Hilary Harper and Paul West at the Wheeler Centre

Paul West – ‘Australia’s Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’ – is a homegrown champion in more ways than one. 

The former Vue De Monde chef, and host of River Cottage Australia, is a sustainable food advocate – and he wants to show you that you can grow and cook your own food, wherever you are, however much space you have. 

For West, growing, cooking and sharing food with your loved ones is a powerful act. ‘It’s personal, local action that empowers us when global problems can leave you feeling powerless.’

The chef, who trained in hatted restaurants, now offers practical advice on everything from building a ‘no dig’ garden, bee-keeping and knife-skills, to simple and delicious recipes for common veggies that you’ve grown yourself, and even throwing a backyard harvest festival. It’s all in his new book, The Edible Garden Cookbook & Growing Guide.

In this event, West speaks with Hilary Harper about how growing and eating locally has an impact well beyond our backyard.

As the long-running and trusted ‘Brain Food’ columnist for Fairfax, Richard Cornish tackles food and cooking questions from readers around Australia.

He responds to practical queries (‘How much is an American ‘stick of butter’?), experimental queries (‘Can I make mayonnaise using the juice from a jar of pickled cucumbers?), scientific queries (‘What is the difference between taste and flavour?’) and even paranormal queries (‘My grandmother claimed she could "hear" when her cakes were ready. Is there any science in this?’).

Richard’s blend of humour and warmth and his broad knowledge of culinary culture are reflected not just in his ‘Brain Food’ columns, but in his journalism and recipe books. He is the author of My Year Without Meat, about his experiment in vegetarianism, and he’s the co-author of several recipe books, with chefs Frank Camorra and Phillippa Grogan.

At Montalto, Richard discusses his book, a collection of his ‘Brain Food’ columns, and his career writing about food and culinary culture. Hosted by Lindy Burns.

If there’s one thing that can rival Stephanie Alexander’s enthusiasm for food and cooking, it’s her delight in good conversation.

In fact, conversation has been front and centre in choosing recipes for her book, The Cook’s Table. ‘I want to be away from the table as little as possible, so I have kept last minute stovetop cooking to a minimum,’ Alexander has said. ‘I don’t want to miss the best stories. I am hungry for the latest news and opinions.’

The Cook’s Table is an especially personal collection of recipes and reflections, with Alexander revisiting memorable meals from her own life and travels in each chapter. There’s plenty there to draw from; over the course of 50 years, Alexander’s career has seen her open several celebrated restaurants as owner-chef, write 14 books including the modern-day cooking bible The Cook’s Companion and launch the pioneering Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Foundation, which has seen food education take off in school gardens across Australia.

In conversation with writer and food critic Larissa Dubecki, Alexander talks about her food, foundation and five-decade career. 

Books and Ideas at Montalto series sound design and music: Jon Tjhia.

Activated charcoal, sound baths, coffee enemas, adaptogens – wellness trends continue to rise and rise, and many of them are totally (wholemeal) crackers.

While it’s easy to make fun of the more bizarre notions floated by self-styled wellness gurus, there’s no escaping the fact that the wellness industry is serious, multimillion-dollar business. How much of it is harmless nonsense, how much is actually helpful and how much is exploitative and dangerous? And to what extent does the rise in the wellness industry reflect real deficiencies in traditional medicine, especially in the treatment of women?

We ask these questions of Nick Toscano – one of the journalists who exposed Belle Gibson’s cancer hoax – as well as nutritional scientist and dietician Tim Crowe, writer Clem Bastow and host Jacinta Parsons.

Jacinta Parsons, Nick Toscano, Clem Bastow and Tim Crowe

Rain comes. In his voice messages, Aziz sounds unwell – but speaks at length about how, in spite of their living conditions, the men finally feel they have some control over their lives. He tells Michael about how they're cooperating with each other, too – splitting duties like security and the daily cleaning of the compound.

'We don't always want to get the attention of the people about the hardship,' he explains. 'We are just paying the price for our freedom.'

'We are managing our lives. You know, it's been 21 days now, three weeks … it's become normal for us.'

Abdul Aziz Muhamat

Photo: Manus Alert

In this update

Abdul Aziz Muhamat

Michael Green

Our theme music was composed by Raya Slavin.

Further reading

'The situation is critical’: cholera fears on Manus as water and medicine run out', by Ben Doherty, Guardian Australia, accessed 21 November 2017

'Refugees Trapped Far from Home, Farther from Deliverance', by Damien Cave, New York Times, accessed 21 November 2017

More information

The Messenger is a co-production of Behind the Wire and the Wheeler Centre. It’s produced by Michael Green, André Dao, Hannah Reich and Bec Fary, with Jon Tjhia and Sophie Black at the Wheeler Centre.

This short update was edited and mixed by Jon Tjhia.

Thank you

Dana Affleck, Angelica Neville and Sienna Merope. Also to Behind the Wire’s many participants and volunteers. Behind the Wire is supported by the Bertha Foundation.