We were especially excited to record this week’s episode as we are joined by three fantastic guests, Andrew, Joe and Carlo otherwise known as Sooshi Mango.

These three hilarious Italian Australians are famous worldwide for their comedy and we love how they use entertainment and laughter to celebrate our heritage.

We loved chatting with the guys about their Italian heritage, hearing of their passion to keep the culture alive and why being Italian is the best thing ever!

Thanks for listening and a big thanks to our sponsors for this week's episode- Melbourne Arancini. In 2016 husband and wife team Paul and Laura Muscara started Melbourne Arancini, supplying Melbourne and regional Victoria with handmade, delicious arancini made with the freshest ingredients. Arancini flavours range from traditional Bolognese Ragu, Four Cheese Broccolini, Pizzaiola, Arrabiata and fan favourite Chicken, Leek and Mushroom. The Christmas season is here and that means their famous Garlic Prawn Arancini are back and available now for something extra special for your Christmas celebrations! They really are Melbourne's best, made fresh.

Sooshi Mango on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/sooshimango?igsh=MThzM3Vrb2o2cmNwZw==

Melbourne Arancini on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/melbournearancini?igsh=NmtjbGFpMmoyd2U5

Melbourne Arancini Website:

https://www.melbournearancini.com.au/

This week we are chatting with Tony Guseli.

Born in Australia to Italian immigrant parents, Tony has discovered a strong passion into family research. He shared with us some of the interesting stories he has uncovered, particularly in relation to his Grandfather’s story of being abandoned at birth in Italy.

Tony also told us some fascinating details about the Snowy Scheme, a hydroelectricity and irrigation complex located in New South Wales. With work on the scheme commencing in 1949, it is the largest engineering project ever undertaken in Australia. The Snowy Scheme employed hundreds of migrant men from several places, including Italy. Many people don’t know the story of the Snowy Scheme and of its many accidents which claimed the lives of 121 men, 27 of whom were Italian. One of those men was Tony’s uncle Antonio. Tony is on a mission to tell the story of these men and has already spent countless hours on research. It’s a huge task and without Tony’s efforts these stories will not be told.

If you have any details which can be added to Tony’s research he asks that you please reach out, you can do this getting in touch with us or by clicking the links in the show notes.

Tony’s email:

guselitvg@bigpond.com

Italian Australian Podcast email:

italianaustralianpodcast@gmail.com

Our good friend, the one and only Frank Miranda, AKA Mr Accordion Man is back for another episode. We always love chatting with Frank and it was great to hear about all the exciting things he has been getting up to. We were also excited to chat about the Perth Italian Festival 2026 which is happening April 11th, it's going to be an amazing day, and we cannot wait to be a part of it.

Mr Accordion Man on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/mr_accordion_man?igsh=aXJvNG1mZW1hZmp6

Previous episodes with Mr Accordion Man:

Episode 30: Everything you need to know about the Perth Italian Festival

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1IifVp460H3Y0GaS49IV1r?si=wUr3-VDaTweMLCPB55PjHQ

Episode 54: The story behind Mr Accordion Man

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3P5zSA4xzIGZ94L6ciWy1z?si=2crJSjOjQAmU-tsN8XD4hw