Persevering Rick

Growing up in Australia, deaf in one ear, Rick had a rough time learning.

2013 / Jesse Cox / Mike Williams / Long Story Short, AUSTRALIA

Growing up in Australia, deaf in one ear, Rick had a rough time learning.

At 15 he dropped out of school to work at a bakery, but not long after the pressures of young adulthood got to him. He often thinks back to the day when he drove to a cliff in his town of Lithgow, and made a very important decision. Not jumping and persevering through his problems have since become a recurring theme in his life story.

Note for non-Australian listeners! "Showbags" are themed bags stuffed with commercial merchandise and are mainstay souvenirs at Australian carnivals and fairs.

Persevering Rick was produced for Long Story Short by Mike Williams with sound engineer Timothy Nicastri. Long Story Short was created and presented by Jesse Cox and Mike Williams, and produced by Winding Track and Creative Nonfiction in association with ABC Radio National. The series producer is Lorena Allam.

Jesse and Mike discuss how Long Story Short came to be, and how it fits into (and is stretching) the Australian radio landscape, Behind the Scenes.


produced by

Jesse Cox

Jesse Cox (1986–2017) was one of Australia's finest radio producers.

Mike Williams

Mike (he/him) makes documentaries and podcasts about Australian characters and culture.


Featured in


May we recommend…