Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Days Like These

Hospitality became a refuge for Jess after the trauma of their childhood. But despite the ostensibly powerful position they find themselves in - calling the shots on the door of Melbourne’s trendiest restaurant - they soon realise this refuge is toxic too. 

It’s a recognisable sound for those who frequent inner Sydney: the 75 year old Chinese Australian restaurateur is known for playing his beloved instrument during work hours, wowing crowds of customers over freshly steamed dumplings.

It’s 1999, and the last Christmas of the century is fast approaching. Geoff Law gets a call from Bob Brown that sends him on a tall task: to decorate the world’s tallest Christmas tree.

Russell Cheek spent his thirties touring Australia in the beloved performance group, The Castanet Club. He poured himself into the art and the lifestyle. For him, the band was his life, there was no Plan B. So, when The Castanets breaks up, he finds himself middle aged, broke and at a creative loose end. His solution: he writes away to Sale of the Century. But does he have what it takes to win eight nights in a row — and take home the jackpot?

A big thanks to NBN Newcastle and Fremantle Australia for providing access to some of the archival audio in this episode. Archival audio is used courtesy of Fremantle Australia.

Guts. Justice. Surprise families. Playing Elton John’s piano. Deep disappointment. Risking it all on a gameshow. Danger on the high seas and low roads. Perseverance. Hope for the future. 

Days Like These is BACK and things are wilder than ever before.

Russell is staking everything on winning Sale of the Century. Taylah has a fire in her belly that only justice can quench. And Jennifer? She’s just trying to find out why someone would paint a portrait of her without asking and stick it on a gallery wall. 

New episodes every Wednesday from April 28, 2021.

The Days Like These team is off whipping up more wild and wonderful true stories for your listening pleasure.

A boyhood visit to the dentist turns Tim Rogers into a lifelong fan of The Rolling Stones. But when the Aussie musician's dream comes true and his band is picked to support the bad boys of rock'n'roll, an inside joke aimed at his idols threatens to tip the whole relationship off the rails.

If someone told you they could hear their own eyeballs moving, their blood pumping through their veins and their voice echoing inside their own head would you believe them? Get ready to go inside the minds of two young women struggling with all those symptoms and one of the world's most disturbing medical conditions. Prepare for a sonic trip of swerves you never saw coming as we take you inside the operating theatre for a world-first procedure to try and fix the syndrome.

In the rough-as-guts Bondi breaks of the 1980s, rising surf star Pauline Menczer was one of the only women in the water. And, boy, did she pay for it. Hot on the heels of her idol Jodie Cooper, both women discover it's not only big waves that can wipe you out. When they finally face each other in the water, they also take on the conservative, sexist world of professional surfing… and change it forever.

When Marisa and Peter Skillen set off with their kids for their first family camping trip, they're expecting a peaceful couple of days among the gum trees. But when one of their young twins slips away with only his bumblebee backpack, their dream weekend turns into a living nightmare as they desperately scour the bush to find him before it's too late.

When a young Jenna Holmes discovers the magic of The Oprah Winfrey Show while channel surfing one afternoon, it cracks open a whole new way of thinking for the Toowoomba schoolkid.  The undisputed master of daytime TV becomes Jenna’s guide for life. 

Chutzpah, visualisation, Celin Dion’s legs... the education Jenna’s getting is a little different to the other nine-year-olds.  

Can Jenna use what she’s learned to realise her dream of meeting Oprah in person? 

During a renovation in Canberra, a World War II dog tag is found in a pile of rubble. This discovery sets off a remarkable chain of coincidence, synchronicity and luck, bringing together families whose long-dead loved ones shared a journey of survival through some of the war's most notorious chapters.

Havi watches from the car as the Rabbi holds a cloth up to the sunlight, peering at it for answers. It's a moment that will change her life forever... and set her on a new path beyond the stringent framework of the Orthodox Judaism she grew up in... where a complex system of rules shapes every aspect of life, from cradle to grave.

Growing up, AJ Lamarque was always just ‘one of the girls’. But in his twenties, he inadvertently joined a very big, very American college fraternity. Strangely enough, this crash course in male friendship — in the strangest of settings — taught him a great lesson.

Grainne goes to school in 1980s Dublin when it's all nuns and compulsory Irish Gaelic. Not a good place to be dyslexic, especially if you've never heard the word "dyslexia" let alone understand its meaning. Grainne's dream is to be zoologist and to get there she uproots to Australia. Her challenges follow her here, but a developing love of magpies and other native birds helps Grainne find her own voice and, eventually, the people who appreciate her unique read on the world.

Rupert's beloved bike is stolen from his work garage. Stricken and desperate to see it returned, he's put in touch with an obsessive ex-cop who's made it his personal mission to fight bike crime. Working with a motley crew of bike lovers and justice seekers, they'll stop at nothing to get it back.

Bill Edgar is a private investigator from Australia's Gold Coast who's become know internationally as "The Coffin Confessor". His popularity soared when his very strange side hustle hit headlines all over the world. Bill says the deceased pay him (before they die) to rock up at their funerals and deliver previously-unsaid "truth bombs" to loved ones. But, what the media blitz about Bill Edgar didn't uncover was the secret he's been keeping all of his life — until now.

Carefree and dancing on the podium at a Perth nightclub, aspiring actress/comedian Nikki Britton spies a strapping man with a prominent tongue ring. It's lust at first sight, quickly morphing into a whirlwind romance... then a long-distance relationship. But when her dashing courtier invites her to uproot her life to be with him, Nikki's hit by a curveball that will change her... and provide a lifetime of standup material.

Mesmerised by the hard-headed glamour of bikie culture, the son of Afghan refugees finds brotherhood in an outlaw motorcycle club. But when death strikes twice close to Mahmood Fazal, he’s forced to confront his own mortality. Will he be allowed to cut the ties that bind him to Melbourne’s underworld? 

"Stephen saved us." Those words transport us from a glittering harbourside wedding to the grime-filled depths of internet dating. It's time to peek inside the heady and secretive world of the professional wedding celebrant, where random acts of kindness can (and will) change your life.

It's a hot jolt of dread in your stomach, the cold sweat breaking out on your palms. You're watching the clouds cruise by from the cabin of the plane when turbulence hits. Usually, it's short-lived. You tell yourself 'everything will be okay'. But British Airways Flight 09 was far from usual. For the passengers and crew aboard, that one terrifying moment would stretch out into the longest 12 minutes of their lives.

Imagine you spend your whole life searching for the elusive, perfect fiery opal. And then, one day, you realise you're holding — literally in the palm of your sweaty hand — a glittering prize of a gem that burns with a secret that could unlock the history of the Australian continent. Welcome to the crazy world of opal mining at Lightning Ridge, NSW, where fossicker Mike Poben is facing a choice that will change his life forever.

Conspiracy theorists are easy to laugh at, right? Well, yeah, until it's your loved one spewing out those convoluted and plainly BS beliefs at the family dinner. This is exactly what happened to Kasey when her mum disappeared down some deep QAnon rabbit holes. It's been devastating for her family. FaceTime with gran is likely cancelled this Christmas.

Will rock god Jon Toogood surrender? Or will the Shihad singer keep fighting his fate? Jon built a career as frontman for the New Zealand band Shihad, infusing stadium-sized songs with his avowed atheism. But when he fell in love with a Muslim woman, he was forced to wrestle with his identity and belief — and forces way beyond his control.

From Wellington to Melbourne and Los Angeles and back, Jon charts his journey through an epic tale of love, identity, empathy and belief... plus a few things he could never have seen coming.

Many years ago, when MySpace reigns supreme, a young Marty Smiley takes a leaf straight out of the American Revolution playbook and stages a boycott of his high school canteen. The cause? The skyrocketing price of muffins. The unlikely name of his rag-tag group of revolutionaries? The Kids of Liberty.

A distracted moment during a shopping trip with her toddler goes horribly wrong for Marisa. During hours of desperation and anguish, she gets a surprising peek behind the curtain of a suburban Melbourne mega mall. A hilariously-told story confirming the kindness of strangers... and the awesome power of the online "mummy mafia".

During Australia's worst bushfires, Cate Tregellas and her family are forced to evacuate their home in Mallacoota, retreating to the local wharf as fire closes in on their small seaside town. But, in an effort to protect each other through a long, terrifying night, the family discovers a big secret they're all keeping from each other. It's a New Year's Eve they'll never forget.

A kiss on a crowded dance floor in another country offers Spencer a chance at two great loves ... but at what price? A unique, yet universal, love story about making a family ... and a miraculous birth.

Heartbreaking and hilarious, each episode of Days Like These introduces you to a regular human as they live through something wild. In surprising stories of love and joy, they'll triumph against the odds, face their darkest days, and occasionally fall flat on their face.

Because these are strange times and sometimes you just need a little hope to get you through.

New episodes weekly from October 14.

There are times where you feel like you're just a side-character in someone else's narrative, or maybe you're off-stage waiting in the wings. But then something happens and suddenly you're the main character, the hero — or villain — of your own story.

As the demands of school, teenagerhood, and family life increase, so do the numbers of Vanessa's guinea pig herd.

In this one, Romeo is Kesh. And Juliet is aptly, Jules. And they are fearless.

Beth meets two men in a cafe. They’ve been chatting online for a while, but how will things go in person?

There’s a lot riding on this first date, more than romance or short-term fling.

When Laurie Luxe decided to pursue the art of clowning, one name kept coming up: Philippe Gaulier.

Alex doesn't want kids. She's learnt first-hand from the women in her family how hard it can be when relationships don't work out. But then she meets Tom.

Tom desperately wants to be a dad and Alex wants to be with Tom, so they come to a compromise: they'll have one child together.

But the family Alex ends up with is very different from the one she expects.

• Reporter Tamar Cranswick
• Sound engineer Isabella Tropiano
• Executive producer Sophie Townsend

Timmy Rubin grew up in Melbourne in the '70s and '80s, the child of two Holocaust survivors who let their children run wild.

Fee is prepared for a ‘trip of a lifetime' when she lands in Brazil for a tour of the Pantanal wetlands. But when her tour guide asks her for a seemingly simple favour, Fee finds herself in a terrifying situation that she can’t find a way out of.

When Patricia Santiago moves from Manila to Melbourne, her new schoolmates make fun of her American accent, her Filipino cuisine, her skin colour.

Alyssa Hodges always wanted to be a mum, just not at 19 years old. Then 17 weeks into her pregnancy, her partner left.

Overwhelmed and grieving, dating was the last thing on her mind. But a friend suggested she give Tinder a go, as it would be even harder to date once the baby arrived.

She didn't expect to meet and start falling for Max Silvy. And she definitely didn't expect to go into labour when they were meant to be having their fourth date.

Reporter Hannah Reich

Sound engineer Tim Jenkins

Executive producer Sophie Townsend

I’m just a girl, standing in front of your media player, asking you to join us for our new season of Days Like These on Feb 14 — where we’re celebrating love. We’ve got a story about a fourth date that ends in a trip to the hospital.

Another one about finding out who you are and then finding love; learning to love your inner clown; guinea pig love (yes, you read that correctly); and a story about trams. Trust me, you’ll love it.

• Presenter: Farz Edraki
• Sound engineer: John Jacobs
• Executive producer: Sophie Townsend

Raised in Queanbeyan, Country NSW, Hau Latukefu is a world removed from hip hop’s ground zero in New York City. But like his Tongan heritage, he’s fully immersed in the culture and works hard to find his own hip hop voice.

As one half of Koolism, Hau is a card-carrying pioneer in the local scene. And when Koolism is nominated for an ARIA award, Hau comes face to face with another pioneer, the legendary Bronx DJ Kool Herc. Will Hau get the nod of approval from the father of hip hop?

Tiana Penitani played every sport she could when she was a kid. Her family were sport obsessed. But when the family suffers an unbearable loss, she gives it all up. That is, until footy comes calling. This is a story about family, grief and healing. It's also about those times you've just got to take the ball and run with it.

Kelly Eng hasn’t gone on a big family holiday since she was a kid. She’s excited to go to Malaysia for a wedding with the whole gang: her mum, dad, brother, and sister-in-law. But some uninvited guests turn their holiday upside down -- and Kelly is left wondering if she’ll get out of there alive.

Melissa Mason is 35, single, and her biological clock is ticking. But before she dips her toes in the dating pool again, she decides to have one last hurrah and sets out to snag the sexy Irish actor, Paul Mescal. The only catch? He’s a decade younger than her.

Reporter Edwina Storie needs to get from Queensland’s Sunshine Coast to Sydney. It’s usually a 10-hour drive, but in the rain, in the floods, who knows? She’s got a delivery to make and a secret to keep, and nothing’s going to stop her.

Join us on the wild adventure of a punk kid turned anarcho-activist, through wild nights, fierce politics, and an afternoon involving a video camera, a bit of permaculture, and some pretty delicate body piercing.

With his rap group Deceptikonz, Taupe Daniel ‘Alphrisk’ Maoate is making noise across Australasia. He’s tight with his bandmates, but they’re in the dark about an important detail – Alphrisk is addicted to ice, and it might just sabotage his career.

Ronny is inspired by the power of the songs of slain freedom fighter Arnold Ap, and he too takes up music as his weapon of choice. He sets about writing his own song to strengthen the movement in the hopes his people will see the Morning Star flag raised over a free West Papua

Joey Joleen Mataele plays the lead in a story about royalty, tradition and reputation, and how having just one person in your corner can let you lead a life that’s truly yours (and meet Sean Connery in a castle while you’re at it.)

Hey you! We’re back and we can’t wait to share our new collection of stories with you – they’re stories about connection, about finding those people who accept you for just the way you are. From September 13, join us for a new story every week, about the day when everything changed.