Uncover: Calls From a Killer
CBC
What does a reporter do when they receive a cold call from one of the most horrific serial killers in Canadian history?The killer: Clifford Olson, who murdered at least eleven children in the 1980s. The reporter: Arlene Bynon, who recorded her jailhouse calls with Olson for years.Alongside legendary journalist Peter Worthington, Arlene spent hundreds of hours on the phone with Olson. It was kept secret from his prison guards; he wasn't allowed to speak to the media.In Calls From a Killer, from CBC’s Uncover, Arlene unearths secrets that have been buried for decades. Secrets about Olson's crimes, about how police failed his young victims and their families — and why law enforcement paid a psychopathic serial killer $100,000. With Nathaniel Frum — Peter's grandson — Arlene exposes hard truths about a forgotten tragedy, a bungled investigation, the loved ones left behind, and the mind of a killer. About UNCOVER: Crime. Investigation. Revelation. Uncover brings you explosive, high-caliber true crime year-round. From CIA mind control to serial abuse, mysterious disappearances to wrongful imprisonment. Each season features a new host who is deeply connected to the story, committed to tracking down the truth. With over 30 seasons to choose from, Uncover represents the best in true crime.For early access to episodes, plus ad-free listening, visit apple.co/cbctruecrime.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Aug 21, 2023 • 40min
S22 E2: The Coach | "The Band Played On"
The coach was successful, charismatic and powerful, and in 1968 he treated student Rob Ferron like he was special. Years later, Madeleine Glaus discovers her son had been groped by the same coach, and had also been preyed on by a music teacher. Both men worked at the same school at the same time. How else were they connected? Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 21, 2023 • 45min
S22 E3: The Dance of the Lemons | "The Band Played On"
In 1986, Peter Hamer told a school administrator about his vulgar, abusive music teacher. Soon, the teacher was gone. Other adults had known what was going on, but it was a different time. This episode explores the institutional failure that allowed the abuse to continue. Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 21, 2023 • 48min
S22 E4: The Crush | "The Band Played On"
On a clear spring day in 2017, witnesses call 911 to report a fiery car crash. The driver of the car is a high school music teacher who’d been facing charges of sexual assault. That teacher's former student, Laurie Howat, is the one who pulls the thread that unravels a troubling web of secrets. Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 21, 2023 • 39min
S22 E5: Face the Music | "The Band Played On"
A predatory music teacher has his day in court, and victims are there to watch. When Peter Hamer tried to reveal his secret decades ago, authorities failed to act. Now they're listening. But after so much time has passed, will this man go to prison? Will survivors get the answers they've been seeking? Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 21, 2023 • 42min
S22 E6: The Demon Inside | "The Band Played On"
When the court documents are finally unsealed, they reveal a disturbing portrait of a sex offender who began preying on students in the late 1960s. Authorities, including police, were aware of the teacher's encounters with teens. The fresh details draw sympathy and forgiveness from some survivors, while others hold him responsible for failing to keep his demons in check. Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 21, 2023 • 46min
S22 E7: No More Secrets | "The Band Played On"
There's a confrontation as a victim demands accountability from the institution he says failed them all. Meanwhile, the drama heads back to court, with more charges and fresh convictions. Survivors gather together with Peter Hamer to laugh, heal and shed the secrets they say are no longer theirs to keep. Listener discretion is advised.
Aug 17, 2023 • 3min
Introducing: The Band Played On
Investigative reporter Julie Ireton unravels a complicated web of five decades of historical sexual abuse involving dozens of teens. They were preyed upon by three teachers who worked at the same school. Warnings were ignored and abuse continued. The Band Played On. Follow the journey as survivors seek justice and accountability, moving past years of shame to expose secrets that aren't theirs to keep. Listener discretion is advised.
Jun 26, 2023 • 33min
S21 E1: Bitter Pill | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
What does a Philadelphia junk artist have to do with the deaths of a wealthy Canadian pharma giant and his philanthropist wife? Maybe nothing, but it’s odd that their bodies were reportedly posed like a piece of junk sculpture that the Shermans displayed nearby. But this strange coincidence is just one of many in this most baffling of unsolved murder cases in Canadian history. Host Kathleen Goldhar goes on a byzantine journey to find out what kind of life do you have to live that your death spurns on multiple theories about who might have killed you, including some involving your closest family.For transcripts of this series, please visit here.Leo Sewell’s websiteMatthew Campbell’s The Unsolved Murder of an Unusual BillionaireSaul Rubinek’s IMDB
Jun 26, 2023 • 32min
S21 E2: The Smartest Man I Ever Met | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
The Shermans’ funeral is weird, the list of eulogists long, and it’s attended by Canadian boldface names. But ask anyone who knew Barry Sherman and they all say the same thing:he was the smartest person they'd ever met. Always finishing at the top of his class, Barry was smart enough to claw his way to the top of the infamously cutthroat generic drug industry and make billions of dollars. But he was also arrogant and unreasonable, driven and deceptive. Just the sort of man who dies under suspicious circumstances.For transcripts of this series, please visit here.Sherman funeral
Jun 26, 2023 • 41min
S21 E3: The Scorpion | "The No Good, Terribly Kind, Wonderful Lives and Tragic Deaths of Barry and Honey Sherman"
To get ahead in the generic drug industry you need to be focused, hard-nosed and fearless. Especially because half the battle is taking on one of the richest, most powerful industries in the world — Big Pharma. Barry Sherman was the perfect generic drug lord — more litigator than innovator — but did his ability to win in court, and slough off the losses, end up getting him killed?For transcripts of this series, please visit here.Katherine Eban’s Bottle of LiesJeffery Robinson’s Prescription GamesNancy Olivieri’s How John le Carré Changed my LifeJohn le Carré The Constant GardenerNancy and Barry on 60 Minutes
