List of Triple J programs

This is a list of programs that have been broadcast by Australian national youth radio station Triple J. For a list of current and departed presenters, see List of Triple J presenters.

Mainstay

On weekdays, Triple J broadcasts at least five mainstay programs; on weekends and during the summer holidays, variants of these programs are broadcast with different presenters and time-slots.

• Breakfast, hosted by Concetta Caristo and Luka Muller (6:00am–9:00pm)
• Mornings, hosted by Lucy Smith (9:00am–12:00pm)
• Lunch, hosted by Dave Woodhead (12:00pm–3:30pm)
• Drive, the drive time program hosted Abby Butler and Tyrone Pynor (3:30pm–5:30pm, then 6:00pm–7:00pm)
• Hack, a current affairs segment hosted by Dave Marchese (5:30pm–6:00pm).

Hack is a half-hour segment broadcast during Drive. In 2023, it was announced long-running late night program Good Nights would be axed– this show would previously have followed Hack, but now the final hour of Drive succeeds it.

Breakfast

Breakfast is Triple J's flagship mainstay program. It began in the late 1980s, with hosts Russell Thorpe ("Rusty Nails") and then Maynard fronting the time slot. In the early 1990s, Helen Razer and Mikey Robins hosted the program– they are retrospectively considered one of the station's most popular duos ever.

Adam Spencer and Wil Anderson hosted from 1999 until 2004. The pair were known for their unconventional sense of humour, highlighted by regular segments including Mary from Junee, Essence of Steve, and Are You Smarter Than Dools?

In 2005, Jason Whalley and Lindsay McDougall ("The Doctor"), of the duo Jay and the Doctor from Frenzal Rhomb, took over as hosts of Breakfast. For 2007, former Lunch presenter Myf Warhurst joined the duo as a permanent member of the Breakfast team.

Alex Dyson (left) and Matt Okine at Tropfest 2013.

On 23 November 2009, it was announced that Tom Ballard and Alex Dyson, hosts of the 2009 Weekend Breakfast show, would take over as hosts of Breakfast in 2010. In December 2013, Tom Ballard resigned and was replaced by Matt Okine in January 2014. This new duo anchored the program until 2016.

Ben Harvey and Liam Stapleton took over from 2017 to 2019, and their successful chemistry saw them transfer over to Nova FM's breakfast program in 2020 to host Ben & Liam. In 2020, Coda Conduct members Sally Coleman and Erica Mallett took over Breakfast, but resigned in November later that year. Bryce Mills took over for the remainder of 2020, and was joined by Ebony Boadu until 2022.

Presenter line-ups

• Russell Thorpe ("Rusty Nails"): 1977–1990
• Maynard: 1987–1992
• Helen Razer and Mikey Robins
• Mikey Robins, Paul McDermott, and Steve Abbott ("The Sandman")
• Adam Spencer and Wil Anderson: 1999–2004
• Jason Whalley and Lindsay McDougall (Jay and the Doctor): 2005–2006
• Jason Whalley, Lindsay McDougall and Myf Warhurst: 2007
• Tom Ballard and Alex Dyson: 2010–2013
• Alex Dyson and Matt Okine: 2014–2016
• Ben Harvey and Liam Stapleton (Ben and Liam): 2017–2019
• Sally Coleman and Erica Mallett (Coda Conduct): 2020
• Bryce Mills and Ebony Boadu: 2021–2022
• Bryce Mills and Concetta Caristo: 2023–2024
• Concetta Caristo and Luka Muller: 2024–present.

Music

Speciality music programs

Triple J has several genre-specific programs broadcast typically once per week. In 2024, these shows include:

• Blak Out: music from Indigenous Australian artists; launched in 2021
• Hip Hop Show: hip hop music; launched in 2004
• House Party: live DJ mixes from the presenter; launched in 2008
• Mix Up: DJ mixes from local and international guests
• The Nudge: dance and club music; launched in 2021
• Soul Ctrl: neo soul and rhythm & blues music; launched in 2022.

Previous programs that have been discontinued or moved to Double J include:

• Friday Night Shuffle: dance and club music; replaced by The Nudge in 2021
• Radio Funktrust: groove and funk music, launched as The Groove Train
• The Racket: heavy metal music; launched as Three Hours of Power in 1990, ended in 2024
• Roots 'n All: contemporary blues and roots music; launched in 2004, ended in 2021
• Short Fast Loud: punk rock, hardcore punk, metalcore and post-hardcore music; launched in 2003, moved to Double J from 2025
• Something More: electronic music; launched in 2014, ended in 2021
• The Sound Lab: experimental, dubstep, ambient, and glitch music; launched in 2003, ended in 2014.

Live music programs

Live at the Wireless is a weekly segment that broadcasts live performances from gigs and festivals around the country. The recordings are later made available online, and are sometimes published to streaming platforms by the artists.

Like a Version is a Friday weekly segment during Breakfast which features musicians and bands performing two songs; one original and one cover of the artists choice. The segment was created by Mel Bampton as part of the morning show Mel in the Morning. During the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, Like a Version went on hiatus for the first time in 16 years.

Home and Hosed

Robbie Buck, one of the original hosts of Home and Hosed, in the Triple J studio.

Currently hosted by Ash McGregor, Home and Hosed is the flagship Australian music program on Triple J where significant airtime is given to unsigned musicians. The show also includes interviews with musicians, premieres of new releases, and gig guides. Home and Hosed is broadcast most weekday evenings.

Home and Hosed, originally titled The Local when it began in 2003, is the successor and replacement for The Oz Music Show, which was hosted by Richard Kingsmill from 1991. Home and Hosed has had several time slot changes throughout the years– it was founded as a two hour show in the late night, before reducing to one hour in 2011, earlier in the evening. From 2024, the program has again expanded to two hours.

Compilation CDs

Triple J used to issue compilation albums on CD for several of its specialty music programs, including The Racket, House Party (until 2017), Hip Hop Show (from 2005) and Home and Hosed (from 2003 to 2006), as well as for its Like a Version (from 2005 to 2021) and Live at the Wireless (until 2010) formats.

News and current affairs

News and Hack

Triple J has their own independent news team, specifically covering news and issues that are relevant to young Australians, such as education and climate change, as well as general music news. A short news break is delivered on the hour during weekdays, and every half-hour during Breakfast.

The station's flagship current affairs program, Hack, is broadcast every weeknight during the Drive time-slot. It is hosted by Dave Marchese. Young people across the country are encouraged to text or call in for discussion among a panel of experts depending on the relevant news topic.

Talkback Classroom

Triple J broadcast Talkback Classroom from 1998 to 2003, a program where secondary school students from around Australia interviewed various prominent politicians, business and community leaders on current affairs issues. The program now airs on ABC Radio National.

Heywire

Heywire is where youth in outback Australia can air their views through a youth forum. Entrants must be between 16 and 22, write and engaging story relating to the countryside and must work well on radio. There are 41 regions like Unearthed. The winner receives airplay of their story and one winner from each of the 41 regions, wins an all expenses paid trip to Canberra at the Australian Institute of Sport for the youth forum.

Talk

The Graveyard Shift

Beginning in 2005, The Graveyard Shift was a late-night music and talk show that used to be broadcast on Saturday overnights from 1am.

The Hook Up

The Hook Up is late-night talk show launched in 2016 with discussions and interviews about sex and relationships.

The J Files

The weekly J Files show has had two incarnations over the years. From 1996 to 2003, it was a three-hour late weeknight show hosted by Richard Kingsmill. Each show was topical; it might feature an artist, a particular year in the past, or songs with a certain theme. Examples of themed shows include cats and dogs, New Zealand bands, and banned songs. From 2003, The J Files was a one-hour Saturday afternoon show, hosted by various Triple J presenters, specifically focused on one particular artist. The final episode was aired in November 2007. On Thursday 21 August 2014, The J Files made its debut on digital station Double J.

Comedy

The Race Race

Beginning on 27 October 2008, Chris Taylor and Craig Reucassel co-hosted a comedy program centred on the 2008 United States presidential election entitled The Race Race. The programme aired at 17:00 weekdays until the wrap-up episode, which aired on 5 November 2008, after the elections had concluded.

The program derived its name from the fact that Barack Obama, the first African–American to be nominated by a major American political party for president, was running a formerly exclusively white political race against the white Republican candidate, John McCain. The program became the number one podcast in Australia, and Triple J released a number of commemorative Race Race T-shirts which featured the show's catchphrase "I Like Pie".

Restoring the Balance

Restoring the Balance was broadcast sporadically on Sunday afternoons during 2004. The primary concept behind the show was a satire of the contrasting political views between the conservative Australian Howard government, and the left-wing government-funded Triple J radio station. The show suggested that the station was forced to broadcast a segment of right-wing political views in order to "restore the balance."

Sunday Night Safran

From 2005, John Safran and Father Bob Maguire co-hosted Sunday Night Safran, a late-night talk show interviewing international guests, generally discussing serious topics like religion and politics.

This Sporting Life

This Sporting Life (TSL), which ran from 1986 to 2008, was a parody of sporting panel programs, created and hosted by actor-writer-comedians John Doyle and Greig Pickhaver (under the pseudonyms Roy Slaven & HG Nelson). As well as sport, the duo cast a wide comedic net that encompassed the worlds of entertainment, politics and celebrity. TSL was remarkable as one of the few successful comedy programs that was substantially improvised.

The longest-running show in Triple J's programming history, TSL commanded a large and dedicated nationwide audience. Special editions of TSL were broadcast to coincide with the NRL and AFL grand finals (The Festival of the Boot) as well as for all three of rugby league's State of Origin series matches. (see Roy and HG's State of Origin commentary). In 2009, after 22 years at the ABC, the duo left to work for the commercial rock station Triple M.

Today Today

Today Today was the name given to the drive show in 2004 and 2005, hosted by Chaser members Chris Taylor and Craig Reucassel. The show's name was derived from Today Tonight, a controversial Australian TV current affairs show screened on the Seven Network. Their humour was in a similar vein to CNNNN and The Chaser, being more politically driven. One of their more popular skits was "Coma FM", a parody of commercial radio stations.

Radio plays

Triple J has had several comedic radio plays:

• Coma FM - satirical radio station performed by Today Today hosts Chris Taylor and Craig Reucassel.
• Space Goat - a parody radio sci-fi performed by the breakfast show's Jay and the Doctor which borrowed many features of early radio science fictions such as a long intro for very little story which leaves many questions open, which the narrator spends some time pointing out at the end.
• Battalion 666 - a comedic radio drama which takes place on a fictional Royal Navy ship, HMS Beezlebub. It came about when, in 2004, the Royal Navy officially recognised LaVeyan Satanism as an official religion in which its personnel can partake. The show features Jay and the Doctor, John Safran, and various sound clips of famous people taken from recorded interviews such as Tom Cruise and Russell Crowe.