The Ballad of Tom Wills

This week we travel to Australia for a game of Marn Grook, to discuss origin stories; perhaps the archetypal troubled sportsman - and horrific massacres.     Trigger warnings: Murder, suicide, colonialism, and to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people listening to this episode - I discuss some of your origin legends as best I can, and play a brief excerpt of a speech from an Aboriginal elder.  Sources Include: Australia’s Most Unbelievable True Stories by Jim Haynes This University of Newcastle Article on Aboriginal massacres, quoting studies by Professor Lyndall Ryan This NSW State Library piece on The ‘First Fleet’ This article on Edward Wills First Contact by Anita Heiss This piece on the Dreamtime. The deplorable (alleged) Neo-Nazi interruption of tribal elder Mark Brown, care of the Guardian Speeches from Penny Wong and Anthony Albanese on election night 2025, care of SBS News.                Support Tales on Patreon for $2 US a month and get access to exclusive content, or Try our 7 Day Free Trial.      Please leave Tales a like and a review wherever you listen. The best way you can support us is to share an episode with a friend - Creative works grow best by word of mouth. I post episodes fortnightly, Wednesdays.   Tales of History and Imagination can be found on…   | Facebook |TikTok | Threads | YouTube | Bluesky |