Show Notes
Welcome to Ned Kelly Part Two! We left our heroes (?) in Stringybark Creek, just after murdering a small handful of policeman. Ned’s fame would absolutely skyrocket from this act, and then, as now, public opinion was divided – did Ned act in self-defence? Or was he nothing more than a cold-blooded murderer? With the gang now outlawed, they were forced to spend most of their time isolated in the Victorian bush, relying on a network of supporters to get by. Hundreds of police were out scouring the countryside for the Kellys. As time wore on the police grew more and more desperate, and decided to make the very act of being a known associate of the Kelly gang a crime. With their mates locked up, the gang wanted to help them out, but even in the 1800s legal fees were expensive. What are four blokes to do but start robbing banks? How different could it really be from horse stealing, anyway? In this episode, we cover Ned’s life after the murders to the end of his short but infamous life. This is all the good shit – the bank robberies, the boozing, the general larrikinism. If you’re not a fan of Ned by the end of this episode, maybe you’ll at least admire his pizazz.
EPISODE NOTES: After the murders at Stringybark Creek, Ned and co set off to rob some banks, cause some mischief, and just generally act the way folk heroes do. Bank robberies in Euroa and Jerilderie became the stuff of legend, not just for the boldness of the crimes, but for the way their hostages were treated – more often than not, they were thanked for their trouble with a few beers and a slice of the profits. Ned and the gang gained a reputation for being courteous, friendly, and honourable even while they were committing crimes – but they’d still shoot anyone who betrayed them.
The fun couldn’t last forever, though. Still fuming with rage over the wrongful imprisonment of his mother and wanting to make a statement the police couldn’t ignore, Ned and the gang schemed to blow up a train full of police officers en route from Benalla. Things didn’t go according to plan, and the gang ended up in a days-long siege with police at Glenrowan, from which none of them, in one way or another, would survive.
Please read Peter Fitzsimmon’s Ned Kelly. It’s a banger.https://www.penguin.com.au/books/ned-kelly-9780857988140
To read a biography of Ned’s short but busy life, go here http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kelly-edward-ned-3933
A very interactive and fun website about Ol Ned can be found here https://www.ironoutlaw.com/
If you’re not a fan of Ned Kelly you can have your worldview supported by reading this salty Herald Sun article https://www.heraldsun.com.au/rendezview/ned-kelly-was-a-failed-terrorist-not-a-folk-hero/news-story/5b80433f048c89e6836898b255f44fb0 If you like what we do please consider supporting us on PATREON Subscribe to the podcast on ITUNES, STITCHER, SPOTIFY or your Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Murder in the Land of Oz
As the final installment of our First Nation's themed season, we are talking about January 26th. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We are back after a (what turned into a much bigger than intended) break!
Whoops we covered another cult. Coming for ya, Jo Thornely. Chantelle McDougall, her six-year-old daughter Leela, her partner Simon Kadwill, and their housemate Tony Popic went missing in July of 2007. Simon was the leader of an internet-based doomsday cult, who believed that through death, a chosen few would ascend to a new plane of reality and usher in the new Aquarian age of existence. So you know, normal stuff. They told friends and family they were moving to Brazil, but their was no activity on their passports. Their disappearance left police stumped. Had they committed group suicide, or had they gone even further into isolation and completely segregated themselves from society? Our main sources this week were the coronial inquest completed in 2017. You know we love an inquest document! https://www.coronerscourt.wa.gov.au/_files/Felton,%20G;%20McDougall,%20C%20J%20and%20L;%20Popic,%20A%20K%20%20finding.pdf News articles about the case can be found here https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-12-06/cult-leader-simon-kadwell-inquest-begins-into-missing-family/9205656 and here https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/real-life/news-life/cult-leader-simon-kadwell-inquest-hears-police-failed-to-investigate-report-of-dead-flesh-smell/news-story/b828be6ad139699e509c94ce62bc5292 The website for Simon’s “work” can be accessed via the Wayback Machine here https://web.archive.org/web/20071103141354/http://www.thenewcall.org/book_sdp.htm Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/murder-in-the-land-of-oz. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Okay, yes, every show and their dog (or podcast cat) have covered this case. But we just had to jump on the bandwagon. You may be familiar with the murder of Dee Dee Blanchard from the documentary Mommy Dead and Dearest, or the hit TV show now on Hulu The Act, or just generally from having an internet connection at any point in time over the past four years. The internet is obsessed with this case, and for good reason – the horrific murder of Dee Dee Blanchard shocked the world, not because of the brutality of the crime – but because of the scale of the abuse that Dee Dee afflicted on Gypsy, her daughter, who she had raised to believe was sick with a whole medical textbook of illnesses. Once Dee Dee was dead, the truth came out – nothing was wrong with Gypsy. She was a victim of Munchausen by Proxy, and was horribly abused by the person who was meant to care for her most. EPISODE NOTES: Friends and neighbours looked at Dee Dee and Gypsy Rose Blanchard as a perfect mother-daughter pair. Dee Dee was dedicated to her sick daughter, and Gypsy was in turn loving and devoted to her mother. When Dee Dee was murdered in 2015, people were horrified. Who was going to take care of poor Gypsy now? But as the truth came out, and Gypsy – along with her boyfriend, Nicholas Godejohn – was charged with her death, people were horrified to discover that Dee Dee was not what she seemed – and neither was Gypsy. Gypsy had every disease under the sun, from cancer to muscular dystrophy. She was confined to a wheelchair, had tubes all over her body, and had no hair and barely any teeth. She never properly attended school and was in and out of hospital constantly. But none of her ailments were real. Dee Dee was forcing Gypsy to be sick, lying to her about her real age, and physically and mentally abusing her to keep up the sickness routine, so that Dee Dee could keep reaping the benefits of having a sick child. While Gypsy and Nicholas Godejohn were both ultimately convicted of Dee Dee’s murder, many people believe that Gypsy acted in self-defence, and did what she had to do to escape from one of the most horrific situations of abuse conceivable. Read Michelle Dean's incredible longform article on the case here https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/michelledean/dee-dee-wanted-her-daughter-to-be-sick-gypsy-wanted-her-mom More info about the case can be found here https://www.yourtango.com/2019322839/who-nick-godejohn-new-details-gypsy-roses-boyfriend-man-murdered-dee-dee-blanchard?fbclid=IwAR0c95is1g2caWJ1wSQX9CobuA8rK30l_Z5BDjfW4AAdf-CpbE2IlcVH7kA Information about the case and also Munchausen by Proxy can be found here https://www.yourtango.com/2019322870/what-munchausen-syndrome-by-proxy-story-gypsy-rose-blanchard?fbclid=IwAR28fu87X_aWdA9iOnfoLHevQ_bfIyiMeabBSbHo-T2YajOWh8ey3vd7YKI For some info on Hulu's stunning new show The Act (this is not a sponsored episode but also – sponsor us, Hulu?) head here https://www.marieclaire.com.au/the-act-tv?fbclid=IwAR2Ohe3PFiupYeS2rfTO3Ux9LoluGAiYbzWQMNMiQJz8RCg5iwvChcyUMHM