Nobody knows precisely where the game of cricket was born, but test cricket as we know it has been played for nearly 150 years. The so-called gentleman's game has not always been accessible to all - indeed the sport's development in the early years reflected prevailing attitudes to race, class and empire in the 19th Century. It's a sport full of marvels and contradictions, that continues to appeal to this day.

• Guest: Tim Wigmore, journalist and author of Test Cricket: A history

The Dalai Lama turns 90 on Sunday. Machinations have been underway for some time to anoint the Dalai Lama who will replace him. The Chinese Government wants to choose one who will serve their geopolitical interests, and the Dalai Lama and his supporters will choose their own 'reincarnated' Dalai Lama. So there will probably be two Dalai Lamas. Guest: Ruth Gamble, La Trobe University historian specialising in Tibet and the Himalayas. Producers: Ann Arnold and Jack Schmidt

Will Trump's 'big beautiful bill' pass by his preferred deadline of July 4th? And what will the Democratic party learn from the success of 33 year-old democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani, in New York's mayoral candidacy race?

• Guest: Bruce Shapiro, contributing editor with The Nation magazine; Executive Director of the Dart Centre for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University.  

Samuel Flinders was the de facto astronomer on Matthew Flinders' circumnavigation of Australia. But a family feud meant Samuel was never given due credit, for anything he did 

Guest: Richard de Grijs, Professor of Astrophysics, Macquarie University. Visiting Fellow at the State Library of NSW, researching Samuel Flinders 

Producer: Ann Arnold

The first female head of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, often known as MI6, will take the reins in a few months. The chief of the SIS is the only role that's made public. Blaise Metreweli is a mother and just 47 but a career intelligence officer who’s held very senior roles and risen up through the ranks. Judi Dench played MI6 chief in James Bond films for many years, so reality is catching up with fiction. Why now, what does this mean, and how has MI6 changed over time? 

• Guest: Dan Lomas - Assistant Professor, International Relations at the University of Nottingham. Soon to publish two books - a history of UK security vetting and a new history of the Secret Intelligence Service.  
• Producer: Sarah Allely

On the back of a monumental election victory, and with a thumping majority in the parliament, how will Prime Minister Albanese approach politics - both at home and with world leaders abroad?

• Guest: Tom McIlroy, Chief Political Correspondent, Guardian Australia

In the winter of 1900, Wiradjuri man Jimmy Governor and his brother Joe murdered nine people across New South Wales, in a rampage that caused panic in the colony on the cusp of nationhood. Apparently triggered by a racist incident, they killed men, women and children, evading a vast manhunt for months until they were finally captured. The story of the Governor brothers later inspired the popular book and later film The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith. Professor Katherine Biber re-animates this true crime story, using extensive archival research, as well as conversations with Governor descendants. 

• Guest: Professor Katherine Biber, author of The Last Outlaws: The Crimes of Jimmy & Joe Governor and the Birth of Modern Australia, Simon & Schuster

Some of the same countries that are in conflict right now are sitting in United Nations meetings together to discuss the future of outer space. Steven Freeland is charged with helping these warring nations find a common sense of purpose. Guest: Steven Freeland, Australian international lawyer and legal academic. Chair of legal aspects of resources working group of the UN's Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (UNCOPUOS)  Producer: Ann Arnold

Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku has led such a rich, full life already that her memoir only covers the first 26 years of her life - from 1949-1975.  And it’s a rollicking ride. 

The emeritus professor was the first Maori woman to get a doctorate from a New Zealand university. She later became first Maori woman professor. But that all happens later. This memoir charts her formative years, including her founding role in Gay and women’s liberation movements and also significant Maori activism.  

Among her many roles, Ngahuia's been professor of Māori Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, professor of research and development at Waikato University, and lecturer in art history at the University of Auckland – where she started her academic life as a student. 

Guest: Ngāhuia Te Awekōtuku -  emeritus professor and author of new memoir Hine Toa – A story of bravery  - winner of General Non-Fiction in Ockham NZ Book Awards 2025 

Producer: Sarah Allely

Emmanuel Macron, the 25th President of France - a liberal centrist - is in dire political straits at home. President since 2017, his current term will end in 2027.  Despite the domestic turmoil, Macron now stands as one of the longest-serving leaders in Europe, staunchly defending the EU, NATO and multilateralism in a time of global political turmoil. 

• Guest: Sophie Pedder, Paris Bureau Chief, The Economist