Unravel

Unravel

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True Crime Society & Culture Documentary
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On a scratchy recording made in a Melbourne hotel room above a casino, a man admits to committing murder. But as journalist Alicia Bridges investigates the man on the tape known as Mr Big, she finds herself in a world of lies and subterfuge, where very few things are as they seem. The recording leads her deep inside an international controversy, to a world of secrets that powerful institutions don't want revealed.

Previous seasons of Unravel have covered everything from love scams to Neo-Nazi gangs.

'Snowball' (Season 4) won Best True Crime at the Australian Podcast Awards in 2020, was one of Apple Podcasts' Best Listens of 2019, made the American Bello Collective's top 100 list that year.

'Blood on the Tracks' (Season 1) won a Walkley Award for Coverage of Indigenous Affairs.

In Season 5, Firebomb, Crispian Chan investigates what really happened after his family's restaurant went up in flames in 1988. He was just a kid when Chinese restaurants were being firebombed in the dead of night and a campaign of terror was underway in Perth. Thirty-five years on, most of us have never heard about it, even though it's one of the few sustained and coordinated terrorism campaigns in Australia's history. Crispian teamed up with ABC reporter Alex Mann, and together they traversed the country to find answers and explore the darker forces that still lurk in our suburbs today.

In Season 4, Snowball, Ollie Wards investigates how his brother's whirlwind romance with a charismatic Californian woman ultimately cost his family more than a million dollars. When Greg Wards met Lezlie Manukian, a beautiful woman whose world is full of glamour, he is immediately drawn to her. They fall in love, get married and start planning the rest of their lives together — the only catch is Lezlie is a con artist. To find out who his brother's wife really is, Ollie must track down Lezlie herself, and it soon becomes clear that his family's story is just one piece of a bigger jigsaw.

In Season 3, Last Seen Katoomba, reporter Gina McKeon digs deep into the suspicious unsolved disappearance of young mum, Belinda Peisley, who was last seen in the Blue Mountains town of Katoomba, west of Sydney, in September 1998. Belinda's life descends into chaos after her 18th birthday when she receives a large inheritance and buys her own place in town.The house becomes a magnet for a world of drugs and a crowd of hangers-on who visit day and night. Gina pieces together the stories and evidence around the six main persons of interest named in the inquest into Belinda's disappearance and suspected death, and what emerges is a picture of a town and a case shrouded in secrecy.

In Season 2, Barrenjoey Road, reporter Ruby Jones tries to solve the mystery of what happened to 18-year-old Trudie Adams after she disappears while hitchhiking home on Sydney's northern beaches in 1978. Ruby exposes the dark underbelly of the seemingly beautiful and serene "Insular Peninsula," uncovering a world where surfers run drugs home from Bali, gangs of men prowl the beaches and predators have unchecked power. Ruby will question why the case was never solved and her investigation will lead her to a criminal monster with links to organised crime and police corruption at the highest level.

In Season 1, Blood On The Tracks, award-winning Muruwari and Gomeroi journalist Allan Clarke spends five years investigating the unusual circumstances surrounding the death of 17-year-old Gomeroi teenager, Mark Haines. An Aboriginal community on one side, a largely white population on the other. Some will say it was a suicide and others a murder. Despite the strange evidence found at the scene of his death, the family feel like police are ignoring them. The story ends with a revelation no one was expecting, and the thirty-year-old mystery finally begins to unravel.

Episodes (50)

PRESENTS — The Case Of

PRESENTS — The Case Of

August 15, 2025 Unknown length
It's the trial everyone in Darwin is talking about. In February 2022, a helicopter on a crocodile egg collection mission crashed in remote Arnhem Land, killing the egg collector and paralysing the...
BONUS | Behind the scenes on Mr Big

BONUS | Behind the scenes on Mr Big

October 21, 2024 21m S6E8
Go behind the scenes of the podcast with reporter Alicia Bridges, who answers questions about how she investigated Mr Big.Asking the hard questions is Rachael Brown, the host of the ABC's first true...
07 Mr Big | Through the looking glass

07 Mr Big | Through the looking glass

October 07, 2024 44m S6E7
As Alicia Bridges investigates the beginnings of an epic deception, she finds it spans across continents. At the heart of the deception is an upside-down world of gang crime, and a series of dilemmas....
06 Mr Big | The knife

06 Mr Big | The knife

October 07, 2024 32m S6E6
A knife is found near a drain, but is it the one police looking for? A man is put on trial, and the court hears the evidence against him. But as each side mounts their case, which piece of evidence...
05 Mr Big | A story about murder

05 Mr Big | A story about murder

October 07, 2024 40m S6E5
A life filled with diamond deals, drug money, bribes and corruption is strange enough. But the truth is even stranger. Deeper forces are at work, with a bigger purpose. Mr Big's web of secrets is...
04 Mr Big | You're it

04 Mr Big | You're it

October 07, 2024 25m S6E4
Mr Big, the mysterious head of a criminal gang, calls a meeting at Crown Towers Casino and demands to know everything about the murder of Mary Cook. For hours, two men talk. Lies are told, and a...
03 Mr Big | A bee in the ear

03 Mr Big | A bee in the ear

October 07, 2024 31m S6E3
If you're under investigation, the last thing you should do is commit more crimes. But this suspect is on a slippery slope. Small jobs become bigger jobs. Fake diamonds, huge sums of cash, and guns...
02 Mr Big | Two suspects, one killer

02 Mr Big | Two suspects, one killer

October 07, 2024 41m S6E2
Everyone says one man in the neighbourhood, Terry Britton, is dangerous. But could there be someone else who wished Mary harm? Terry has a temper and a history of violence. He threatened Mary Cook and...
01 Mr Big | The secret recording

01 Mr Big | The secret recording

October 07, 2024 26m S6E1
A killer is caught on tape talking about a murder with a mysterious crime boss. Earlier, on a summer's night in suburban Melbourne, a mother of three is stabbed, and her house is set on fire....
INTRODUCING — Mr Big, a new true crime series from Unravel

INTRODUCING — Mr Big, a new true crime series from Unravel

September 23, 2024 3m
On a secretly recorded tape, a confident-sounding man boasts of his influence with corrupt police. He sounds like a crime boss, or some kind of underworld Mr Big. He says he can help make problems...
Firebomb BONUS | Behind the scenes

Firebomb BONUS | Behind the scenes

October 09, 2023 31m S5E8
Go behind the scenes of the podcast with co-reporters Crispian and Alex as they describe how they made this season of Unravel True Crime.More InformationHost and co-reporter: Crispian ChanCo-reporter:...
Firebomb 07 | Close to Home

Firebomb 07 | Close to Home

September 25, 2023 48m S5E7
Crispian and Alex find troubling signs among current-day extremist groups. Meanwhile, in this episode of Unravel True Crime the restaurant kids discuss how they processed what happened to their...
Firebomb 06 | Track Jack

Firebomb 06 | Track Jack

September 18, 2023 49m S5E6
Crispian and Alex hit the road to track down the gang's leader, Jack Van Tongeren. It turns out that Jack's past contains some big surprises. Meanwhile, in this episode of Unravel True Crime a former...
Firebomb 05 | The Gang Rises

Firebomb 05 | The Gang Rises

September 11, 2023 Unknown length S5E5
A decade later, the gang reemerges. In this episode of Unravel True Crime, Crispian and Alex come face to face with a former follower of the gang at a men's health and yoga retreat, sparking a bizarre...
Firebomb 04 | Operation Jackhammer

Firebomb 04 | Operation Jackhammer

September 04, 2023 44m S5E4
A risky undercover operation strikes at the heart of the firebombing gang. But in this episode of Unravel True Crime, hatred reverberates around the city, and lives are lost. (Audio of Russell Willey...
Firebomb 03 | Punks and Ninjas

Firebomb 03 | Punks and Ninjas

August 28, 2023 41m S5E3
As police struggle to keep up with a wave of terrorism, unlikely defenders emerge to confront the city's gangs.In this episode of Unravel True Crime, activists are badly beaten, and the neo-Nazi gang...
Firebomb 02 | The Posters

Firebomb 02 | The Posters

August 21, 2023 37m S5E2
The city has been blanketed in threatening posters. The list of suspects narrows as the fire bombers' potential motivations become clearer.In this episode of Unravel True Crime, Police become...
Firebomb 01 | The Man Lin

Firebomb 01 | The Man Lin

August 14, 2023 25m S5E1
Chinese restaurants are being firebombed in the dead of night. As the attacks spread, police scramble to work out what is happening in the city.In this episode of Firebomb, host Crispian Chan sets out...
INTRODUCING — Firebomb

INTRODUCING — Firebomb

July 31, 2023 3m
Chinese restaurants are being firebombed in the dead of night. The police arson squad is racing against the clock to stop the next attack. Along the way, there are buried weapons, secret informers,...
Snowball 07 | The Morning After

Snowball 07 | The Morning After

September 02, 2019 23m S4E7
After the confrontation in the supermarket carpark, Ollie is left feeling confused — has he been charmed just like everyone else in this story? Will Lezlie fail to keep her promises to Ollie or leave...
Snowball 06 | Stakeout

Snowball 06 | Stakeout

September 02, 2019 41m S4E6
Ollie and Simon have criss-crossed California to find themselves parked in a supermarket car park staking out where Lezlie supposedly works. They may only have one shot to talk to her and finally get...
Snowball 05 | Black Widow

Snowball 05 | Black Widow

September 02, 2019 44m S4E5
Ollie and his brother Simon follow the trail of broken dreams and failed restaurants to Paso Robles, California. It's apparent Lezlie's exploits didn't stop when she left New Zealand. Ollie discovers...
Snowball 04 | Charmed

Snowball 04 | Charmed

September 02, 2019 40m S4E4
Following the trail to Lezlie Manukian, Ollie and his other brother Simon end up in California. With a muscle car and loud Hawaiian shirts, the brothers look every bit like '80s TV detectives as they...
Snowball 03 | The Coconut Wireless

Snowball 03 | The Coconut Wireless

September 02, 2019 41m S4E3
Lezlie Manukian's stories about her time in Hawaii usually ended with murderous local mobsters running her off the island. So, to track down his brother Greg's ex-wife, Ollie Wards needs to understand...
Snowball 02 | The Great Houdini

Snowball 02 | The Great Houdini

September 02, 2019 43m S4E2
Ollie and Greg's dad, David Wards, picks through the clues left behind by Greg's American wife, Lezlie. He realises that the entire family may have been victims of an elaborate con job.David is...
Snowball 01 | The Girl With The Dragonfly Tattoo

Snowball 01 | The Girl With The Dragonfly Tattoo

September 02, 2019 48m S4E1
When Ollie Wards' brother Greg marries his American dream girl in New Zealand and they go into business together, it seems like a perfect start to a new life. But only a few months later, Greg is...
INTRODUCING — Snowball

INTRODUCING — Snowball

August 28, 2019 4m
Ollie Wards' family lost everything after their brush with a charming Californian con woman. As he embarks on a quest to find out how she did it, why she did it, and where she is now, he opens the...
Last Seen Katoomba BONUS | Seeing Is Believing

Last Seen Katoomba BONUS | Seeing Is Believing

March 12, 2019 9m S3E6
Host Gina McKeon interviews film-maker Helen Barrow about her coverage of Belinda Peisley’s inquest and the behind-the-scenes moments that we can’t hear in the audio.Helen’s one-hour tv documentary...
Last Seen Katoomba 05 | The Visitor

Last Seen Katoomba 05 | The Visitor

March 05, 2019 39m S3E5
Some of the most explosive moments in Belinda Peisley’s inquest happen between lawyer Phil Strickland and the man we’re calling Luke.Luke admits to using heroin and to staying on Belinda’s floor from...
Last Seen Katoomba 04 | The Best Friend's Boyfriend

Last Seen Katoomba 04 | The Best Friend's Boyfriend

February 26, 2019 27m S3E4
Jeremy Ward Douglas was going out with Belinda Peisley’s best friend, Heidi Wailes, at the time Belinda disappeared. The inquest into her death heard Jeremy had a reputation around town as a violent...
Last Seen Katoomba 03 | The Best Friend

Last Seen Katoomba 03 | The Best Friend

February 19, 2019 38m S3E3
Heidi Wailes was close to Belinda and says she looked out for Belinda like an older sister would. But a break-in at Belinda’s house just days before she disappeared suggests Heidi might not have...
Last Seen Katoomba 02 | The Boyfriend

Last Seen Katoomba 02 | The Boyfriend

February 12, 2019 38m S3E2
We go inside the courtroom at Belinda Peisley's inquest to hear firsthand the arguments, phone taps and witness testimony. Jason*, Belinda's boyfriend at the time, says he met up with her on the night...
Last Seen Katoomba 01 | Belinda

Last Seen Katoomba 01 | Belinda

February 05, 2019 31m S3E1
Belinda Peisley's life descended into chaos after her 18th birthday when she received a big inheritance and bought her own place in Katoomba. Her family hoped the house would set her up for life but,...
INTRODUCING — Last Seen Katoomba

INTRODUCING — Last Seen Katoomba

January 28, 2019 3m
19-year-old Belinda Peisley vanished after she left a Blue Mountains hospital, west of Sydney, on the night of September 26, 1998.The single mum-of-two disappeared within a year of inheriting a...
Barrenjoey Road 07 | Christmas Tree Hill

Barrenjoey Road 07 | Christmas Tree Hill

November 13, 2018 33m S2E7
It’s the lead Ruby and Neil have hoped for — a tip-off from an old law enforcement source about a potential burial site for Trudie Adams.Deep in Kur-ing-gai National Park is a place called Christmas...
Barrenjoey Road 06 | The Unholy Relationship

Barrenjoey Road 06 | The Unholy Relationship

November 06, 2018 38m S2E6
Investigating the link between a career criminal, Trudie ... and a corrupt cop.For decades, Neville Tween evaded scrutiny by law enforcement, despite being a well-known career criminal. But what if he...
Barrenjoey Road 05 | The Big Bad Wolf

Barrenjoey Road 05 | The Big Bad Wolf

October 30, 2018 33m S2E5
Neville Tween appeared at the inquest into Trudie’s disappearance in 2011. Unravel has been given access to Tween’s evidence — and for the first time ever, his voice is being aired.This is the man...
Barrenjoey Road 04 | The Green Kombi Van

Barrenjoey Road 04 | The Green Kombi Van

October 23, 2018 35m S2E4
Despite the similarities between the disappearance of Trudie Adams and the assaults on fourteen women on Sydney’s northern beaches, the case goes cold for almost two decades.That is until 1992, when...
Barrenjoey Road 03 | The Hunting Ground

Barrenjoey Road 03 | The Hunting Ground

October 16, 2018 36m S2E3
A chilling visit to bushland where abducted hitch-hikers are taken. In the days and weeks after Trudie’s disappearance, a series of women come forward to the police telling similar, terrible stories...
Barrenjoey Road 02 | Suspicious Minds

Barrenjoey Road 02 | Suspicious Minds

October 09, 2018 31m S2E2
Trudie Adams was last seen hitching a ride home from a dance in Newport on Sydney’s northern beaches. The last known person to see her alive was her boyfriend, Steve Norris. Or more accurately, her...
Barrenjoey Road 01 | Saturday night on Barrenjoey Road

Barrenjoey Road 01 | Saturday night on Barrenjoey Road

October 08, 2018 26m S2E1
A heart breaking search for the hitch-hike girl. For a free-spirited teenager, growing up on Sydney’s northern beaches in the '70s was as good as it gets. Endless perfect surf breaks, days spent...
INTRODUCING — Barrenjoey Road

INTRODUCING — Barrenjoey Road

October 01, 2018 3m
The story of Barrenjoey Road explores the disappearance of Trudie Adams in 1978 from Sydney’s northern beaches in 1978 leaving a family and community devastated.   When 18-year-old Trudie Adams goes...
Blood On The Tracks 07 | Face To Face

Blood On The Tracks 07 | Face To Face

July 08, 2018 30m S1E7
Years of investigation have led to this moment ... a major breakthrough in the case, a potential answer to thirty years of mystery and pain for the Haines family.An alleged confession has revealed who...
Blood On The Tracks 06 | Revelation

Blood On The Tracks 06 | Revelation

July 02, 2018 22m S1E6
Allan and the team shift their focus to Tamworth and the truth starts to emerge from a fog of rumours. As Allan builds on the case, he discovers the police aren’t far behind.An eyewitness comes...
Blood On The Tracks 05 | The Driver

Blood On The Tracks 05 | The Driver

June 25, 2018 31m S1E5
More than two decades have passed since the coronial inquest into Mark Haines’ death. The family have been forgotten about — until news reporter Allan Clarke arrives in Tamworth on a routine story and...
Blood On The Tracks 04 | Whitewash

Blood On The Tracks 04 | Whitewash

June 18, 2018 29m S1E4
The family's hopes for an answer at the inquest fade fast.Nine months after Mark’s death, an inquest is held. The family are hopeful it will give them answers, but the police won’t budge from their...
Blood On The Tracks 03 | The Boxer

Blood On The Tracks 03 | The Boxer

June 11, 2018 28m S1E3
Violence erupts as Uncle Duck and the family confront their number one suspect.On the surface, Tamworth in 1988 is a typical Aussie town with rodeos, farmers and an active Country Women’s...
Blood On The Tracks 02 | Foul Play

Blood On The Tracks 02 | Foul Play

June 04, 2018 28m S1E2
Mark Haines' family challenge the police investigation. When Mark Haines dies, news of the teenager's death spreads quickly through Tamworth and beyond. His family are on summer holidays in different...
Blood On The Tracks 01 | Blood On The Tracks

Blood On The Tracks 01 | Blood On The Tracks

May 28, 2018 27m S1E1
Thirty years of mystery surrounds the death of 17-year-old Mark Haines.It’s the summer of 1988. A train hits a person early in the morning on its way out of Tamworth. Straight away, something doesn’t...
INTRODUCING — Blood On The Tracks

INTRODUCING — Blood On The Tracks

May 18, 2018 3m
Blood On The Tracks investigates the suspicious death of 17-year-old Mark Haines, whose body was found on the railway line outside Tamworth in January 1988.

About this Podcast

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Copyright 2025, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. All right reserved.
Language
en
Categories
True Crime, Society & Culture, Documentary