HistoryTrue CrimeSociety & Culture

Forgotten Australia

Michael Adams

Bloody crimes, unsolved mysteries, eccentric celebrities, dark events and bizarre happenings: it's all here – the stuff you wish they'd taught you in school!

Dive into our strange-but-true history via never-before-told stories, author interviews, weekly flashbacks and the weekly trivia quiz.

Forgotten Australia is created and hosted by Michael Adams, author of the acclaimed true crime books The Murder Squad, Hanging Ned Kelly and They'll Never Hold Me.

He's also a regular history and true crime commentator on ABC Nightlife and the podcast Australian True Crime.

Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month to get ad-free early episodes, exclusive bonus episodes, a show shout-out and the chance to win prizes in the special edition trivia quiz episodes.

Get a week's free trial here:

Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia

Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia

Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com

Check out my books!

They’ll Never Hold Me:

https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html

The Murder Squad:

https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html

Hanging Ned Kelly:

https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html

Australia’s Sweetheart:

https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Play

Open in

38 episodes
Avg 43 min
English

Episodes 38

Newest Oldest Longest

All20 Unplayed20 In progress0 Played0

Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.

S10 · E85
Sunday · 4 min
Introducing Australia Murder
Do The Crime, Do The Time
S10 · E84
Friday · 57 min
Talking History – Musquito: The Real Story of a Legendary Colonial Warrior
Who was Musquito, the Aboriginal warrior feared by colonists in Sydney and Tasmania? Historian Naomi Parry Duncan's new book takes us behind the myths for a better understanding of this remarkable man. But Musquito: The Real Story of a Legendary Colonial Warrior is much more than a biography – it also tells the entwined stories of Naomi's own colonial ancestors. Booktopia Awards: https://www.booktopia.com.au/booktopia-book-award/promo4387.html Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E83
October 12 · 32 min
Australian Frankenstein – Part Two: The Infernal Machine
Having successfully toured Australian cities with Frankenstein, Professor Hornburg invents a new machine man that uses a new energy source. But he and his creation – called Adam Iron, first man of iron – will have to share the limelight with a snake charmer and his nest of vipers. Two showmen scientists. Deadly serpents and an infernal machine. What could possibly go wrong? Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E82
October 9 · 46 min
Australian Frankenstein – Part One: The Steam Man
Just as the Iron Outlaw Ned Kelly is going to the gallows, Australians are astonished by a walking automaton called ‘Frankenstein - The Steam Man’. Professor Hornburg’s invention is intriguing, ingenious and imaginative. But is it really ‘the greatest piece of mechanism in the universe’? How much is science and how much is showmanship? To put it bluntly: Is Hornburg a Humbug? Step right this way and all will be revealed! All true and all bizarre, this is a strange parable for our own age of Gods and Monsters. Australian Frankenstein – Part Two: The Infernal Machine is available now early & ad-free to Forgotten Australia supporters. If you're using Apple, click on that episode and follow the instructions for a free trial. Or go to: apple.co/forgottenaustralia To access via Patreon (and listen on other podcast apps): patreon.com/forgottenaustralia apple.co/forgottenaustralia To see the 1880 'Steam Man' poster: https://cyberneticzoo.com/steammen/1876-steam-man-mechanical-horse-hornburg-australian/ Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E81
September 29 · 57 min
Mysteries of the Sea – Part Three: Beyond Human Knowledge
In March 1912, Australia was stunned to learn that Koombana was missing in nearly identical circumstances to Yongala. In this final episode, we look at how good and bad luck again decided who lived and who died, how the Koombana story crossed over with the loss of Titanic, and how the Adelaide Steamship Company put greed over need. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E80
September 27 · 1 hr 4 min
Mysteries of the Sea – Part Two: Dead Unlucky
Alongside Yongala, the Adelaide Steamship Company prided itself on its luxury vessel Koombana, designed especially to work the Western Australian coast. But this was a seemingly cursed vessel, where anything that could go wrong did, from disappearing and dead passengers, to collisions, fires and a broken loaf of bread that not only triggered a national crisis but sent a handful of men to their fates. Part Three – Beyond Human Knowledge is available now ad-free for Apple and Patreon supporters. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E79
September 24 · 48 min
Mysteries of the Sea – Part One: More Haste, Less Speed
In March 1911, with the loss of the ship Waratah still fresh in memory, a big passenger liner went missing in a cyclone off northern Queensland. As a massive search began, Australia tried to believe that ‘no news is good news’. Incredibly, a year later almost to the day, the same scenario played out again – involving a ship from the same company, in the same conditions, in the same latitude. In this three-part miniseries, we look at the entangled tales of the Adelaide Steamship Company’s coastal vessels Yongala and Koombana – and how these tragedies were bookended by Waratah and Titanic. Part Two – Dead Unlucky and Part Three – Beyond Human Knowledge are available now ad-free for Apple and Patreon supporters. Use a free trial to hear them now! Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E78
September 24 · 21 min
Short – The Mystery of the Waratah
I’m re-releasing this short as background for the new miniseries, Mysteries of the Sea. In July 1909, the world wondered what had become of the SS Waratah, last seen off coast of South Africa with more than 200 souls aboard. This grim mystery was even more sensational for featuring a double murderer, a passenger plagued by prophetic visions and a veteran sea captain with a charmed reputation. But once all hope was lost, a likely explanation for the disaster was to come from a former Waratah passenger: Australian professor William Bragg, who a few years later would win the Nobel Prize. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E77
September 15 · 19 min
Short – Good Evening and Welcome to Television: The Real Story Behind An AI Slop Promo
This week marks the 70th anniversary of regular television broadcasting in Australia. Channel Nine recently 'recreated' the 'Good Evening and Welcome to Television' moment in a fakes-over-facts promo generated by artificial intelligence. In this short, we look at the strange evolution of Australian TV, which started in colonial times. It’s a rich history, and one that deserves better than cheap slop that flattens understanding. Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E76
September 7 · 49 min
Talking History – Blackbirding: A Reckoning With the Australian Slave Trade
Blackbirding – A Reckoning with the Australian Slave Trade. We talk about the practices and policies that led to a staggering death toll – and how we don’t remember because our forgetting was engineered by language and laws meant to obscure and hide the true horrors. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E75
September 7 · 1 hr 5 min
Australia’s Slave Ship Massacre – Part Three: Confessions of Mass Murderers
Dr James Patrick Murray kidnaps and kills more people, and goes mad and is nearly murdered himself, before returning to Australia to be acclaimed as a saviour during a smallpox outbreak. But the hero becomes villain overnight when the truth of the massacre is revealed. Yet the doctor – dubbed ‘the worst demon of them all’ – still has diabolical tricks to play. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E74
September 6 · 52 min
Australia’s Slave Ship Massacre – Part Two: Shoot Them All
Dr James Patrick Murray takes the brig Carl to the sunny South Seas and into a heart of darkness beyond the imagination of even Joseph Conrad. In this nightmare of his creation, shooting dozens of defenceless men is only the start of the atrocities. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E73
September 6 · 1 hr 2 min
Australia’s Slave Ship Massacre – Part One: Doctor Evil
Dr James Patrick Murray ranks as one of the most evil characters in Australian history. In September 1871, he ordered the massacre of 70 men that his slavers had kidnapped from Bougainville and imprisoned aboard their ship. In Part One, we look at Dr Murray’s background – and how he became widely hated across Australia long before he became a mass murderer. Originally released in 2021. Re-released to accompany the new Talking History episode called Blackbirding – A Reckoning With the Australian Slave Trade Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E72
September 3 · 45 min
The Last Gasp: Stubbing Out Ciggie Commercials – Part Two
From 1972, Paul Hogan was the Australian tobacco industry’s most formidable marketing weapon, the Winfield warrior in a new era of mandatory health warnings. When a total ban on ciggie commercials loomed, the manufacturers were to pivot and spend even more money with media companies and sporting bodies to ensure they stayed in play after that fateful day. Much later, Aussie A-list ciggie frontmen would all say the same thing: ‘But, we didn't know…’ Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E71
August 31 · 1 hr 2 min
The Last Gasp: Stubbing Out Ciggie Commercials – Part One
Fifty years ago this week – 1 September 1976 – tobacco commercials were banned on Australian television. So, it was goodbye to Paul Hogan, Stuart Wagstaff, Norman Gunston and other celebs selling ciggies and smoking to adults and kids alike via the idiot box. In this episode, we sift the dirty ashtray of recent history for a look at the powerful profiteers who put the A-list on the payroll, chronicling how multinational tobacco companies, the Australian media and government undermined medical science to make a killing. Part Two will be available first for supporters. It will go on general release later in the week. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E70
August 28 · 19 min
Short - Our Forgotten Crime Fiction Mastermind
Aussie writer Charles Shaw came from the school of hard knocks to create a true-blue noir antihero in a series of novels that were internationally popular and compared with the work of hardboiled master Mickey Spillane. He also wrote another bestseller that was adapted into a Hollywood classic in the 1950s. You may even have seen it! Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E69
August 26 · 13 min
Short – Bravery & Barbarism: The Wave Hill Walk-Off
Sixty years ago this week, Gurindji elder Vincent Lingiari led 200 Aboriginal stockmen and their families in the Wave Hill Walk-Off. They were protesting pitiful pay and conditions and demanding the return of traditional lands. The Walk-Off was the start of a brave eight-year struggle. In this episode, we also look at the brutality of the killing times at Wave Hill. Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E68
August 24 · 35 min
The Small Town ‘Teacher’s Pet’ Murder
Nearly 100 years ago, the village of Wolumla on the far south coast of NSW was shocked by its first murder. The motive for this crime was so scandalous that a wall of silence protected suspects and other victims from police and public exposure. Available for the first time on general release, this episode was made for supporters in 2021. For access to more than a dozen ad-free exclusive bonus episodes, become a Forgotten Australia supporter. Use a free trial: Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E67
August 17 · 29 min
Aussie History Trivia Quiz #4 – Cops, Crims, Kooks, Censors & Singers
How well do you know your murderers, mobsters, armed robbers and bent coppers? How good is your memory for Aussie rock hits of the 1970s and 1980s? Test yourself with this all-new trivia quiz. 30 questions across three rounds. How high can you score? Use a free trial for access to supporter benefits: Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Check out my books! They’ll Never Hold Me: https://www.booktopia.com.au/they-ll-never-hold-me-michael-adams/book/9781923046474.html The Murder Squad: https://www.booktopia.com.au/the-murder-squad-michael-adams/book/9781923046504.html Hanging Ned Kelly: https://www.booktopia.com.au/hanging-ned-kelly-michael-adams/book/9781922992185.html Australia’s Sweetheart: https://www.booktopia.com.au/australia-s-sweetheart-michael-adams/book/9780733640292.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
S10 · E65
August 9 · 36 min
Dead Men Don’t Fill Out Census Forms – Part Two: A Forgotten Serial Killer?
Digging into the murderer’s past and future is to find two more cold-blooded killings. Forgotten Australia is created and hosted by Michael Adams, author of the acclaimed true crime books The Murder Squad, Hanging Ned Kelly and They'll Never Hold Me. He’s also a regular guest on ABC Nightlife, ABC Overnight and Australian True Crime. Support Forgotten Australia for a few bucks per month for ad-free early and exclusive bonus episodes and the chance to win prizes. Patreon: patreon.com/forgottenaustralia Apple: apple.co/forgottenaustralia Email: forgottenaustraliapodcast@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Showing 1–20 of 38 episodes