Like a number of his characters, Booker Prize-winning novelist Douglas Stuart grew up working class and queer in Glasgow. He went on to have a career in fashion, which plays into his latest novel, John of John. “It's hard to tell people about grief. It’s hard to talk to people about poverty... and so I’d got very used to the silence in my own life, and my writing is the only thing that allows me to connect with myself,” Stuart told Terry Gross.

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Flea co-founded the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1982. The bass/trumpet player spoke with Terry Gross about how his music and his life have changed. “Thank God I've changed. I was a lunatic. I was 19 going on 10.” He has a new solo jazz album called ‘Honora.’ 

Also, we’ll hear from Nick Offerman. He stars in the new series ‘Margo's Got Money Troubles,' about a bright college freshman who gets pregnant and decides to keep the baby. Offerman plays her estranged father, a former pro wrestler who comes back into her life to help. The ‘Parks and Rec’ actor spoke with producer Ann Marie Baldonado about transforming for the role. 

TV critic David Bianculli will review Zach Galifianakis’ new gardening show.


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We remember conductor, composer and musician Michael Tilson Thomas, who died April 22 at age 81. He was a longtime music director of The San Francisco Symphony, known for his innovation, his ability to translate classical music for the general public, and for fostering contemporary music. He founded the New World Symphony for young players. He got his musical inheritance from his grandparents, who were stars of the Yiddish theatre. When he was a kid, his grandmother took him on stage and pointed up to the last row in the balcony, telling him: “Up there are the cheapest seats and in those seats are the people who love the show the most. Whatever you’re doing you must remember that it must reach those people.” He spoke with Terry Gross in 1994 and 2012. 

John Powers reviews ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2.’

Correction: A previous version of this episode incorrectly said that both Anne Frank and Audrey Hepburn were born in Holland. Anne Frank was born in Germany, and Audrey Hepburn was born in Belgium.


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‘Baby Reindeer’ was an unexpected hit on Netflix in 2024. Now its creator and star is back with ‘Half Man,’ an HBO series about two boys who become brothers after their mothers fall in love in 1980s Scotland. Gadd spoke with Tonya Mosley about exploring toxic masculinity, becoming famous overnight, and bombing stand-up sets. 

Also, book critic Maureen Corrigan recommends three playful novels: ‘Yesteryear,’ ‘American Fantasy,’ and ‘Enormous Wings.’


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‘New Yorker’ staff writer Elizabeth Kolbert says EPA chief Lee Zeldin has rescinded regulations, cut or eliminated departments and terminated the jobs of many scientists. Trump calls Zeldin "our secret weapon." The Pulitzer Prize-winning environmental journalist spoke with Terry Gross. 


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The Red Hot Chili Peppers have sold tens of millions of albums and taken home multiple Grammy Awards. Now in his 60s, more than four decades after that band formed, Flea is releasing his first solo album. ‘Honora’ is a jazz album that connects back to his childhood. The legendary bassist spoke with NPR’s Terry Gross about some of his wild antics, his “blood bond” with his band, and finding beauty in the world.


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Best known for his role as Ron Swanson on ‘Parks and Recreation,’ Nick Offerman plays a former professional wrestler reconnecting with his estranged daughter in ‘Margo's Got Money Troubles.’ He spoke with producer Ann Marie Baldonado about transforming into a wrestler, his ‘Parks’ group chat, and advice for young woodworkers. 

Also, John Powers reviews ‘Big Mistakes,’ starring Dan Levy on Netflix.


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Malala Yousafzai was 15 when a Taliban gunman shot her for advocating for girls' education in her native Pakistan. She understood that she was a target. “I had pictured it many times that this could happen. I had pictured it at school. I had pictured it in my school bus. I knew that the Taliban could do anything,” she told Terry Gross. Yousafzai won the Nobel Peace Prize when she was just 17 years old. In an interview from a live event onstage, she talks about her childhood before the incident and finding herself after being in the public eye for so long.

Also, we hear from actor Oscar Isaac. He’s currently starring in the Netflix series ‘Beef' and recently played Dr. Victor Frankenstein in Guillermo del Toro's adaptation of ‘Frankenstein.’ 

Book critic Maureen Corrigan recommends three books for the spring: ‘Yesteryear,’ by Caro Claire Burke; ‘American Fantasy,’ by Emma Straub; and ‘Enormous Wings,’ by Laurie Frankel.


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‘Schmigadoon!’ is now on Broadway. Adapted from the Apple TV series that lovingly satirized musicals of the ‘40s and ‘50s, we’ll hear from the co-creator, co-writer and songwriter of the series, Cinco Paul, who also wrote the book and songs for the Broadway show. He spoke with Terry Gross in 2021. 

Also, film critic Justin Chang reviews ‘Blue Heron.’ 


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In ‘The Secret War Against Hate,’ historian Steven J. Ross details the racist, anti-Semitic groups that sprung up after WWII, in the later half of the 20th century — and the spy network that worked to bring them to justice. He spoke with Terry Gross about that, and how it connects to the Dept. of Justice’s recent indictment of the Southern Poverty Law Center.

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A former pro-wrestling executive, Linda McMahon is now the Education Secretary Trump tasked with abolishing her agency. ‘New Yorker’ staff writer Zach Helfand explains how her WWE experience led her to this role.


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