Lizzy Hoo hosts the new Deadset Studios‘ produced SBS podcast Grand Gestures, interviewing 10 notable Australians about the special bonds and stories they share with their grandparents.
Comedian and Grand Gestures host Lizzy Hoo
Guests include:
- Actress Pia Miranda became a household name through the Australian cult classic, Looking for Alibrandi. She speaks about deepening her connection to her nonno and nonna’s family and religion, including spending her 50th birthday in a Sicilian cemetery.
- Walkley Award winning journalist Pat Abboud shares the love story behind his grandparents’ arranged marriage and learning Arabic in the kitchen with his teita (grandmother).
- Singer-songwriter Emily Wurramara reflects on growing up going between her gagu (grandmother) in the Northern Territory learning Dreamtime stories and singing karaoke at her Filipino grandmother’s house.
- Nadine J. Cohen shares how, after the death of her parents, she and her sister were left with the responsibility of caring for her grandmother who survived the Holocaust, but whose mind returned to that time increasingly as her health declined
- Singer Deni Hines talks about growing up in a family of three strong women; her mother pop icon Marcia and her Jamaican grandmother Esme who moved in to help raise Deni when Marcia became pregnant as a teenager.
- Former Masterchef contestant Alice Zaslavsky shares how her love of gardening, food and teaching comes from her Georgian grandmother.
- Comedian Emo Majok’s reflects on the legacy of his grandmother, who escaped war-torn Sudan and now has around 50 descendants in Australia.
Hoo said:
“Grand Gestures is like a warm hug from your grandparents – it’s full of warmth and stories that remind you of your own loved ones. Especially as we get older, we start to realise our grandparents are the keepers of all the family stories and histories.
There’s a lot of laughs, beautiful stories about happy times but also stories of overcoming life’s challenges like illness, disability and discrimination.”
Grand Gestures is available now on the SBS Audio app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, LiSTNR, or wherever you stream podcasts and was produced in partnership with Deadset Studios.