PODCAST · society
Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia
by Central Station
True stories from the Australian Outback, told by the people who live them.Meet the men and women who live and work on some of Australia’s most remote cattle stations.There are tales of mustering, stock camps, working dogs, rogue cattle and hard bloody yakka, but also the fun of a bush wedding or kicking back at a rodeo.There’s the simple wonder of living in an amazing landscape, but also the downside: the ravages of flood, fire and drought.And always there’s the inherent danger of isolation – times when the Flying Doctor came to the rescue, but also times when lives have been tragically cut short.These compelling true-life stories show what outback life is really like – and why many wouldn’t live anywhere else.
Episodes
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Emma Foulkes-Taylor - Living on both sides of the fence
Succession is one of the biggest challenges facing families on the land. It’s about much more than who takes over the keys. It’s about knowing when to step aside, when to step up, and finding a way to honour what the generations before have built while still allowing the next generation to make…
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Rossco Foulkes-Taylor - 100 years of Yuin
In 1929, the Foulkes-Taylor family purchased Yuin Station in Western Australia's Southern Murchison. Nearly a century later, the property remains in family hands—a remarkable achievement in an industry where the only constant has been change. Over almost 100 years, Yuin has weathered droughts,...
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Raelene Hall - A legitimate bush woman
A governess meets a handsome jackeroo, they fall in love and move onto the family station. It sounds like a fairytale, or perhaps a Mills & Boon novel, but for Raelene Hall, it wasn’t quite that simple. For over 40 years, she’s carried a quiet feeling that she didn’t quite belong. That she…
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Debbie Dowden - From Challa Station to the United Nations
Addressing the United Nations about women in pastoralism is a long way from day-to-day life on a station in the Southern Rangelands of Western Australia. But that’s exactly where Debbie Dowden has found herself — one of three women from around the world invited to take the stage in Mongolia and...
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Codie & Jasmine Henville - The new kids on the block
In recent episodes, we’ve heard from women who have spent decades on stations, carrying with them generations of family history and a lifetime of knowledge about the rangelands. This episode is a little different. Sisters Jasmine and Codie Henville are new to the game. In 2025, their family…
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Meg Officer - An everlasting love of the Murchison
This episode is proudly brought to you by the Shire of Murchison, in celebration of 2026 being the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists. Meg Officer's journey from Scotland to the Murchison was only ever meant to be temporary. Instead, she found a life, a family and a place that…
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Julia Foulkes-Taylor - Finding her fit with Flax and Fleece
When Julia Foulkes-Taylor moved to Yuin Station, she wasn't just moving to a new home—she was stepping into a family with deep roots, a multi-generational pastoral business, and a way of life unlike anything she'd known before. After studying costume construction, life on a sheep station wasn't...
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John Hagan - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners. In this episode, we hear from John Hagan — someone who knows the Territory not just by map, but by memory. Over the course of 87 years, John has witnessed the...
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Mickey Hayes - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners The Hayes family is one of the most iconic and historic in the Northern Territory, and in this episode, we sit down with fourth-generation Territorian, Mickey...
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Gaynor Cleary - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we speak with Gaynor Cleary. Gaynor first travelled to the Northern Territory in 1959 to visit distant relatives who owned Mt Riddock Station....
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Cameron Chalmers - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners The pioneering legacy of Charles and Cora Chalmers is well documented in the history books—but the story of the Chalmers family didn’t end there. In this…
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Di Martin - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we talk to Di Martin from Mt Denison Station. Di first came to the remote Aboriginal community of Yuendumu in 1984 for what she thought would…
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Gil Bowman - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we hear the story of Gil Bowman. From as soon as he could walk, Gil was, as he says, always trying to “make a few bob”. With his strong work...
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Tony and Pam Davis - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we hear from Tony and Pam Davis who’s journey of land ownership has taken them from Central Australia to Queensland, South Australia, the Top...
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Steve and Bec Cadzow - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we chat with Steve and Bec Cadzow from Mt Riddock Station. The Cadzow family ventured into pastoralism more than 60 years ago with the purchase...
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Col Stanton - Red Centre Reflections
This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners In this episode, we speak with Col Stanton, a highly respected figure across the outback for his intuitive understanding of diverse landscapes and his unrivaled...
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Gary Prior - Red Centre Reflections
*This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners* In this episode, we hear from Gary Prior. Between Gary and his father Bill, the Prior family managed Hamilton Downs Station for 40 years. And as Gary says,...
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David Bird - Red Centre Reflections
*This episode was recorded as part of a Centralian Land Management Association project - which they have kindly shared with our listeners* In this episode, we sit down with David Bird of Indiana Station, a fourth-generation pastoralist continuing his family’s legacy on the land in Central...
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Libby Gooch - Sink or Swim [Voices of the Gascoyne]
This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** n this episode we hear the incredible story of Libby Gooch. The year is 1972 and Libby is a young…
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Jos & Jenny Percy - From Wandina to Williambury [Voices of the Gascoyne]
**This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** Jos Percy’s childhood on Yoothapina Station was cut short by drought and war. Instead of making...
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Chris & Tim D'Arcy - The Lyndon Legacy [Voices of the Gascoyne]
**This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** In this episode, we speak to Tim and Chris D’Arcy from Lyndon Station. Tim D’Arcy’s childhood on...
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Mick & Winsome Hearman - Treasured Memories from Middalya [Voices of the Gascoyne]
**This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** n this episode, we speak to Mick and Winsome Hearman, whose family called Middayla Station home for...
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Jane & Lochy McTaggart - A big life at Bidgemia [Voices of the Gascoyne]
**This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** In this episode, we speak to Lochy and Jane McTaggart, who called Bidgemia Station home for over…
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Margot Steadman - Sliding doors led me to Dalgety Downs - [Voices Of The Gascoyne]
**This episode is part of a mini-series produced for the Gascoyne Catchment’s Group, who have kindly allowed me to share it with you. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I did making it.** In this episode, we speak to Margot Steadman. Upon finishing school, Margot had the ultimate…
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In loving memory of Peter Ritter [Repost of Episode 144]
On July 25, 2024, a tragic helicopter mustering accident claimed the lives of Peter Ritter and Gavin U’Ren. It was a privilege it was to not just know them and work alongside them, but call them mates. Gav, Ritter – you two were bloody good blokes, and funny buggers. The absence of you’re…
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Garry Riggs (Part 4) - Mercenaries and mid-air emergencies
Welcome back to our fourth episode with Garry Riggs from Lakefield Station in the Territory. When we last left Garry, he had just wrapped up his time in the stock camp at Blina Station. But the end of one chapter marked the beginning of another. Garry found himself working in mining exploration,...
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Garry Riggs (Part 3) - Blina and Calwynyardah adventures
Welcome back to our third episode with Garry Riggs from Lakefield Station in the Territory. In his first two episodes, Garry shared tales from his adventurous childhood, filled with close calls involving snakes, motorbikes, horses, motorcars, deadly fevers, UFOs, and even circus lions! In this...
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Munro Hardy (Part 4) - A licence to learn
When Munro Hardy said he wanted to be a pilot, his year 11 careers advisor shut down the idea pretty quickly. So, Munro filed the idea in the back of his mind and started thinking about other options. Once he finished school, he set off on a gap year that would turn into the adventure of a...
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Ashley Dowden - Triumph after tragedy [Repost]
One moment can change your entire life. Ashley Dowden learnt that lesson at age 11, when he survived an accident that claimed his mothers life and left his father with one arm. Ashley’s childhood was cut short as he stepped up to support his father in running the family sheep station. In the 4...
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Pip Bain (Part 2) - Taking the long way around [Repost]
The first year out of school is equally exciting and terrifying – you’re considered an adult by society, and with that comes both freedoms and responsibilities. With her high school experience not being the best, and her first job on a station getting off to a rocky start, Pip Bain felt like she...
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Pip Bain (Part 1) - Memories of my mother & Mt Clere Station [Repost]
The time we spend with people and places doesn’t determine the impact they can have on our lives. That is so very true for todays guest, Pip Bain. Although her family sold Mt Clere Station when she was just 8 years old, those 8 short years shaped Pips life and love of the land. The same goes for...
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Nick Ormsby - Self made
Nick Ormsby has flipped the script on what it means to be a "high school dropout". Despite leaving school at just 14 and having his teachers tell him he'd never make it, Nick's proved them dead wrong. Now, before he's even hit 40, Nick's running the show with not one, not two, but three companies...
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Paddy Heatley (Part 1) - A story like no other
Paddy Heatley had a fairly unconventional childhood. By the time he left home at the age of 9, he’d already dropped out of school – foregoing learning to read and write. At the age of 12, he was smuggling tobacco, alcohol and cattle from South to North Ireland. And, at the age of 16, with his...
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Tammy Kruckow - A hard lesson to learn
From the outside looking in, Tammy Kruckow was living her best life. She and her husband were managing a large cattle station for a corporate pastoral company – the perfect place to raise their three beautiful daughters. She had, as she puts it, "ticked all the boxes". But, behind closed doors,...
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Col Greenfield - Life inside the Woomera Prohibited Area, and outside the Dog Fence [Repost]
In this episode, Steph travels to the centre of South Australia to Billa Kalina Station, which has been in the Greenfield family since 1938. Pastoralist Col Greenfield shares what it's like running a cattle station that is inside the Woomera Prohibited Area, and outside the dog fence. *This…
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Felicity Brown - Tales from a 1990's stockcamp [Repost]
Felicity Brown is a milliner whose work has been featured at New York Fashion Week not once, but three times. Twenty years before the bright lights of the big apple called her name, Flic was working in a stock camp in the Northern Territory. In this episode Flic reflects on her time working on...
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Wayne Bean (Part 3) - A change of career and time for horses
Wayne Bean spent his adult life working towards one goal - managing a cattle station. So, when he resigned from his job as the manager at Flora Valley Station after 14 years, for the first time in his life, he didn’t have a plan. This episode is the third and final part of our chat with Wayne,...
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Wayne Bean (Part 2) - The Heytesbury years
This episode is part 2 of our chat with Wayne Bean – if you haven’t listened to Part 1, you know the drill, go on, go back and listen to it first. In this episode Wayne recalls the 18 years he spent working for Heytesbury Pastoral, where he progressed from an overseer on the Barkly, to junior...
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Wayne Bean (Part 1) - Just trying to get ahead
For the longest time, Wayne Bean just wanted to get ahead. To achieve his career goal of managing a cattle station, to have his own land, and the time to pursue his passion for horses. And, spoiler alert, he has, by all definitions, gotten ahead. After two decades of managing stations for...
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Willie Cook (Part 2) - Filming "Outback Ringer", and facing an uncertain future head on
This is Part 2 of our chat with Willie Cook. If you haven’t listened to Part 1, go back and listen to it first – trust me – you don’t want to listen to these episodes back to front – and yes, I know some of you do that… In this episode, Willie shares what it was really like being filmed for the…
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Willie Cook (Part 1) - Catching Wild Bulls & Water Buffalo 101
Willie Cook is known for being the bull-catching, helicopter-flying Kiwi from the ABC tv series “Outback Ringer”. He first came on the podcast in 2022, when he shared the incredible story of how the 2008 Global Financial Crisis saw his family lose absolutely everything they had, resulting in…
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Toni Tapp Coutts - Bill Tapp, The Cattle King
Bill Tapp wanted to be the next Cattle King of Australia, and for a time he was. In this episode, Toni Tapp Coutts shares the story of a man who was a pioneer, a visionary, a dreamer. A man who turned Killarney Station from a bare block to one of several thriving cattle properties. But, as his...
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Caroline Ashby - Training for Ironman Triathlons in the Outback
Caroline Ashby is one of Australia’s toughest athletes. She’s completed 10 Ironman triatholan events, qualifying for the World Championships 4 times, and been ranked in the top 1% of Ironman athletes across the world several times. Caroline has accomplished all of this while raising a family on a...
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Toni Tapp Coutts - Shaped by the Territory
Born and raised in the Northern Territory, Toni Tapp Coutts has had a varied career, from working on cattle stations, to owning a variety store in Borroloola, a dress boutique in Katherine, being a Town Councillor, CEO, Author, and most recently becoming a Real Estate agent. Not to mention, she...
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Connie Wood - When it's not "just a bump on the head"
When Connie Wood came off her horse and knocked her head, she initially thought not much of it. She hadn’t been doing anything particularly wild or dangerous in the moments leading up to the fall, it was just like any other day on her quiet, dependable horse. What Connie would go on to experience...
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Hamish & Jodie McTaggart - The catastrophic Christmas flood of 2010 [Repost]
[Reposted episode, recorded in 2021] In December 2010, Jodie and Hamish McTaggart were looking forward to the chance to sit back and relax for a few days. The family property, Bidgemia Station, was in the worst drought on record, and the newlyweds had been working flat out all year to look after...
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Garry Riggs (Part 2) - Snakes, Lions, and a UFO in the Kimberley
In our last episode, Garry Riggs shared yarns from his early days growing up on cattle stations in the 60’s and 70’s. This episode is the second part of that conversation, and let’s just say I was not expecting to hear about lions, or UFO’s… but, as we heard in part 1 – Garry’s childhood was...
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Garry Riggs (Part 1) - The adventures (and misadventures) of a bush kid
Station kids aren’t regular kids. What I mean, is that they are, more often than not, fiercely independent and impressively resourceful. And that is a recipe for adventure. Garry Riggs is no exception here. He spent his childhood on remote properties across Northern Australia, with the sort of...
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Ned McCord - First aid for a lightning strike
When Ned McCord was a little boy, all he wanted to do was be among the stockmen working cattle. And for the most part, that was his reality, until his father experienced a serious and debilitating illness which saw the family separated, and Ned sent to a town school. He eventually made his way to...
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Tony Williams - Life, love and loss on the Oodnadatta Track [Repost]
Tony Williams left home at the age of 16 to work on Nilpinna Station for his childhood idol Jimmy Nunn. That was almost 50 years ago. Today, Tony is in his 40th year as the manager of Mt Barry Station, near the town of Coober Pedy in SA. In this episode, he shares yarns from the past 5 decades…
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
True stories from the Australian Outback, told by the people who live them.Meet the men and women who live and work on some of Australia’s most remote cattle stations.There are tales of mustering, stock camps, working dogs, rogue cattle and hard bloody yakka, but also the fun of a bush wedding or kicking back at a rodeo.There’s the simple wonder of living in an amazing landscape, but also the downside: the ravages of flood, fire and drought.And always there’s the inherent danger of isolation – times when the Flying Doctor came to the rescue, but also times when lives have been tragically cut short.These compelling true-life stories show what outback life is really like – and why many wouldn’t live anywhere else.
HOSTED BY
Central Station
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia have?
Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia currently has 230 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia about?
True stories from the Australian Outback, told by the people who live them.Meet the men and women who live and work on some of Australia’s most remote cattle stations.There are tales of mustering, stock camps, working dogs, rogue cattle and hard bloody yakka, but also the fun of a bush wedding or...
How often does Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia release new episodes?
Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia publishes regularly with 230 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia?
You can listen to Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia?
Central Station - True Stories from Outback Australia is created and hosted by Central Station.
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