Australian Bedtime Story: Captain Thunderbolt 23 Feb 2026

Captain Thunderbolt: The Last of the Great Bushrangers Before Ned Kelly became a legend, there was another name whispered across the roads of New South Wales. Frederick Ward, better known as Captain Thunderbolt, rode the bush for nearly seven years with a price on his head and an uncanny ability to disappear. Courteous, calculated and fiercely self-reliant, he robbed mail coaches and travellers yet avoided unnecessary violence, earning both fear and a strange kind of admiration. In this episode of The Nightline Australian Bedtime Story, Cheralyn Darcey follows the long ride of the man called the last of the professional bushrangers. From Cockatoo Island prison to the lonely creeks near Uralla where his story ended, this is a tale of endurance, rebellion and the uneasy line between outlaw and folk hero. Saddle up. The bush is waiting. The Nightline Australian Bedtime Story, weeknights 11:10pm The Nightline with Cheralyn Darcey from 2HD Newcastle and across Australia on the Super Radio Network live weeknights from 8pm to midnight - news, views and a bit of funSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.