Australian Story Season 17, Episode 1: Road to Nowhere (Part 1)

1

Road to Nowhere (Part 1)

Part 1 of our story on Di Gicrist, the woman taking on the big end of town and changing the face of justice in South Australia after her husband was killed in a hit-and-run cyclist incident.

30 min

2

Road to Nowhere (Part 2)

The conclusion to our story on Di Gilcrist and her fight for justice after her husband was killed in a hit-and-run cyclist incident.

30 min

3

Mary and Me

Kath Evans was diagnosed with lung cancer that had spread to her brain and given only weeks to live. She attributes her sudden, extraordinary recovery to the then Blessed Mary MacKillop and the event was accepted by the Vatican as a miracle.

30 min

4

By the Light of Stars

Yaron Lifschitz took a small, troubled circus company and turned it into an artistic triumph that now has the world applauding its daring and glamour.

30 min

5

Half a Million Acres

David Pollock, a young man from remote Western Australia and Frances Jones, a young woman from the Melbourne suburbs, battle to save the historic grazing property Wooleen.

30 min

6

The Book of Daniel

Daniel Clarke at the age of ten, inspired by the late Steve Irwin, set out to raise funds to conserve habitat for orangutans in Indonesia.

30 min

7

Woman from Snowy River

Leigh Woodgate's journey from young mountain girl to shining racing star, through dark days of hospital and recovery to the triumphant joy of riding a horse for early morning track work.

30 min

8

Going Troppo

From teenage years marked by delinquency, expulsions from school and several brushes with the law, John Polson became a successful actor and went on to direct some of the world's best known TV dramas.

30 min

9

House Of Hancock

Another look at the 1997 classic story on Australia's richest person, Gina Rinehart.

30 min

10

A Done Deal

Ric Richardson is an inventor who took on the might of Microsoft and scored a remarkable victory.

30 min

11

Streets with No Names

Scott Neeson built a career as a top Hollywood movie executive but after a holiday in Cambodia, gave it all up and now works to help some of the poorest children there.

30 min

12

The Razor's Edge

Risktaker, investigator and troublemaker: animal advocate Lyn White and the images that shocked a nation.

30 min

13

Return to Wooleen

Since Half a Million Acres aired, the Pollock's battle to save their property has attracted powerful supporters and a visit by natural landscape ecologist, Peter Andrews who has previously featured on Australian Story.

30 min

14

Larger Than Life

Clive Palmer has been described as a generous giver, a national treasure and a major political force. He's also been labelled a billionaire mining magnate who has never mined, a human headline and a manipulator of the media.

30 min

15

When We Were Racers

Triple world champion, Sir Jack Brabham became the first driver to be knighted for services to motorsport and the only Formula One driver to win a world title in a car of his own construction.

30 min

16

According to Her Cloth

From international model via prison to toast of Australian fashion week as a new generation designer: Tovah Cottle.

30 min

17

Turning the Tables

Jack Manning Bancroft, was just 19 when he started a plan to help disadvantaged kids finish school. Now at 26 he's one of Australia's youngest CEO's.

30 min

18

Walking with Kate Mulvany

Actress and playwright Kate Mulvany has experienced more than most people do in a lifetime and speaks candidly about life's many challenges and explains how she found the energy and determination to return to the public spotlight.

30 min

19

The Voice

Gurrumul Yunupingu's haunting voice has captivated global audiences, most recently in London for Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

30 min

20

To Set Before a Queen

In the early hours of Sunday June 24, the unbeaten Black Caviar will take on Europe's best at Royal Ascot, in front of the Queen. This is the fascinating inside story of the making of Black Caviar, stretching back across the generations.

30 min

21

Her Hour Upon the Stage (Part 1)

Part One of our two part special where friends and family of Diana Bliss tell her story and reveal the extent of the private torment behind the glittering existence.

30 min

22

Her Hour Upon the Stage (Part 2)

This week, the conclusion to our story about Diana Bliss whose death earlier this year was reported around the world.

30 min

23

Letters to the Editor

It's a time of unprecedented crisis in the newspaper industry. But this week's Australian Story is about a former big city journalist who's bucking the trend. James Clark had been living the dream in Paris when he decided to put his future, his relationship and the family sheep station on the line to chase his dream of running a little local newspaper in outback Cunnamulla.

30 min

24

Stranger on the Shore

Next week's program tells the story of a young woman unsettling her middle class Melbourne family by going out on a limb to 'adopt' a fourteen year old Afghan asylum seeker.

30 min

25

Foolin' Around

Popular Country singer Beccy Cole has decided she is ready to tell audiences about a personal dilemma which has dogged her for more than ten years.

30 min

26

It Takes a Village

In 2001 Ian and Sandy Johnson adopted two orphaned children, Tigi and Frazer, from Ethiopia. Now with the children 12 and 15, we returned to find out how it's all worked out.

30 min

27

Her Natural Life

This program documents Annabelle Sandes' unlikely pathway from the fine art auction rooms of inner Sydney to whale conservation in the Kimberley.

30 min

28

Tatiana Is Dancing

Tanya Pearson has shaped the careers of hundreds of aspiring Australian dancers and at 75 continues to teach classical ballet full time.

30 min

29

The Queen of Extreme

Torah Bright has lived in the United States since she was fifteen years old when she turned professional as a snowboarder. Since then, she's flown under the radar of many Australians. Her specialty is the half pipe – a winter Olympic event with a huge international following.

30 min

30

Kicking the Habit

A recent High Court ruling all but ended the branding of cigarette packets in Australia. The decision and the woman behind it, Federal-Attorney General Nicola Roxon, have generated news headlines around the world.

30 min

31

War Paint

Ben Quilty is an Archibald prize winning artist with a lifelong interest in concepts of masculinity - from youthful excesses with drugs, alcohol and fast cars to soldiers on the front line.

30 min

32

On Bicheno Beach

It's forty years since a 15 year old Shane Gould created a sporting sensation by winning three individual gold medals at the Munich Olympics.

30 min

33

Alaska and Me

Twenty-seven year old John Cantor has devoted the past six years to trying to complete one of the toughest solo expeditions on earth - Brooks Range in Alaska.

30 min

34

Life After Puberty

Nell Schofield and Jad Capelja, the two young girls who starred in the 1981 Bruce Beresford film 'Puberty Blues', found fame and celebrity and looked set for big careers on screen...

30 min

35

Leap of Faith

Li Cunxin - once one of the world's best known dancers - embarks on a high stakes return to the ballet world after 15 years as a stockbroker.

30 min

36

The Slam

Exclusive with Rod Laver: the tennis legend is joined by family, friends and a line up of greats including Roger Federer.

30 min

37

The Slam (Part 2)

Part two follows Laver through his marriage to an older American divorcee, raising children, battling a near catastrophic stroke and his return to Australia in circumstances he describes as the supreme highlight of his life.

30 min

38

The Year of Living Famously

Ben Lewin and Judi Levine are two film-makers whose latest film 'The Sessions' has received considerable acclaim and is now being tipped as an Academy Awards contender.

30 min

39

A Man of His Word

Veteran print reporter Malcolm Brown has covered some of the biggest stories of the last four decades, but now finds himself somewhat out of step with the times in an industry caught on the cutting edge of the digital revolution.

30 min

40

Dreams from My Mother

Oscar-nominated actress Diane Cilento left Hollywood at the height of her fame to pursue more creative and spiritual endeavours. Her most enduring love was a theatre she created in the middle of the North Queensland rainforest.

30 min

41

Under Her Spell

Zelie Bullen is a former stunt woman, turned world renowned animal trainer who trained Abraham, the lead horse in Steven Spielberg's movie 'War Horse'.

30 min