THISTLE PRODUCTIONS

Thistle Productions is the producers of the documentary miniseries FOR SCHOOL AND COUNTRY, collaborators with author Michael Veitch on the book BARNEY GREATREX, and the creators of the podcast LIFE ON THE LINE and video documentary series LIFE AFTER SERVICE.

Alex Lloyd is a publisher at Pan Macmillan Australia, a martial arts instructor and a passionate storyteller. He loves history and discovering the intimate, human stories that drive it. He is one of the co-founders of Thistle Productions, and the creator and host of LIFE ON THE LINE.

Dr Sharon Mascall-Dare OAM is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and author. Sharon has worked for the BBC, Radio France International and the ABC's Radio Australia, presenting news coverage of war and peacekeeping operations in Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Afghanistan and Iraq. She has a PhD in communication and is an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of South Australia. Her area of research is ethnographic journalism and journalistic ethics in regards to coverage of veterans' affairs and Anzac commemoration. Sharon is a Major in the Australian Army Reserve, working as a Public Affairs Officer. She deployed to Iraq in 2016-17. Sharon joined Thistle Productions and began conducting veteran interviews for LIFE ON THE LINE in 2018, and was interviewed herself in 2019. Sharon now works in Defence industries and is the originator of StoryRight, a veterans employment support program. She was awarded an OAM in recognition of a lifetime of work in journalism and communication in 2023.

Sophie Hu is a recent graduate in Music and Sound Design. She has worked professionally and as a volunteer for a variety of audio post-production projects and podcasts. Sophie loves storytelling, podcasting and creating an engaging listening experience. She joined Thistle Productions in 2023 as an editor for LIFE ON THE LINE.

Angus Hordern, co-founder, works in the finance industry, and runs his business Hordern Wealth Management on Sydney's North Shore. He is a former Intelligence Officer in the Royal Australian Naval Reserve and has served in the 1st Commando Regiment. His father, John, served in the Royal Australian Navy in World War II, inspiring Angus's love of history and all things military. 

Thomas Kaye is a tech lover, producer, videographer, photographer and editor. He joined Thistle Productions in 2012. He was a producer at Channel Nine and is now a communications professional. His interest in both the humanity of storytelling and the technical skills behind it form an invaluable part of the team. He has extensive military history in the family and is a committed podcaster, on-mic and behind the scenes. Thomas is the creator and director of the video documentary series LIFE AFTER SERVICE.

Rohan Viswalingam works at the ABC. He joined Thistle Productions in 2012 and was an editor on FOR SCHOOL AND COUNTRY. He's a passionate and creative storyteller, and deeply moved by the stories of our veterans. He came on the podcast in 2018, conducted a veteran interview in 2019 and was a crew member on LIFE AFTER SERVICE in 2021.

Discover how the original team came together in this podcast and how the podcast began in this media article. Thistle Productions is indebted to its other contributors as well. Artwork for LIFE ON THE LINE is by Mark Thacker at Big Cat Design. The Thistle Productions logo is by Nicholas Hairs. The theme music for FOR SCHOOL AND COUNTRY and LIFE ON THE LINE is by Dan Van Werkhoven.

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