In 1916 John Cullen led a small army of police deep into the misty forests of Te Urewera to arrest the Tuhoe prophet Rua Kenana - his crime? Preaching that his followers shouldn't sign up to fight in the First World War. But the raid is a complete disaster. Cullen oversees the shooting of two men in cold blood and the whole case against Rua unravels due to a huge legal blunder. Historian Mark Derby explains how the son of an Irish turnip farmer rose to the very top of the New Zealand police - and how he didn't pay too much attention to whose neck he stepped on along the way.

Bad cop: the story of John Cullen

2023 NZ PODCAST AWARDS - PODCAST OF THE YEAR (GOLD) The shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters of New Zealand history, presented by William Ray.

History

Society & Culture

The last of the so-called ‘lunatic asylums’ closed only 20 years ago. They were founded on ideas of paternalism and social progress and survived on the basis they offered safety. In this special crossover with the Nellie's Baby Podcast, William Ray and Kirsty Johnston look into their origins.

Nellie's Baby: the story of New Zealand's Mental Institutions

From the 1840s onward, Frederick Maning would become an increasingly bitter and angry man who demonised Māori who opposed colonisation. So what explains this radical transition from a romantic early Pākehā settler? RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates.

Double Life: the story of Judge Frederick Maning - Part 2

Frederick Maning was one of the first Europeans to settle in Aotearoa, he married a high-ranking Ngāpuhi woman, and wrote two books filled with romantic anecdotes of his time living alongside Māori. So why did so many of his private letters express such violent, racist attitudes towards Māori? RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investigates.

Double Life: the story of Judge Frederick Maning - Part 1

In the 1910s, Hjelmar Dannevill wowed high society with gripping tales of adventure as a medical researcher and journalist. But suspicions over her fantastical stories and insistence on wearing men's clothing saw her locked up as a German spy during WWI. RNZ's Black Sheep podcast investgates the mystery of "Dr" Dannevill.

Gender Bender: the story of Hjelmar Dannevill

In 1935, a series of extraordinary newspaper articles claimed a backyard inventor called Victor Penny was trying to build a Death Ray for the New Zealand government. But were these claims true? RNZ’s Black Sheep podcast investigates the mystery.

Bad cop: the story of John Cullen

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