A month before Amy Winehouse’s death, her performance at a music festival in Serbia was resoundly panned. She was intoxicated for the whole world to see, but the silver lining of what would be labelled 'the worst gig of her career' meant she didn’t have to go on tour. It meant Amy, and those who loved her, had their hopes pinned on a chance for Amy to get better again.  On this episode we’ll explore the final years in the life of Amy Winehouse. After her closest friends were convinced Amy...

After a celebrated album with her debut, Frank, and with that distinct voice and sound, Amy Winehouse got very famous, very fast. Everyone wanted a second album, but Amy had entered a whole new world. On this episode, we’ll hear how Amy’s very private struggles with mental health and addiction became headlines for a relentless tabloid culture. And, in one of the most volatile love affairs in pop culture history, how would the story of Amy and Blake become a cautionary tale about the dangers...

You can recognise it in an instant, that iconic voice and a candid style of songwriting beyond her years. The sound of Amy Winehouse was a sound unheard of since the days of Billie Holiday and Nina Simone. But the name ‘Amy Winehouse’ seems to be as synonymous with talent as it is tragedy. On this season we’ll dive deep into the life of Amy. From her rise to fame, her artistry, to her pain, her loves, and her losses. Could she have been saved? What does her death tell us about the pervasive...

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In the lead-up to the Beijing Winter Olympics, the world began to wonder how and if Peng Shuai would be used in the games, and whether the IOC was going to have anything to say to the Chinese Government about their silencing of the tennis star. So how did the Chinese propaganda juggernaut shift its attention to the global sporting stage? And what happens when the international community’s peak sporting body is accused of silencing a sexual assault survivor? Plus, we investigate China’s Me...

For three long weeks in November 2021, the tennis community, news organisations, and human rights advocates the world over had one question; Where Is Peng Shuai? In the aftermath of a Weibo post detailing allegations of sexual assault against one of China’s top political figures, concerns for Peng Shuai's freedom were escalating swiftly. Then suddenly, proof of life. In this episode, we’ll learn more about the Chinese propaganda machine, and how it’s working to convince the world of Peng...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories It was after 10 pm, on November 2nd, 2021 when 35-year-old Peng Shuai - China’s beloved global tennis star - sat down and began typing. Truncated sentences of an open letter, detailing an affair and sexual assault involving one of China’s highest-ranking political figures. It took only a few minutes before the post had amassed thousands of shares, likes, and comments. But within half an hour, it vanished. And moments later, so...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories From 2013 until just a few weeks ago, Amanda’s Bynes life was controlled by a conservatorship, governed primarily by her mum, Lynn. In the wake of Britney Spears’ bombshell revelations about her own conservatorship, the #freebritney movement turned its attention to Amanda. Knowing what we now know about conservatorships and how they can be manipulated, why did it take more than eight years for Amanda to regain control of her...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories She was the queen of Nickelodeon, beloved by teens of the noughties. But just as her movie career was taking off, something happened to Amanda Bynes. In this two-part series, we’re looking back on the life and career of Amanda Bynes before, during and after things got out of control. We’ll dive into the paparazzi culture that hounded and taunted young Hollywood starlets, and question our historic understanding of the mental...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Charlene Wittstock had made it through years of tabloid speculation about her marriage to the Prince of Monaco, but in 2020, just as she found some peace, a new, yet very familiar scandal involving her husband rattled the palace. Then, in a matter of weeks Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene left the country and wouldn’t return for almost a year. Had a serious illness kept her away from her children and her husband’s new...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories To lock down the future of the Grimaldi dynasty, Prince Albert II needed to marry and produce a legitimate heir. So when he met South African olympian Charlene Wittstock, the palace breathed a sigh of relief. Beautiful and elegant, Charlene would make the perfect princess. But when Albert’s past life as “The Playboy Prince” caught up with him, the star-studded princely wedding in Monaco almost had everything except a bride. The...

Become a Mamamia Subscriber for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Seven hundred years ago a woman betrayed by the ruler of Monaco cursed the future of his family: no descendant of the House of Grimaldi would ever find happiness in marriage. On this season of Extraordinary Stories our host Emma Gillespie dives into the modern-day impact of that curse. Did it play a part in the tragic demise of the Hollywood star turned princess Grace Kelly? CREDITS Host: Emma Gillespie Written and...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories In trying to put an end to the legal quagmire they found themselves in, Pamela and Tommy Lee signed away the rights to their stolen sex tape, and to any future profits it would make. It was an insult to injury, after the viral home movie saw the couple become some of the first victims of a crime often misnamed as ‘revenge porn.’ A crime so pervasive it forces many of us to ask ourselves “who else has seen my...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Pamela and Tommy’s most personal possession, a home video taken on their honeymoon was stolen. Within six months, it was everywhere. And everyone wanted to watch it. But in 1996, before Youtube or PornHub were invented, how did this home movie go from a stolen piece of property to the most profitable piece of pornography in the world? CREDITS Host: Emma Gillespie Written and Produced by Sydney Pead & Emma Gillespie Audio...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories When Tommy Lee licked Pam Anderson’s face from chin to temple at a New Year's Eve party in 1995, it was the beginning of one of Hollywood’s most intense and frenzied romances. Less than two months later the bad-boy Mötley Crüe drummer and sex-symbol Baywatch actor were married on a beach in Mexico. But wedded bliss for the 90s glam couple was short-lived, after a disgruntled electrician broke into their house to steal their...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Why Linda Evangelista disappeared from public life in 2016, while her peers were still ruling runways, gracing magazine covers and spearheading beauty campaigns was a mystery. Until an Instagram post in September 2021, where she revealed herself as the victim of a rare side effect from a cosmetic procedure. Instead of freezing fat cells, Linda claims she experienced the opposite. In her quest to remain one of the most beautiful...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Professionally, Linda Evangelista was unparalleled, achieving more success than almost anyone else in the fashion industry. But her personal life was not so straight-forward. From leaving a marriage plagued with allegations of abuse, to an ill-fated relationship with a curious film star; in this episode we delve into the supermodel's loves and losses, and a scandal followed by a secret that would change Linda's life...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories At the very top of her game, Linda Evangelista met and married one of the most powerful men in the fashion industry. Gerald Marie represented all the top supermodels and held the careers of hundreds of up-and-comers in his hand. What she didn't know was that her husband was allegedly part of a dark underbelly in the fashion industry where powerful figures sexually exploited and abused young models with chilling...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories She was one of the most photographed women in the world, now even the paparazzi are struggling to snap a photo of Linda Evangelista. The original 90s supermodel has become a recluse, while her contemporaries continue with lucrative careers, claiming a cosmetic procedure left her permanently disfigured.  But before her greatest downfall, how did this Canadian-born beauty queen become the most super of The Supermodels? With...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Having reached national fame, the cast of Young Talent Time split off in countless directions when their time on the show ended. Some finished their schooling and led relatively normal lives, while other soared into international fame. But with the shock cancellation of the show in 1988, some team mates lost their stepping-stone into show business altogether. This episode we find out why the show was suddenly axed, and what...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories The Young Talent Team were as famous as it gets in 1970-80s Australia. Mobbed at shopping centre concerts, packing stadiums on tour, chased down city streets during on school trips; the cast soared to heights most performers could only dream of reaching. But each knew the wild ride of YTT would have to end once they turned sixteen. Some thrived and continued performing, but others came face-to-face with the cut-throat realities...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Under the bright lights of the TV studio in Melbourne, the Young Talent Time crew were the shiny, happy and wholesome stars of a hit music show. But in reality they were kids with full-time jobs, trying to balance school with the crazy demands of show business. Add the rollercoaster of teenage hormones and avoiding getting beaten up at school for the whacky costume you wore on TV last week — being a teenage pop idol was hard...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories In 1971, Australian TV changed forever when a brand new show called 'Young Talent Time' burst onto screens in lounge rooms across the country. For 18 years, it held a place in the hearts of Australians at a time when family entertainment was king and "mullet" hairstyles reigned supreme. A unique mix of pop hits, flashy dance routines and wholesome performances by a team of talented children and teens catapulted the show into...

Subscribe to MPlus for unlimited access to Extraordinary Stories Demonised by the press. Vilified by the country. The subject of gossip and innuendo. From today's viewpoint, the story of Lindy Chamberlain is a brutal reflection of 1980s Australia. Beneath the layers of lies and injustice, it’s a story of a mother who didn’t behave, look, speak or grieve the way we wanted her to after the incomprehensible loss of a child. It’s also the story of one woman, strong enough to endure it all.  In...