Hidden Histories
Episode 39: The Marree Man
In the middle of nowhere, hidden behind mountains and close to an army station point, there dwells a shape carved into the bedrock. An 2.5km-tall aboriginal man hunts with a stick, amazing pilots who fly over him daily.
But how did Marree Man come to be, seemingly overnight in 1998, without anyone seeing the artist? Where are the tracks to get the heavy machinery in or out? And just who is responsible for the Marree Man?
Episode 51: Rosaleen Norton, the Witch of Kings Cross
During the 1950s and 60s, Sydney’s Kings Cross was one of the more liberal suburbs, hosting artists, musicians, transients and other people who lived on the fringes of society. One of these artists, Rosaleen Norton, was known for something a little different around the area.
As High Priestess of her coven, the Witch of Kings Cross hosted all manner of parties and orgies, the likes of which most of Australia couldn’t really understand…
Episode 54: The Stolen Generations Part 1
Episode 55: The Stolen Generations Part 2
During the 1880s-1970s, aboriginal children all over Australia were taken from their families, their communities and their culture by officials just doing their jobs. The devastation that these “Stolen Generations” placed upon the Australian Aboriginal community is damage that was only surpassed by the massacres that took place as the Europeans made their way out of Sydney Cove.
Join Holly and Matthew as they examine the legislation and the reasoning that made this dark part of history a slice that every Australian recognises.
Episode 64: The Battle of Central Station
At the start of the Great War, Australia was a place of fevered patriotism. Young men signed up by the score to enlist in the Australian Imperial Force against the threat overtaking Europe, bouyed by the lasting ties Australia had to Britain.
Those men, from all over Australia, had to be trained somewhere, so they were shifted to the major cities – Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne – for training and preparation for the war ahead.
But one camp in Liverpool, Sydney, decided that the order to march for an extra 4 1/2 hours per week was too much to bear, that the camp conditions were too horrible, too abusive to ignore.
Episode 78: The Sydney Harbour Bridge
Spanning the width of Sydney Cove, the Sydney Harbour Bridge is an icon that instantly means “Australia” – normally pictured alongside the Opera House. But just how did the bridge came to be? How did it single handedly save Sydney from the Great Depression? And why does the legend of the dead workers endure? Join Holly and Matthew to find out!
Episode 88: The Mungo Remains
Lake Mungo is one of seventeen dry lakes that make up the World Heritage listed Willandra Lakes region. On its shores, one can find a collection of archaeological curiosities: old campfires, middens, and the occasional human skeleton.
In February 1974, one such skeleton destroyed the preexisting notions of aboriginal origin, and created an entirely new swathe of questions. LM3 is possibly one of the most important finds in Australia, to the local aboriginal tribes, the aboriginal culture in general, and archaeologists. Join Holly and Matthew as they look into the history of Lake Mungo, its Lady and the Mungo Man.
Episode 98: The Woolworths Christmas Bombings
In the 1980s, a series of bombings threatened the Christmas stabilities of New South Wales. In a series of escalating attacks, 4 Woolworths stores were attacked, culminating in an explosion on Christmas Eve at the Town Hall store. What followed was an epic of ransom demands and chasing police, and ended in a midnight dive…
