Episodes

• 2021

• Anzac Hero: Sister Savage and the Centaur Sinking — Part Two

  Sister Ellen Savage was the hero of Centaur and over the next four decades she'd keep alive the memory of her fallen sisters and brothers. She was an Anzac hero who was to pass away on an Anzac Day. To support Forgotten Australia: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  April 24, 2021

  39 min

• Anzac Hero: Sister Savage and the Centaur Sinking — Part One

  On 14 May 1943, the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine off the coast of Queensland, with the loss of 268 people. Nursing sister Lieutenant Ellen Savage was one of the survivors and was hailed a hero for her bravery. While Centaur is well remembered, this podcast focuses on Nell Savage and her life of service before, during and after WWII. Part two will be released tomorrow. To become a Forgotten Australia supporter, go to patreon.com/forgottenaustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  April 23, 2021

  40 min

• The Guyra Ghost — Part Two

  Part two introduces us to a hard-charging cop and a spiritually minded reporter as the search for a solution to the Guyra Ghost mystery takes us to Gallipoli and onto the mean streets of Sydney.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  April 5, 2021

  76 min

• The Guyra Ghost — Part One

  Starting 100 years ago this week, Australia was mystified by strange happenings at a farmhouse at Guyra in northern New South Wales. Showers of stones and unexplained bangings occurred night after night at the Bowen property, seemingly centred on the family's 12-year-old daughter Minnie. Police, the public and the press descended — and, with no rational explanation forthcoming, supernatural solutions were suggested.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  March 28, 2021

  50 min

• Percy Brookfield: Our Hero Politician

  One hundred years ago today – 22 March 1921 – a gunman shot up the Riverton railway station in South Australia. One man would put himself in the firing line to save lives: Percy "Jack" Brookfield, a firebrand socialist NSW state parliamentarian whose politics had made him of the most loved – and hated – figures in Australia. To become a supporter of Forgotten Australian and get ad-free early and bonus episodes, along with the Australia's Sweetheart audiobook, go to patreon.com/forgottenaustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  March 21, 2021

  57 min

• The Entombed Miner

  In March 1907 Australia was gripped by the plight of Italian miner Modesto Varischetti, trapped deep underground and underwater at the Bonnie Vale gold mine in Western Australia. The Entombed Miner's only hope? A brave diver named Frank Hughes. To support the show and access bonus content: www.patreon.com/forgottenaustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  March 14, 2021

  60 min

• The Human Glove Mystery – Part Two

  In Part Two of The Human Glove Mystery, the accused’s murder trial is just about over when a gunshot rings out in Wagga Wagga and another person falls dead. This victim? A witness. To support Forgotten Australia and get all sorts of bonus goods, to patreon.com/forgottenaustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  March 8, 2021

  52 min

• The Human Glove Mystery – Part One

  Here is the bumper Season 4 premiere. While a lot of Australians have heard of the Pyjama Girl and Shark Arm Cases, this one somehow slipped out of popular memory. Yet it has it all: a grim Depression-era murder, a body part in the water that led to the victim's identification via incredible forensics, a grisly public exhibition of said evidence and even another killing tied up with the accused murderer. Part Two is out next week – or you can hear it now by becoming a Patreon supporter – www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  March 1, 2021

  70 min

• The Human Glove Mystery Preview + Season 4 Trailer

  Season 4 starts on Monday 1 March with The Human Glove Mystery. In this trailer you'll hear a preview of this bizarre true-crime case, along with teasers for upcoming episodes, the prologue to the audiobook of Australia's Sweetheart and details about how you can get ad-free early and exclusive bonus content by becoming a Patreon subscriber. As always, thanks for listening — and for your support. www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  February 21, 2021

  16 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Finale: Go Out With A Bang

  With Greg McHardie on the loose, there's another Woolworths bombing. Is the fugitive out for revenge or is he leading a far more laidback life? Even if his plans to leave the country don't come off, is there a jail that can hold him? In any case, both Greg and Larry aren't destined to stay behind bars long because that's just how NSW works   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  February 7, 2021

  50 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Eight: Larry's Last Stand

  In this, the second-last instalment of this special series, Greg McHardie is as free as a bird after his audacious Easter escape from Parramatta Jail. That leaves consummate entertainer and storyteller Larry Danielson to give the performance of his life for the most importance audience he’s ever faced: a jury of his peers. If you enjoy Forgotten Australia, please leave a rating and review because it helps other people find the show.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  February 1, 2021

  45 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Seven: Man On The Run

  As the trial of the alleged Woolworths Bombers gets underway, the jury hears about ransom letters, suspicious clock mechanisms and gelignite bomb explosions — along with jokey European accents, disappearing Ford Falcons and the provenance of a gaudy blue safari suit. Witnesses include the accused men’s family and friends, cops both upstanding and corrupt — and a police informer who’ll be revealed as one of Australia’s vilest offenders. With the case against Greg McHardie looking airtight, he'll be damned if he’s going to hang around to be convicted.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  January 25, 2021

  59 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Six: Operation Softly Softly

  The Task Force’s Operation Softly, Softly circles Larry Danielson in Huskisson — with one of the detectives a Manly mate from the good old Flicks days who gets stuck into the booze while on interrogation duty. Fraught though his outlook is, Larry still has a chance at freedom. But Greg McHardie? He's in for serious time, which turns his mind to a gaol break.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  January 18, 2021

  46 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Five: Larry The Larrikin

  With Greg McHardie claiming to detectives he’s a dead man if he names those behind the Woolworths bombings, the Task Force turns its attentions to his associates on the South Coast, including his housemate Larry Danielson, a lovable larrikin who made his name as a singer-songwriter in Papua New Guinea before becoming the host with the most at one of the best venues of the emerging Aussie pub rock scene.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  January 12, 2021

  53 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Four: Get Benny!

  After “Mr Bridge” is caught red-handed with the $1m Woolworths ransom, the suspect tells Task Force detectives he’s only a courier hired for the job. The mastermind’s name? Benny. From that moment on, Sydney’s police, press and public are all on high alert for this flashy character, who has threatened four more store bombings and for whose capture Woolies is offering a $250,000 reward.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  January 5, 2021

  46 min
• 2020

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Three: Operation Alpha

  As 1980 ends and the New Year begins, Woolworths and the NSW police wage a war of nerves with Mr Dunmore over arrangements for the $1m ransom handover. While the extortionist bomber has a cunning plan to get away with the loot, the Task Force’s massive undercover Operation Alpha has set an elaborate trap that’ll end in a showdown on Sydney Harbour.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  December 30, 2020

  37 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part Two: Keep Calm & Carry On Shopping

  After the Christmas Eve bombing of Woolworths' flagship Sydney store, the company awaits contact from the extortionist calling himself Mr Dunmore. Meanwhile, Woolies receives dozens more threats, a beer carton bomb is found in a store and a sensational leak splashes the terrorist’s secret $1m ransom demand all over the media. But what crime reporters don't know is that undercover detectives are already on the trail of man fitting the description of a Woolworths suspect — a man just released after a long prison sentence for Sydney gelignite bombings…   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  December 24, 2020

  38 min

• Interview with Allan Duncan — First Police Responder to Woolies Xmas Bomb Threat 1980

  On Christmas Eve 1980, young constable Allan Duncan responded to the Woolies Town Hall bomb threat and would be inside the building when the device detonated.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  December 18, 2020

  18 min

• The Woolworths Bombings — Part One: Christmas Eve 1980

  On Christmas Eve 1980, the Woolworths’ head office in Sydney got a phone call from the man already responsible for two regional store bombings in the past week. An explosive device had been placed in the flagship variety store opposite Town Hall. It was going to detonate in 10 minutes. What followed was like something out of a Hollywood movie. But with its Holden utes and safari suits, beer carton bombs and pub rock gigs, this true-blue true-crime yarn could only have come from Australia.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  December 18, 2020

  43 min

• Australia's First Sporting Heroine — The Marvellous Mrs Douglas: Part Two

  On Christmas Eve 1859, Margaret Douglas and Beverley Howard started their epic 1500-mile walking match in Melbourne — which the city’s newspapers did their very best to ignore. Despite such hostility at home, our first sporting heroine would be appreciated by English reporters when she performed her walking feats in London and Liverpool. In this episode we also trace Margaret’s likely identity — and learn how she inspired a rival in Emma Sharp (pictured), who in turn nearly 150 years later inspired a distant relative to undertake a stirring long-distance charity walk in Canberra.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
  December 16, 2020

  43 min