Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews Timor and Afghanistan veteran Graham Goodwin.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Brigadier Graham Goodwin CSC is currently the commander of 9th Brigade Australian Army. As a Reservist, Graham has had a significant career in the ADF and South Australia Police, including deployments to Timor and Afghanistan, and serving in recent domestic operations in response to bushfires and COVID-19.
Angus Hordern interviews SAS veteran of Afghanistan, Ryan Wilson.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ryan Wilson is a veteran of the Special Air Service Regiment. Over the course of his military career, he deployed to Malaysia, the Solomon Islands and Afghanistan, as well as training overseas. Today, he is the General Manager of Whipper Snapper Distillery, and is the WA State Manager for the veterans charity Wandering Warriors. Ryan spoke with Angus Hordern about his career in Special Forces, life after service and reflected on the difference they made in Afghanistan.
Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:
Angus Hordern interviews General Sir Peter Cosgrove, former Chief of the Defence Force and Governor-General.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. General Sir Peter Cosgrove is one of Australia’s most significant public figures. As a soldier, he saw action in Vietnam, winning the Military Cross, and rose to the top, becoming Chief of the Defence Force from 2002 to 2005. After his military career, Sir Peter became Australia’s Governor-General, serving in that office from 2014 to 2019. In this podcast, he sat down over a Zoom video call to speak with Angus Hordern about some highlights from his life, and to mark the release of the paperback edition of his memoir YOU SHOULDN’T HAVE JOINED. You can watch this interview on our YouTube channel or listen through your preferred podcast app and the player above.
Gary Wilson was a signaller attached to the 2nd Commando Regiment. On the 21st of June, 2010, Gary and then-fiancé Renee’s lives were changed forever when Gary was severely injured in a Black Hawk helicopter crash.
In this episode of Life After Service, Thomas Kaye speaks to the now-married couple, Gary and Renee, about the accident, the challenges they overcame and how they are helping pave the way to support others, both veterans and the families of those veterans.
Want to join the Wilsons and support veterans, their families and give back? Check out The Wilson Initiative. https://thewilsoninitiative.com.au/ Looking to have more energy, manage pain and optimise your health? Gary runs Bare Coaching, his personal coaching service. Find out more at: https://www.barecoaching.com/
Watch the episode on YouTube above, or listen to the audio-only version below.
Tony Park is a fiction and non-fiction international bestselling author. Before that, he served in the Australian Army Reserves in various roles, including as a public affairs officer.
In 2002, he was deployed to Afghanistan alongside the SAS, with his first novel published in 2004.
In this episode of Life After Service, Alex Lloyd spoke with Tony about what the army did for him, the challenges of readjusting to normal life after deploying, the military's relationship with the public, and his writing career journey.
To find out more about Tony and keep up to date with his work, be sure to look at his website. https://www.tonypark.net/
Watch the episode on YouTube above, or listen to the audio-only version below.
Angus Hordern interviews former commando Keith Wolahan.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Keith Wolahan is a former commando, a veteran of 3 tours of Afghanistan. He’s also a lawyer and barrister, and now has been pre-selected for the Federal seat of Menzies for the Liberal Party.
Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:
Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews a RAEME veteran of the Middle East, Ken Whitton.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ken Whitton joined the Army Reserves as a gunner in 1988. He then went full time, serving as an Electronics Technician in the Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, known as RAEME. He deployed on border protection operations, and to Afghanistan and Iraq. Today, he is transitioning into a civilian career at Babcock, in Defence Industries. He spoke with Sharon Mascall-Dare, who also works at Babcock.
The episode referenced at the end of the podcast is #45 Dr Sharon Mascall-Dare.
Former SAS trooper and Australian Federal Police officer Don Barnby is the third veteran featured in our Life After Service series.
Don served in the Vietnam war as a special forces soldier, and at Cyprus, Bougainville and East Timor with the AFP.
On a volunteer basis, Don has also been interviewing veterans for the Australian War Memorial.
Watch the episode on YouTube above, or listen to the audio-only version below.
** If you are struggling with any of the topics raised in this video, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 or Open Arms on 1800 011 046.
Alex Lloyd interviews Somalia veteran Greg Hopgood.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Greg Hopgood is a veteran of the Australian Army. He deployed to Somalia with 1 RAR as part of Operation Solace in the 1990s, our first battalion-sized deployment overseas since the Vietnam War. Greg spoke with Alex Lloyd about his experiences on patrols, the mate he lost and the confronting humanitarian crisis at the time, and how he still carries his experiences in Somalia with him today.
Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:
An intelligence officer to Iron Man athlete to veterans advocate. Sarah Watson is the first veteran we feature in our series Life After Service.
In our podcast interview with her (#76), we discussed her time in the Australian Defence Force. In this documentary, we cover her challenges and successes in her time adapting to life after the military.
Watch the episode on YouTube above, or listen to the audio-only version below.
Alex Lloyd interviews army veteran Monika Georgieva.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Monika Georgieva was the first female to attempt selection for the 2nd Commando Regiment and the Special Air Service Regiment. She made two attempts at SAS selection, then went on to be Australia’s first female infantry officer, having commanded a rifle platoon and a reconnaissance/sniper platoon. In her conversation with Alex Lloyd, Monika talks about her childhood in Bulgaria, joining the Australian Army, details her various Special Forces selection attempts and her career beyond.
Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:
Veterans of Season 4 share their stories of a Christmas in uniform.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. Veterans and other guests of Season 4 share with the Thistle Productions team their experiences of Christmas in uniform, from deployments overseas and back home in Australia. These stories have not been previously featured on the podcast. Featured guests include Sarah Watson, Adrian Humphries, Ben Pronk, Tim Curtis, Bill Fitzgerald, Tony Park, John Cantwell, Tim Reynolds, David McCourt, Crystal Callender, Garth Callender, Glenn Azar, Alyssa Azar, Ian Roberts, Dan Keighran VC, Paul Cale, Renee Wilson and Bob Hunter. This episode is hosted by Angus Hordern.
Thomas Kaye interviews 2nd Commando Regiment veteran and Black Hawk crash survivor, Gary Wilson.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Gary Wilson was a signaller attached to the 2nd Commando Regiment. Gary survived a catastrophic helicopter crash in Afghanistan, on 21 June 2010. Gary was severely injured, including a traumatic brain injury. Three Australians lost their lives in this crash: Ben Chuck, Tim Aplin and Scott Palmer; as well as a US serviceman. In this conversation with Thomas Kaye, Gary shares his story of military service, the Black Hawk crash and his recovery afterwards.
Gary’s wife, Renee Wilson, also spoke to Thomas Kaye. Gary and Renee were also featured in Life After Service - Gary & Renee Wilson.
Alex Lloyd interviews Iraq veteran Kylie Graham.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Kylie Graham served in the Australian Army for 16 years and is going on 19 year with the Royal Australian Air Force and Air Reserves. During her full-time years in the Air Force, she deployed to Iraq. She’s now a Welfare Officer and a psychologist. This is her conversation with Alex Lloyd about her years of service, memories from Iraq and her father’s time in the Vietnam War.
Alex Lloyd interviews former Commando and Afghanistan veteran Dean Parkinson.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Dean Parkinson is a veteran of the 2nd Commando Regiment. Despite significant injuries in an aircraft accident in training, Dean eventually became a commando and deployed twice to Afghanistan. He’s also competed at the highest professional level of speed skydiving. This is Alex Lloyd's conversation with Dean about how he went from Qantas flight attendant to Australian Special Forces.
Listen to the rest of Dean's story in Volume II of this conversation.
Thomas Kaye interviews combat medic Jeremy Holder.
Jeremy Holder was a medic in the Australian Army for 7 years. He served within Special Operations Command for 4 years, which included a deployment to Afghanistan with the commandos as a platoon medic. Jez spoke to Thomas Kaye about his time in Afghanistan and the reality of being a combat medic for Special Forces.
The fifth image is from the documentary VOODOO MEDICS, photograph by Gary Ramage/Daily Telegraph, used with permission from Kristin Shorten.
Angus Hordern interviews Iraq veteran and cancer survivor Tim Reynolds.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Tim Reynolds served in the Australian Army for 27 years. He joined as a mechanic and retired at the rank of Major. He had multiple deployments during his service, including to Iraq in 2005. He began a new civilian career in his 40s before being diagnosed with a terminal cancer. This is Tim's conversation with Angus Hordern of a life in uniform, deployments overseas and overcoming adversity against the odds.
Tim returned to the podcast in Christmas on the Line Vol III.
Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews father and son veterans Dean and Alan Bretherton.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. In this podcast Sharon Mascall-Dare conducts two interviews with a father and son: Dean Bretherton, a veteran of the New Zealand Air Force, and his son Alan Bretherton, who is currently in the Middle East on operations with the Australian Army.
Dean served in the New Zealand Defence Force for 22 years. He spoke to Sharon about his own service and his family’s deep military history.
Captain Alan Bretherton is currently on operations as the Deputy Plans Officer for Joint Task Force 633. He’s also serving as the Gender Advisor to the commander of JTF633, Major General Susan Coyle. Alan spoke to Sharon about his career to date, and what it’s like to be an officer in today’s Australian Army.
Angus Hordern interviews retired Major General John Cantwell AO, DSC.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. John Cantwell AO, DSC served in the Australian Army for 38 years, retiring at the rank of Major General. He had tours of duty in the First and Second Gulf War, and the War in Afghanistan. He began his career as a Private, saw intense frontline combat and in his final tour was the Commander of Australian Forces in the Middle East Area of Operations. John was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 2012 for his “inspired leadership, deep commitment to his people and superior performance on operations”. He is the author of the bestselling memoir, EXIT WOUNDS.
This is the first instalment in a two-part conversation with Angus Hordern. Click here to listen to Volume II. Also check out #43 Dan Keighran VC Vol II (ft. John Cantwell). John returned for his fourth appearance on the podcast in Christmas on the Line Vol III.
Alex Lloyd hosts a panel on what it means to be a veteran today, with Cassie Collins, Dee Cherry and Aaron Davis.
Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. Today's panel conversation is on the topic of public perceptions and misconceptions around military service, the role of the media, and what it means to be a veteran in the modern era.
