Having escaped prison, fled interstate and joined the army under yet another new name, George Blunderfield seeks reinvention and redemption on the Western Front — but his true nature compels him to commit his most atrocious crimes yet. First released in 2021, this episode is re-released as part of Season 8’s ‘Crimes That Shocked Australia’ Brand-new episodes coming in May. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After committing a sickening outrage in the first weeks of 1900, George Blunderfield serves a relatively short jail sentence. When he's set free he sheds his identity but can’t help but follow the nature that causes him to hurt those who only want to help him. Part 3 will be released next week. But you can hear it now ad-free as a podcast supporter. First released in 2021, this episode is re-released as part of Season 8’s ‘Crimes That Shocked Australia’ Brand-new episodes coming in May. ...

Forgotten fiend George Blunderfield left a trail of violence and murder across Australia from the late 19th century until near the end of the First World War. Parts 2 & 3 will be released next week. But you can hear them now ad-free as a podcast supporter. First released in 2021, this episode is re-released as part of Season 8’s ‘Crimes That Shocked Australia’ Brand-new episodes coming in May. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trapped in Melbourne in bizarre circumstances, Herbert Kopit's last chance is to talk his way out of an arrest and flee the country. First released in 2022, this episode is re-released as part of Season 8’s ‘Crimes That Shocked Australia’ Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia The Murder Squad https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781922863836.html Hanging Ned...

How did Herbert Kopit become the most wanted man in Australia, trying to escape a massive tri-state murder manhunt while dressed as a woman? Part 3 will be released next week. But You can hear it now ad-free as a podcast supporter. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia First released in 2022, this episode is re-released as part of Season 8’s ‘Crimes That Shocked Australia’ Brand-new episodes coming in...

It's just after dawn on 2 April 1936 at Brisbane's Central Railway Station and as a porter enters a sleeping car on the overnight train from Bundaberg he discovers a slaughterhouse. Within minutes Queensland police will begin a desperate hunt for a maniac responsible for multiple murders. Parts 2 & 3 will be released next week. But you can hear them now ad-free as a podcast supporter. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon -...

In Victoria in September 1883, moments before he was hanged for murder, Robert Burns made a startling confession, claiming he’d killed not one but eight people. Flash forward 140 years and Bendigo woman Julie di Bella was researching her family history when she made a shocking discovery about her bloodline. Julie joins Forgotten Australia to talk about the thorniest branch in her family tree. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon -...

With ‘The Human Glove’ murder trial just about over, gunshot rings out in Wagga Wagga and another person falls dead. This victim? A witness. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia To send me a question for the David Hunt Book Club episode: [email protected] or https://www.speakpipe.com/forgottenaustralia Check out my books: The Murder...

On release for the first time since 2021, this classic true crime tale is up there with the Shark Arm and Pyjama Girl cases as a Depression-era shocker. On Christmas Day 1933, the discovery of a decayed corpse and a 'human glove' of skin led to incredible forensic work and a murder trial that'd result in a second mysterious murder. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia Hosted on Acast. See...

With the survivor of the tragedy tried for murder, the only hope is an insanity defence and mercy from Melbourne’s most powerful men. To get in touch with Ancestry about your military family members: [email protected] Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia Check out my books: The Murder Squad https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781922863836.html Hanging Ned...

After having their photos taken holding hands and pointing pistols at each other, Ned and Charlie head for the Treasury Gardens. Only one will emerge alive – to face a fate worse than death as their private lives are exposed in the courts and in the press. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia To get in touch with Ancestry about your military family members: [email protected] Check out my...

In 1871-1872, Ned Feeney and Charlie Marks were more than friends in a Melbourne where acting on homosexual desire might get you hanged. Using their letters to each other, we explore the mysteries of their tortured relationship and how it led to tragedy. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia Like the show? Leave a rating or review! To get in touch with Ancestry about your military family members:...

In 1872, Australia was shocked by a shooting in Melbourne’s Treasury Gardens. One man lay dead, the other lay nearby smoking a cigar. What had led these best friends to point their guns at each other? Using original archival records, we explore the circumstances of one of our history’s most tragic crimes, committed during a time of hateful homophobia. To get in touch with Ancestry about your family's military history: [email protected] Support Forgotten Australia: Apple...

With the survivors of the bank massacre identifying the axe-wielding maniac, a frantic search is undertaken in western NSW. But if he’s caught, will he escape justice with a plea of insanity? Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia To send me a question for the David Hunt Book Club episode: [email protected] or https://www.speakpipe.com/forgottenaustralia Check out my books: The Murder...

In this first episode of the new season devoted to Crimes That Shocked Australia, we look at the 1893 horror that became known across the colonies as ‘The Carcoar Tragedy’. Set against the backdrop of a forgotten economic catastrophe, this is the story of a young bank manager who’d already endured tragedy – only to find himself and his loved ones at the mercy of a bloodthirsty burglar. What made the case even more chilling was that it appeared to have been predicted by the killer’s...

After police opened fire on miners at Rothbury on 16 December 1929, killing one man and seriously wounding several more, the battle for the hearts and minds of the Australian public began in the NSW and federal parliaments and in the conservative and leftist newspapers. We delve into the recriminations, accusations, and basher-gang reign of terror that followed the Rothbury shootings — and explore the fates of the miners, the politicians and the enigmatic coal baron John Brown. Support...

On 16 December 1929, at the Rothbury colliery near Newcastle, thousands of miners protesting against an illegal wage cut were fired on by police with tragic results. But the battle began long before the bullets started flying. For most of that year, these miners had been at the centre of a bitter battle that toppled a federal government, saw the NSW state government use basher gangs of police and resulted in a new Labor prime minister committing an act of political betrayal — all just as the...

In San Francisco in February 1897 a trio of Australian police officers await the arrival of Frank Butler, wanted for the murder of three men in the Blue Mountains and beyond. While they’ll capture the fugitive, their problems are only starting as Butler enjoys his newfound American celebrity, with newspapers printing his every word, thousands of people clamouring to meet him and canny defence attorneys arguing he has no case to answer. It’ll be a life-or-death tug-of-war that’ll include...

With the alarm raised about three missing miners, Sydney police begin a massive search of the Blue Mountains. It’s a hunt that draws large crowds of ghoulish spectators, who get more than they bargained for as gruesome discoveries are made. Yet by then suspected murderer Frank Butler is well on his way to San Francisco, forcing Australian detectives to give chase across the seas as American newspapers make a front-page sensation of this “Monster of the Mountains”. Support Forgotten...

In 1896 a cold-blooded serial killer calling himself Frank Butler advertised for mining partners in Sydney newspapers. Those who went west with him to the Blue Mountains were never seen alive again. Yet one man who escaped Butler’s clutches was to become a police officer — and take part in the manhunt for this monster, a chase that stretched from Sydney to San Francisco and made headlines all over the world. *This episode was originally released in October 2020.* Support Forgotten...

Nearly a century before cocaine bundles started washing up on the Sydney coast, the city’s citizens clamoured to recover a different sort of illicit bounty from the sea: kegs of beer that’d floated free of Malabar, the happiest shipwreck disaster in Australian history. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple - http://apple.co/forgottenaustralia Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/ForgottenAustralia To send me a question for the David Hunt Book Club episode: [email protected] or...

It was the criminal Christmas miracle to warm the hardest heart. During the festive season in 1951, Pentridge prisoners got a surprise visit from Santa, aka the cheeky crook Harold 'Dusty' Sheehan, who could get out of — and into — prisons as easily as Old St Nick down a chimney. This ‘regifted’ episode was originally released in 2021. Another new episode will be out next week. Merry Christmas! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In December 1950, Australia was under threat from a new menace to society: sex-crazed Bodgies and Widgies. This youth ‘cult’ indulged in wild orgies and violent crime sprees and its ranks teemed with unwanted immigrants and perverted homosexuals. Or so the tabloid newspapers warned. In this episode, we look at the moral panic that went with the Bodgies and Widgies - and the Sydney surfing hero at the epicentre of this ‘youthquake’. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple...

Once upon a time not too long ago, wearing a bikini on Australia’s most famous stretch of sand meant you risked the wrath of veteran Bondi Beach inspector Aub Laidlaw. Show too much skin and he’d kick you off – and even threaten you with arrest. But Aub’s enforcement of prudish regulations caused a massive backlash in 1961 when young Joan Barry donned a gold bikini, pushed back against beach bullying and refused to be silenced by the cops and the court. Support Forgotten Australia: Apple...