Wait... They Did What!?

Lions, tigers, bears and elephants regularly starred in circuses across Australia... until animal rights activists took on the ringmasters.  This episode will answer questions like:  Are circuses allowed to have exotic animals? Do any circuses still use animals in Australia? Should animals be used in circuses? Did they used to have lions and bears in circuses? Why don't they have exotic animals in...

Oh hai, husband! what do you mean I have to quit my job?  Women had to leave their jobs if they got married... and when they did work, they got paid less than men.  This episode will answer questions like:  What was the Marriage Bar? What is the gender pay gap? Why are women paid less than men? When were women allowed to work in Australia? Why couldn’t women work in the olden days?  Find more epis...

Before we could carry computers they cost around a million dollars... and were as heavy as about six African elephants.  This episode will answer questions like:  Who invented the first computer? How big were the first computers? What did computers look like in the 1960s? How much did the first computers cost? What were computers like before laptops?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wa...

Playgrounds used to be made from splintery wood and hot, rusty metal... and the ground surfaces were asphalt or concrete – ouch!  This episode will answer questions like:  What did playgrounds look like in the 1970s? Why did they take away wooden playgrounds? What types of injuries did playgrounds cause? Why are there woodchips in playgrounds? Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... Th...

Harry Potter, Andy Griffiths and Batman were all banned... by Australia’s ruthless book police. This episode will answer questions like:  Why were books banned? What books were banned in Australia? Who bans books? When were books banned in Australia? Who banned books in Australia?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC list...

Imagine being banned from your local swimming pool because of the colour of your skin… that's what happened to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander kids in the 1960s. This episode will answer questions like: What is racial segregation? How were First Nations peoples treated in the 1960s? What was the Freedom Ride? How did segregation impact the lives of Indigenous Australians? Was there racial se...

Dahhhhling! In the 1960s girls went to deportment schools to learn how to be ‘ladylike’... and women were also taught how to be ‘good wives.’  This episode will answer questions like:  What is deportment school? What do you learn at deportment school? Do deportment schools still exist? Why did they make girls walk with books on their heads?   Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... The...

Before we could carry computers they cost around a million dollars... and were as heavy as about six African elephants.  This episode will answer questions like:  Who invented the first computer? How big were the first computers? What did computers look like in the 1960s? How much did the first computers cost? What were computers like before laptops?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wa...

You were allowed to ride your bike without a helmet until the 1990s... and lots of cyclists kicked up a stink when the law changed.  This episode will answer questions like:  When did helmets become law in Australia? Why did cyclists refuse to wear helmets? When did cricket players start wearing helmets? What’s a stack hat?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with...

If you wanted to travel overseas in the olden days, it took the whole school holidays... because you had to go by boat.  This episode will answer questions like:  When did planes replace ships? How long did it take to travel overseas by ship? When did cruise ships become popular?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC liste...

Buddies, bangers and... hold on, police? Blue Light Discos were a vibe in the 80s and 90s.  This episode will answer questions like:  What is a Blue Light Disco? What did kids do at Blue Light Discos? Were Blue Light Discos cool?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC listen. 

Burn, baby, burn... garbage inferno! Before wheelie bins, Aussies used to burn all their rubbish... in their own backyards.   This episode will answer questions like:  How common were backyard incinerators? When were incinerators banned in Australia? Why were incinerators banned in Australia?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab...

We all think bunnies are cute, but most Australians also used to think they were super tasty... until they became infected with a deadly disease. EWW!  This episode will answer questions like:  What is myxomatosis? Are rabbits a pest? Why did Australians eat so much rabbit? Why don’t we eat rabbits anymore? Can you eat rabbit?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? wi...

Indigenous workers were often paid less than white people... if they were paid at all.   Hundreds of Indigenous workers went on strike in the 1960s because they weren’t being paid fairly... and it led to the government returning some of their stolen land.  This episode will answer questions like:  Who is Vincent Lingiari? What was the Wave Hill Walk-Off? What was the Gurindji strike? Why did Gough...

Before the internet, many Australian families owned a set of encyclopaedias... and they bought them from door-to-door salesmen.  This episode will answer questions like:  What is an encyclopaedia? Do encyclopaedias still exist? What is better: the internet or encyclopaedias? What is an encyclopaedia salesman?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Blac...

Milk used to be delivered to homes in glass bottles... and it was often raw.  This episode will answer questions like:  What is raw milk? Is raw milk legal in Australia? What is a milko? What happened to milkmen?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC listen.

Old-fashioned wedding vows made brides promise to obey their husbands... and change their names.  This episode will answer questions like:  What are traditional wedding vows? Does it say ‘obey’ in wedding vows? Why do women change their names after marriage? Should women change their names?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab o...

Up until the 1980s kids didn’t have to wear seatbelts in cars... there were no rules about baby and toddler seats either.  This episode will answer questions like:  When were seatbelt laws introduced in Australia? When did baby seats become mandatory in Australia? Why is it compulsory to wear a seatbelt? When were seatbelts invented?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did Wh...

Some people think under 18s should be able to vote... but the legal voting age in Australia used to be 21.  This episode will answer questions like:  Who can vote in Australia?  What age is an adult?  Why did the voting age in Australia change?  Why can’t people vote under the age of 18?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of A...

Whales were hunted in Australian waters up until the late 1970s... and they were used in everything from detergent to lipstick.  This episode will answer questions like:  Why did Australia stop whaling?  What is whale oil?  What was whale oil used for?  When did they stop killing whales in Australia?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the...

Doctors once used blood-sucking leeches as medicine... and they were as popular as Panadol.  This episode will answer questions like:  What is a leech?  How were leeches used in old medicine?  Are leeches still used in medicine?  What is blood-letting?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC listen.   

We all know that smoking is stupid, but do you know what’s even stupider? Smoking indoors... and people used to smoke inside anywhere they wanted.  This episode will answer questions like:  Is smoking indoors illegal?  What is passive smoking?  How bad is second hand smoking?  Why was smoking indoors banned?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black...

Every Aussie home used to have an outdoor dunny... some people even protested when toilets started moving indoors.  This episode will answer questions like:  What is an outdoor dunny?  What is a night soil man?  Why did toilets used to be outside?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What!? with Tilly Oddy-Black on the Kids tab of ABC listen.   

Up until the 1970s left-handed kids were forced to write with their right... or risk a rap over the knuckles.  This episode will answer questions like:   What is the history of left-handed people?  Why was left-handedness considered evil?  Who are the most famous left-handed people?  Why were left-handed people forced to be right-handed?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Di...

‘Witches’ were burnt at the stake hundreds of years ago, but witchcraft was still illegal in Australia right up until the 2000s... luckily, it’s safe to wave your wands today.   This episode will answer questions like:  Is witchcraft illegal in Australia?  Are witches real?  What is Wicca?  What does the church say about witches?  Find more episodes of kids’ history podcast Wait... They Did What?!...