Forgotten Australia

While 1950s eccentrics Bea Miles and Rosaleen Norton are well remembered, Luba Shishova was twice as wild yet she's all but forgotten. Dubbed ‘Olga from the Volga’ and a ‘one-woman Russian Revolution’, this chaotic beauty cut a swathe through Kings Cross, earning adoring fans among the city’s reporters and outraging the cops and the judges. Now, for the first time, Luba’s story is told in detail –...

Having bent justice to their will successfully once, Kenneth Brown and his supporters tried a new defence tactic: arguing that he’d been cursed from birth as a hereditary homicidal maniac. If you’re in danger from domestic violence, call Triple 0. National Domestic Family and Sexual Violence Counselling Service 
Tel: 1 800 737 732 
https://1800respect.org.au  Lifeline 
Tel: 131 114 
https://w...

With Mary Ann Brown dead, and no doubt that Kenneth killed her, his April 1876 murder trial appeared to be an open-and-shut case.  But he had the best defence that money could buy – and a colonial elite closing ranks to protect one of their own. If you’re in danger from domestic violence, call Triple 0. National Domestic Family and Sexual Violence Counselling Service
 Tel: 1 800 737 732
 http...

In part one, we heard about Kenneth Brown.   In this episode, we look at Mary Ann Tindall and how she became his wife and victim. If you’re in danger from domestic violence, call Triple 0. National Domestic Family and Sexual Violence Counselling Service Tel: 1 800 737 732 https://1800respect.org.au  Lifeline Tel: 131 114 https://www.lifeline.org.au/ Support Forgotten Australia for a...

We all know Edith Cowan – first woman elected to an Australian parliament – graces out $50 note.  But did you know she was shaped by a traumatic childhood? In 1876, her father, the prominent colonial settler and explorer Kenneth Brown, shot her stepmother dead.  This was a crime that shocked Western Australia – and one whose elements are all too common 150 years later. In Part One of thi...

In 1837, three cold-blooded killers committed a series of bloody outrages that left nine people dead. Two of these murderers were to face their own gruesome fates. But, in an ironic twist, the third would be legally untouchable despite all the victims he'd shot and axed. Support Forgotten Australia for ad-free early episodes, exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes in the special edi...

Ahoy, me hearties!  William Swallow became the pirate captain of the convict ship Cyprus after he seized the vessel in Tasmania in 1829. From there, it was a case of ‘Bring me that horizon!’, with Swallow and his crew of motley misfits setting sail for freedom on the far side of the world. Author Ally Burnham joins us to explain how she researched this swashbuckling true story for Swallow , t...

A True Crime Classic from the Forgotten Australia archives: Just over 100 years ago, Australia suffered one of the world's first random mass shootings when a man went berserk with a rifle in Melbourne’s 1924 Botanic Gardens Massacre. The public was panicked for as long as he evaded the massive manhunt. Then came the copycat shooter...  This episode was first released in Season One, way back i...

This week, when we stay up (or get up) to cheer the Socceroos, we’ll be doing what Aussies first did one winter nearly a century ago. In 1930, the Ashes test cricket series was broadcast live from England via the new marvel of the age – radio! Night after night, Australians defied sleep to hear sporting history being made, with record-smashing new champion Don Bradman leading the charge. In this e...

Who named Australia? Which former Prime Minister lost his pants in public? Which celebrity came chasing ghosts Down Under? What were the weirdest names suggested for Melbourne before Melbourne became Melbourne? Welcome to the pub trivia night that plays out in your podcast player How well do you know our weird and wonderful history? 30 Questions over 3 Rounds. What will you score out of 30? **Orig...

Failing film stars! Flailing Frenchmen! Falling space junk!  They’re all here, the true and the false, the serious and the deeply stupid. Three rounds. 30 questions. Like pub trivia! Just minus the overcooked rigatoni and the annoying team at the next table who are definitely cheating. Play by yourself, against mates or – for an almost-guaranteed victory – against your dimmest pet. Not happy...

Serial killers! Chocolate animals! Robot chaos!  They’re all part of the first-ever Aussie History Pod Trivia Quiz.  Three rounds. 30 questions. Just like pub trivia!  So, how well do you know your Aussie history? Play along by yourself or play against mates! There’s a free downloadable answer sheet at: www.forgottenaustralia.com  PLUS: supporters automatically hear the Bonus E...

Donald Mackintosh was the world’s best shooter and in 1900 in Paris he won what is still the most shocking sporting event ever associated with the Olympic Games. Did he really win gold? Why is that the least controversial thing about his claim to fame? Plus: the first Aussie History Pod Trivia Quiz episode is coming this Thursday test how much you know about the way were were! Everyone can play al...

This week in 1826 was a bad time to be a cannibal bushranger. Plus: Bold Ben Hall bites the dust; the first Brit buried Down Under; and the making of a murderer in On Our Selection. See Forgotten Australia live! "Crashes, Chases and Crooks in Melton History" – as part of the Melton Heritage Festival. More info and free tickets: https://libraryevents.melton.vic.gov.au/event?id=209608 Forgotten Aust...

Who was Boofhead and where did he come from? We say happy 85th birthday to an iconic yet idiotic Aussie bloke who appeared in our midst when we needed him most. Plus: a brief history of the $1 coin and a salute to the astute astronomer who wound up on our $100 note. Forgotten Australia supporters get early ad-free access to all episodes, along with bonus shows and a podcast shout-out. To access a...

Author and music journalist Jeff Apter joins us to discuss his recent book, Lee Gordon Presents: How One Man Changed Australian Life Forever, the first biography of the wild man who not only brought rock ’n’ roll Down Under, but who pioneered so much else, from jazz festivals and strip shows to female roller derby and drive-in burger joints. Apple and Patreon supporters get exclusive access to the...

In this final instalment, the jury delivers its verdict in the marathon trial of Phillip Treffene and William Coulter for the murders of Detective-Inspector John Walsh and Detective-Sergeant Alexander Pitman. But their decision isn't the end of the story — with twists even brilliant barrister Arthur Haynes couldn't see coming. See Forgotten Australia live! "Crashes, Chases and Crooks in Melton His...

On Monday 16 August 1926, a large crowd gathered outside Perth's Supreme Court, hoping to get access to what promised to be the most sensational criminal trial Western Australia had ever seen. Had Phillip Treffene and William Coulter murdered Detective-Inspector John Walsh and his partner Detective-Sergeant Alexander Pitman? What the court heard was an incredible new version of events that left ma...

After police swoop on their suspects, Evan 'Teddy' Clarke, Phil Treffene and William Coulter are charged with the murder. But one of these men will turn against the others, with brilliant barrister Arthur Haynes using this betrayal as a chisel with which to chip away at the crown case.  See Forgotten Australia live! "Crashes, Chases and Crooks in Melton History" – as part of the Melton Herita...

Re-released to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the crime that shocked a nation. On 12 May 1926, south of Kalgoorlie, at an abandoned mine known as Miller's Find, Detective-Sergeant Grenville Purdue makes a horrifying discovery. The biggest manhunt in Western Australia is now on for the murderers of Detective-Inspector John Walsh and Detective-Sergeant Alexander Pitman.  See Forgotten Aus...

A special re-release to commemorate the 100th anniversary. On 28 April 1926, Detective-Inspector John Walsh and Detective-Sergeant Alexander Pitman disappeared while investigating gold thefts around Kalgoorlie. It was nearly two weeks before they were missed. When the alarm was raised, a massive search was started. Grave fears were held for these two popular veteran officers. See Forgotten Austral...

While history tells us Anzac Day started on 25 April 1916, the first such event took place six months earlier in South Australia. The name 'Anzac Day' was coined for this colourful military parade and pageant, staged in Adelaide on 13 October 1915, which was usually reserved for the Eight Hours' Day public holiday. The first Anzac Day was to raise funds for wounded soldiers – and a forgotten Aussi...

In this interview episode, Dr Daniel Reynaud, author of The Man The Anzacs Revered, tells us about the colourful and incredibly brave AIF chaplain William McKenzie, who was a Salvation Army officer on the frontlines with the Diggers at Gallipoli and then on the Western Front. In his time, ‘Fighting Mac’ was beloved around Australia and the inspiration for many tall tales. But his truth is even mor...

Having already won two events at Athens in 1896, young Aussie athlete Teddy Flack throws himself at a third victory by entering the Marathon – and he’ll reckon the result ensures the success of the first modern Olympic Games. Despite Teddy’s historic wins, noble defeats and curious claims, in his time he’ll be a marginal character in Australian reporting – a stark contrast with modern Olympic...

Teddy Flack becoming our first Olympic champion is the prototypical tale of the Aussie have-a-go sporting hero. But in 1896, when Teddy was undertaking his Greek odyssey, and making history against the odds, there wasn’t a lot of interest in him, his achievements or the Olympic Games. In part one, we look at how Teddy’s twin interests – athletics and accountancy – meant he was the right man in the...