Weird Crap in Australia

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 programs and trained local medical staff to continue the work.

Join Holly & Matthew as they explore the life and legacy of Fred Hollows, from his early career in ophthalmology and his work with FIrst Nations communities in Australia to the international foundation that continues his mission today. It's a story about medicine, social justice, and one very stubborn Australian who decided that preventable blindness shouldn't be something people simply had to accept.

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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 Melina Marchetta's much-loved novel. Along the way, we talk about family, identity, growing up, Italian-Australian culture, class, religion, and all the other things this film manages to cram into the life of one teenager.

We'll also be doing what we always do with these commentary tracks: stopping to talk about the history, the cultural references, the filmmaking, the things that have aged beautifully, the things that haven't, and probably several things that have absolutely nothing to do with the film.

Grab a copy of the movie, press play, and watch along with us.

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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 Australia's strangest sporting traditions, where competitors race across the dry Todd River in boats that never actually touch the water. What started as a joke has become an annual event featuring everything from bottomless boats to elaborate costumes, ridiculous races, and a very Australian willingness to commit to a terrible idea.

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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 very different reasons.

Join Holly and Matthew as they examine the mysterious Canberra poisonings of 2012 and 2014 before turning to the case that captivated the world: the Erin Patterson mushroom lunch. They explore the biology of Amanita phalloides, how these toxic mushrooms found their way into Australia, the investigations that followed, and why a simple foraging mistake can have devastating consequences.

From accidental poisonings to one of Australia's most infamous criminal cases, this episode uncovers the deadly history of the world's most notorious mushroom.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-crap-in-australia--2968350/support.

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 very different reasons.

Join Holly and Matthew as they examine the mysterious Canberra poisonings of 2012 and 2014 before turning to the case that captivated the world: the Erin Patterson mushroom lunch. They explore the biology of Amanita phalloides, how these toxic mushrooms found their way into Australia, the investigations that followed, and why a simple foraging mistake can have devastating consequences.

From accidental poisonings to one of Australia's most infamous criminal cases, this episode uncovers the deadly history of the world's most notorious mushroom.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/weird-crap-in-australia--2968350/support.