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Death Row Diary

34m · History Lab · 28 Sep 19:00

How does the law deal with an outlaw?


Jimmy Governor is captured and his legal case becomes a lightning rod for justice in the new federation. But how did Australia’s most-wanted murderer get one of the best lawyers in the colony?


A prison experiment begins with a diary and we find out how the present mimics the past.

The episode Death Row Diary from the podcast History Lab has a duration of 34:26. It was first published 28 Sep 19:00. The cover art and the content belong to their respective owners.

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6. Last Drinks

In 1887 there were no less than 22 hotels in Darlinghurst. Over the next century and a half, the character, culture and clientele of Darlinghurst pubs evolved. This story explores the impact on Darlinghurst of two episodes of liquor licensing restrictions in NSW: six o’clock closing and the Sydney lockout laws.

Image: Royal Sovereign Hotel, corner Darlinghurst Rd and Liverpool St, 1921 (City of Sydney Archives)

Credits

This audio story is a production of the Australian Centre for Public History in partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Producer: Catherine Freyne

Sound engineer: Judy Rapley

Music:

  • Blue Dot Sessions
  • When Paris is SingingbyDazie Maelicensed underCC by NC-SA 3.0 US

Archival: ABC Content Sales

Featuring:

  • Paul Solomon, publican’s son and grandson
  • Max Burns-McRuvie, owner of Journeywalks
  • Tyson Koh, founder of Keep Sydney Open

5. Room With A View

Terraces, flats, squats, bedsits, mansions, towers, camps and hostels: in Darlinghurst, housing is a mixed bag. This audio story explores the range of lifestyles afforded by Darlinghurst’s dense diversity of dwellings.

Image: Pad with a View, Kings Cross 1970-71 (Photographer: Rennie Ellis © Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive)

Credits

This audio story is a production of the Australian Centre for Public History in partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Producer: Catherine Freyne

Sound engineer: Judy Rapley

Music:

  • Blue Dot Sessions
  • Sum of My Fears,When Paris is SingingandA New Love AffairbyDazie Maelicensed underCC by NC-SA 3.0 US
  • GaragebyMonplaisirlicensed underCC by CC0 1.0
  • Korobushkaby theRosen Sisterslicensed underCC by NC-ND 4.0

Featuring:

  • Jan Cornall, former resident of Darlinghurst squats
  • Paul Solomon, publican’s son and grandson
  • Phillip Adams, former owner of Stoneleigh
  • Shannon Dalton, former Assistant Manager of the Darlo Bar

4. Pandemic Times

At St Vincent's Hospital, the Sisters of Charity have been delivering care to the people of Darlinghurst since 1857. This audio story visits St Vincent’s during three historic public health emergencies: the Spanish Flu, the HIV/AIDS crisis and COVID-19.

Image: Sister and nurse with home visitation car, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney (Courtesy of the Congregational Archives of the Sisters of Charity of Australia)

Credits

This audio story is a production of the Australian Centre for Public History in partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Producer: Catherine Freyne

Sound engineer: Judy Rapley

Music: Blue Dot Sessions; The Tudor Consort licensed under CC by 3.0

Archival: ABC Content Sales

Featuring:

  • David Polson, former patient at Ward 17 South at St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney.
  • Erin Longbottom, Nursing Unit Manager, Homeless Health Outreach Service, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney.
  • An excerpt from St Vincent’s Hospital Annual Report 1919 read by Marie Freyne.

3. Red Light Green Light

In the rapidly gentrifying Darlinghurst of the 1980s, a turf war raged over one of its earliest trades. In this story, we visit the street corners and safe houses where sex workers competed for customers, looked out for each other and stood their ground. Along the way, veterans of the street-based trade describe a changing industry, sharing stories from the frontline of the fight for law reform and workers’ rights.

If you would like to sign the petition to bring the statue of Joy back to Darlinghurst, visithttp://tiny.cc/dfhavz

Image: Woods Lane 1968 (Tribune negative; Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales courtesy SEARCH Foundation)

Credits

This audio story is a production of the Australian Centre for Public History in partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Producer: Catherine Freyne

Sound engineer: Judy Rapley

Music: Blue Dot Sessions

Archival: ABC Library Sales

Featuring:

  • Julie Bates, veteran sex worker activist; Principal of Urban Realists Planning and Health Consultants.
  • Chantell Martin, veteran sex worker; Co-CEO of Sex Workers Outreach Project.

2. Eccentrics

Darlinghurst has always been a magnet and a haven for exiles and misfits. With writer and Darlo-phile Sunil Badami as guide, this audio story celebrates a handful of local characters and eccentrics, reflecting on the material conditions that enable unconventional people to thrive.  

Image: Hare Krishna, Kings Cross 1970-71 (Photographer: Rennie Ellis © Rennie Ellis Photographic Archive)

Credits

This audio story is a production of the Australian Centre for Public History in partnership with the Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Producer: Catherine Freyne

Sound engineer: Judy Rapley

Music:

  • Blue Dot Sessions
  • I Love Her, She Loves Meby Atlantic City Orchestra licensed under aPublic Domain / Sound Recording Common Law Protection License
  • Eyes Getting LouderandHope Its TodaybyMod Funlicensed underCC by NC 4.0

Featuring:

  • Sunil Badami, writer and raconteur
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