Country music, V8s and Taylor Swift – these are a few of Adam Brand’s favourite things

Country superstar Adam Brand is preparing to wow Australia with his national tour launching in Adelaide in February.

Brand was nominated for the Country Music Association of Australia ‘Album of the Year’, ‘Single of the Year’ and ‘Male Artist of the Year’ in 2010 and since then has released several popular tracks, starred on Dancing with the Stars and returned to the race track.

We were fortunate enough to have him join the show this morning and he spoke to Tim Brunero about his impending tour, racing V8s at the Clipsal 500 and just how lovely Taylor Swift really is.

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Producers: Rupert Hogan-Turner & Mike Nicholson

Australia Day or Invasion Day?

Were Aboriginal activists manipulated by pubescent staffers in Julia Gillard’s office?

Is it odd that some call Australia Day Invasion Day when ANZAC a national tragedy is celebrated only two months later?

Is the Aboriginal tent embassy still relevant?

Tim Brunero discussed these issues with Katrina Power a former Advertiser journalist, Kaurna woman, and activist who was present at the Tent Embassy in Canberra on Australia Day.

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Producers: Mike Nicholson & Rupert Hogan-Turner

Which came first – song or speech?

Many linguistic theorists believe we may have started singing to each other before we began speaking – or even using sign language.

To get an insight into this fascinating theory we don’t need philosophical theories from English professors. Instead we need good solid facts. That’s why we recruited a chemist and not a semiotic expert to help us out.

Angus Grey Wheel is from the School of Chemistry at the University of Melbourne and he spoke to Tim Brunero about this phenomena and what back ground work goes into these kinds of studies.

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Producers: Mike Nicholson & Rupert Hogan-Turner

Pyne, porn and politics

It’s Tuesday and you know what that means, political discourse with the effervescent Dr. Erstwhile Truthwright.

With credentials such as Chief Executive of Outreach Services for the Vote Smart Democracy Institute (the Southern hemisphere’s leading profit oriented Democracy Think Tank), Dr. Truthwright comes highly regarded in his field.

This morning, the Doctor reported live from the Tent Embassy in Canberra to cover the controversy surrounding Barbarella…erm, Gingerella’s, well actually the Prime Minister’s lost shoe and we also heard about the possibility of a Christopher Pyne Playboy shoot…..

Wait…what?

Well, you heard it here first.

For all your political needs, Dr. Erstwhile Truthwright has got you covered.

Always informative, never researched!

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Producers: Mike Nicholson & Rupert Hogan-Turner

F-E-E-S.. what does that spell? – The rising cost of public education

If you heard a loud noise yesterday around 9 o’clock in the morning… it was probably the collective sighs of relief of thousands of South Australian parents as their kids headed off back to school for the first day of term.

However, their relief may be short lived when the school fees arrive in the mail.

Private schools are notorious for their exorbitant school fees, but what about our nation’s public schools?

With the increased reliance on a technology, some public schools have introduced fees up to a thousand dollars, which includes providing the student with a lap top computer.

So is education in Australia’s public school system as free or cheap as it used to be?

To discuss the rising cost of sending children to public schools, Tim Brunero spoke to the President of the Australian Council of State School Organisations, Peter Garrigan.

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Producer: Mike Nicholson