

In Black and White
Herald Sun
From alleyway gangsters to cold war spies to eccentric entrepreneurs, Australian history is full of colourful but forgotten characters. Host Jen Kelly talks with experts, historians and yarn spinners to uncover the untold stories of some of our most interesting and offbeat ancestors.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 13, 2022 • 37min
'Sedition' on the stage from a true war hero
After serving his country in the trenches of World War One, Father John Joseph Kennedy wrote a play to expose the futility of war. But the priest's statement drew ire all the way up to the PM. State Library Victoria librarian Andrew McConville tells the story of one man's stand. Like the show? Get more at: https://heraldsun.com.au/ibawSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jul 6, 2022 • 45min
When 2000 people watched "Cranky Gunn" die
As the noose tightened around the necks of John Gunn and George Roberts, the great and the good of Geelong were right there to see the spectacle.And they dressed in their Sunday best to review the macabre event. Historian Deb Robinson recounts the tale. Like the show? Go to: https://heraldsun.com.au/ibaw for more See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 29, 2022 • 23min
How cynical electioneering backfired and gave women a voice
How cynical electioneering backfired and gave women a voice. When the suffrage movement was close to victory at the ballot box, a male politician tried to wedge the vote with a contentious clause.But when the vote went through, the clause backfired, and gave women their first voice in the halls of parliament. Melbourne author Mark Wilson tells the story Like the show? Go to https://heraldsun.com.au/ibaw for moreSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 23, 2022 • 47min
The shipwreck survivors' 1000km trek
In 1796, Scottish cargo master William Clark led his twice-shipwrecked crew on an epic 1000km walk to save 7000 gallons of rum, discovering Bass Strait and finding Australia’s first coal along the way. Find out more in Adam Courtenay's book: https://www.harpercollins.com.au/9780733341861/three-sheets-to-the-wind/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 15, 2022 • 47min
Rachel the brumby breaker
She was a bush nurse, school founder, bushrangers’ ally and accomplished horsewoman. But Rachel Kennedy’s colourful life was almost lost to history, until newspaper editor and author Jeff McGill uncovered her tale. He joins the show with more.Like the show? go to heraldsun.com.au/ibaw for more See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 8, 2022 • 34min
The trailblazer who taught women about sex
In Victorian-era Melbourne, it was considered unladylike to talk about sex and using birth control was a sIn. But one pioneering activist set about teaching women how their bodies worked and secretly sold them contraceptives in brown paper bags. Historian Margaret Anderson, director of the Old Treasury Building, returns to the show to tell the story. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jun 1, 2022 • 54min
The unwed mother who drowned her baby in the Yarra
After she was abandoned while pregnant by the father of her baby, Maggie Heffernan did the unthinkable. But the murder ignited a wave of public sympathy and sparked moral outrage. Margaret Anderson, director of the Old Treasury Building, joins the show to tell the story. Learn more at https://www.oldtreasurybuilding.org.au/maggie-heffernan/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May 25, 2022 • 44min
A horror in the heart of the city
WARNING: DISTURBING CONTENT In a shameful moment from Melbourne's past, two girls found themselves victim of an unspeakable crime. But their treatment at the hands of the justice system was just as callous. Margaret Anderson, director of the Old Treasury Building, joins the show to tell the story Like the show? Go to: https://heraldsun.com.au/ibaw for moreSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May 18, 2022 • 24min
The troubled morse man of the antarctic
Sidney Jeffryes was the brilliant wireless operator that made sure Australia got word of the famous Mawson expedition to Antarctica. But the hardships of the journey wrecked his mind and almost put one of the nation's greatest explorers in jeopardy. Ron Roberts, a tour guide at J Ward, Ararat’s Old Gaol and Lunatic Asylum joins Jen to tell the tale. Like the show? Make sure you catch Jen's features at https://heraldsun.com.au/ibawSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May 11, 2022 • 35min
The tightrope king and the copycat kids
When daredevil Charles Blondin came to Australia, the crowd was wowed by his death defying antics.But when Blondin returned to Europe, homegrown heroes tried their hand at emulating his stunts. And the results were mixed, and sometimes almost deadly. Andrew McConville, from State Library Victoria joins the show with more.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.


