Biographers in Conversation

Kate Legge: "Kindred: A Cradle Mountain Love Story"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, multi-award-winning journalist and author Kate Legge chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about her choices while crafting Kindred: A Cradle Mountain Love Story.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
The remarkable true love story of Gustav Weindorfer (an Austrian immigrant) and Kate Cowle (a trailblazing Tasmanian mountaineer), and how their shared passion for Cradle Mountain ignited one of Australia’s earliest conservation movements.
How Legge braided biography, nature writing and love story to seamlessly intertwine Gustav and Kate’s romance with their love of Tasmania’s wilderness, making the landscape a vivid character in the narrative.
How Kindred is structured, with each chapter covering a stage of Kate and Gustav’s journey.
The novelistic storytelling techniques Legge used to bring history alive.
Kate Legge’s reflections on humanity’s relationship with nature while crafting Kindred.
The resonant parallels between the Weindorfers’ era and today, echoing contemporary themes of sustainability, women’s agency and equality.
A moving epilogue to their story: in 2024, Kate’s ashes were finally laid to rest beside Gustav’s in Cradle Valley, reuniting them at last and underscoring the enduring legacy of their love and vision.

Nikos Papastergiadis: "John Berger and Me"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, eminent sociologist and author Dr Nikos Papastergiadis chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about his choices while crafting John Berger and Me.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
How Nikos’s habit of writing from memory each morning during COVID lockdowns helped shape John Berger and Me.  
The power of memory in storytelling and how writing purely from recollection unearthed unexpected links between John Berger’s life and Nikos’s.
How Nikos wove his parents’ migrant journey from war-torn Greece into John Berger and Me.  
Why Nikos blended biography with memoir: combining John’s story with his own allowed him to tell a richer, more personal tale.
The responsibility of writing about a friend who’s no longer here. Nikos reveals how he portrayed John with honesty and love to honour his legacy.
The creative choices behind the book’s structure, from balancing timelines and themes to weaving two life stories into one seamless narrative.
How Nikos found the right narrative voice for John Berger and Me.  By choosing a warm, first-person style over a scholarly tone, he made the book feel personal and alive.

Abbas El-Zein: "Bullet, Paper, Rock"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, 2025 National Biography Award winner Abbas El-Zein chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about his choices while crafting Bullet, Paper, Rock.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Why Abbas shared his story in a series of short snapshots instead of one continuous timeline. This unconventional structure mirrors the way our memories surface, in vivid, fragmented moments.
How Abbas wove moments of humour and affection into a story set amid war and chaos, showing that everyday laughter and love can survive even in the darkest times.
The inspiring role of his Abbas’s family, especially the women who found ways to weave hope into even the toughest times. Abbas reflects on how their quiet strength shaped his outlook and helped him endure the turmoil.
How growing up fluent in Arabic and French, and later adopting English, shaped the way Abbas thinks and writes. He describes how each language brings out a different side of him, and how he brought that multicultural experience into Bullet, Paper, Rock.
How Abbas researched historical details and sifted through personal memories.
How Abbas coped with reliving painful moments and decided which stories to include.
What it means to truly survive chaos and loss. From almost drowning in the sea to losing loved ones in war, Abbas reflects on how those experiences taught him about resilience and carrying grief forward.
Abbas reflects on life in the Lebanese diaspora and how leaving his homeland shaped his perspective. He explains how years of living abroad, from Europe to Australia, gave him both clarity and longing when writing about where he came from.
Abbas leaves us with a moving reflection on the power of memory and storytelling.
He shares what he hopes readers and listeners will take away from his journey, reminding us that even amid loss and upheaval, hope and the human spirit endure in everyday life.

Yves Rees "Travelling to Tomorrow: The Modern Women Who Sparked Australia’s Romance with America"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, historian and author Dr Yves Rees chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about the choices they made while crafting Travelling to Tomorrow: The Modern Women Who Sparked Australia’s Romance with America.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
How a group of 10 pioneering women in the early 20th century dared to dream and defy convention by venturing into uncharted territories, breaking down barriers and shaping the cultural and intellectual landscape of both Australia and the US
The evidence Yves Rees used to inform how they filled gaps in the historical record by speculating about the women’s inner lives and reasons for their decisions
Why Yves weaved the women’s stories throughout the narrative rather than presenting them one by one or chronologically
Yves’s belief that international relations involves much more than formal diplomacy between officials and nation states and that relations between nations are made in the realm of culture, travel and ideas
How the 10 women influenced the relationship between Australia and America.

Anna Beer: "Eve Bites Back: An Alternative History of English Literature"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, Dr Anna Beer, the author of five acclaimed biographies and a Visiting Fellow at Kellogg College in Oxford, chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about her choices while crafting Eve Bites Back: An Alternative History of English Literature. Eve Bites Back includes biographical sketches and reappraisals of eight talented female authors who lived, wrote and published between the 14th and 19th centuries.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Why Anna Beer chose the title Eve Bites Back
Why Anna opened Eve Bites Back with a feisty outline of the obstacles female authors have faced throughout history that have consigned them to literary silence
Anna’s rigorous research strategy given that women were usually invisible in pre 20th century archives
How the characters of the eight authors drove the plot of each biographical sketch and the shape of Eve Bites Back
How Anna balanced life writing and literary analysis
The literary devices Anna employed to craft captivating narrative
How Anna balanced authenticity and authoritativeness with wittiness, irony, questioning and righteous indignation.

Nicholas Clements & Henry Reynolds "Tongerlongeter: First Nations Leader and Tasmanian War Hero"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, the acclaimed historians Dr Henry Reynolds and Dr Nicholas Clements chat with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about their choices while crafting Tongerlongeter: First Nations Leader and Tasmanian War Hero, the biography of the courageous Indigenous warrior, Tongerlongeter.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Tongerlongeter’s story, like many Indigenous Australian narratives, has largely been erased from mainstream history
Why sharing Tongerlongeter’s story is crucial and so relevant today
Why Henry Reynolds and Nicholas Clements reframed early 19th-century Tasmanian history through a biographical lens
Henry and Nicholas’s research strategy given that few archival records exist of Indigenous peoples’ lives in 19th-century Tasmania
How Henry and Nicholas ensured Tongerlongeter’s voice and agency were central to the narrative
The literary devices Henry and Nicholas employed to craft gripping narrative and create a graphic sense of place
How Tongerlongeter challenged traditional narratives of Tasmanian Indigenous history
Why deeply researched, revisionist accounts of a life and events are so vital in authentically portraying our nation’s history and the individuals who created that history

Patricia Meisol "A Heart Afire: Helen Brooke Taussig's Battle Against Heart Defects, Unsafe Drugs and Injustice In Medicine"

Patricia Meisol explores the life and legacy of Dr Helen Taussig, the pioneering mother of paediatric cardiology:
How Helen Taussig exposed the dangers of thalidomide, helping to spark new U.S. drug safety legislation in the 1960s.
Helen Taussig’s determination in overcoming personal challenges, including dyslexia and progressive hearing loss, to become a world leader in medicine.
Patricia reflects on her decade-long research journey, including interviews with Taussig’s former students and colleagues, to bring authenticity and depth to the narrative.
Patricia examines how Helen Meisol translated complex cardiology and medical science into an accessible and emotionally resonant biography.
The sexism Helen Taussig faced in medicine, and how she fought for recognition and paved the way for future women doctors.
Highlights Helen Taussig’s lifelong advocacy for patient rights, drug safety, and compassionate care—making her a model for medicine and justice today.

Jacqueline Kent "Bonjour, Mademoiselle! April Ashley and the Pursuit of a Lovely Life"

Award-winning biographer Jacqueline Kent returns to the podcast to discuss her latest work, coauthored with historian Tom Roberts, about the iconic transgender model and activist April Ashley.
A Life Reimagined – Born George Jamieson in Liverpool, April Ashley transitioned in 1960 and became one of the first Britons to undergo gender-affirming surgery. Jacqueline explores April’s remarkable transformation with insight and compassion.
The biography traces April’s journey from a tough childhood to the glamour of 1960s high society, detailing both her rise as a fashion icon and the tabloid fallout that followed her outing.
Jacqueline shares what led her to co-write the biography with Tom Roberts and how they combined historical research with intimate narrative storytelling.
Learn why the biography opens with April’s reflective 80th birthday visit to Liverpool and how the authors balanced chronology with thematic exploration.
Jacqueline discusses April’s fierce advocacy for transgender rights and her lasting influence, culminating in honours like her 2012 MBE and the passing of the UK Equality Act in 2010.
Jacqueline reflects on the ethical responsibilities of biographers writing about living memory.
Jacqueline offers thoughtful insights into how biographers navigate memory, voice and truth while honouring their subject’s humanity and legacy.

Robert Zaretsky "The Subversive Simone Weil: A Life in Five Ideas"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, the intellectual historian Dr Robert Zaretsky chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about his choices while crafting The Subversive Simone Weil: A Life in Five Ideas. Known as the ‘patron saint of all outsiders’, Simone Weil was one of the 20th century’s most remarkable thinkers, a philosopher who truly lived by her political and ethical ideals.
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Why Robert Zaretsky chose the title: The Subversive Simone Weil: A Life in Five Ideas
Why Simone’s ideals and philosophies are so relevant today, 80 years after her death
How Robert grasped Simone’s thinking and behaviour given her contradictory, paradoxical character that baffled her many biographers
Why Robert crafted a hybrid of biography and philosophy
Why he explored Simone’s philosophies and search for truth through the prism of her life rather than crafting a traditional biography
Why he structured the book around five chapters that present Simone’s core philosophies
How he portrayed Simone’s ideas with clarity and grace, given her enigmatic character, behaviour and philosophies
The literary devices he employed to craft sensitive, compelling and lyrical narrative
How Robert challenged the myths surrounding Simone Weil.

Kiera Lindsey's "Wild Love: The Ambitions of Adelaide Ironside, the First Australian Artist to Astonish the World"

In this episode of Biographers in Conversation, the historian Dr Kiera Lindsey chats with Dr Gabriella Kelly-Davies about her choices while crafting Wild Love: The Ambitions of Adelaide Ironside, the First Australian Artist to Astonish the World. 
Here’s what you’ll discover in this episode:
Adelaide Eliza Scott Ironside was a trailblazing Australian artist known for her passion, ambition and extraordinary talent. Born in Sydney in 1831, she challenged artistic boundaries by exploring themes such as identity, sexuality and spirituality
Why Kiera Lindsey challenged the traditional narrative of Australian art history
Why Adelaide Ironside’s story is still so relevant today
How Kiera painstakingly pieced together tiny scraps of evidence from 19th-century historical records in which women were mostly invisible
How following in Adelaide’s footsteps in colonial Sydney, London, Rome, Florence and Scotland from 200 years ago contributed to the narrative
The limits Kiera placed on her imagination when speculating to fill gaps in the fragmentary historical record
How Kiera portrayed the cultural norms, societal values and prevailing ideologies in which Adelaide successfully pursued her artistic ambitions
How Kiera interpreted Adelaide’s romantic mysticism, which appeared in her poetry and paintings
The art and craft of speculative biography, as well as its relevance and impacts.