{"podcast":{"title":"Conversations","slug":"conversations-320217","podcast_index_feed_id":320217,"rss_url":"https://www.abc.net.au/feeds/7711104/podcast.xml","website_url":"https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/conversations/","image_url":"https://live-production.wcms.abc-cdn.net.au/9419a7d446ad3f4620983df5d8d048f1.jpg?src","author":"ABC Australia","episode_count":2000,"summary":"Conversations draws you deeper into the life story of someone you may have heard about, but never met. Journey into their world, joining them on epic adventures to unfamiliar places, back in time to wild moments of history, and into their deepest memories, to be moved by personal stories of resilience and redemption. Hosted by Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski, Conversations is the ABC's most popular long-form interview program. Every day we explore the vast tapestry of human experience, weaving together narratives from history, science, art, and personal storytelling. Conversations Live is coming to the stage! Join Sarah Kanowski and Richard Fidler for an unmissable night of unforgettable stories, behind-the-scenes secrets, and surprise guests. Australia’s most-loved podcast — live, up close, and in the moment. Find out more at the Conversations website.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-24T00:20:44.125501+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217"},"episode":{"title":"Stories from our Elders: My passionate friendship with a rebel poet","slug":"stories-from-our-elders-my-passionate-friendship-with-a-rebel-poet","published_at":"2026-09-23T01:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217/stories-from-our-elders-my-passionate-friendship-with-a-rebel-poet","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217","url":"https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/conversations/alison-hoddinot-oxford-tolkien-friendship-poetry-motherhood/107171474","audio_url":"https://mediacore-live-production.akamaized.net/audio/02/oo/Z/h8.mp3","summary":"Alison Hoddinot was one of the first Australian women to study at Oxford University, but one of her lecturers, J.R.R Tolkein, refused to take on a woman PhD student. Alison was born in Tasmania in 1931. As a young woman she won a scholarship to study at Oxford University. But when she arrived, none of the male professors including J.R.R Tolkien, would take on a woman PhD student. Back in Tasmania Alison became great friends with the poet Gwen Harwood. The two shared recipes, letters, and the challenges of combining work and motherhood. During their friendship Gwen shocked the nation when she used acrostic sonnets to pull a wild hoax on The Bulletin magazine in 1961. First broadcast in 2018 Further information In 2022 Alison Hoddinot passed away after a short illness Women, Oxford and Novels of Crime and Gwen Harwood: Idle Talk - Letters 1960-1964 are published by Brandl and Schlesinger Read more about Gwen and Alison's friendship and their letters","meta_description":"Alison Hoddinot was one of the first Australian women to study at Oxford University, but one of her lecturers, J.R.R Tolkein, refused to take on a woman P…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3060,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/conversations-320217/episodes/stories-from-our-elders-my-passionate-friendship-with-a-rebel-poet/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/conversations-320217/stories-from-our-elders-my-passionate-friendship-with-a-rebel-poet.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}