Black Sheep

He was larger than life, a warrior, artist and musician whose legend has only grown since his death during the New Zealand Wars in 1868.... but Gustavus von Tempsky had a dark side. Gustavus von Tempsky is the star of a hundred songs and stories. The mercenary and adventurer whose Māori enemies called him Manu-rau - "a hundred birds". He was beloved by his troops, the famous Forest Range...

Why do some historians think an NZ-born traitor was "instrumental" in the Japanese victory in Singapore during WWII? And why is there such a mystery surrounding the Reefton boy who seemingly spied for the Japanese? Why do some historians think an NZ-born traitor was "instrumental" to the Japanese victory in Singapore during WWII? In part 1 we heard how Patrick Heenan, a NZ-born captain i...

What drove a boy from Reefton to turn against his comrades in World War Two? How was a former boxing and swimming champion recruited as an agent of Imperial Japan? It's a story still shrouded in mystery more than 70 years later. What drove a boy from Reefton to turn against his comrades in World War Two? How was a former boxing and swimming champion recruited as an agent of Imperial Japan? Did the...

Amy Bock was a criminal "supreme in her cleverness". Her most famous con saw her pose as a man for 15 weeks and marry the daughter of her landlord. Nobody has ever been able to explain what motivated her lifetime of fraud and scams. Detective Henry Hunt knocks on the door of Percy Redwood, a wealthy sheep farmer on an extended holiday at Nugget Point on the Catlins Coast. Over the last few months,...

The story of Horatio Robley continues... How did a man once dubbed a "predator of culture" for his collection of preserved Māori heads become better known as a "friend of the Māori"? In Part 1 of this story, we heard how Horatio Robley came to New Zealand as a young officer in the British Army and witnessed the devastating British defeat at Gate Pā. In Part 2, we hear how the Tauranga War ended, a...

Horatio Robley witnessed the most famous battle of the New Zealand Wars, he fathered a child with the daughter of a sworn enemy, his sketching helped end a war, his book helped save the art of Maori tattooing... But mostly he's famous for his grotesque collection of nearly 40 human heads. Horatio Robley witnessed the most famous battle of the New Zealand Wars, he fathered a child with the daughter...

Pākehā settlers in Taranaki knew John Bryce as "Honest John" but Taranaki Māori called him "Bryce Kōhuru" - Bryce the Murderer. Black Sheep investigates the life of the infamous Native Affairs Minister who led the assault on Parihaka. Pākehā settlers in Taranaki knew John Bryce as "Honest John" but Taranaki Māori had another nickname. They called him "Bryce Kōhuru" - Bryce the...

Roy Courlander was a New Zealand soldier who joined Nazi Germany's infamous SS during WWII. He participated in propaganda efforts trying to turn more allied soldiers to the Nazi cause. So why did he decide to turn traitor? On ANZAC day New Zealanders remember the heroism and sacrifice of those killed in war, but not all soldiers have legacies worth celebrating. Case in point: Roy Courlander, a NZ...

Kimble Bent was one of a tiny handful of Europeans who switched sides during the New Zealand Wars, who deserted the British army to join Māori "rebels" in Taranaki and reportedly witnessed a famous incident of kai tangata (cannibalism) in the wake of a battle against colonial forces. It's reasonably common knowledge that large numbers of Māori fought on the side of the government during the N...

A cottage burns down, three mutilated bodies are found inside and there are fears the whole city of Auckland could be at risk. In this episode of Black Sheep, William Ray investigates the story of the first European to be judicially executed in New Zealand history. October 10th, 1847. The brutal murder of a Devonport family leaves Auckland fearing an invasion of vengeful Māori. But when that threa...

In 1981 Dunedin teenager Chris Lewis tried to shoot Queen Elizabeth. Then, at least according to some, authorities tried to cover it up. In this collaboration with Stuff.co.nz journalist Hamish McNeilly, Black Sheep looks into Chris Lewis's bizarre life story. On October 14th, 1981 Dunedin teenager Chris Lewis tried to shoot Queen Elizabeth. Then (at least according to some) the authorities tried...

It's 1871 and the city of Auckland is being terrorised by a string of major fires. Fears are raised that a gang of anarchist fanatics could be responsible but the real culprit turns out to be a well known businessman with an axe to grind against Auckland high society. Cyrus Haley burned down several of the most famous buildings in 19th century Auckland and tried to kill the family of a prominent b...

Charlotte Badger was one of the first European women to live in New Zealand. She was also a pirate... or at least that's the traditional story. This special episode of Black Sheep, recorded live at Charlotte's Kitchen restaurant in Paihia, investigates Charlotte's pirate mystery. Charlotte Badger was one of the very first European women to live in New Zealand. She was also a pirate... or at least...

Richard Burgess may be New Zealand's most prolific serial killer. In the 1860s he and his outlaw gang roved the West Coast, robbing and murdering dozens of people. The full number of victims is still unknown. "Potentially he was New Zealand's worst serial killer..." Richard Burgess may be the most prolific murderer New Zealand has ever seen. It's estimated the death toll his ga...

In 1877 Chief Justice James Prendergast ruled the Treaty of Waitangi was "a simple nullity", in part because it was signed by "simple barbarians" and "savages". Those words have seen him condemned as an arch-villain of NZ history, but was he really? He really is as close as we have to a legal villain "A simple nullity" - three words which damned the man who uttered them to become the mos...

"The most vile criminal ever to be tried in New Zealand" Thomas Hall's crimes scandalised New Zealand when it was revealed he had attempted to murder his wife in order to steal her family fortune. "You have achieved in the annals of crime the position of being the vilest criminal ever tried in New Zealand." That's what the judge said to Thomas Hall as he sentenced him to life in pri...

Meet the New Zealand author of a book beloved by Neo-Nazi's, Satanists and White Supremacists. Bizarrely Arthur Desmond started off as a hard-core labour activist and supporter of Maori rights, but he then went "so far to the left that dropped off the edge." Arthur Desmond is possibly the most widely read and influential political writer New Zealand has ever produced. Unfortunately, the book he&#x...

Annie Aves was a famous abortionist from the 1930s. She was tried four times but each time the jury failed to reach a verdict. Her career finally came to an end when she was shot and killed by the boyfriend of a woman who'd sought her services. Content Warning: This podcast deals with abortion and infanticide. Some may find it distressing. On October 3, 1938 the city of Napier was in an uproar. Th...

Nazi "assassins", mischievous con-artists and power hungry spies... Black Sheep investigates how a pair of hoaxers convinced the government that New Zealand had been infiltrated by Nazi agents. In 1942 the head of New Zealand's first spy agency, the Security Intelligence Bureau (SIB), sent a shocking letter to the Prime Minister. Major Kenneth Folkes told Peter Fraser that Nazi agents had inf...

Can you imagine if 20 per cent of the people you know suddenly died? How would you feel if the people in charge blocked doctors from helping them? For Samoans in 1918 this wasn't a hypothetical question. Imagine if one fifth of all the people you know suddenly died. Let's say you closely know about 200 people. Friends, coworkers, family - maybe a few local shopkeepers. Within a few weeks 40 o...

In the 1880s Austrian naturalist and ethnographer Andreas Reischek stole four mummified Māori corpses and smuggled them out of the country so they could be displayed at a museum in Vienna. He also shot hundreds of native New Zealand birds to preserve them "for science". In the 1880s Andreas Reischek stole four mummified corpses from an urupa near Kawhia so he could sell them to a museum in his nat...

The worst kind of villain in New Zealand history was... an Auckland property speculator. In this week's episode, we learn about the worst kind of villain in New Zealand history... an Auckland property speculator. Historian and author Vincent O'Malley tells the story of Thomas Russell and his victims, both Māori and Pakeha. Today these baby boomer 'bastards' are accused of drivi...

Did you know that after WWI New Zealand established an official eugenics board? We tend to think of eugenics as being something the Nazis invented but really it was embraced all around the world in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In this episode of Black Sheep historian and disability researcher Hilary Stace traces the history of New Zealand's eugenicists. CORRECTION: The elderly Chinese man mu...

Hongi Hika is a man with a difficult legacy. He's one of the greatest figures in New Zealand history, but he's also often held responsible for starting the Musket Wars. Hongi Hika is a man with a difficult legacy. He's one of the greatest figures in New Zealand history, but he's also often held responsible for starting the Musket Wars - an outpouring of inter-tribal violence which may ha...

Arthur Worthington was a con artist who travelled the USA, marrying rich women then abandoning them and stealing all their money. With private detectives hot on his tail, he jumped on a ship bound for Christchurch where he set up his own religion and his own church. Arthur Worthington was a con artist who travelled the USA, marrying rich women then abandoning them and stealing all their money. Wit...