#143 Rebecca and Ashley Semmens

Alex Lloyd interviews navy veterans Rebecca and Ashley Semmens.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rebecca Semmens served in the Royal Australian Navy for 18 years, and was medically discharged in 2020 at the rank of Chief Petty Officer. Bec was a medic, and deployed to Timor and Afghanistan. Her husband, Ashley Semmens, was a Clearance Diver, also serving in the navy for 18 years. Ash had multiple deployments, including to Afghanistan. He was a Clearance Diver, an Explosive Ordnance Disposal expert and was in Kabul during the evacuation as the Taliban retook the country in 2021. He medically discharged in 2022 as a Chief Petty Officer. Bec and Ash spoke jointly with Alex Lloyd at the Gaythorne RSL in Brisbane.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

• #17 Dave Stafford Finney

• #25 Paul de Gelder

• #64 Jodi Farmer

Voodoo Medics with Mark Donaldson VC, Dr Dan Pronk and Kristin Shorten

Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. This bonus episode covers the upcoming 8-part documentary VOODOO MEDICS, a short series of webisodes published by The Daily Telegraph Online starting 22 October 2018. Alex Lloyd speaks with the documentary's creator and host, journalist Kristin Shorten, as well as two of its interviewees, Australian veterans Mark Donaldson VC and Dr Dan Pronk. VOODOO MEDICS looks at the lives post-army of medics who served with Special Forces, and interviews such former medics, the operators they fought alongside, and more, in an insightful expose on the cost of modern war.

To watch the documentary, click here!

If you enjoyed these conversations with Mark and Dan, you can catch their original interviews in Season 2:

• #31 Dr Dan Pronk Vol I

• #31 Dr Dan Pronk Vol II

• #36 Mark Donaldson VC

And for more conversations with Dr Dan Pronk:

• Lessons of a Combat Doctor with Dr Dan Pronk

• #107 Brett Wood

• SAS Resilience with Dr Dan Pronk, Ben Pronk and Tim Curtis

#41 Dr Kerry Summerscales

Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. Today's conversation is with Dr Kerry Summerscales. Kerry shared with Sharon Mascall-Dare stories from her incredible 28-year-career in the Australian Defence Force, including five operational deployments.

Line of Fire with Chantelle Taylor

Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. Every week we also have a bonus episode, where we speak to historians, authors and others in the veterans community. Chantelle Taylor is a veteran of the British military. She’s renowned for being the first female British soldier to kill an enemy combatant in close quarters. She’s also author of the bestselling memoir, “Battleworn”. Alex Lloyd spoke with Chantelle about her life in uniform.

Chantelle returned to the podcast in Christmas on the Line.