EPISODE · Sep 18, 2025 · 52 MIN
How I went from being a pregnant, homeless teenager to running a BHP mining merger
from Conversations · host Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Claire Parkinson is the daughter of a long-distance lorry driver and her first job was cleaning the urinals at her local Suffolk factory. A stint as a prison officer set her up with stability and responsibility, then she was assigned to protect a notorious murderer. Content warning: this episode contains strong language.As a child, Claire was the apple of her father’s eye and when she got pregnant unexpectedly while a teenager, he could not speak to her at all and the two fell out.Claire became homeless for a time, then tried to adjust to life with her new baby boy.Eventually she got a job as a prison officer at Highpoint Prison, where she was assigned to look after the child murderer, Myra Hindley.Prison taught Claire many lessons, ones she was forced to lean on in a move halfway around the world, and a new career in mining in Australia, bringing her back to her dad. This episode of Conversations was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. This episode of Conversations touches on bhp job cuts queensland coal mining, virgin australia breastfeeding, childcare, crime, counter terrorism, George Michael, LinkedIn, positivity, growth mindset, family dynamics, origin story, hard work, jail, prison officer, corrective services, corrections, mortgage interest rates, and being a single mum.To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.
What this episode covers
Claire Parkinson is the daughter of a long-distance lorry driver and her first job was cleaning the urinals at her local Suffolk factory. A stint as a prison officer set her up with stability and responsibility, then she was assigned to protect a notorious murderer. Content warning: this episode contains strong language. As a child, Claire was the apple of her father’s eye and when she got pregnant unexpectedly while a teenager, he could not speak to her at all and the two fell out. Claire became homeless for a time, then tried to adjust to life with her new baby boy. Eventually she got a job as a prison officer at Highpoint Prison, where she was assigned to look after the child murderer, Myra Hindley. Prison taught Claire many lessons, ones she was forced to lean on in a move halfway around the world, and a new career in mining in Australia, bringing her back to her dad. This episode of Conversations was produced by Alice Moldovan. The Executive Producer is Nicola Harrison. This episode of Conversations touches on bhp job cuts queensland coal mining, virgin australia breastfeeding, childcare, crime, counter terrorism, George Michael, LinkedIn, positivity, growth mindset, family dynamics, origin story, hard work, jail, prison officer, corrective services, corrections, mortgage interest rates, and being a single mum. To binge even more great episodes of the Conversations podcast with Richard Fidler and Sarah Kanowski go the ABC listen app (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. There you’ll find hundreds of the best thought-provoking interviews with authors, writers, artists, politicians, psychologists, musicians, and celebrities.
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How I went from being a pregnant, homeless teenager to running a BHP mining merger
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