Dean Laws was in his 50s when doctors told him he had Parkinson's disease. For a time, he was devastated. Then he formed a running crew with his friends called 'The Dean Team', and made a plan to run the Sydney Marathon

Some years ago, Karin Bäumler found herself in a fight for her life after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer. In the thick of it all, making music was a refuge

Amar Singh's sense of belonging to Australia has only grown since he leant into his Sikh faith, growing out his beard and his hair, wearing a turban and committing himself to the service of his entire community

Voyager frontman Danny Estrin on his unconventional path from heavy metal to law and the Eurovision grand final 

Former top Detective Deb Wallace with ingenious and surprising stories from her working life smashing criminal gangs in Sydney

For 25 years Sandy wondered what became of the little yellow dinghy he left in Romania, after a months-long voyage from the UK. Could it still be waiting for him the marshes of the Danube Delta, ready for another adventure?

Melissa Lucashenko was a motorcycle detailer, a house painter, a prison advocate, and a game show contestant before finding her way as a writer

The actor and author thinks that nowhere in the world is the English language more poetic, colourful and persuasive than here in Australia

William McInnes is a much-loved Australian actor and an author, whose books often recall his childhood in Queensland.

It was there, in Redcliffe, that William became fluent in the peculiar, funny and colourful words and phrases unique to Australian English.

Over the years, he's continued to collect them to celebrate how much they say about who we really are.

To binge even more great episodes of the ‘Conversations podcast’ with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.

Further information

Yeah Nah: A celebration of life and the words that make us who we are is published by Hatchette

Alecia Simmonds with tales from a time in Australia's legal history when the jilted and broken-hearted could sue for redress in the courts 

Tom Holland on the glories, bloodshed and barbarianism of the golden days of the Roman Empire