Uncommon Ground with Talal Yassine

Journalist, author and academic Stan Grant joins Talal Yassine for a powerful and deeply personal conversation about identity, faith, and the cost of speaking out. From a childhood of poverty and constant movement across rural New South Wales, to interviewing world leaders and reporting from some of the globe’s most dangerous conflict zones, Stan’s story is one of resilience, grit, and unflinching honesty. He opens up about growing up Wiradjuri, the hard love of his father, and the strength of family that carried him through homelessness and hardship. Stan reflects on his meteoric rise through journalism, the toll of frontline reporting, and the burden of being one of Australia’s most visible Indigenous voices. He speaks candidly about racism, burnout, and his controversial departure from the ABC, but also about the things that sustain him: faith, philosophy, music, and the enduring power of love. This episode moves between the personal and the profound, from childhood memories tied to songs on a transistor radio, to the philosophy of history and modernity, and finally his vision for a more generous Australia rooted in respect and hope. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Opening: The art of conversation vs. interview (00:00) Earliest memories: music, hats and a travelling childhood (04:00) Life on the move: cars, caravans and sawmills (09:00) Hard love, resilience and lessons from his father (15:00) The wider family and responsibility beyond his years (20:00) Discovering books, philosophy and a world beyond poverty (25:00) From mail boy to university: the turning point (32:00) Breaking into journalism: copy boy, cadetship and the fast rise (38:00) Reporting Canberra politics and hosting prime-time TV by 27 (45:00) CNN years: the world stage, conflict zones and PTSD (50:00) Returning home: ABC, Sky and disillusionment with hosting roles (58:00) Family life: meeting Tracey, raising four children and following bliss (1:05:00) Race, identity and the unfinished business of Australia (1:12:00) Faith, philosophy and the last sigh of Christ (1:18:00) Yindyamarra Trust: giving, love and building respect (1:25:00) Quickfire round: misconceptions, guilty pleasures, advice to young Stan (1:28:00) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Cameron Kerr has spent 25 years at the helm of Australia’s Taronga Zoo, transforming it from a traditional attraction into a global conservation powerhouse. A zoologist and conservationist at heart, Cameron’s story begins in the rock pools of Collaroy and the paddocks of rural NSW, where a pet donkey and injured rabbits sparked a lifelong love of animals. In this conversation, Cameron reflects on a career that bridges science, business and ethics. He shares candid stories, from rescuing rabbits as a boy to running one of Australia’s most complex conservation organisations. We also hear about the moral dilemmas of keeping animals in zoos and how Taronga is leading world-first efforts to save species from platypuses to corals. Cameron also opens up about leadership, values, and resilience, including what it takes to guide a thousand-strong team through crises like COVID, and how passion, patience and persistence can drive systemic change. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trailblazing business leader, arts patron and advocate for women in leadership, Catherine Harris joins Talal Yassine for an honest and wide-ranging conversation about business, family and purpose. From growing up as one of ten children in a loud, loving Italian–Irish household, to co-founding Harris Farm Markets and guiding it through more than 50 years of highs, lows and reinvention, Catherine shares stories that shaped her values: integrity, fairness, and lifting others as you lead. She reflects on resilience through tough times, including near-bankruptcy, 17% interest rates and even a mafia threat, while highlighting the lessons of transparency, courage, and compassion in business. Beyond Harris Farm, Catherine discusses her decades of public service: leading affirmative action at a national level, serving on boards from the NRL to the National Gallery, and even representing Bhutan as Consul-General. With humour, humility, and a lifetime of experience, she shows how business, family and values can intertwine to shape modern Australia. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Childhood and family roots (02:00) Her mother: Australia’s first woman on TV (07:00) Schooling, Florence, and finding her own path (10:00) University struggles, dyslexia and discovering commerce (14:00) Meeting David Harris and the origins of Harris Farm (20:00) Starting out in Villawood and early hardships (25:00) Near-collapse, 17% interest rates and resilience (30:00) The mafia contract and surviving the 1990s (34:00) Lessons from 50 years in business (38:00) Family in business: succession, mentoring, and fairness (43:00) Raising five boys and reflections on gender equity (50:00) Serving as Consul-General for Bhutan (56:00) Arts, culture, rugby league and public service (1:00:00) Quickfire questions: misconceptions, guilty pleasures, advice (1:07:00) Closing reflections: the power of listening to stories (1:10:00)  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australian Test cricketer and trailblazer Usman Khawaja joins Talal Yassine for an unfiltered conversation about sport, faith, and the courage to stay true to yourself, even when the world pushes back. From a childhood split between Sydney’s east and Western Sydney, to the elite ranks of Australian cricket, Usman reflects on the challenges of growing up between cultures, breaking through racial barriers, and rising to the top of a game that wasn’t built for players like him. He shares how discipline, resilience, and a deep Islamic faith helped him find balance on and off the field, and why he’s never been afraid to speak out. They talk about the realities of racism in elite sport, Usman's quiet leadership, and how he navigates fame, family, and public scrutiny with grace. He opens up about standing firm on humanitarian issues, the backlash he faced for calling out double standards, and the personal cost of using his platform to challenge the status quo. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Early days: from Pakistan to Paddington and Parramatta (02:15) Navigating two worlds—white cricket and a conservative Muslim home (08:20) What Western Sydney teaches you about resilience (14:10) Discipline over talent: the real secret to making it (19:40) Fitting in, standing out—and making it on your own terms (31:15) Religion, identity, and being the only one in the room (37:05) A story about his mother, mercy, and the meaning of faith (45:30) Islamophobia, Gaza, and the fight for equality in cricket (52:15) Direct messages, hate, and how he protects his peace (1:01:10) Quickfire questions (1:05:30) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Urbanist, business leader and former Lord Mayor of Sydney, Lucy Turnbull joins the podcast for a wide-ranging conversation about power, public life, and why good cities don’t just happen, they’re built with care and with community at their core. Lucy reflects on her early fascination with urban environments, the lessons from her childhood in Potts Point, and how a sense of purpose, has guided her through decades of leadership across government, planning, business and philanthropy. From growing up in a legal dynasty to building her own legacy in city-making, Lucy opens up about partnership, privilege, and staying grounded when the spotlight is on. She also talks about Sydney’s housing crisis, the hard truths behind affordability, and the bold planning reforms she believes are needed to make Australian cities liveable for future generations. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Childhood memories, place and perception (02:15) From elite schools to legal studies and marriage at 21 (06:50) Studying law at Sydney, switching gears with an MBA (11:00) Life and partnership with Malcolm Turnbull (15:30) Finding purpose through city-making and public service (20:45) First steps into politics and becoming Lord Mayor (25:00) Council leadership during Sydney’s transformation (30:15) Reflecting on 9/11 and civic leadership in crisis (35:10) Chief Commissioner of the Greater Sydney Commission (39:00) The housing affordability crisis: causes and cures (43:00) Radical ideas, TODs, and rethinking city planning (48:20) Growing up in a political and legal dynasty (54:00) Maintaining humility, purpose and empathy (57:15) Quickfire questions: myth, guilty pleasure, advice (1:02:00) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Former Socceroo, broadcaster, and human rights advocate Craig Foster joins Talal Yassine for a conversation about sport, leadership, and the courage to stand up for others, no matter the cost. From an idyllic childhood in country NSW to captaining the Socceroos, Craig shares how football shaped his worldview, took him deep inside multicultural Australia, and taught him the difference between positional authority and true leadership. He recalls the injury that nearly ended his career, the gamble that brought him back to the national team a decade later, and the unrelenting work ethic that carried him to success on and off the field. Craig also talks about his 18 years at SBS championing the game and multiculturalism, his often-frosty relationship with football’s governing bodies, and how he became one of Australia’s leading voices on human rights. From advocating for refugees to leading the global campaign to free Hakeem al-Araibi from a Thai prison, Craig reflects on the personal and professional risks of challenging power. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Growing up in Lismore and a country kid’s path to elite sport (02:30) The pull of football and the power of multicultural teams (11:15) Lessons from leadership on and off the pitch (19:55) The knee injury that changed everything — and the decade-long comeback (26:40) From Asia back to Adelaide: betting it all on the Socceroos dream (33:25) 18 years at SBS and the mission to grow the game (42:10) Taking on football’s governing bodies (48:15) From sport to human rights and the fight against scapegoating (52:10) The Hakeem al-Araibi campaign and the cost of speaking out (56:05) Quickfire questions: misconceptions, guilty pleasures, and advice to young players (1:01:10) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a candid conversation spanning politics, love, grief, and the shifting ground of global affairs, NSW’s longest-serving Premier, Bob Carr, joins Professor Talal Yassine for this special episode. From his childhood in post-war Maroubra to becoming NSW Premier and later Foreign Minister, Bob reflects on the drive that took him from anxious schoolboy to political heavyweight. He shares how journalism honed his communication skills, how factional battles shaped his rise through Labor’s ranks, and why his love of words became one of his most powerful political tools. Bob also opens up about the devastating loss of his wife Helena after 50 years together, offering a rare glimpse into the personal life behind the public figure. In a raw and moving account, he speaks of grief, memory, and the enduring presence of love. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Growing up in Maroubra and the influence of early teachers (01:45) Deciding at 15 to enter politics (09:44) Journalism, words, and the art of persuasion (14:53) Factional politics and the rise through Labor ranks (19:54) Becoming Premier and surviving the gladiator pit (26:22) Leadership, legacy, and knowing when to step down (31:08) From Premier to Foreign Minister—adjusting to not being the boss (36:12) Love, loss, and 50 years with Helena (41:00) The shift from Labor Friends of Israel to advocating for Palestine (46:02) The grim reality of AUKUS and the U.S.–Israel relationship (51:14) Quickfire questions: myths, guilty pleasures, and legacy (54:47) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Neurosurgeon Charlie Teo joins Talal Yassine for a no-holds-barred conversation about medicine, power, and staying true to his convictions, even when it cost him everything. Charlie reflects on growing up in a Chinese-Singaporean household obsessed with British tradition, learning the bagpipes as a kid, and the intense pressure to succeed under a tiger dad. He opens up about the early years of his medical career, his obsession with brain surgery, and how a love for high-risk procedures made him both revered by patients and reviled by peers. From being celebrated as a medical pioneer to becoming the target of anonymous complaints, hostile media campaigns, and regulatory backlash, Charlie shares how a system meant to protect patients was weaponised against him. He also talks about the fallout (losing his license to operate in Australia) and how that forced pause led him to a breakthrough, mapping the brain for psychiatric and neurological disorders using cutting-edge tech and TMS. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order Playing the bagpipes and growing up “more British than the British” (02:00) Delayed speech and early struggles in school (06:13) Pressure to succeed and getting into medicine (10:35) Discovering neurosurgery and the thrill of risk (16:42) Building a reputation and the backlash that followed (21:57) The media storm, character assassination, and professional fallout (34:10) Leaving Australia and finding support overseas (47:26) Mapping the brain and launching a new frontier in mental health (53:05) The myth of happiness, motorcycle therapy, and what he’d tell his younger self (1:00:12) See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Journalist, author, and human rights advocate Antoinette Lattouf has spent decades pushing for change in Australia’s media landscape, and at great personal cost. In this first-ever episode of Uncommon Ground, she joins Talal for a raw and revealing conversation about growing up in a Christian Lebanese family in Western Sydney, and why she’s never been afraid to speak out even when it meant taking on some of the most powerful institutions in the country. Antoinette recounts her journey from SBS and the ABC to co-founding Media Diversity Australia, challenging the performative allyship in newsrooms, and being wrongly terminated by the ABC over a post supporting Palestinian human rights. What followed was a public legal showdown that exposed internal bias and sparked a national reckoning about racism, censorship, and the limits of free speech. The episode also explores Antoinette’s sense of identity, the assumptions others project onto her, and how she balances public advocacy with private life. She opens up about receiving violent threats, the mental toll of activism, and the moments that made her want to walk away. But ultimately, it’s her unwavering belief in truth, justice, and decency that has kept her standing. Subscribe to Uncommon Ground on your favourite podcast platform. Episode Running Order• Antoinette’s earliest memories and family history in Western Sydney (01:24)• Growing up between cultures and confronting sectarian trauma (04:27)• Challenging assumptions about identity and faith (09:47)• The road to journalism and breaking barriers in Australian media (12:33)• Founding Media Diversity Australia and exposing newsroom inequality (22:15)• Getting fired by the ABC and fighting back in court (28:47)• The fallout, media smear campaigns, and standing her ground (31:22)• Coping with threats and navigating hate online (46:17)• Reflections on power, allyship, and lasting change (51:02)• What she’d tell her younger self and why she’d do it all again (54:16)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Uncommon Ground, a fortnightly podcast with Talal Yassine, entrepreneur, academic, and philanthropist. Each episode features a conversation with a high-profile Australian, where Talal explores what drives them, their values, their convictions, and how they stay grounded when things get tough. Guests include journalists, politicians, business leaders, sports stars and human rights advocates. You’ve seen their names in headlines, but what’s beneath the surface? That’s what Uncommon Ground is all about. The first episode drops on 27 August, and new episodes are released every fortnight. Subscribe now on your favourite podcast app or watch on YouTube at Talal Yassine. Thanks for listening.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.