Speaker: Mary Beard
Moderated by: Bri Lee

For the first time, Sydney audiences will hear directly from Cambridge Professor Emerita Dame Mary Beard in an event that delves into the broad range of her career - from the ruins of ancient Rome to the trenches of Twitter.

No one is better equipped...

Speakers: Rebecca F. Kuang
Moderated by: Nakkiah Lui

The novel Yellowface by Rebecca F. Kuang is a worldwide “zeitgeist” publishing sensation. When June Hayward's friend, the bestselling author Athena Liu, dies in a freak accident, June acts quickly - and steals Athena's manuscript about Chines...

Speakers: Maddison Griffiths, Tanya Hosch, Tara Rae Moss, and Grace Tame
Moderated by: Jamila Rizvi

It’s judged and pre-judged. It’s targeted and pursued. It’s loved and abused. And from almost the beginning it has been at the centre of our thinking about our rights and our freedoms. Join this h...

Speakers: Chanel Contos
Moderated by Jess Hill

"Turbo-charged by the internet, porn today is ubiquitous, accepted and, for a lot of people, cool. It even has its own cute “corn” emoji on the socials. And in the name of sexual liberation, many embraced it in the name of celebrating their body and...

Speakers: Steph Tisdell, Barkaa
Moderated by: Rudi Bremer

The conwoman, the sociopathic girl-boss, the apathetic sad woman, and the femme avenger: pop culture has seen a (BIG) rise in the female anti-hero. Yes - finally, we're allowed to be bad! But most of these characters are white women, lea...

Speaker: Anna Funder
Moderated by: Jemma Birrell
When Anna Funder turned to her literary hero, George Orwell, for inspiration, she discovered not just that Eileen O’Shaughnessy, his first wife's, contribution had been ignored by his biographers but that Orwell himself had blatantly downplayed bot...

Speakers: Jane Caro, Zoe Coombs Marr, Jan Fran, Michelle Law, Nakkiah Lui
Moderated by: Steph Tisdell

Roasts are normally a piss-take on an individual: a celebrity, comedian, politician, or public figure. But we're going rogue and our roastee is an idea - no, a movement: feminism.

If you thou...

Speakers: Hannah Ferguson, Mary Mcgillivray, Sisonke Msimang
Moderated by: Bri Lee

For a long time, the word 'influencer' conjured stereotypes of activewear and dubious hot takes. But it's 2024 and social media has well-and-truly revolutionised the public square. Today, the word influencer can r...