2025 marks the 80th Anniversary of the end of World War II.

A year that reshaped the world and transformed Australia, 1945 was a tumultuous time that witnessed fierce fighting, celebrations of peace and the beginnings of a new world order. While the big three allies – Britain, America and the Soviet Union – would go on to challenge each other for supremacy in the post-war world, Australia emerged from the global conflict as a modernised but more complicated society, with altered attitudes towards politics, Empire and traditional roles both within and beyond the home.

In this episode, we are joined by Military Historian Brad Manera as he delves into the events and stories of this pivotal year and how they have shaped the world we live in 80 years on.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

When Alexander the Great conquered much of the known world, creating an empire that stretched from Greece all the way to India, he paved the way for the Hellenistic period.

Forged from Alexander’s empire, this unprecedented contact with cultures far and wide disseminated Greek art, architecture, literature and religious practises, and exposed Greek artistic styles to a host of new exotic influences. When Alexander died in 323 BC, he left this extensive conquered territory without a clear line of succession and his strongest generals divided it up into several vast kingdoms.

In this episode we are joined by Dr John Tidmarsh as he takes a closer look at this fascinating period and the profound impact it had on the Mediterranean world.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

Archaeologists have recently uncovered the ruins of an octagonal Armenian church dating back 1,700 years – making it one of the oldest such surviving monuments in the world. The church is located in Artaxata, once the site of a major commercial city that was the Kingdom of Armenia’s capital until the early 2nd century.

In this episode we are joined by Dr Mathew Dal Santo as he takes us on a journey through the layers of Armenia’s history, and uncovers more of this exciting discovery. Matthew is Associate Professor of Church History and Historical Theology at St Patrick’s Seminary University in Menlo Park, California.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

Johann Sebastian Bach was, besides being a famed organist, harpsichordist, violist and violinist, one of the most prolific and iconic composers of the Baroque Era.  Centuries after his death, Bach’s contribution to music remains immense, with subsequent generations of musicians of all genres channelling his innovative techniques.

In this episode, featuring musical excerpts of Bach's works, we are joined by musician, lecturer, and broadcaster Sandy Burnett as he follows Bach’s career to the city of Leipzig, where he wrote some of his most famous compositions.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

Frank Lloyd Wright is one of the most significant architects of the 20th century, and his career is deeply connected to that of Marion Mahony Griffin. A woman ahead of her time, Marion was one of the first licensed female architects in the world and was also Wright’s first employee. With a career spanning 50 years, she contributed as a designer to the development of the Prairie School which revolutionised American architecture, and to the dissemination of its ideas through her beautiful drawings.

In this episode we are joined by Canberra-based Heritage Consultant Rachel Jackson. Rachel delves into Marion’s life from her early years in Chicago all the way to her legacy in Australia’s capital with her architect husband Walter Burley Griffin.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

A bold reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s thrilling musical, Sunset Boulevard, made its Broadway premiere just last week and saw Nicole Scherzinger make her Broadway debut.

In this special episode on The Thinking Traveller, Academy Travel tour leader and host of the STAGES podcast, Peter Eyers interviews Theatre Choreographer and Movement Director Fabian Aloise.

Fabian's choreography has been critically acclaimed and garnered multiple nominations, including two Olivier Award nominations for Best Theatre Choreographer. Most recently, Fabian choreographed this revival of Sunset Blvd., as the show is titled, which has opened with high praise from critics and proved exciting to the dozens of celebrities who turned out for the premiere.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

A tiny speck in the Pacific, Norfolk Island has a fascinating past and occupies a unique position in the history of European settlement in Australia.

It is home to a turbulent and varied history, with new archaeological findings about the Island's first inhabitants through to the infamous Bounty mutineers and the relocated Pitcairners, the harsh penal settlement, the Island's Melanesian missionary society and also the vital role it played in the liberation of the Pacific in WWII.

In this episode we are joined by colonial and military historian Brad Manera. Taking us across to this quiet paradise, once reserved for 'the worst description of convicts', Brad delves into Norfolk Island’s fascinating past and the many famous (and infamous) identities who have shaped its culture.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

More than 80 years ago, the Fall of Singapore and the War in the Pacific touched almost all Australian households in some way. With Victory in the Pacific (VP) Day recently commemorated on August 15, we are joined by expert military historian Prof. Peter Stanley.

Peter is a prize-winning historian and author of more than 40 books, who spent 33 years working at the Australian War Memorial (where he was Principal Historian) and the National Museum of Australia (as the inaugural head of its Research Centre).

In this episode, Peter takes us on a journey through the invasion and occupation of Borneo and Singapore by the Japanese during the Second World War, and what we can expect to experience on a visit to these significant sites today.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

Hilary Mantel’s extraordinary Wolf Hall Trilogy ignited popular interest in the turbulent Tudor period of British history. Coupled with the BBC production of the first two novels, the highlighting of Thomas Cromwell’s rise and fall has brought a new understanding to the political upheavals that occurred during the eventful reign of Henry VIII.

With an adaptation of Mantel’s third book in the trilogy 'The Mirror & The Light' currently underway, we are joined by Dr Lauren Mackay. Lauren is a Tudor and Early Modern historian, and is the author of the official Wolf Hall Companion. In this episode, Lauren delves into the truths behind this blockbuster trilogy before revealing just where we might find remnants of Wolf Hall today.

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/

Everybody knows the story of Romeo and Juliet. They are arguably the most famous lovers in literature. Their story has been told and retold through countless interpretations, from classical Shakespearean tragedies to Stephen Sondheim's West Side Story! But what is the real story behind these star-crossed lovers?

Joining us for this episode is Dr Eireann Marshall, who herself lives not far from fair Verona. Eireann explains the truth behind the story of Romeo and Juliet as she uncovers if they were ever even real...

Academy Travel is a leading specialist in small-group cultural tours, allowing you to travel with like-minded companions and learn from internationally renowned experts. Like our podcast, our tours are designed to appeal to travellers with a strong interest in history, archaeology, architecture, the visual arts and the performing arts.

Learn more here - https://academytravel.com.au/