Authorised with Kevin Hillier

For many, it was the absolute must-see television show every Sunday night across Australia. The show that shaped the musical tastes of a generation and made superstars out of many of its discoveries. That show was Countdown, and authors Brett Leslie and Milton Hammon have painstakingly detailed the history of the show in a very large way with their book Countdown - The Complete Episode Guide. 

It's over 400 pages, reliving the...

Scott Leckie has written many books but none like Shrewd Little Sleuth and that is not surprising. Scott is a human rights lawyer and has penned dozens of books in the course of that vocation, but this latest book is personal. It is about his grandfather - Arthur Bernard Leckie. Arthur was an FBI Agent back in the days when J Edgar Hoover was running the organisation and history tells us that was a time of mystery, skullduggery and...

Kelvin Templeton is a name that needs no introduction to followers of Australian Rules football. The 1980 Brownlow Medallist had a boy's own adventure during his 177 league games, kicking 573 goals for the Footscray and Melbourne Football Clubs. A globetrotting business career followed and now Kelvin enters a new phase of his life as an author. His debut novel Collision (Wilkinson Publishing) shows Kelvin has kicked yet another goa...

Author Grantlee Kieza is prolific and in his return to Authorised, he tells the story behind his latest book Mary Penfold (ABC Books). We all know the Penfold name from the world famous South Australian winery, but Mary's incredible contribution to building that iconic Australian brand has mostly gone unheralded. Grantlee's passion for finding and celebrating unsung Aussie heroes like Mary makes for great reading and listening.&nbs...

Andrew Sloan and Johan Du Toit are the two featured authors in this episode of Authorised and the two books are Why Things Feel F*cked and When Only Today Matters and other stories. One is a collection of short stories, the other a collection of small solutions to life's many and varying challenges.   

Andrew Sloan is a practising psychotherapist and leadership coach and his book Why Things Feel F*cked is a guide to getti...

Vikki Petraitis has lived a life of crime but only from the confines of her keyboard. The former teacher has been writing true crime books for more than 30 years and decided to try her hand at crime fiction. Her debut The Unbelieved was a best seller and award winner and her follow up The Stolen will undoubtedly follow suit. Vikki talks about her writing processes and the difference between real crime and fiction and her experience...

In this episode Rhonda McCoy talks about Crow (Ventura Press) and what a great story lies beneath this debut novel for the former nurse turned author. Rhonda chats about character development and her techniques for fleshing them out as she writes.

My other guest is Jessica Owers, author of Magic Millions (Penguin), an incredible book detailing the origins, rise, fall and rise again of Australia's most colourful yearling sale and no...

The Wolf Who Cried Boy (Afffirm Press) not only has an eyecatching title but a most imaginative and original story to go with it. Author Mark Muposta-Russell talks about his much anticipated second novel which sees him write through the eyes of six year old boy whose life is one of fairytale fantasy intertwined with the reality of a broken family and domestic violence. It is a challenging journey and Mark explains how he went about...

Tanya Scott talks about the leap from her day job as a GP and Medical Educator to becoming an author. Her novel Stillwater (Allen & Unwin) is a hell of a debut and hopefully heralds the start of many more literary adventures in the future. 

The Hollow Girl ((Penguin) is Lyn Yeowart's much anticipated second novel and as Lyn explains in the podcast it did come with some second book blues. Lyn discuses those challenges and t...

Duncan Ewing Graham is an interesting human being. He is a barrister and a doctor and, in his spare time, an author. Duncan's second book Where the Dust Settles takes us inside a world Duncan knows back to front - the David and Goliath battle between Joe Average and Big Asbestos. Duncan's story brings the human victims face to face with the corporate culprits in a legal battleground of epic proportions and ramifications.  &nbs...

Books allow us to engage in eras and events that our mortal beings cannot and in this episode of Authorised, two very talented authors take us back in time to a very different Australia to the one we currently live in. 

Flight by Anne Vines (Glass House Books) brings 1942 Melbourne alive with the threat of a Japanese invasion in the air and platoons of American servicemen on the ground. What started as a short story has blosso...

Give Dad a book this Father's Day, and I have three nominations for you to consider from the two authors who join me in this episode. Geoff Hutchison has finished his long and illustrious career as a broadcaster and turns his talents to writing a most entertaining and enlightening book, beautifully and aptly titled 'How Not To Be a Grumpy Old Bugger' (Affirm Press). You will love Geoff's candour and insights into bringing this book...

Author Matthew Spencer returns to Authorised with his second novel 'Broke Road' (Allen & Unwin). Sergeant Rose Riley, introduced in Matthew's debut book 'Black River', is back with another homicide to solve but a mystery that takes her to some unexpected places personally and professionally. Matthew talks about the challenges of the second novel, his learnings from his first book, the importance of authenticity in the crime wri...

The Good Losers is Meg Bignell's fourth novel and it is an absolute delight from start to finish. Meg has tapped into some real life experiences to bring readers a very honest and hilarious tale of life, love, winners and losers in an elite rowing club. 

Meg takes us through her processes of writing and creating the characters and plot lines for The Good Losers (Penguin Random House), a book that took her into a few unchartere...

Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus bring an interesting dynamic to this episode as co-autors of Love Overdue (Allen & Unwin), their fourth book together. The combination obviously works well and the pair explain how they juggle plot lines, character development, new babies and day jobs. Ali and Michelle also have a side hustle: 'Books on the Rail,' a genius idea to get more books in the hands of potential readers. It is a most enterta...

Michael Thompson's second novel poses a fascinating question for us all to ponder as it takes us on a emotion-charged journey. All The Perfect Days is the story of Dr. Charlie Knight, a small town GP who is wrestling with his new 'gift'. Charlie knows how many days his patients, friends and loved ones have to live. What does he do? What would you do? 

Michael tells us the story behind the story of All The Perfect Days (Pantera...

Murder and intrigue and mental health and wellbeing are polar opposite genres, but they come together in this episode of Authorised. Author Joan Sauers delivers her second novel Whisky Valley (Allen & Unwin), a delicious cocktail of mystery, romance and pastries set in the brooding Southern Highlands of New South Wales.

Nathan Dunne's When Nothing Feels Real (Murdoch Books) brings a mystery of a different kind, detailing his pe...

Jenny Pattrick came to writing novels after a very successful life in teaching and in the jewellery industry where she is something of a revered figure. The New Zealand born and raised author chats about her 11th novel, Sea Change. Jenny takes us to a coastal community reeling from a tsunami and the aftermath brings out the best and worst in those affected. 

My second guest is author A.M.Jaxon, talking about the first part of ...

It's another double-barrelled episode of Authorised, with two authors who come to our bookshelves via very different paths.

Muriel Cooper was the queen of talkback radio for many years and a trailblazer in broadcasting for the women who have followed her. These days she is a psychologist and author and her latest book is the most refreshing self help guide you will find anywhere. The title says it all - Up Shit Creek in a Barbed Wi...