Black Sheep

The founding father of West Auckland - Don Buck was notorious in the early 20th century for his hard drinking, hard living gum digging camp in the foothills of the Waitakere ranges. Black Sheep investigates the legend of this enigmatic and feared folk hero - the original Westie.Watch the video of Marianne Simpkins reading her poem The Ballad of Don Buck's HillGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

“Oh Mummy save me from Dr Gray, because teacher says he’s coming today, and if I’m stupid he’ll take me away”. William Ray looks at the life and legacy of Dr Theodore Gray, a staunch eugenicists who was head of New Zealand's Mental Hospitals Department for 20 years.Further reading:Statement of Hilary Stace to the Royal Commission on Abuse in Care A Brief History of Disability in Aotearoa by Dr Hilary Stace DBNZ Biography of Dr Theodore Gray by Dr Warwick Brunton The Fertility of the Unfit by Dr William ChappleMental Defectives Amendment Act 1928Statement of Tony Ryder to the Royal Commission on Abuse in CareGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In part two, we look at the years Elsdon Best spent living in Te Urewera, attempting to preserve knowledge he believed was on the brink of being lost forever, the remarkable relatioship he built with Tūhoe leaders, and how that relationship fell apart.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Described in his own time as "the white Tōhunga of Tuhoeland" and by some today as a "structural rascist" who "stole" knowledge, it's fair to say Elsdon Best is a controvesial character. In the first of a two part episode, Black Sheep traces the early life of this self-taught ethnologist.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

New Zealand's most awarded podcast is RNZ's own Black Sheep, and it's back with its 9th season. Hosted and produced by William Ray - he explores New Zealand history through the lens of real life, shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters. Saturday Morning's own Susie Ferguson has even been typecast as a murderous Scottish villain in it. Susie and William discuss how the seasons come to be, and wonder why William is so obsessed with the sketchy side of life.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the second of Black Sheep's two-part episode on Elspeth Kerr, detectives unravel the mystery of 9-year old Betty Kerr's poisoning and uncover more potential victims of a beloved nurse, turned serial poisoner. The Trials of Nurse Kerr: The anatomy of a secret poisoner by Scott BainbridgeGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Elspeth Kerr was a beloved local nurse in 1930s Devonport, but when her husband died suddenly and her foster daughter fell into an inexplicable coma, locals discovered the shocking truth: Nurse Kerr was a serial poisoner. But more than 90 years later, elements of her crimes remain a mystery. In the first of a two part episode, Black Sheep investigates the chilling story.The Trials of Nurse Kerr: The anatomy of a secret poisoner by Scott BainbridgeGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Black Sheep returns on Friday 30 January for its 9th season with a new cast of rogues, villains and controversial characters. Murderous nurses, foul-mouthed goldfield barkeepers, sly grogging kāuri gum dealers and more! Join William Ray as he looks at the darker side of New Zealand history.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

We're ducking into your feed to bring you an episode of a new RNZ podcast: Kelly Tartlon's Final Treasure Hunt. This story has everything! Kidnapping, smuggling, scurvy, and imaginary islands full of Jewish gold... Make sure to follow Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt wherever you get your podcasts.To see more of Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt, visit the RNZ website here.Special thanks to the Tarlton family for their support and trust in making this podcast.For more about Kelly Tarlton we recommend:Watch: Lost and Found: The Story of Cook's AnchorThrow Me the Wreck, Johnny: memories of Kelly Tarlton by Steve Locker-LampsonKelly: the Adventurous Life of Kelly Tarlton by E. V. SaleNavigators and Naturalists, By Michael LeeThe Fateful Voyage of the St Jean Baptiste, By John DunmoreThe Expedition of the St Jean Baptiste to the Pacific 1769 - 1770, Translated and edited by John DunmoreGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

On 27 September 1974 New Zealanders woke to the news Dr Bill Sutch, a famous economist, historian, and former senior government official had been arrested and accused of spying for Soviet Russia. He was later found not guilty, but over the last 50 years, suspicion has swirled, and new evidence has been revealed. Check our RNZ's award Winning Podcast The Service for more about the history of the SIS in New Zealand.Check our RNZ's award Winning Podcast The Service for more about the history of the SIS in New ZealandFurther reading:Spy by Kit BennetsShirley Smith: An Examined Life by Sarah GaitanosTrying to Understand Dr Bill Sutch by Brian EastonBill Sutch - Dictionary of NZ Biography by Brian EastonGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Freddie Angell was New Zealand's most notorious wildlife smuggler. His repeated attempts at stealing and exporting native wildlife in the 1990s, including Kea and Tuatara, made him all but a household name. Black Sheep speaks to documentary-maker Andy MacDonald about his extraordinary story.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Early NZ missionary Thomas Kendall arrived in London in 1820 with the Ngāpuhi Rangatira Hongi Hika. He would return to Aotearoa a year later with the first ever written dictionary of Te Reo Māori, a newly won clerical collar ...and more than 300 muskets.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Early Missionary Thomas Kendall facilitated the sale of hundreds of muskets to Ngāpuhi Māori, helping to enable the bloodiest wars in New Zealand history. But there's more to Kendall's story. He was instrumental in the transformation of Te Reo Māori into a written language, and became so fascinated by Māori spirituality that he (in his own words) "almost completely turned from a Christian to a Heathen".Thomas Kendall was among the very first missionaries to arrive in Aotearoa. In 1814 the devoted Calvinist and former schoolteacher threw caution to the wind, taking himself, his wife and five children to live alongside Māori at Rangihoua in the Bay of Islands.Kendall had dreams of founding a school, teaching Māori to read and write - and eventually converting them to the Christian faith.It all went wrong almost immediately. The school failed, Kendall fought bitterly with his fellow missionaries, his wife gave birth to another man's child, and he swiftly discovered the only way for the mission to survive in the Bay of Islands was by trading muskets to Māori - particularly the famous Ngāpuhi Rangatira Hongi Hika.Over the next decade, Thomas Kendall facilitated the sale of hundreds of muskets to Māori, helping to enable the bloodiest wars in New Zealand history: The Musket Wars. However, Kendall's most important legacy was formed during a trip to England in 1820 alongside Hongi Hika and another Ngāpuhi chief, Waikato. Together with an academic at Cambridge University, Kendall, Hongi and Waikato would create the first dictionary and grammar of Te Reo Māori.In the first of a two part series of Black Sheep, William Ray speaks to religious historian Peter Lineham Professor Emeritus at Massey University and Ngāti Rarawa kaumatua Haami Piripi about the complex, fraught story of Thomas Kendall.Further reading:The Legacy of Guilt: a life of Thomas Kendall by Judith BinneyThomas Kendall - Dictionary of New Zealand BiographyHongi Hika - Dictionary of New Zealand BiographyGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the 1900s a series of lurid headlines were published in the New Zealand Truth about George Howe, a "Beastly Brothel-keeper" who pimped out underage girls from his shop on Wellington's Adelaide Road. But what Truth found most "beastly" about Howe, is that he was Chinese. Black Sheep looks at the case of George Howe, and the "editorial hate-crimes" of what was once NZ's most influential newspaper.Content warning: contains discussion of underage prostitution and quotes racist slurs which featured in the NZ Truth Newspaper i.e. "slimy slit-eyes" and "concupiscent chows"Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In 1892 a masked figure in a bizarre uniform began a 15 month crime spree, robbing people at gunpoint in and around New Plymouth. When he was finally arrested and unmasked, residents were dumbfounded to discovered the perpetrator was mild-mannered Robert Wallath - the teenage son of a local farmer and carpenter.Wallath, it turned out, had a deep fascination for highway criminals and at trial his lawyers claimed his mind had been "polluted" by trashy novels about Dick Turpin and Ned Kelly.But later in life, Wallath claimed his crimes had divine inspiration. So what really drove this Taranaki teenager to commit such a brazen string of robberies and thefts?Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

"As morning dawned we stood and watched / That devastated scene / Where but a single yesterday / Had flourished Surafeen." In the final episode of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre of December 1918.Read more about the story of Surafend on the RNZ website here.T’was a never to be forgotten nightThe village was soon in flamesThe wallads knocked when sightedBut protected were the dames.Although we are fighting AnzacsOur honour we upholdAnd treat the women fairlyAs did our ancestors of old.As morning dawned we stood and watchedThat devastated sceneWhere but a single yesterdayHad flourished SurafeenWe turned away in silenceBut feeling justifiedThat for our murdered comradeWe would gladly have died.- RSA Review, August 1938These lines are extracted from a longer poem published in RSA Review, the official magazine for New Zealand War veterans. They were credited to an unnamed New Zealand soldier who participated in the 1918 Surafend massacre.In the final episode of our three part series RNZ's Black Sheep we look at the unanswered questions surrounding these killings, and especially the question of what motivated them.Host William Ray speaks to military historian Terry Kinloch, author of Devils on Horses, Paul Daley, author of Beersheba and New Zealand Defence Force Historian John CrawfordFurther sources:Interview with former Anzac Mounted Division soldier Edward O'BrienWhat Happened at Surafend by Terry Kinloch - WW100Australian Light Horse Studies CentreTranscript of John Crawford's lecture on the Senussi CampaignGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

"They ​went ​out ​to ​this ​village, ​and ​they ​went ​through ​it ​with ​the ​bayonet.” In the second of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre of December 1918.Read more about the story of Surafend on the RNZ website here.“They ​got ​their ​heads ​together, ​the ​New ​Zealand and ​Australians, and they ​went ​out ​to ​this ​village ​and ​they ​went ​through ​it ​with ​the ​bayonet.”- Edward O'Brien, Veteran of the Anzac Mounted Division, 1988These are the words of Edward O’Brien - a former member of the Anzac Mounted Division. His words were recorded on tape by an oral historian and now sit in the archives of the Australian War Memorial.Edward was one of a handful of Anzac's to admit seeing the Surafend massacre first hand, but his testimony does little to explain what happened.In the second of a three part series, RNZ's Black Sheep podcast unpicks the story of the massacre, and the events which followed it - including the Anzac's little known role in suppressing the 1919 Egyptian revolution.William Ray speaks to military historian Terry Kinloch, author of Devils on Horses, Paul Daley, author of Beersheba and New Zealand Defence Force Historian John CrawfordFurther sources:Interview with former Anzac Mounted Division soldier Edward O'BrienWhat Happened at Surafend by Terry Kinloch - WW100Australian Light Horse Studies CentreTranscript of John Crawford's lecture on the Senussi CampaignGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

“There was a time when I was proud of you men of the Anzac Mounted Division. I am proud of you no longer.” In the first of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre.Read more about the story of Surafend on the RNZ website here.“There was a time when I was proud of you men of the Anzac Mounted Division. I am proud of you no longer. Today, I think you are nothing but a lot of cowards and murderers.”- General Edmund Allenby, reported speech to Anzac Mounted Division, 16 December 1918These words are attributed to General Edmund Allenby, the British Commander of the Egyptian Expeditionary Force. He was speaking to the Anzac Mounted Division in the aftermath of the Surafend massacre, where an estimated 200 members of the Division killed upwards of 40 male Arab civilians in a small village in southern Palestine in December 1918.More than a hundred years later, much of the story of the massacre remains a mystery. Basic facts around the numbers killed, the identity of the killers, and their exact motivation are unknown.In the first of a three part series, William Ray speaks with military historian Terry Kinloch, author of Devils on Horses, to unpick the story of the Anzac mounted Division's campaign through Sinai and Palestine, and how it might help explain the massacre.Further sources:Interview with former Anzac Mounted Division soldier Edward O'BrienWhat Happened at Surafend by Terry Kinloch - WW100Australian Light Horse Studies CentreGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Black Sheep Season 8 is just around the corner with a whole new cast of controversial, villainous, or simply misunderstood figures from New Zealand history.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The last of the so-called 'lunatic asylums' closed only 20 years ago. They were founded on ideas of paternalism and social progress and survived on the basis they offered safety. In this special crossover with the Nellie's Baby Podcast, William Ray and Kirsty Johnston look into their origins. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

From the 1840s onward, Frederick Maning would become an increasingly bitter and angry man who demonised Māori who opposed colonisation. So what explains this radical transition from a romantic early Pākehā settler? RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates.Frederick Maning was one of the first Europeans to settle in Aotearoa, marrying a high-ranking Ngāpuhi woman, and writing two books filled with colourful anecdotes of his time living alongside Māori. But attitude to his adopted land - and its people - twisted and turned over time, leaving a complicated legacy.Maning was there for key moments in the early years of cross-cultural contact. He witnessed the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi at Māngungu, and allegedly counselled Māori against signing it; he took up arms in the Northern War (including the infamous Battle of Ōhaeawai); and was one of the first judges on the Native Land Court.But while his books painted a romantic picture of his early life among Māori, Maning's private letters from later in life described Tangata Whenua using racist language, and advocated extreme violence against those who resisted colonisation. In this two part episode of Black Sheep, we look at these two lives of Judge Frederick Maning. For further reading:White Chief: the colourful life and times of Judge F E Maning of the Hokianga by John NicholsonTe Kooti Tango Whenua by Professor David V WilliamsPakeha Maori: the early life and times of Frederick Edward Maning by David CalquhounHistory of the War in the North of New Zealand by Frederick ManingOld New Zealand by Frederick ManingGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Frederick Maning was one of the first Europeans to settle in Aotearoa, he married a high-ranking Ngāpuhi woman, and wrote two books filled with romantic anecdotes of his time living alongside Māori. So why did so many of his private letters express such violent, racist attitudes towards Māori? RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates.Frederick Maning was one of the first Europeans to settle in Aotearoa, marrying a high-ranking Ngāpuhi woman, and writing two books filled with colourful anecdotes of his time living alongside Māori. But attitude to his adopted land - and its people - twisted and turned over time, leaving a complicated legacy.Maning was there for key moments in the early years of cross-cultural contact. He witnessed the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi at Māngungu, and allegedly counselled Māori against signing it; he took up arms in the Northern War (including the infamous Battle of Ōhaeawai); and was one of the first judges on the Native Land Court.But while his books painted a romantic picture of his early life among Māori, Maning's private letters from later in life described Tangata Whenua using racist language, and advocated extreme violence against those who resisted colonisation. In this two part episode of Black Sheep, we look at these two lives of Judge Frederick Maning. For further reading:White Chief: the colourful life and times of Judge F E Maning of the Hokianga by John NicholsonPakeha Maori: the early life and times of Frederick Edward Maning by David CalquhounHistory of the War in the North of New Zealand by Frederick ManingOld New Zealand by Frederick ManingGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the 1910s, Hjelmar Dannevill wowed high society with gripping tales of adventure as a medical researcher and journalist. But suspicions over her fantastical stories and insistence on wearing men's clothing saw her locked up as a German spy during WWI. RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates the mystery of "Dr Dannevill".Content Warning: This podcast includes discussion of suicide and self-harmIn the 1910s, Hjelmar Dannevill wowed Wellington high society with gripping tales of adventure as a medical researcher and journalist. But suspicions over her fantastical stories and insistence on wearing men's clothing saw her locked up as a German spy during WWI.So, how much of Dannevill's story was for real? And why did she insist on dressing the way she did?RNZ's Black Sheep podcast speaks to historian and author Julie Glamuzina about the mystery of "Dr" Hjelmar Dannevill, and what it shows about attitudes to gender in early 20th century New Zealand. For further reading:Spies and Lies: The Mysterious Dr Dannevill by Julie GlamuzinaWhere to get help:Need to Talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor, for any reason.Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865 / 0508 TAUTOKO (24/7). This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends.Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 (24/7) or text 4202Samaritans: 0800 726 666 (24/7)Youthline: 0800 376 633 (24/7) or free text 234 (8am-12am), or email [email protected]'s Up: free counselling for 5 to 19 years old, online chat 11am-10.30pm 7days/week or free phone 0800 WHATSUP / 0800 9428 787 11am-11pm Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 Monday to Friday 9am to 8pm or text 832 Monday to Friday 9am - 5pm. Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi and English.Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254Healthline: 0800 611 116Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155OUTLine: 0800 688 5463 (6pm-9pm)If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In 1935, a series of extraordinary newspaper articles claimed a backyard inventor called Victor Penny was trying to build a Death Ray for the New Zealand government. The claims seem absurd... So why were they taken so seriously? Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Dr Alfred Newman may be the most notorious scientific racist in New Zealand history. His 1882 paper "A study of the causes leading to the extinction of the Māori" was so extreme that it scandalised not just Māori, but also New Zealand's wider scientific community. So what can Newman's story tell us about the history of scientific racism in Aotearoa?Dr Alfred Newman may be the most notorious scientific racist in New Zealand history. His 1882 paper "A study of the causes leading to the extinction of the Maori" used such extreme and callous language that it scandalised not just Māori, but also New Zealand's wider scientific community. Dr Newman's views didn't spring out of nowhere. He was building on a longer history of racial supremacy - bouyed in part by Charles Darwin's theories of "natural selection" and "survival of the fittest", which many 19th Century Pākehā seized as a scientific justification for preexisting ideas of racial superiority.However these ideas of white supremacy have always been contested in Aotearoa - by Māori and also some Pākehā. Dr Newman's notorious 1882 paper saw significant criticism from New Zealand's top scientists of the time.In this episode of Black Sheep, we investigate Dr Alfred Newman's story - and the wider story of scientific racism in Aotearoa.For further reading:Science, Racism, and Colonialism in Aotearoa by Dr Arama RataMyth, Race, and Identity in New Zealand by James Belich'A Disappearing Race Before We Came Here' by John StenhouseReading Darwin During the New Zealand Wars: Science, religion, politics and race, 1835–1900 by John StenhouseGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the second of a two-part episode on Charles Mackay Black Sheep investigates the mysteries surrounding the Whanganui Mayor's attempted murder of D'Arcy Cresswell - a former soldier who threatened to out the Mackay as homosexual if he didn't resign the mayoralty. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

For more than 50 years the name of Mayor Charles Mackay was all but forbidden in Whanganui. In 1920 Mackay shot a man through the chest after he threated to expose the mayor's homosexuality. RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates the downfall of Charles Mackay, and how his story is being reevaluated in modern New Zealand.For 50 years the name Charles Mackay was all but forbidden in Whanganui. The former mayor's name was chiselled off public buildings, ripped off street signs and deliberately excluded from official histories. His official portrait was taken down and destroyed.The reason? In 1920 Charles Mackay shot and nearly killed D'Arcy Cresswell, a 24-year-old returned soldier who had been threatening to out Mackay as homosexual. Over the last few decades people have tried to drag Mackay's story back into the spotlight. In the 1980s, LGBTQ+ activists successfully campaigned to have his name re-inscribed on the foundation stone of the Sarjeant Gallery and in 2022 historian and author Paul Diamond released a long awaited book digging into Mackay's story.But Mackay's story still has many unanswered questions.Was D'Arcy Cresswell acting alone when he tried to blackmail the mayor? Was he solely motivated by homophobia, or was there something more complicated going on? In this two part episode of Black Sheep, host William Ray investigates the story of the former Mayor.We look at Mackay's upbringing, and his meteoric rise to the mayoralty, which coincided with a meteoric rise for the town of Whanganui itself.We investigate attitudes towards homosexuality in early 20th century New Zealand, and how Charles Mackay may have understood his attraction to other men.And, we discuss the multiple scandals leading up to the Mayors arrest, including a catastrophic concert for a member of the royal familyFurther reading:Downfall: The destruction of Charles Mackay by Paul DiamondMates and Lovers: A History of Gay NZ by Professor Chris BrickellGo to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

RNZ multi award-winning podcast Black Sheep returns on May 26th with a new cast of mysterious misfits, violent villains and controversial characters. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

When flamboyant orchestra conductor Eric Mareo was convicted of murder for a second time, the judge raised grave concerns about the verdict with the Attorney General. So, did 1930s prejudice and sensationalist media sentence an innocent man to death?This is the second in a two part episode on the case of Eric Mario.On June 17th, 1936 many New Zealanders celebrated when they heard Eric Mareo had been convicted of murder for a second time. But the judge in that trial wasn't one of them.In an unprecedented move, he wrote to the Attorney General raising grave concerns about the verdict. So was Eric Mareo wrongfully convicted? Black Sheep investigates. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Kiwis rose to their feet and cheered when the flamboyant orchestra conductor Eric Mareo was found guilty of murdering his wife in 1936. But 85 years later, the verdict seems less certain. Was justice done? Or was Mareo an innocent man? RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates.On June 17th, 1936 a single word appeared on the screens of movie theatres around Auckland. "Guilty". The audience were in a hush for a moment. Then they rose to their feet and cheered.It was the end of a year-long saga, the case of 45 year-old orchestra conductor Eric Mareo. He was, not once, but twice convicted of murdering his wife, 29 year-old actress and singer, Thelma Mareo. The Mareo trials had gripped New Zealand. People followed the news headline by headline. It had everything you could possibly want in a crime story: Sex, drugs, and lies. Plus, the characters were all so interesting. Mareo was a flamboyant figure who walked up and down Queen Street in a tailcoat with a long cigarette holder. He conducted his orchestra using a giant tinsel-covered baton. His wife Thelma was a glamorous actress said to have been in a lesbian relationship with professional dancer, Freda Stark.Stark would later become one of the most famous figures in the history New Zealand show-business.At the time of Eric Mareo's conviction, most kiwis thought justice had been served. That's certainly what the newspapers said. But looking back on this case 85 years later, the verdict seems less certain.High Court Justice Rebecca Ellis and Victoria University social historian Dr Charles Ferrall re-examined the Mareo case in their book, The Trials of Eric Mareo. " must have felt guilty about so many things," Dr Ferrall says. "But killing his wife was not one of them". Not because he was heartless but because, to Dr Ferrall's mind, he probably didn't do it. As Justice Ellis and Dr Ferrall explain, the medical evidence used to convict Mareo was thin. What's more, a key prosecution witness had been in regular correspondence with the mother of the victim, and one-sided media coverage may have unduly influenced the jury. In fact, the judge in Mareo's second trial was so concerned by the guilty verdict that he wrote to the Attorney General effectively saying the jury got it wrong. "Which I have never heard of ever happening in any other case," Justice Ellis says. So was Eric Mareo wrongly convicted? In this episode of Black Sheep, we re-examine the case.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

George Wilder is an accidental folk hero. He never sought the spotlight, but his three escapes from prison in the 1960s and his daring evasion of the authorities made him a national sensation. Black Sheep investigates his story.George Wilder is an accidental folk hero. He never sought the spotlight, but his three escapes from prison in the 1960s made him a national sensation.His first escape made his name and reputation, sparking headlines as he was on the run for 65 days without resorting to violence. But the most famous escape was his second, where he evaded police all over the North Island for more than six months: On foot, by car, by boat, by bicycle and even on horseback.The stories from this escape are wild (and some are purely fictional). They were immortalised in part by The Howard Morrisson Quartet, which released a song about his exploits, The Wild(er) NZ Boy. It became massively popular despite being banned from public radio. His third and final escape was a grimmer affair, involving a sawn-off shotgun and a kidnapping. When additional sentences for the escapes were added to his original offences, he ended up spending more than a decade behind bars.When actor and playwright Tim Balme retold a fictionalised version of George Wilder in his play, The Ballad of Jimmy Costello, he found it hard to disentangle tall stories from truth."The folklore came out of things that actually happened," Mr Balme said. "There's one point where his shoes were falling apart, and he managed to steal the shoes off a searcher who was close by." But hiding behind the folk hero is a darker story which saw a man who started off as a non-violent burglar end up with the longest finite jail sentence in New Zealand history.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In 1863 half the population of a small Tongan island called 'Ata boarded a ship captained by Thomas McGrath. They were never seen again. Black Sheep investigates the story of a slave raid which destroyed a small civilisation.In the first week of June 1863 half the population of a small Tongan island called 'Ata boarded a ship captained by Thomas McGrath. They were never seen again.Aside from a handful of castaways, 'Ata has been abandoned ever since. In this episode of Black Sheep, William Ray investigates the story of a slave raid which destroyed a small civilisation. Today, many of the survivors of the raid still suffer stigma. They are told their ancestors were weak or stupid for falling for McGrath's lies. Sometimes it's claimed one of the island's leaders sold his own people into slavery; a myth which still haunts his descendants. The true story of 'Ata is much broader. It's a story of environmental destruction, resistance to imperialism, the global effort to abolish slavery, and most of all, a terrible and opportunistic crime. William Ray speaks to Scott Hamilton, author of The Stolen Island: Searching for 'Ata about the story of McGrath and the 'Atan's.We also interview Dr Damon Salesa, Dean of Pacific Studies at the Univeristy of Auckland about the wider story of slavery in the pacific.Finally, we speak to Kenneth Tuai, a descendant of the survivors of 'Ata whose family still suffer from the stigma of McGrath's raid. The full documentary about the Tongan boys who were castaway on 'Ata: Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the second of Black Sheep's two part episode on Sir George Grey, Aotearoa is launched into the worst conflicts of the New Zealand Wars and George Grey will play a leading role.This is the second in a two-part podcast on George Grey, the two-time governor of Aotearoa who led this country through most of the New Zealand Wars in the 1840s, 50s and 60s.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Sir George Grey led Aotearoa into some of the worst conflicts of the New Zealand Wars. But at the beginning of his career many saw him as a defender of indigenous rights - including some Māori! So... What happened?RNZ's Black Sheep Podcast presents a two-part episode on Sir George Grey, the colonial governor who led Aotearoa into many of the worst conflicts of the New Zealand Wars in the 1840s, 50s and 60s.In this first episode, we look at how Grey gained a reputation with the British Colonial Office as an effective administrator with supposedly "progressive" attitudes towards indigenous people (at least by their standards). Some Māori also embrace Grey as a potential ally against the settlers' hunger for land and power. However, Grey's "progressive" reputation is undermined through unfair land deals and unjust wars in his first governorship.In the second episode, Grey becomes governor of Cape Colony, South Africa, where his ruthless, authoritarian streak grows wider. By the time he returns for his second governorship of New Zealand he is a changed man who leads Aotearoa into the largest conflict of the New Zealand Wars, the Waikato War.At 27 years old, George Grey was an ambitious young officer in the British Army who had survived two brushes with death in the past two years.The first came when he was put in command of an expedition to explore Western Australia. He was seriously wounded in a skirmish with local aboriginal people (probably members of the Worrorra, part of the Wanjina Wunggurr cultural bloc).Grey's expedition trespassed on sacred land and ignored multiple warnings to turn back. This ended with a violent confrontation where Grey was hit by two spears, one lodged deep in his hip and left him with a lifelong limp. He responded by shooting and killing an aboriginal leader. The next year he led a second disastrous expedition. He and his men were marooned by a storm and forced to trek 700 kilometres overland to Perth. One man died in the process.A lot of the failings of these expeditions should have fallen on Grey's shoulders. However, he managed to spin the story as a rip-roaring adventure rather than a chaotic disaster. He published his version of this story in what became a best-selling book." was compared to Robinson Crusoe!" says historian Edmund Bohan, author of To Be A Hero: A Biography of Sir George Grey. "That sort of set him off as the coming young man who was strong, physically brave and all the rest of it."Grey's book took some heavy liberties with the truth, but it won him friends in high places. Its influence helped get him a job as Resident Magistrate of Albany, a town in southwestern Australia. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Black Sheep returns for a Sixth Season!Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Minnie Dean is the only woman to be judicially executed in New Zealand history. For years she was portrayed as a cold-blooded killer who murdered babies for cash. More recently, attitudes towards Minnie have shifted, but she's still a controversial and complex figure. Black Sheep dives into the story of the baby farmer of Winton. Minnie Dean must rank as one of New Zealand's most infamous figures. The first and only woman to be judicially executed in our history. For years she was portrayed as a cold-blooded killer who murdered babies for cash. More recently, attitudes towards Minnie have shifted, but she's still a controversial and complex figure. Minnie arrived in Invercargill on a ship from Tasmania in the early 1860s. We don't know exactly which year or her age but she would have been in her late teens or early 20s. She told people she was the widow of an Australian doctor and the daughter of a Presbyterian minister back home in Scotland. That story wasn't true. But as historian Barbara Brookes explained, it was pretty common for new migrants to lie about their backgrounds. "That's one of the big attractions of migration. People could reinvent themselves." And Minnie had more reasons than most to want to reinvent herself. She arrived in Invercargill with a young daughter and was pregnant with a second. Lynley Hood, author of Minnie Dean: Her Life and Crimes, found Tasmanian birth records for Minnie's eldest daughter signed with her maiden name - Williamina McCulloch. That suggests both Minnie's daughters, Ellen and Isabelle, were illegitimate. "She was only 16 years old and she'd gone to Tasmania by herself," Lynley Hood said. "Maybe she was pregnant and had been sent off to the colonies because she was bringing the family to shame?" Of course, illegitimacy wasn't uncommon in the 19th century, but it came with a heavy social sanction. Unwed mothers struggled to find jobs, or husbands or any kind of normal social life. Minnie's white lie about a dead husband let her dodge a lot of social baggage. She probably had some help in pulling off this story. Minnie had a famous aunt in New Zealand. She's best known as Granny Kelly, a founding settler of Invercargill. "Her aunt would have known the truth," said Lynley Hood. "It must have been who really put her arms around , and supported her, and helped spread the story that she was the widow of a doctor and the daughter of a clergyman." So Minnie had a tricky start to life, but she spent the next eight years making the most of her second chance. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The case of the Bassett Road machinegun murders breaks wide open, two key witnesses come forward with critical information. But the most interesting part of the story is what happens after the conviction...It's nearly Christmas, 1963. Detectives have identified John Gillies as their main suspect in the murders of Kevin Speight and George Walker. Both men were found riddled with .45 caliber bullets from a submachine gun inside their rented house in Bassett Road, Remuera. The killings had all the hallmarks of a gang turf war. It was quickly proven that the two victims had been operating an illegal beerhouse at Bassett Road. But witnesses had painted a confusing picture. They said Gillies got the gun to settle a feud with Barry Shaw. So why was Shaw alive while Speight and Walker were dead? And who was the mysterious second man Gillies says was in the room when the shots were fired?The police didn't know it, but they already had the critical piece of evidence they need to break the case wide open: A love letter from Mary Rapira, the teenage girlfriend of 62-year-old Gerry Wilby - leader of a rival beerhouse in Anglesea Street, Ponsonby. Archival audio courtesy of Ngā Taonga Sound and Vision.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

It's 1963 and two bodies are found in a house at Bassett Road in Remuera. Detectives are shocked to discover they were killed by a submachine-gun. Newspaper headlines read "Chicago Comes to New Zealand". Black Sheep investigates a true crime story that scandalised New ZealandTwo bodies are found in a house at Bassett Road in Remuera. Detectives are shocked to discover they were killed in a hail of machine-gun bullets. Newspaper headlines read "Chicago Comes to New Zealand". Black Sheep investigates a true crime story that scandalised New Zealand in 1963.It was Saturday Morning, December 7th 1963. Bassett Road, Remuera.The weather had been sunny and hot all week. Kids were playing in their yards, men were washing their cars. Women were packing picnic hampers for trips to the beach. Eric Lewis drove past them on his way to number 115.He was there to collect the rent. His tenants had moved into the house about a week and a half ago, 26-year-old Kevin Speight and 34-year-old George Walker.Eric walked past the letterbox. He noticed it was stuffed with a couple of days worth of newspapers. He frowned and kept walking toward the door. Bottles of milk were sitting on the porch, they'd curdled in the summer sun. Had his tenants gone off on holiday and forgot to tell anyone?Nobody answered the door. Eric shrugged and pulled out his key.The smell hit him first. The whole place reeked. He got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He walked inside, the smell got stronger as he neared the bedroom. He opened the door."What he found inside horrified him," said Scott Bainbridge, author of The Bassett Road Machine-Gun MurdersBoth Eric's tenants were dead, they had clearly been shot multiple times.Within a few hours, Bassett Road was swarming with police. "A murder was a rarity," Scott Bainbridge explains. "A murder made the front page back then but a double murder in 1963 was something pretty big."Even more shocking was how these men had died. They had both been shot multiple times at close range. Police collected six bullets from the bedroom and handed them over to Dr Donald Nelson, a firearms expert at the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research.Dr Nelson looked at those bullets, then called a meeting with the detectives. He announced those bullets had been fired from a .45 submachine gun."You could have heard a pin drop," Scott Bainbridge said.That announcement immediately raised images of 1920s USA, when prohibition-era gangsters like Al Capone blasted away at each other with Tommy Guns. The Truth Newspaper printed the headline "Chicago Comes to New Zealand"…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Flora MacKenzie is one of the most colourful characters in New Zealand history: A hard drinking, hard talking brothel owner from the 1960s and 70s who won the affection of sex workers, police and punters alike. In this episode of Black Sheep, we look at the legend of "Madam Flora".Flora MacKenzie is one of the most colourful characters in New Zealand history: A hard drinking, hard talking brothel owner from the 1960s and 70s who won the affection of sex workers, police and punters alike. There are all kinds of crazy stories about her: The time she threw a dead dog at her neighbour, her famous revolving bed, her close friendship with the head of the Auckland police vice squad.In this episode of Black Sheep, we look at the legend of Madam Flora.Elisabeth Easther is a playwright and actor - and also probably the closest thing to a Flora MacKenzie expert. "It's very hard to get to the truth," Easther said. "You hear so many different versions of , and you have to cobble it together from hearsay and newspaper articles and letters people write to you."Easther became fascinated by Flora MacKenzie after performing a monologue as her while at drama school. Later in Easther's career, she turned that monologue into a full play: Famous Flora - named after the brothel that MacKenzie ran for more than 30 years. Easther said Flora was the daughter of Sir Hugh MacKenzie, a rich and well regarded businessman who ran a horse stud in Māngere and served as head of the Auckland Harbour Board. "She was all horse races and debutante balls and being introduced to the Queen." According to Easther's sources, MacKenzie caused a minor scandal during a royal visit to New Zealand because she crossed her legs at the knee, rather than the ankle, while the Queen was present. "And I think she did it on purpose," Easther added. Flora began training as a nurse but gave it up because she couldn't stand the strict discipline of the nurse matrons. "She was determined to be her own person," explained historian Barbara Brookes, author of A History of New Zealand Women.Instead, MacKenzie traveled to Australia in the 1920s, mixed with the bohemian crowd in Sydney and developed a fascination with fashion design which she brought back to Auckland when she returned home. By 1927, she was the sole owner of Ninette Gowns, a high-end fashion shop on Queen Street. "And she's got a particular market that she knows how to cater to," Brookes said. "She took meticulous care ... some of the beautiful gowns are now in museum collections."…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the 1960s Stewart Smith began a one-man crusade, releasing thousands of invasive fish into New Zealand's rivers, lakes and streams. Why? Well it had something to do with communism and a lot to do with childhood nostalgia. Between the 1960s and late 2000s Stewart Smith went on a one-man crusade, releasing thousands of invasive fish into New Zealand's rivers, lakes and streams. One kind of fish he introduced is now so widespread it's been declared an "acclimatised species", meaning the authorities have basically acknowledged it is impossible to remove it from the wild. "The amount of damage he did was incalculable," says science journalist Charlie Mitchell, who wrote a feature on Smith for Stuff.co.nz."He could be positioned alongside the people who released stoats and weasels and ferrets in New Zealand," says Bryan Winters, who wrote an authorised biography of Smith entitled That Pommie Bastard.So who was Stewart Smith?He was a devout communist with a stubborn streak a mile wide, a conspiracy theorist who spent years locked up in a conscientious objectors camp, and an environmental imperialist dedicated to the cause of "improving" recreational fishing in New Zealand. Stewart Smith helped infest the Waikato river with koi carp, which are now a major pest species in the river. Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In part two of Black Sheep's series on Edward Gibbon Wakefield we see theories of "systematic" and "humanitarian" colonisation run into bitter realities. The result is conflict, death and disaster. For Wakefield and for Māori. In the first episode of this two part series about Edward Gibbon Wakefield we talked about the origins of the man once described as a 'Founding Father of New Zealand'.In this episode we see how his plans to colonise Aotearoa ran into some bitter realities.Edward Gibbon Wakefield believed Aotearoa was the perfect place to put his theories of "Systematic Colonisation" into practise.Working with rich and influential allies he set up the New Zealand Company to promote his plans. He wrote thousands of books and pamphlets promoting colonisation.Dr Phillip Temple, author of A Sort of Conscience, said much of Wakefield's writing painted New Zealand as a "vision of paradise".Take this example:"Great valleys occupied with the most beautiful rivers, their feet washed by the ceaseless south-sea swell, their flanks clothed with the grandest of primeval forests ... The fertility of its soil, the amenity and salubrity of its climate, the peculiar adaptation of the country for the residence of a great commercial and manufacturing people."Wakefeild was a master of propaganda. The New Zealand Company even arranged to ship a Māori man called Te Waiti to London so he could promote the planned colonies with statements like this:"I like it. I do not know what my countrymen would like. I think they would like it too, because they like even the bad people now. I think they would like the gentlemen."It's hard to know if Te Waiti (also known as "Nayti") really did think colonisation would be good for Māori, or if he was just saying what the New Zealand Company wanted him to say. Wakefield himself waved away concerns about the effects of colonisation on indigenous people. He claimed "the common effect ... of mere colonisation has been to exterminate the aboriginal race. This, however, is not a plan of mere colonisation: It has for its object to civilize as well as to colonise."He said the settlers would "adopt" and "instruct" Māori. He argued the colonists would be "civilising a barbarous people," who could "scarcely cultivate the earth". Part of the reason Wakefield felt he needed to paint his colonisation plans as a positive for Māori was to combat a powerful indigenous rights lobby group in Britain…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Edward Gibbon Wakefield used to be known as "The Father of New Zealand." But modern historians have pointed to the disastrous impact of his colonial policies on indigenous people, his misleading propaganda and, (not least) his abduction and marriage of a teenage girl. Edward Gibbon Wakefield used to be known as 'The Founding Father of New Zealand.' He was described as a humanitarian visionary, the driving force behind the colonisation of New Zealand and - according to some - the entire British Commonwealth.But Wakefield makes for a problematic kind of parent.Modern historians have pointed to the disastrous impact of his colonial policies on indigenous people, his misleading propaganda and, not least, his abduction of and marriage to a teenage girl. In this two-part episode of Black Sheep, William Ray investigates Wakefield's life and legacy.TroublemakerEdward Gibbon Wakefield came from a middle class home in Cumbria. He was born in 1796, to a family known for their involvement in banking and enthusiasm for humanitarian reform.But his early life was chaotic.As Dr Philip Temple explained, "Edward Gibbon's grandfather lost his money. So they had the status but not the cash." Dr Temple is author of A Sort of Conscience, a biography of the wider Wakefield family.He said it was a troubled family. Wakefield's mother suffered from recurring bouts of malaria and his father was often absent; "Either philandering with other women or occupied by his own pet reform projects."In that context it's unsurprising Wakefield had trouble at school. Dr Temple said he was expelled from two and refused to attend the final one."He was clearly one of those children who are disruptive because they can't work within the status quo, but it's often those people who turn out to be leaders or innovators in society. He also clearly, from an early age, had the gift of the gab and was a damn good writer. "Wakefield used those communication skills to land his first job: a messenger in the British Diplomatic service. He dreamed of becoming a Member of Parliament, but to do that he needed a LOT of money. In his day it was all but impossible to become an MP unless you were the equivalent of a multi-millionaire. Luckily, Wakefield had a solution to his money problems. When he turned 20 he eloped with 16-year-old Eliza Pattle, heir to a gigantic family fortune. But this marriage wasn't just about money. "It was clearly a love match," Dr Temple said. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Felix von Luckner was a child aristocrat who ran away to sea, he captained the last square-rigged sailing ship ever to serve in combat, he sailed 3,000 kilometers across the Pacific in a lifeboat. He also led the most embarrassing jailbreak in NZ history.Felix Von Luckner led a very interesting life. He was a child of aristocracy who ran away to sea. He fought in the biggest naval battle of the First World War. He captained the last square rigged sailing ship ever to be used in combat. He sailed three thousand kilometers across the Pacific in a lifeboat. He single-handedly saved his hometown from destruction during WWII. And he punched a member of the Gestapo straight in the face.He was also responsible for what probably ranks as the most embarrassing prison break in New Zealand history. Oh Felix ... where to even begin?THE RUNAWAY ARISTOCRATFelix Von Luckner was born in June 1881 to a family of German military aristocrats but didn't really seem to enjoy his childhood in the lap of luxury. At 13 years old, he ran away from home and jumped on a Russian sailing ship. According to his autobiography he spent the next few years getting into adventures all over the world. Some of these stories are obviously made up - but others are probably true. Life aboard a sailing ship in the late 1800s was often dramatic and dangerous ."It was the final fling of tall ships as a commercial entity, so they were often undermanned. Very hard work, very dangerous work. People did die quite regularly." explains Sam Jefferson, author of The Sea Devil, a biography of Von Luckner.Von Luckner himself was seriously injured in a fall from the rigging on the high seas (by then he was about 17). He ended up stranded in Jamaica with a broken leg and no money. But when he was begging for food on the beach he saw something on the horizon which changed his life - a beautiful white ship. It was SMS Panther - a brand-new warship of the German Imperial Navy.Some friendly sailors from the ship helped him get back on his feet, he travelled back to Germany and enlisted with the Navy. Eight years had passed since he had left home and when he returned to his parents it was as Naval Lieutenant Felix Von Luckner. THE SEEADLERVon Luckner's most famous exploits came in World War One as captain of SMS Seeadler, the last square-rigged sailing ship ever to be used in combat. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this special episode of Black Sheep, William Ray looks at the history and controversy of historical statues in New Zealand.Statues have become a focus of global protests following the Black Lives Matter movement in the United States.In New Zealand statues of Captain Cook and Governor George Grey have been targeted for graffiti, while a statue of Captain John Hamilton was completely removed. In this episode of Black Sheep, William Ray uncovers the stories behind some of these problematic monuments - and looks at different ideas of what should happen to them next. When I was little, I used to play in the fountain next to Centre Place mall in Hamilton.So when I saw the news that a statue of Captain Hamilton was being removed from that spot, I was confused. I couldn't remember that statue standing there when I was younger.It turned out, I was right to be confused - the statue was actually only erected in 2013. An action which Tom Roa (Ngāti Maniapoto) says "defies belief". My hometown was named after Captain John Hamilton. It was built on the site of the Ngāti Wairere Pā, Kirikiriroa after that settlement and much of the surrounding area was unjustly confiscated by the Crown under the New Zealand Settlements Act.Captain Hamilton never got anywhere near Kirikiriroa; he died at the Battle of Gate Pā in Tauranga in 1864.As historian Vincent O'Malley's report on street names and statues in Hamilton makes clear, Captain Hamilton was an obscure figure who only spent a few months in Aotearoa before he was killed. It was a reasonably heroic kind of death (he was shot while leading a column of men to relieve the troops who had been trapped in the Pā) but he certainly wasn't a significant player in the wars.The same can't be said for other statues that have been a focus of protest in Aotearoa. Men like Colonel Marmaduke Nixon, who led a raid on the peaceful village of Rangiaowhia, and Governor George Grey who played a major part in instigating the Waikato Wars. Interestingly, Governor Grey also instigated the building of a lot of the statues which are now the focus of so much anger and grief. "Grey himself was a great enthusiast for statues and memorials," said historian Jock Phillips, author of To The Memory: New Zealand's War Memorials. "He believed we were a 'new' country. All we had was Māori culture, and that didn't count ... So a new society needed to get to work and start to put up a few heroic figures to develop a new tradition and a sense of colonial pride."…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The story of New Zealand and its people, from its geological origins to modern day. Hosted by William Ray and Leigh-Marama McLachlan, with animation by Chris Maguren. Made possible by the RNZ/NZ On Air Innovation Fund.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In this special episode of Black Sheep, produced in the aftermath of the 2019 Christchurch Mosque Shootings, William Ray looks at the history of white supremacy in NZ.Since the attack in Christchurch, many people have called for New Zealand to examine its history of white supremacy. In this special episode of Black Sheep, William Ray looks at the origins of this ideology, how it warped and changed over time, and how people have fought against it. By William RayI missed the Christchurch shooting. My girlfriend and I were out walking the Routeburn Track that weekend. Swimming in Lake Mackenzie, watching kea stalk unattended backpacks, listening to tourists gush about how beautiful and lucky and peaceful this country is. On the Saturday afternoon we were picked up by a bus on the Milford/Te Anau Highway. The driver knew we'd all been out contact with the outside world, so she made an announcement over the intercom. "I've got some really bad news for everyone." I don't remember exactly what she said after that. As soon as we got back into cellphone range my girlfriend loaded up a Reddit thread about the shooting which I read over her shoulder. There was one post which really stuck out at me: "This is not what New Zealand is. New Zealand is a land of peace where all, regardless of race and religion are welcome. Violence, racism, and discrimination are not welcome and do not define who or what New Zealand is." I get what that person was trying to say but for the past three years on Black Sheep I've been looking at violent, racist, discriminatory New Zealanders. John Bryce, the racist Native Affairs Minister. James Prendergast, the Supreme Court Justice who said the Treaty of Waitangi was a "simple nullity". Roy Courlander, the New Zealand soldier who literally joined Nazi Germany's Waffen SS. And many, many, more. These people don't define New Zealand, but they do represent a significant force in New Zealand history. White supremacy. In this special episode of Black Sheep, we look at the history of New Zealand through the lens of white supremacy. We look at how the ideology influenced the voyages of Tasman and Cook, how it was used to justify the worst atrocities of the New Zealand Wars, and how it found new targets in New Zealand's non-British migrant communities. We also look at how some Pākeha fought to oppose this ideology and ask some tricky questions about what that dissent means for how we think about racist New Zealanders of the past. …Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

The death penalty has started wars, won elections, outraged the population and ruined lives. Join William Ray for this live podcast recording at the Bread and Circus Festival in Christchurch with guests Dame Fiona Kidman, Vincent O'Malley and Mark Derby as they unpick the history of executions in New Zealand.The death penalty has started wars, won elections, outraged the population and ruined lives. Join William Ray for this live podcast recording at the Bread and Circus World Buskers Festival in Christchurch with guests Dame Fiona Kidman, Vincent O'Malley and Mark Derby as they unpick the history of executions in New Zealand.Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Bully Hayes is famous as a charismatic "pirate" of the South Pacific. But most stories gloss over his more heinous crimes: Slavery, sexual assault and the brutal abuse of his crew.Bully Hayes is a man who made his mark on the Pacific. His image today is as a swashbuckling rogue who swindled his way from China to California, from Apia to Akaroa.Bully could leap from the floor of a ballroom and kick the ceiling, he captured the notorious corsair Eli Boggs, he was the ringmaster of a circus on the Australian goldfields.It's a life story that's inspired several books and even one Hollywood movie starring Tommy Lee Jones. But those stories usually skip over the nastier side of Bully Hayes: His brutal treatment of his crew, his career as a slaver, the multiple accusations of rape and paedophilia."He had this reputation of being a scoundrel from birth," says maritime historian Joan Druett, author of The Notorious Captain Hayes. "But in those days you could print anything you like, and if it was sensational enough and popular enough - all the other papers would copy it!"Bully Hayes (real name: William Henry Hayes) was an international criminal celebrity. Through the 1860s and 70s his name appeared in newspapers as far afield as Hawaii and Singapore. Virtually every paper referred to him as "The Notorious Captain Hayes".Some of the stories printed in the papers were true. For example his astounding capture of the American pirate Eli Boggs - beating him into submission as the pair grappled in the ocean, surrounded by the burning wreckage of Eli's ship. This despite Eli being armed to the teeth - literally! (he'd jumped overboard with a cutlass clamped in his jaws).Other stories are more dubious and some seem to have been made up by Bully himself. "He liked having this spectacular reputation, and he added to it," Joan Druett explains.According to one origin story (almost certainly invented by Bully) he was a US Navy Captain on the China station who was Court Martialed after hanging 25 Chinese pirates without a trial."But according to what records there are he 18 or 19 years old at the time. Which makes it a bit unlikely he was in charge of a US gunboat," says Joan.A more credible story is that Bully learned to sale as a merchant on the Great Lakes near his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio.He is then said to have got a job with the Chinese Navy, but it didn't take long for this position to turn into a criminal enterprise with the aid of another American captain, Ben Pease.Bully and Pease sailed all around China extorting merchants for "protection" from pirates. "They had a protection racket. They were mobsters," Joan explains…Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

In the second of Black Sheep's two part series, we find out how the Prussian mercenary Gustavus von Tempsky went from a relatively famous soldier to an uber-hero of New Zealand's colonial mythology.One who followed glory's beacon from his boyhood till he fell, Dying like a valiant soldier, after fighting long and well. Brief the record, yet it seems like some wild legend or romance; This is a stanza from "How Von Tempsky Died" an insanely romantic ballad penned by Thomas Bracken nearly 20 years after Major Gustavus von Tempsky was shot dead at the Battle of Te Ngutu o te Manu. In Bracken's day Von Temspky's fame was only reaching new heights. He had become the great hero of the New Zealand wars who wielded his bowie knife with the same skill as his paintbrush; whose troops worshiped him and whose enemies feared him. This narrative held sway in New Zealand for nearly a hundred years, the darker side to his story was mostly ignored. In the last 40 years that's started to change. "He's been called just a bloodthirsty mercenary, a glory hunter and a terrorist," says Andrew Moffat, writer and researcher at Puke Ariki Museum in New Plymouth. Von Temspky was a deeply contradictory figure, even in his own time. His troops may have loved him but some of his fellow officers despised his self-promotion and political ambition. He may have written critical accounts of atrocities at Ōrākau and Rangiaowhia but he also praised "scorched earth" raids against Māori in Taranaki - and he participated in those raids personally.For further reading on von Tempsky: G.F. von Tempsky, artist & adventurer / Rose Young; with Heather Curnow and Michael King. 1981Publisher: Martinborough, N.Z: Alister Taylor, 1981Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

He was larger than life, a warrior, artist and musician whose legend has only grown since his death during the New Zealand Wars in 1868.... but Gustavus von Tempsky had a dark side.Gustavus von Tempsky is the star of a hundred songs and stories. The mercenary and adventurer whose Māori enemies called him Manu-rau - "a hundred birds". He was beloved by his troops, the famous Forest Rangers, who refused to fight under any other man after he died.And it's not all guts and glory, von Tempsky was a talented artist, singer, musician and author whose romantic, heroic image made him the most popular man in the colony back in the 1860s.His death at the Battle of Te Ngutu o Te Manu only heightened his legend. Thomas Bracken (author of NZ's national anthem) composed a ballad praising his legacy in the most overblown terms imaginable. Newspapers described his death as an "irreparable loss". Generations of New Zealanders have grown up with an image of von Tempsky as the uber hero of our colonial history. But the real Gustavus von Tempsky was a deeply contradictory figure even in his own time.His troops may have hero worshiped him but some fellow officers thought he was a self-aggrandising braggart who played on his public image to curry favour with politicians and further his career. His writings may have criticised the British army's mistreatment of Māori wounded and civilians, but those writings also praised indiscriminate scorched earth tactics against "rebel" and "loyalist" Māori alike. Von Tempsky had a dark side, and until relatively recently that side of his story was mostly ignored... For further reading on von Tempsky: G.F. von Tempsky, artist & adventurer / Rose Young; with Heather Curnow and Michael King. 1981Publisher: Martinborough, N.Z: Alister Taylor, 1981Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details