Simon Branthwaite

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The unbearable intimacy of voicing someone’s words — with Forced Entertainment - ABC listen

3 weeks ago | abc.net.au | Natasha Mitchell |Claire Slattery |Simon Branthwaite |David Le May

Words can mean everything, or nothing at all: it all depends on how they're delivered. This relationship between writer, script, actor and audience creates a particular tension that lies at the heart of performance. Who gives meaning to the words, interprets the creative material, who holds the power? This is a lecture, but not as you know it, by members of the multi award-winning British theatre company Forced Entertainment.
The lead up to a papal conclave - ABC listen

2 months ago | abc.net.au | Andrew West |Amanda Roberts |Simon Branthwaite

Within days, perhaps even hours of Pope Francis’s funeral, the discreet meetings will begin among the 135 cardinals who will elect the next Pope. When the doors close on the conclave, we won’t – strictly speaking, shouldn’t – know anything until a new pope appears on the balcony of St Peter’s Square. But what happens in the crucial days leading up to the conclave as candidates start to emerge. FRANCIS CAMPBELL is vice chancellor of Notre Dame University in Australia. He also served as the UK ambassador to the Holy See.
Conservatism in the age of Trump

Mar 19, 2025 | abc.net.au | Andrew West |Nadyat El Gawley |Simon Branthwaite

The re-election of Donald Trump last November thrilled many on the right, especially nationalists wanting to adapt his America First ideology to their own countries. And some Christians looked past Trump’s personal history of multiple divorce and sexual scandal to suggest this was an age of religious rebirth. But for one of Britain’s leading conservatives, Donald Trump, and the United States itself, are poor role models for true conservatives.
Are clergy staff or office holders? Jubilee year and the pope, and is Trump style conservatism desirable for conservatives?

Mar 19, 2025 | abc.net.au | Andrew West |Nadyat El Gawley |Simon Branthwaite

Why are clergy regarded as office holders rather than staff? We speak to Reverend Chris Bedding, an Anglican priest and executive officer of the Faith Workers Alliance. 2025 is a jubilee year for the Catholic Church, traditionally a time for renewal and the forgiveness of debt and sin. But with Pope Francis still in recovery from double pneumonia, pilgrims are finding new ways to mark the jubilee. And why are Donald Trump and the United States itself poor role models for true conservatives.
Monarchy and its religious critics

Oct 25, 2024 | abc.net.au | Meredith Lake |Alice Walker |Rohan Salmond |Simon Branthwaite

In the wake of the King's visit to Australia, we're once again debating questions that get to the heart of Australian government and identity. These aren't just political questions — they're spiritual too. Rev Justin Moffatt is Senior Minister of St Philip’s Church Hill, the oldest parish in Australia and the custodian of the First Fleet Bible and Prayer Book, which has been signed by every visiting monarch of Australia since the early 20th century.
Why is Dwayne Johnson and our biggest blockbusters so unsexy?

Oct 2, 2024 | abc.net.au | Wenlei Ma |Sarah Mashman |Clare Rawlinson |Simon Branthwaite |David Le May

The big Hollywood blockbusters barely feature a kiss anymore, let alone any amorous affairs. So, why are studios so afraid of this core human experience and where do we need to go to get our vicarious fix? This week's host Wenlei Ma is joined by guest critic, Vogues' Hannah-Rose Yee to talk about sex on film. Plus, with the release of the Pitt/ Clooney vehicle Wolfs on streaming, is the movie star dead?
Play as a spiritual practice

Sep 26, 2024 | abc.net.au | Meredith Lake |Rohan Salmond |Hong Jiang |Simon Branthwaite

It's a commonly held belief that play is just for children, but for many adults it's a path to self-awareness and creativity. Play is a joyous way of spending time, and more than that, a way of being fully human and connecting with the divine. Rev Susanna Pain is an ordained Anglican priest and co-founder of InterPlay Australia. She's also senior associate of the ecumenical Benedictus Contemplative Church in Canberra.
Pope Francis' dramatic intervention into US politics

Sep 18, 2024 | abc.net.au | Andrew West |Hong Jiang |Simon Branthwaite

In perhaps his most dramatic intervention into US politics, Pope Francis has called the contest between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump a choice between two evils. What impact could his words have on this tight contest? There's a major challenge for what healthy masculinity looks like today. The data on male suicides is harrowing – men are three times more likely to take their own lives. So are the statistics on male violence towards women.
From landmines to killer robots — inside the campaigns to ban weapons of war - ABC listen

Sep 2, 2024 | abc.net.au | Simon Branthwaite |Marcus Hobbs |Claire Slattery |Michael Williams

It was the stuff of scifi blockbuster movie The Terminator in the early 1980s, but now lethal autonomous weapons systems are actually being used in conflict zones around the world. And the arms race is on to develop more effective, more deadly killing machines, that don't need human inputs to do their job. This event was recorded at Human Rights Watch in Sydney on 4 June 2024.
The pope's visit to Indonesia, and how religion affects migration

Aug 28, 2024 | abc.net.au | Andrew West |Hong Jiang |Simon Branthwaite

Pope Francis is about to embark on his longest ever overseas tour. It will include a visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country. Catholics are only three per cent of Indonesia’s population, and the Archbishop of Jakarta, Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, will be hosting the pope. Immigration is likely to be a major and possibly divisive issue at the next election.