Don't Be Caught Dead

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Jean Kittson has spent a lifetime making Australians laugh, but behind the humour is a deeply personal and confronting exploration of death, dying, grief, and the aged care system. In this episode, I sit down with comedian, author, speaker, and Patron of Palliative Care Nurses Australia, Jean Kittson, to talk about how her own fear and avoidance of death transformed into advocacy and ed...

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In this episode, I’m joined by photographer and visual storyteller Julian Kingma, whose work has captured some of Australia’s most intimate and human stories across decades of journalism, portraiture, publishing, and documentary photography. But it was his deeply personal project The Power of Choice that drew me to his work. Through portraits and conversations with people na...

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What happens when a veteran crime journalist revisits one of Australia’s most haunting unsolved murders?

In this episode, I sit down with Andrew Rule, one of Australia’s most respected crime reporters and storytellers, to talk about the unsolved murders of Margaret and Seana Tapp. Andrew shares what first drew him to the case decades ago, the troubling missteps in the origina...

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In this episode, I’m joined by Travis Hamilton, a visionary entrepreneur, ‘recovering banker’, and co-founder of Candour Funerals. After decades working in international finance and navigating addiction, trauma, and two near-death experiences, Travis found himself pulled toward purpose-led work centered around mortality, consciousness, and meaningful living.

We talk abo...

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I’ve had many conversations about death, grief, and what it means to be prepared… but this one felt different.

Barry Du Bois is someone many Australians know from television. A builder, presenter, and now a powerful mental health advocate. But beyond the public image, Barry carries a deeply personal story shaped by cancer, loss, resilience, and a defining belief: “I wo...

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There are moments in life that divide everything into before and after… this conversation with Emily Mir holds one of those stories.

Emily is a mother, storyteller, and advocate whose life was forever shaped by the stillbirth of her son, Gilbert, at full term. What she shares is not just the heartbreak of that day, but the reality of what comes after… the quiet, evolving, a...

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If I had my time again, I wouldn’t leave her there… I would have brought her home.

In this episode, I sit down with Annie Caulfield, a Brisbane-based death care practitioner and founder of Grassroots Death Care. Annie’s work is centred around helping families reconnect with death in a way that feels more personal, supported, and deeply human.

This conversation is shaped...

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Trigger Warning: This episode includes conversations around suicide, trauma, and grief. Please listen with care.

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I’ve sat in many conversations around death… but this one stayed with me in a different way.

Today, I’m speaking with Todd Maguire, a former undercover police officer who spent decades on the frontline of humanity’s darkest moments. From violent ...

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Have you ever thought about what it really means to live well… and how often we’re told that “more” is the answer?

More things. More experiences. More consumption.

But what if that’s not it at all?

In this episode, I’m joined by Annie Raser-Rowland, writer, horticulturalist, and co-author of The Art of Frugal Hedonism. Together, we explore a different w...

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In this episode, I’m speaking with Kathie Shearer, a funeral celebrant for over 20 years who has supported families through some of life’s most emotional moments.

We explore what truly matters at the end of life, and what people actually remember. Kathie shares that it’s not the achievements or milestones, but the memories, the relationships, and the way someone made ot...

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In this episode, I’m speaking with John Malouff, psychologist and Associate Professor at the University of New England. John has spent much of his career researching procrastination, self-regulation, and the science of why people avoid the very tasks that could make their lives easier.

And that includes one of the most important tasks many of us put off for far too long: end-of-lif...

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There are some losses we never officially acknowledge.

Not the kind that comes with a funeral, flowers, or a clear ending. But the kind that quietly reshapes a life. A diagnosis. A caregiving role. A sudden accident. A future that no longer looks the way we thought it would.

In this episode, I speak with Linda Rowley, a wellbeing consultant, coach and facilitator based in regional Victori...

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What happens to your brain after you die?

In this episode, I speak with Professor Greg Sutherland, Director of the New South Wales Brain Tissue Resource Centre. Greg leads one of Australia’s postmortem brain banks and works at the forefront of research into Alzheimer’s Disease and Alcohol Use Disorder.

We talk about what a brain bank really is and why human brain tissue is sti...

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Theresa Flavin was diagnosed with younger-onset Alzheimer’s Disease at 47. What followed was not just a medical journey, but a profound reckoning with how unprepared our systems are for people living with dementia.

In this deeply moving and confronting conversation, Theresa shares what it felt like to be dismissed, unheard and effectively “managed away” after diagnosis....

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What happens when the person you thought embodied “success” dies in a way that completely unravels your definition of it?

That’s where this conversation with Penny Locaso begins.

Penny is a behavioural scientist and leadership coach, but this episode is not corporate theory. We talk about suicide, unanswered questions, grief that doesn’t follow a tidy process, and ...

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Imagine a gay man planning his own funeral, only for his family to swoop in on the day and try to rewrite everything – that's the raw, heartbreaking reality one of Bronte Price's clients faced, and he had to advocate fiercely for his wishes. 

In this episode, I chat with Bronte Price, a.k.a. “your gay celebrant,” Australia's trailblazing LGBTQIA+ marriage celebrant...

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Ever wondered what it's really like to stare death in the face – not just your own, but the sudden, shattering loss of a child to suicide? In this raw and honest chat, I sit down with Christine Pedley, a grief counsellor, death doula, and author who's turned her deepest pain into a lifeline for others. If you've ever felt lost in the silence around death and dying, this episode wi...

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In this episode of Don’t Be Caught Dead, I sit down with Reverend Amy Firth — interfaith minister, funeral director, and spiritual counsellor — to talk about her incredible journey through grief, loss, and finding her calling in end-of-life care. From training in London with the One Spirit Interfaith Foundation, to returning to the Blue Mountains to support families, A...

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What do you give the love of your life as a final birthday gift when they only have days left? That's the tender moment Reverend Jim Colville shares with us in this powerful chat. It's an act of love that perfectly sums up Jim's radical, non-judgemental approach to life, death, and dying.

Jim, the man who started Colony 47 in Hobart in 1973, joins me to discuss his work offering uncondit...