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39 Episodes 2009 - 2009
Episode 1
30 mins
Professor Ove Hoegh-Guldberg is an underwater adventurer and marine biologist and ten years ago he predicted the death of the Great Barrier Reef if the water continued to warm from climate change. He was howled down by many in the international community. But his point of view has gained mainstream acceptance and some, though not all, of his tougher critics are changing their minds. His work has been embraced by the likes of Al Gore and David Attenborough. Now his mission is taking him around the globe and into corporate boardrooms in a race, as he sees it, to save the great coral reefs of the world.
Episode 2
30 mins
Former Olympic gold medallist Susie O'Neill talks about life after swimming as she teams up with her husband Dr Cliff Fairley for a challenging week in Alice Springs. When her swimming career came to a close, Susie had many offers for corporate and charity work. She chose to work as an ambassador for the Fred Hollows Foundation, a group dedicated to tackling blindness in remote communities.Australian Story follows Susie and Cliff as they come to grips with their new roles: Cliff as an ophthalmologist removing cataracts in a foreign surgery and Susie facing up to a new set of performance anxieties far from the pool.
Episode 3
30 mins
This program tells the poignant story of a popular young police officer widely described as one of the 'best and brightest' in the Queensland Force. Sally Urquhart was one of 15 people killed four years ago when a plane crashed at Lockhart River in a remote region of Far North Queensland. It was categorised as the worst airline disaster in Australia for nearly forty years. At the time of her death Sally Urquhart was engaged to a police colleague also serving in the Far North. In a call to her mother just before the flight, Sally talked about the upcoming wedding and described her fear of getting on the plane. "I just hate it... it rattles" she said. Sally's father Shane is a primary school principal, with no expertise of any kind in aviation. But when official investigations into the crash left questions unanswered, he set out on a single minded mission that took him to the most powerful forums in the land - with consequences for everyone in regional Australia and beyond.
Episode 4
30 mins
This is a particularly emotional episode for producer Ben Cheshire, who became good friends with Matt Laffan after first profiling him for Australian Story in 2001. Small in stature but big in heart, Matt Laffan was born with a debilitating condition that left him confined in a wheelchair from the age of ten. Our update to Matt's story is introduced by Ben Cheshire, who says: "Matt and I became good friends in the course of shooting the original program and have been in touch ever since. I still can't believe he's dead because he was sitting on my back verandah only three months ago at my housewarming party, surrounded as usual by a group of attractive women. After he got sick in January I visited him in hospital and received regular updates from him and his parents. His last text message to me reads: 'Best day to date. Still battling but on the verge of the woods. You a dad number 3 yet?' But the baby was late and the message on March 1st was that Matt had passed away."
Episode 5
30 mins
Key figures and family members at the centre of one of Australia's most controversial murder trials speak for the first time about the heartbreak and conflict behind the case. Caren Jenning and Shirley Justins had never been in any kind of trouble with the law. But that all changed after Ms Justins' partner of eighteen years, former Qantas pilot Graeme Wylie, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. When the two women made arrangements to bring about the death of Mr Wylie - a death they say he desired - they had no concept of the shattering events that would follow...
Episode 6
30 mins
This program continues the story behind one of Australia's most controversial murder trials. Caren Jenning and Shirley Justins had never been in any kind of trouble with the law. But that all changed after Ms Justins' partner of eighteen years, former Qantas pilot Graeme Wylie, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. When the two women made arrangements to bring about the death of Mr Wylie - a death they say he desired - they had no concept of the shattering events that would follow. This episode begins at the moment of Graeme Wylie's death, and the suspicions of his daughters that all was not as it appeared...
Episode 7
30 mins
When promising butterfly swimmer Nick D'Arcy was selected for the 2008 Australian Olympic team, he was on top of the world. Touted as a future medal hope, his prospects had never looked brighter. But all that came undone in seconds, when he assaulted former swimmer, Simon Cowley in a bar later that night. Cowley's injuries were horrendous. With one blow, D'Arcy broke his nose, his jaw and his eye socket. Darcy's Olympic dream was over. Charged with recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm - and pleading guilty - he has spent the last year living with the prospect of going to jail. Featuring exclusive interviews with D'Arcy and his family, Australian Story documents his attempts to curb his anger and a binge drinking problem and asks, can he race his way to redemption?
Episode 8
30 mins
If you suspected that your father killed your mother, how far would you go to seek justice? And how does a father cope knowing that his children suspect him capable of murder? Kaye King was found dead in a pit of water on the family farm in Victoria in 1991. Eighteen years later, Australian Story followed the journey of Jason King, his brother Peter and sister Nicole through the journey that culminated in the murder trial of their father, Graeme King, in the Victorian Supreme Court late last year. After his acquittal, Graeme King spoke exclusively to the program about how he planned to re-build his life after what he sees as a 'betrayal' by his children.
Episode 9
30 mins
In 1998 Australian Story featured a story about reformed heroin addict and dealer Terry Walker who had become a pastor reaching out to outlaw bikie groups and those in the community with drug and alcohol problems. Among those watching the program that night was Ron Favaloro, a former police officer who knew Terry Walker during his bad old days, a man who no longer was on the right side of the law. In this program we revisit the old story and update you on the twists that have occurred since.
Episode 10
30 mins
Michael Parkinson introduces this special 500th edition of Australian Story on the extraordinary adventures of his friend and hero, fighter pilot turned legendary 'Invincibles' cricketer, Keith Miller. Miller had the world at his feet throughout the 1950s. Blessed with film-star good looks and outstanding cricket skills, he took Britain by storm during the lean post-war years when heroes were hard to come by. Women adored him, men wanted to be just like him. Shaped by his formative experiences as a World War II bomber pilot, he perfected a rebellious attitude on the pitch and an irreverent party-boy persona off it. Watching his mates die meant it was hard to take sport seriously ever again. Equally comfortable with the jet set (Princess Margaret was a regular companion) and cricket fans alike, Miller also juggled a complicated personal life as father to four boys and husband to long-suffering wife Peg. For the first time, Miller's sons reveal their own troubled pasts and discuss how they finally made peace with a father who was absent for much of their boyhood.
Episode 11
30 mins
Shane Warne presents part two of our special edition on the spectacular life of legendary 'Invincibles' cricketer Keith Miller, seen through the eyes of his family and close friends, including Michael Parkinson and Ian Chappell. For the first time, Keith Miller's sons reveal their battles with heroin addiction and recount the trials of their father's final years, including a surprising new relationship that rocked the family and tested the allegiance of even his closest friends and admirers. Despite the flaws, Miller is remembered with intense emotion and affection as one of the truly unforgettable characters of the Australian sporting scene.
Episode 12
30 mins
Australian Story is proud to repeat the Logie nominated program on young Channel Ten newsreader, Charmaine Dragun. At 29, Charmaine was a rising star who seemed to have everything to live for, a brilliant career and secret plans to marry her boyfriend on her 30th birthday. But in late 2007 she died in the most unexpected and devastating way, driving to a cliff top in Sydney's eastern suburbs and jumping to her death. She had been receiving treatment for depression and her family said she had recently changed her medication. Her family, partner and close friends spoke for the first time last year in an attempt to try and make sense of what happened and in the hope that Charmaine's story may help others. The program was one of the finalists in the peer voted 'outstanding public affairs' category of the Logies.
Episode 13
30 mins
Professor Cyndi Shannon Weickert once dreamed of being a famous chef until her twin brother Scott Shannon was diagnosed with schizophrenia in his teens. After witnessing the devastating symptoms of delusions and hallucinations first-hand in the person she loved the most, Cyndi Shannon Weikert embarked on a life mission to find a cure. Now a world-leading neurobiologist, she moved from America to Australia when she was invited to lead a top schizophrenia research program in Sydney two years ago. The team has since discovered that mutations in a particular estrogen gene are linked to schizophrenia.
Episode 14
30 mins
Veterinarian Ben Cunneen and vet nurse Natalie Beohm were good friends through their work at the Redlands Veterinary Clinic, near Brisbane. Last year, they ended up in adjoining hospital rooms, the latest victims of the deadly and mysterious Hendra horse virus. The virus, which was discovered in a Brisbane suburb only fifteen years ago, is one of the most virulent on the planet with a fifty percent death rate. Ben Cunneen and Natalie Beohm both contracted the virus while working with sick horses. This episode charts the pair's desperate battle with the virus through the eyes of their families and doctors, who've never spoken publicly before. And it reveals, for the first time, the very bittersweet twist to the tale.
Episode 15
30 mins
This program is about a Catholic priest whose ideas and actions have antagonised the church hierarchy in Rome. Father Peter Kennedy has now been sacked and removed from St Mary's church in inner city Brisbane. But many of his large and passionate flock have left with him. So who is Peter Kennedy and how has this crisis impacted on those closest to him....
Episode 16
30 mins
Dr Maarten Stapper is a man with some fascinating ideas on how to manage our land better. He is unconventional, stubborn and difficult. Not even a near fatal car accident could slow him down in his mission to feed the world using less chemicals. As an advocate for biological farming, Dr Stapper has paid a high price for promoting a greener, cleaner way to grow food. Originally a CSIRO scientist, he left when it became clear his views on biological farming were incompatible with his employer. Today, he travels the country to educate farmers on how to use less chemicals in their soil and on their crops.
Episode 17
30 mins
Gemma Sisia was always a 'challenge junkie' according to her parents, so it was no surprise to anyone when she established an Australian run school in Tanzania. Gemma originally went to Africa to work in a convent school started by an order of French nuns. But her plans changed on safari when she fell in love with her Tanzanian guide, Richard Sisia. Despite the reservations of some in her family, Gemma and Richard married in 2001. Gemma started a scheme to sponsor the education of African children, but then decided to go one step further and build her own school to fight poverty through education. Four years later, the School of St Jude is flourishing but donations to keep it running are drying up as the global financial crisis takes hold. Now Gemma faces her biggest challenge yet, can the school find the money to educate the next generation of students. We rejoin Gemma Sisia on a visit to Australia and witness a moving encounter in Tanzania as Gemma's mother puts aside her reservations to visit her daughter for the first time.
Episode 18
30 mins
This program is about a former commando who's made it his mission to save children from the sex trade in Thailand. Posing as a paedophile and using the pseudonym 'John Curtis', he works undercover to infiltrate trafficking rings and rescue children. It's shadowy work seemingly at odds with his full time desk job as a Brisbane public servant. But Curtis has established a registered charity in Queensland and his work has been endorsed by several international aid groups and the Thai authorities.
Episode 19
30 mins
In September 2006 the NSW coastal village of Swanhaven was rocked by the murder of local identity and nature lover Doris Owens, who was brutally stabbed to death in her holiday home. Who would do this to a 69 year old woman. Was it a break in gone wrong or, as many suspected, had she made enemies with her environmental activism. Doris Owens' eldest son, Adam Owens, blamed a local politician. Her younger son Caleb Owens, a psychologist, suspected otherwise. Within weeks police had identified their prime suspect. But in order to bring him to justice, they had to enlist Caleb Owens in a game that ended in a chilling checkmate.
Episode 20
30 mins
This program revisits a classic tale of the Australian back roads. Swagmen have a special place in stories of the bush, but the swaggie at the centre of tonight's episode is probably unique. John Cadoret has made the highway his home for thirty years.Australian Story first discovered him five years ago and since then some things have changed and some have stayed the same.
Episode 21
30 mins
Four years ago Australian Story featured a farmer and horse breeder called Peter Andrews who seemed to have a rare ability to transform degraded Australian landscapes into thriving oases. He called it natural sequence farming and it was producing some spectacular results. But for nearly thirty years, Peter Andrews' work was rejected by scientists, bureaucrats and politicians alike until the evidence became difficult to ignore. The Australian Story episodes on Peter Andrews, generated unprecedented viewer response. Now some very influential and highly placed Australians have rallied to his cause and the scientific evidence and international interest are building as well. The result has been some significant progress but some of the same frustrations.
Episode 22
30 mins
Peter Andrews is a farmer and horseman with passion for healing damaged Australian landscapes through a method he calls natural sequence farming. For decades it seemed no one would listen. But, increasingly scientific test results are providing persuasive evidence that the methods can work. And some very high profile supporters are throwing their weight behind Peter Andrews...
Episode 23
30 mins
In 1989, aged 19, adoptee John Milkins finally reunited with his birth mother Heather Norman in the scenic location of Melbourne's Fitzroy Gardens. He was stunned when his mother told him that his birth father was a man he'd recently been studying at university, Channel 7 cameraman, Gary Cunningham. Gary was only 27 when he was killed by Indonesian soldiers in Balibo, East Timor, during the 1975 Indonesian invasion. Four other Australian newsmen died with him. But Heather Norman had never told Gary Cunningham about her pregnancy. He'd been a fleeting boyfriend, a brief 'holiday romance', as Heather describes it. And so began an extraordinary family reunion and the beginning of John Milkins' journey to understand and seek justice for his father's death.Flag of My Father delivers a very personal journey behind the lens of an iconic event in Australian history.
Episode 24
30 mins
Dr Michael Buist is an intensive care specialist with a unique perspective from both sides of the hospital curtain, having almost died twice due to medical mishaps. As a student he survived a lung tumour that went undiagnosed despite an xray. Last year a routine operation for appendicitis left him on the brink of death. A last minute diagnosis from his obstetrician brother probably saved his life. Galvanised by these experiences Dr Buist is now on a mission to reduce the number of unnecessary deaths in hospitals worldwide. He freely admits that health care can be a dangerous business. Ten percent of people entering hospital can expect to suffer an adverse event and of those, another ten percent will die or experience a serious disability. As living proof of those statistics he's emerged as a world leader in the push to improve patient care with a range of thought provoking ideas to reduce human error inside hospitals. Australian Story follows Dr Buist through a major sea change in his life as he relocates from Melbourne's Dandenong Hospital to Tasmania in the hope of gaining more time to focus on his research, and to spend time with his twin babies born earlier this month.
Episode 25
30 mins
When Malcolm Turnbull took over the job of Opposition Leader last year, it must have seemed a logical step on a pre-destined path to glory. Supporters praised his intellect and energy, but detractors claimed character flaws and political inexperience would bring him undone. Things were looking up for Mr Turnbull until he targeted Kevin Rudd with the now infamous fake email in the Utegate Affair. Australian Story was filming behind the scenes with Mr Turnbull's inner circle as the scale of the Utegate debacle became apparent. This program looks at the forces that shaped the character of Malcolm Turnbull, set against unprecedented access during the intense highs and lows of the last few weeks.
Episode 27
30 mins
As one half of famed media duo 'Jono & Dano', Ian 'Dano' Rogerson enjoyed a decade long run in the 1980s with top rating radio shows and a string of national television programs. But while Jonathan 'Jono' Coleman went on to forge a career in Britain, Ian Rogerson all but disappeared from the media spotlight. Why would you jettison a successful media career? In Ian Rogerson's case, it was because of his young son, Jack. Diagnosed with autism as a toddler, Jack Rogerson was hyperactive, could barely speak and was unable to express ordinary affection. Like many parents of autistic children, Ian and his wife Nicole were left struggling to find their way. Introduced by Therese Rein, the couple candidly discuss the highs and lows of life with Jack and explain how they've raised him to discover his full potential.
Episode 28
30 mins
This program is about one of the all time legends of world motor sport. It's fifty years since Sir Jack Brabham became the first Australian to win a Formula One world championship. Not only did he drive cars, but he built them as well. He remains the only driver to win a world title in a car of his own construction. Now 83, Sir Jack remains a modest hero with surprisingly little recognition in his own country. He tells his stirring story with the help of other motor racing icons Sir Stirling Moss, Alan Jones and Murray Walker...
Episode 29
30 mins
This program is about an Australian inventor who took on the might of Microsoft and scored a remarkable victory. Ric Richardson turned his back on the corporate world and now operates out of a van on a headland at Byron Bay. Seventeen years ago, he came up with a product that enabled computer software companies to prevent pirating of their programs. But when he discovered that Microsoft had used his invention without his knowledge or permission he went to court and was awarded a victory worth an astonishing half a billion dollars.
Episode 30
30 mins
Introduced by surfing world champion Mick Fanning Sporting excellence can take many forms and this program introduces us to one of Australia's lesser known international champions. He's twenty two year old Dylan Parker and he reveals how his love of his sport inspired him to soar through a terrifying medical crisis. It also taught him he says, to appreciate what matters in life and to change his entire career path. Dylan Parker makes and flies paper planes and he has become one of the very best in the world. But before he could represent his country on the world stage, he had to deal with the sudden discovery of a brain tumour as big as a golf ball...
Episode 31
30 mins
Ian Conway is a man determined to make a difference. Twenty years ago he made a promise to an Aboriginal elder. It was a big promise and for years Ian was haunted by the fact that he hadn't delivered. His commitment was partly motivated by his own early years as a homeless child in the camps around Alice Springs. Despite the toughest of starts in life, Ian Conway went to school and even became a prefect. Many years later, after carving a station out of of the bush in Central Australia and creating a successful tourist enterprise, he finally turned his mind to the 'unfinished business' of his promise to his friend.
Episode 32
30 mins
Introduced by Chris Bray, 26 year old adventurer and chairman of the Australasian branch of the New York based International Explorers Club. Micheline and Curt Jenner are marine biologists who've spent the last two decades at sea, studying and mapping whales. They've raised a family on board their boat and dedicated their lives to the protection and understanding of whales. They've swum alongside whales, watched them give birth and 15 years ago they discovered a majestic humpback whale nursery at Camden Sound off the coast of the Kimberley. For years the discovery of the whale breeding grounds was kept quiet to discourage tourists. But the announcement of plans for a large LNG plant in the region has created controversy and debate. It,s highlighted a major dilemma for the Jenners, and scientists like them, who rely on grants from industry to support their research work.
Episode 33
30 mins
Introduced by journalist and author Tony Maniaty This week's episode returns to the unfolding saga of Australian army Major Mike Stone and his unorthodox friendship with the President of the fledgling nation of East Timor. Major Mike Stone first appeared on the program in April 2007. At the end of the military deployment, East Timorese President Jose Ramos Horta wrote to then Prime Minister John Howard with an unusual request. He wanted Mr Howard to have Major Stone reassigned to a civilian role as the President's national security adviser. Michael Stone was delighted to return to East Timor. But he didn't realize that he would soon be plunged into the biggest drama of his career, a life or death crisis that made headlines all around the world.
Episode 34
30 mins
This Australian Story capitalises on innovative web content for a powerful and timely story about the Black Saturday bushfires. For the past three months, young online video producer Drew Ambrose has been making films about survivors of the fires that swept through Victoria in February this year for a new ABC website about those events. During his work, he came across a remarkable story about a twin brother and sister, Patrick and Bronwyn O'Gorman. Living in a beautiful elevated home in the bush at Humevale, the O'Gorman family had good reason to think they could defend their home against fire. But as February 7th unfolded, the worst the twins could imagine became reality. The story of the O'Gormans caught the eye of the Australian Story team and forms the core of this special edition.
Episode 35
30 mins
Introduced by solo round the world sailor, Jesse Martin In this special two part edition Australian Story follows one man's dream to build the ultimate racing yacht and win the prestigious Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Instead, within months of being launched, the 15 metre 'Excalibur' capsized when her keel fell off in the early hours of evening off the NSW mid north coast. John Rogers and Brian McDermott were the only survivors. The other four crew, all from Melbourne, died. Rogers and McDermott survived a seven hour ordeal lashed together in rough seas, clutching an EPIRB and a strobe light. Summonsed by rescue authority AMSA and guided by the light, a 50,000 tonne container ship attempted to rescue the men, only to run them over first. Accompanied by their friends and family, Rogers and McDermott tell the full story of their miraculous survival for the first time.EDITOR'S NOTE: Alex Ciittadini, a director of Applied Alloy Yachts which built the boat 'Excalibur' featuring in this program, had his manslaughter conviction overturned on appeal in December 2009. He was originally found guilty and sentenced to three years' jail over the deaths of four people when the boat's keel fell off, causing it to capsize. The NSW Court of Criminal Appeal found the verdict was 'unreasonable' and quashed his conviction.
Episode 36
30 mins
Introduced by solo yachtsman Jesse Martin. This week's program continues the miraculous survival story of the 'Excalibur' sailors. Plucked from the sea by the tanker crew that first ran them down, Brian McDermott and John Rogers reach dry land only to find four of their shipmates have perished. Struggling to cope with this loss, Excalibur's owners and survivors endure seven years of investigations that attempt to answer how and why such an accident could happen. Culminating in a moving reunion with the crew of the MV Curia, the 'Excalibur' family finally make their peace.EDITOR'S NOTE: Alex Ciittadini, a director of Applied Alloy Yachts which built the boat 'Excalibur' featuring in this program, had his manslaughter conviction overturned on appeal in December 2009. He was originally found guilty and sentenced to three years' jail over the deaths of four people when the boat's keel fell off, causing it to capsize. The NSW Court of Criminal Appeal found the verdict was 'unreasonable' and quashed his conviction.
Episode 37
30 mins
Advice: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are advised that this episode contains images and voices of people who have died. Introduced by singer Jimmy Little As lead singer of Yothu Yindi, Mr Yunupingu was the face of one of the best known Australian rock bands in history and one of the most powerful Aboriginal voices in the country. Yothu Yindi's unique sound, combining rock music with ancient song cycles in hits like 'Treaty' and 'World Turning' won the band critical acclaim and fans around the world. But two years ago the music stopped when Mr Yunupingu received some news that changed his life. Diagnosed with end stage kidney failure, he found himself powerless to fight the ravages of a disease which affects many of his people. Now he's turned his considerable voice towards a new message, documenting his own condition in the hope that it may help others.
Episode 38
30 mins
When a young nurse disappeared from Sydney five years ago, the lives of the people she left behind fell into disarray. Although her friends and family didn't know it, the man behind Kylie Labouchardiere's death was plotting to hide his crime with a series of bizarre actions, none of which made sense to anybody at the time. Along the way, he set fire to his own home to mislead investigators and attempted to frame an innocent policeman. Despite his elaborate fabrications, a three-year police investigation eventually led to his conviction for murder. In a story where truth is stranger than fiction, the people he left behind come together to tell their stories for the first time.
Episode 39
30 mins
This week's program continues the story of a young nurse who disappeared from a Sydney train station without trace five years ago. While Kylie Labouchardiere's family struggled to cope with their grief, the man behind the murder plotted frantically to cover his tracks. For three years, police liaison officer Paul Wilkinson used his in-house knowledge of the system in an attempt to frame policeman Geoff Lowe for the murder. And throughout the same period, Julie Thurecht was doing her own research to determine if her former husband Paul Wilkinson was linked to Kylie's murder. At significant risk to herself, she did everything she could to bring him to justice. The conclusion of this two-part episode reveals the devastating impact of one man's crime and manipulations on Kylie Labouchardiere's family, his own wife and child, and an innocent policeman and his wife.
Episode 40
30 mins
Karen Carey is a Perth woman who grew up with a relatively simple heart problem. But when it came time for an operation to install an artificial heart valve, everything that could go wrong did. At the age of 34, Karen had a stroke after taking her twin sons to school. The valve was removed and another one made of pig tissue implanted. To discover what went wrong, Karen risked everything on a court case. When the case failed, she embarked on a new career as a consumer health advocate, intent on creating a better accountability framework to protect patients when medical devices fail. Her mission now is to teach people three simple questions to ask whenever they're facing medical treatment, questions she's asking herself now as she faces her final and riskiest operation.