London’s exclusive clubs date back hundreds of years and many a secret has been shared in them, from exclusive business deals to plots destined to unseat Prime Ministers. Now there is a comprehensive guide to what lies within, and how the former gambling dens for white male aristocrats are adapting to bring in new wheelers, dealers and those who just want to be seen. 

• GUEST: Dr Seth Alexander Thévoz, historian and author of London Clubland: A Companion for the Curious, published by Hachette 
• PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer

Japan has marked 80 years since the Americans dropped “Little Boy” on the city of Hiroshima which killed 80,000 and changed global power dynamics forever. Nuclear expert Ankit Panda says we have entered a new threat level, and policies of nuclear deterrence are no longer enough to deal with the increasing prospect of nuclear escalation.

• GUEST: Ankit Panda, Stanton Senior Fellow in the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and author of The New Nuclear Age: At the Precipice of Armageddon, published by Polity. 
• PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer

*This program first appeared on 12 March 2025

Australia recently lifted biosecurity import controls placed on US beef that have been in place since a 'mad cow' disease outbreak in the US in 2003. Mad cow disease (bovine spongiform encephalopathy) was first detected in the south of England 40 years ago. 4 million cattle were slaughtered, and 178 people died in the ensuing years. Today, the global trade of beef and livestock remains a source of risk and anxiety. 

• Guest: Professor Matthew Baylis, chair of veterinary epidemiology at Liverpool University
• Producer: Ali Benton  

A fragile ceasefire is holding after the most violent border clashes in more than a decade between Thailand and Cambodia. What is the source of these long-held tensions and is there a pathway to lasting peace? 

• Guest: Sebastian Strangio, Southeast Asia editor at The Diplomat
• Producer: Ali Benton

Ian Dunt looks at the backlash to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer's intention to recognise Palestine if it meets certain conditions, with President Donald Trump and Reform leader Nigel Farage saying the move will simply reward Hamas, while others say he hasn't gone far enough to stop the atrocities happening in Gaza. 

• GUEST: Ian Dunt, columnist with i-news; co-host of the Origin Story podcast
• PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer 

US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff heads to Russia next week for talks with Putin ahead of Trump’s new ceasefire deadline. Meanwhile Ukraine’s government has been embroiled in another corruption scandal and the EU has withheld vital funds due to Ukraine’s failure to meet governance reform benchmarks. 

• GUEST: Anne Applebaum, staff writer at The Atlantic, historian and author of Autocracy inc; the dictators who want to run the world
• PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer

Politicians seem to be changing their tune after more than 90,000 people marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to protest Israel's treatment of Palestinians and demand a ceasefire, despite the NSW government's attempts to stop it. So what are the lessons for political parties from the march?

• GUEST: Annabel Crabb, ABC writer and political commentator
• PRODUCER: Catherine Zengerer

After nearly ten years, Late Night Live has changed its theme music. Composer Elena Kats-Chernin, responsible for previous Late Night Live themes Russian Rag and Eliza Aria, joins David Marr to play some of the show's old music on the grand piano, and introduce our new theme: Chatterbox Rag. 

• Guest: Elena Kats-Chernin, composer and pianist
• Sound engineer: Emrys Cronin

It is little known that when the Titanic, the biggest ocean liner on the seas, sank in 1912, there were eight Chinese passengers on board. Six of them survived. Their story - of survival, and how they were pilloried afterwards - has now been told. Guest: Steven Schwankert, author and documentary maker, Sinophile. Book ‘The Six: the untold story of Titanic’s Chinese survivors’ (The History Press)  Producer: Ann Arnold

Drone warfare and AI are outsmarting traditional large scale military systems. Ukraine and Israel are deploying the new technologies to the greatest effect. They are showing us the future of war.

Guest: Dexter Filkins,  a New Yorker staff writer covering global conflicts and foreign policy. Article  Producer: Ann Arnold