre to challenge the justice system, shift public debate and spark cultural change.

This is a deep and wide-ranging discussion that touches on difficult topics, including rape, sexual assault and consent. We encourage listeners to be mindful of this before listening and to take care if these topics are difficult for them.

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