About this listen

Winner of thirteen international awards including The Walkley Award for best Audio Feature, 2022 and Gold winner in the Social Justice Podcast 2022 New York Festivals Radio Award

Please note: Contains strong language and adult content.

Tucked away amongst snow-covered mountains is a tiny Australian town with a dark secret. Journalist Patrick Abboud hears whispers that it was once home to the world’s only 'gay prison'. A prison that specifically incarcerated gay men. His investigation into what happened inside reveals the full story for the first time. This queer true-crime journey takes you from underground nightclubs to hidden sex haunts, to remote parts of New Zealand and England. You’ll find yourself entangled in a police cover up, a case of wrongful conviction and a human experiment that didn’t go to plan. At the center of it all was a covert government operation to eradicate 'the greatest menace to society': homosexuality.

After the release of this project, the creators received a huge amount of correspondence from men who lives had been forever altered by these government policies. One of these extraordinary stories, David’s story, has been added on to the end of this podcast.

Researched, written and produced by Patrick Abboud and Simon Cunich.

Presented by Patrick Abboud. This Audible Original is produced by Lockdown Productions Pty Ltd.

Patrick Abboud was the Jesse Cox Audio Fellow 2020, with support from its founding sponsor Audible, its production partner Unison Sound and its festival partners Third Coast International Audio Festival and Audiocraft Podcast Festival.

Reporting was also supported by The Walkley Public Fund.

©2022 and 2023 Lockdown Productions Pty Ltd. (P) 2022 and 2023 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.