Standing Room Only for 08/21/2016 Standing Room Only is literally radio with pictures... and arts, theatre, film, comedy, books, dance, entertainment and music – all the things, in other words, that make life worth living. Full programme details are available on the Standing Room Only webpage

Photographer Susan Bright on the fascination with the selfies "It is a compulsion for anyone with a camera, artist or not, to turn it on themselves. There is always a ready model and the self is a fascinating subject." British photography curator, Susan Bright wrote that six years ago, before the age of the selfie, in a book called Auto Focus which looked at the place of the self portrait in photography. Susan is about to give a talk at the Auckland Art Gallery, and Lynn Freeman caught up with her to talk about the selfie craze. Aug 21, 2016 02:50 pm Former UN military observer on his novel Ladder to the Moon Cantabrian Peter Fry has drawn on his experiences - fascinating and horrific - as an army officer and United Nations military observer in the Middle East. for his first novel. Ladder to the Moon takes place mainly on the Israel-Lebanon border in the 1970s - an unusual setting for a love story. But this is where his protagonist John Ferris, a New Zealand Army captain serving as a UN military observer, meets Leila. Her Palestinian family had been dispossessed during the bitter fighting in the Arab-Israeli war of 1967. Lynn Freeman talks to Peter about his experiences. Aug 21, 2016 02:39 pm Scott Bradlee of Post Modern Jukebox Scott Bradlee's Post Modern Jukebox is one of the first examples of a big-time touring and recording act not needing the help of a major record company to get them exposure - it was all done on YouTube and Facebook. Phil O'Brien spoke to Scott Bradlee at his home in New York as he was getting ready to visit New Zealand for the second time later this month. Aug 21, 2016 02:25 pm WORLD returns to New Zealand Fashion Week with New York Twang Well-established and new names sit side-by-side in the line-up at New Zealand Fashion Week 2016, while more of the familiar designers plan to show during the public weekend shows, rather than the trade event. Sonia Sly speaks to Francis Hooper, Vinny Sherry and Ata Te Kanawa about pushing the fashion envelope in a changing landscape. Aug 21, 2016 01:45 pm A retrospective of Downstage points the way to a new look An exhibition about the country's longest-running professional theatre - Wellington's Downstage - is about to open this week. The theatre closed down just before what would have been its 50th anniversary. But the show, Standing Ovation, is also a window into the future of exhibitions. It harnesses the high-tech skills of Victoria University students to create it. But will virtual and augmented reality ever be as powerful as seeing the real thing? Lynn Freeman talks to Peter Rowlands of the National Library, who is heading the ambitious project. Aug 21, 2016 01:30 pm The future of museums in the regions looks a little brighter There are hundreds of small community-run museums in regions around the country. It's often a struggle - not just financially, but with the changing notions of how they show their treasures, if they're to survive. But help is on the way for regional museums - a TV series called Heritage Rescue. Series consultant Brigid Gallagher and her team have turned things around for several regional museums, though changing exhibition spaces sometimes means hurting the feelings of long-time volunteers. Lynn Freeman talks with Brigid, and with Jan Brown, a volunteer for Taranaki's Mokau Museum and Art Gallery, which has undergone its makeover. She also talks with Phillipa Tocker is the Executive Director of Museums Aotearoa. Aug 21, 2016 12:30 pm Stories from the Somme We're approaching the 100th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme. 15,000 members of the New Zealand Division went into action there, a horrifying 2,000 died and more than half of them have no known grave. Another estimated 6,000 men were wounded. Once a month the story of one of these soldiers is read out, as part of the Last Post Ceremony at Wellington's Pukeahu National War Memorial Park. Lynn Freeman talks to the person who researches and writes up those stories - Sarah Burgess from the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Aug 21, 2016 12:15 pm   Older stories Artist, poet and activist Cleo Wade Best-selling graphic novelist Raina Telgemeier The Opera Studio's singing coach Frances Wilson Arts Acess Accolade winner Glen McDonald Burmese-New Zealand film-maker Yamin Tun Not all audio is available due to copyright restrictions