History

Weird Crap in Australia

by The Modern Meltdown

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Australia · History

#49

Pulse 17

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About the show

Welcome to Weird Crap in Australia, a podcast hosted by Holly and Matthew Soall, a husband-and-wife team digging into the strange, fascinating and occasionally downright bizarre history of Australia. Holly is a social historian, and Matthew is a pop-culture obsessive. Together, they explore the stories Australians have been telling about themselves for generations — from ghosts, monsters, UFOs and true crime to disasters, animals, places, technology, censorship, popular culture and the weird corners of everyday Australian life. But Weird Crap in Australia isn't just about the weird bit. Every strange story has a history behind it, and Holly uses each episode to dig into the social history surrounding it: what Australians believed, how we lived, what frightened us, what entertained us, who was being left out of the story, and how the Australia we recognise today was shaped by the people who came before us. Matthew brings the pop-culture perspective, looking at the way these stories have been transformed through film, television, books, music and the wider culture. The result is Australian history without the dusty textbook. Did you know a full firefight between MPs and soldiers took place inside Sydney's Central Station in February 1916 — and you can still find the bullet holes in the pillars? Did you know one of Australia's convict ships was waylaid by Americans during the aftermath of the American Revolution in 1815? Did you know Australia has a dinosaur called Qantassaurus, and that many of the fossil expeditions that uncovered Australia's prehistoric past during the 1970s and 1980s were sponsored by corporations rather than the government? Did you know Chinese Australians played a significant role in the Victorian Gold Rush — and that the goldfields helped introduce Chinese food to Australian communities? There's a lot of history in this country. Some of it is taught in school. A lot of it isn't. We think the stories that have been forgotten, ignored or simply never made it into the textbook are worth telling. Because if we're going to understand Australia — and where we're going — we need to understand where we've come from. New episodes release at 12pm AEST/AEDT every Monday. *** All sound and voice clips used are © their respective owners. Main Theme music – Kevin MacLeod "Slow Ticking Clock" – Kevin MacLeod Used under a Creative Commons license. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-crap-in-australia--2968350/support.

Latest episodes

Episode 429 - Fred McDermott: Murderer without a Corpse Part 1

October 5, 2026 · 42 min

In 1936, a man disappeared from the small New South Wales town of Grenfell. More than a decade later, a travelling shearer named Fred McDermott found himself at the centre of a murder investigation that would change his life forever. Join…
Episode 428 - The Life and Controversies of Fred Hollows Part 2

September 28, 2026 · 1 hr 23 min

Fred Hollows was a surgeon who believed that eyesight shouldn't be determined by where you were born or how much money you had. His work took him from Australia to some of the world's poorest communities, where he helped establish eye-care…
Episode 427 - The Life and Controversies of Fred Hollows Part 1

September 21, 2026 · 1 hr 16 min

Fred Hollows was a surgeon who believed that eyesight shouldn't be determined by where you were born or how much money you had. His work took him from Australia to some of the world's poorest communities, where he helped establish eye-care…
Movie Commentary 6 - Looking for Alibrandi (2000)

September 14, 2026 · 1 hr 51 min

What happens when you take one of Australia's most beloved coming-of-age stories and put Holly & Matthew in a room with it?You're about to find out. Join us as we watch Looking for Alibrandi (2000), the Australian film adaptation of…
Episode 426 - The Henley-on-Todd Regatta

September 7, 2026 · 48 min

What do you get when a bunch of Australians decide to hold a boat race in the middle of the desert, where there isn't actually any water? The Henley-on-Todd Regatta. Join Holly & Matthew as they head to Alice Springs to explore one of…
Episode 425 - The Deadly Beef Wellington Part 2

August 31, 2026 · 56 min

For decades, death cap mushrooms were regarded as a rare but deadly hazard, claiming lives through tragic mistakes and misidentification. But in recent years, two Australian cases thrust these lethal fungi into the national spotlight for…
Episode 424 - The Deadly Beef Wellington Part 1

August 24, 2026 · 57 min

For decades, death cap mushrooms were regarded as a rare but deadly hazard, claiming lives through tragic mistakes and misidentification. But in recent years, two Australian cases thrust these lethal fungi into the national spotlight for…
Episode 423 - Death Cap Mushrooms

August 17, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min

For decades, death cap mushrooms were regarded as a rare but deadly hazard, claiming lives through tragic mistakes and misidentification. But in recent years, two Australian cases thrust these lethal fungi into the national spotlight for…