Life on the Line

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Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories.

Episodes

Oct 24, 2023

#148 Steve Moharic

Oct 24, 2023

1hr 21 min

Thomas Kaye interviews 2nd Commando Regiment veteran and dog handler Steve Moharic.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Steve Moharic is an Australian Army veteran. He was a paratrooper, a shooter in the 2nd Commando Regiment, and then a dog handler within the Commandos. He and his four-legged best mate Guge saw a lot together. Steve spoke with Thomas Kaye over Zoom about his difficult pre-military past, his career in uniform, his life today still with Guge and gives great insight into how our war dogs work hand in paw with those in uniform.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

To see photos related to today's interview, visit our website - www.lifeonthelinepodcast.com - or follow us on social media: @lifeonthelinepodcast on Facebook and Instagram, @LOTLpod on Twitter and 'Thistle Productions' on LinkedIn.

Oct 10, 2023

#147 Ray James

Oct 10, 2023

45 min

Angus Hordern interviews Vietnam veteran and RSL NSW President Ray James.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ray James is a veteran of the Vietnam War and is currently the President of NSW RSL. He served in the Royal Australian Navy on HMAS Sydney, the Vung Tau ferry. He was also on HMAS Melbourne when it collided with the USS Frank E. Evans in 1969. Ray spoke with Angus Hordern about his life of service – in the military, in the police force and now in the veteran community.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

Oct 6, 2023

Working Spirit with Karyn Hinder

Oct 6, 2023

23 min

Alex Lloyd speaks with founder of the veterans charity Working Spirit, Army and RAAF veteran Karyn Hinder.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and tells their story. This is a bonus episode focused on the veterans-run charity Working Spirit, in a conversation with its founder. Karyn Hinder is an army and air force veteran with over 25 years of service. She has deployed to Timor and the Middle East. Her passion today is assisting military veterans to find employment in their life after service. She launched Working Spirit in 2016, a registered not-for-profit charity. Karyn spoke with Alex Lloyd over Zoom.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

Sep 26, 2023

#146 Joel Sardi

Sep 26, 2023

47 min

Thomas Kaye interviews Afghanistan veteran Joel Sardi.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Joel Sardi is a veteran of the Australian Army. He served for 5 years and deployed to Afghanistan as a rifleman at 7 RAR. Shortly after coming home, Joel had an accident, leaving him as a C-5 quadriplegic. Joel spoke to Thomas Kaye over Zoom about his time in the army, and adjusting to a new life after the accident.

This episode was edited by Sophie Hu

During the interview, Joel Sardi mentioned Damien Thomlinson. Angus Hordern interviewed Damien in a video podcast in Season 5.

Sep 12, 2023

#145 Lily Mulholland

Sep 12, 2023

54 min

Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews Timor and Bougainville veteran, Lily Mulholland.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Lily Mulholland served in the Australian Defence Force for 24 years as a public affairs officer. She has deployed to Timor, Bougainville and the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games on Operation Gold. During her time in the army, she also undertook an ADF expedition to Mount Everest. Lily shared her story with Sharon Mascall-Dare.

Aug 29, 2023

#144 Phillip Thompson

Aug 29, 2023

1hr 6 min

Angus Hordern interviews Afghanistan veteran and Federal MP Phillip Thompson.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Phillip Thompson is the Federal Member for Herbert and an Australian Army veteran. He deployed to Timor and Afghanistan, and was blown up by an improvised explosive device. He represented Australia at the Invictus Games in 2014 and now represents Townsville in Canberra. This is his conversation with Angus Hordern.

This episode was edited by Sophie Hu.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

Aug 15, 2023

#143 Rebecca and Ashley Semmens

Aug 15, 2023

1hr 9 min

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:

Aug 1, 2023

#142 Mark Direen

Aug 1, 2023

1hr 14 min

Thomas Kaye interviews Special Air Service Regiment veteran Mark Direen.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Mark Direen deployed multiple times to Afghanistan as a member of the SASR. He experienced long range reconnaissance missions, more kinetic operations and was injured by an improvised explosive device. He also worked at the Australian Embassy in Kabul. Today he runs his company Point Assist, its goal to assist people to evolve through experience. This is his conversation with Thomas Kaye.

This episode was edited by Sophie Hu.

Jul 18, 2023

#141 Rob Manton

Jul 18, 2023

47 min

Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews army veteran Rob Manton.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rob Manton served in the Australian Army for 30 years. His time in uniform saw multiple command appointments, an operational deployment to Iraq, and advisory and peacekeeping roles with the United Nations. Today, he’s the Chair of the Veterans Advisory Council in South Australia. He spoke to Sharon Mascall-Dare in Adelaide.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

Jul 4, 2023

#140 Mike Armstrong

Jul 4, 2023

49 min

Angus Hordern interviews Afghanistan veteran and artist Mike Armstrong.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Michael Armstrong joined the Australian Defence Force in 1998 as an aircraft technician. He went on to serve as a signals officer, deploying with 2 RAR to Timor and with the 2nd Commando Regiment to Afghanistan. He was on the last plane out of Afghanistan in Rotation XX. Throughout his time in the army Mike also taught as a hand-to-hand combat instructor, drawing on his martial arts background. He moved to work in Cyber before medically discharging. Today he keeps connected with the veteran community through his ‘Voices of Veterans’ artwork.

The episode referenced at the end of the podcast is #97 Paul Cale.

https://voicesofveterans.com.au

Jun 20, 2023

#139 Ryan Shaw

Jun 20, 2023

1hr 5 min

Alex Lloyd interviews former sniper team leader Ryan Shaw.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ryan Shaw joined the Australian Defence Force in 2006. During his 14-year career in the military he was a sniper team leader, deployed to Timor and Afghanistan, and worked in border protection. Today he’s the Director of Gaythorne RSL, in Brisbane, where he spoke with Alex Lloyd.

Jun 6, 2023

#138 Rod Henderson

Jun 6, 2023

56 min

Angus Hordern interviews Army Aviation veteran Rod Henderson.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rod Henderson is an Australian Army veteran. He has served as an infantryman and in Army Aviation, working with Black Hawks and Chinooks, including as a door gunner. Rod has deployed on warlike and humanitarian operations to Timor, Pakistan, New Guinea and Afghanistan. He’s now a volunteer guide at the Australian War Memorial.

This episode was edited by Sophie Hu.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include:

May 23, 2023

#137 John White

May 23, 2023

1hr 17 sec

Alex Lloyd interviews Vietnam War veteran John White.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. John White was an officer in the Australian Army during the Vietnam War. He was decorated for outstanding gallantry in the 1968 Battle of Ngok Tavak in South Vietnam. In the first episode of Season 7, Alex Lloyd spoke with John at Gaythorne RSL in Brisbane.

This episode was edited by Sophie Hu.

Episodes referenced at the end of the podcast include: