Welcome to Somebody's Daughter

A Magdalene Baby's Birth and Early Life

Adoption and Family Dynamics

The Search Begins

Finding her Mother

The Emotional Reunion

Discovering her Father

Building a New Family Legacy

Closing Remarks and Next Episode Preview

Origins Australia Support Information

In this episode we welcome adoptee, Colleen Barnard who was born in the same Magdalene Home in Brisbane where last week’s guest, Lily Arthur, was incarcerated for the crime of being pregnant and unwed.

Colleen describes her adoption journey as a Magdalene baby, the challenges of finding her own identity in a manufactured family and how the search to find her mother took her halfway around the world – only to find that her mum was living in her own backyard in rural Queensland.

---

LINKS

Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram

Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok

Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram

Follow @moyramajor on Instagram

Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com

Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia

Email us somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com

Email Megan megan@newscoop.com.au

Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok

CREDITS

Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Guest: Colleen Barnard

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

In this episode we welcome adoptee, Colleen Barnard who was born in the same Magdalene Home in Brisbane where last week&rsquo;s guest, Lily Arthur, was incarcerated for the crime of being pregnant and unwed. Colleen describes her adoption journey as a Magdalene baby, the challenges of finding her own identity in a manufactured family and how the search to find her mother took her halfway around the world &ndash; only to find that her mum was living in her own backyard in rural Queensland.
---
LINKS
Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram
Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok
Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram
Follow @moyramajor on Instagram
Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com
Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia
Email us <a href="mailto:somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com">somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com</a>
Email Megan <a href="mailto:megan@newscoop.com.au">megan@newscoop.com.au</a>
Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok
CREDITS
Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Guest: Colleen Barnard
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 4: Colleen Barnard.

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/c56a3dd3-1dd9-4931-9517-b44e000a126f/transcript

Origins Australia: A Thirty-Year Journey

The Perfect Crime: Forced Adoption

Intergenerational Impact of Adoption

The National Apology: A Bittersweet Moment

Continued Struggles and Government Funding

The Threat of Expanded Adoption in Queensland

Closing Remarks and Contact Information

In this episode we welcome back Lily Arthur, CEO of Origins Australia, long term political activist and best-selling author whose book, Prisoner of the State, gives a voice to 150,000 Australian unmarried mothers whose babies were systematically stolen from them under the Commonwealth Government’s past forced adoption practices.

Today, Lily shines a light on the unlawful use of dangerous psychotropic and carcinogenic drugs on young vulnerable unmarried mothers -many of them only girls - and the long term impact these drugs have had on the lives of the survivors who were overdosed on them, without their knowledge or consent. She tells us why she is has taken her fight for justice to the Commission for Human Rights, as a mass violation of the fundamental human rights of an entire generation of mothers and children in what is now recognised as an intergenerational crime.

---

LINKS

Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram

Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok

Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram

Follow @moyramajor on Instagram

Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com

Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia

Email us somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com

Email Megan megan@newscoop.com.au

Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok

CREDITS

Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Guest: Lily Arthur

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

In this episode we welcome back Lily Arthur, CEO of Origins Australia, long term political activist and best-selling author whose book, Prisoner of the State, gives a voice to 150,000 Australian unmarried mothers whose babies were systematically stolen from them under the Commonwealth Government&rsquo;s past forced adoption practices. Today, Lily shines a light on the unlawful use of dangerous psychotropic and carcinogenic drugs on young vulnerable unmarried mothers -many of them only girls - and the long term impact these drugs have had on the lives of the survivors who were overdosed on them, without their knowledge or consent. She tells us why she is has taken her fight for justice to the Commission for Human Rights, as a mass violation of the fundamental human rights of an entire generation of mothers and children in what is now recognised as an intergenerational crime.
---
LINKS
Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram
Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok
Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram
Follow @moyramajor on Instagram
Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com
Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia
Email us <a href="mailto:somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com">somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com</a>
Email Megan <a href="mailto:megan@newscoop.com.au">megan@newscoop.com.au</a>
Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok
CREDITS
Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Guest: Lily Arthur
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 3: Lily Arthur.

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/7fd3f7f5-60c9-422e-bc89-b44700d0e29d/transcript

Setting the Stage for Adoption's Dark Truth

The Trauma of Adoption: Moses's Expert Opinion

The Flawed Logic of Adoption Reform

The Global Adoption Industry

The Future of Human Reproduction

Closing Thoughts and Contact Information

On this episode we continue our conversation with Moses Farrow, the adopted son of US actress Mia Farrow and Director Woody Allen, as he exposes the truth behind the multi-billion dollar adoption industry - a euphemism for a criminal global child supply market in which babies are commodities to be sold, trafficked and abused in one of the biggest human rights crimes of our generation.

At a time when Origins’ CEO Lily Arthur is demanding justice for 150,000 Australian mothers whose babies were cruelly stolen from them under past forced adoption practices, Moses speaks exclusively to Moyra and Megan about his advocacy work for the traumatised survivors of adoption and explains why this intergenerational crime should be outlawed world-wide.

---

LINKS

Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram

Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok

Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram

Follow @moyramajor on Instagram

Follow @mosesafarrow on Instagram

Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com

Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia

Email us somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com

Email Megan megan@newscoop.com.au

Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok

CREDITS

Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Guest: Moses Farrow

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

On this episode we continue our conversation with Moses Farrow, the adopted son of US actress Mia Farrow and Director Woody Allen, as he exposes the truth behind the multi-billion dollar adoption industry - a euphemism for a criminal global child supply market in which babies are commodities to be sold, trafficked and abused in one of the biggest human rights crimes of our generation. At a time when Origins&rsquo; CEO Lily Arthur is demanding justice for 150,000 Australian mothers whose babies were cruelly stolen from them under past forced adoption practices, Moses speaks exclusively to Moyra and Megan about his advocacy work for the traumatised survivors of adoption and explains why this intergenerational crime should be outlawed world-wide.
---
LINKS
Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram
Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok
Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram
Follow @moyramajor on Instagram
Follow @mosesafarrow on Instagram
Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com
Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia
Email us <a href="mailto:somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com">somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com</a>
Email Megan <a href="mailto:megan@newscoop.com.au">megan@newscoop.com.au</a>
Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok
CREDITS
Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Guest: Moses Farrow
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 2: Moses Farrow. Part 2.

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/a53763de-cab0-49df-9809-b440001b45c6/transcript

A Global Adoption Story

The Trauma of Moses Farrow's Adoption

The Dark Side of Hollywood's Adopted Son

The Global Adoption Industry's Grim Reality

Moses' Adoption Journey from South Korea

Growing Up in a Dysfunctional Family

Origins Australia Support

The Cumulative Effect of Abuse

The Role of Nannies and Caregivers

The Commodification of Adoption

Human Trafficking Disguised as Adoption

Closing Thoughts and Next Episode Preview

In 1980, two-year-old Moses Farrow was among the 200,000 babies and children taken from South Korean orphanages and children’s homes and sent overseas - sold to new families who promised to give them the sort of lives they could never have in their own country.

Moses, who had been born with Cerebral Palsy, was flown to the United States where he was welcomed into the large, blended family of Hollywood royalty, Mia Farrow, who had three older children from her previous marriage to world renowned composer Andre Previn, and a mum to three other adopted children.

Tragically, while the new addition to her family made headlines everywhere, behind the closed doors of the US actress’s luxury New York apartment, little Moses’s life was far from the Hollywood fairytale portrayed in the media.

Today, Moses – now a family therapist specialising in children suffering from adoption trauma – tells Moyra and Megan about the anguish of growing up in a highly dysfunctional abusive family to expose the truth behind a  $236 billion industry in which children are no more than disposable commodities in a global child trafficking industry which needs to be recognised for what it is - one of the biggest human rights crimes of our generation.

---

LINKS

Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram

Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok

Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram

Follow @moyramajor on Instagram

Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com

Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia

Email us somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com

Email Megan megan@newscoop.com.au

Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok

CREDITS

Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Guest: Moses Farrow

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

In 1980, two-year-old Moses Farrow was among the 200,000 babies and children taken from South Korean orphanages and children&rsquo;s homes and sent overseas - sold to new families who promised to give them the sort of lives they could never have in their own country. Moses, who had been born with Cerebral Palsy, was flown to the United States where he was welcomed into the large, blended family of Hollywood royalty, Mia Farrow, who had three older children from her previous marriage to world renowned composer Andre Previn, and a mum to three other adopted children. Tragically, while the new addition to her family made headlines everywhere, behind the closed doors of the US actress&rsquo;s luxury New York apartment, little Moses&rsquo;s life was far from the Hollywood fairytale portrayed in the media. Today, Moses &ndash; now a family therapist specialising in children suffering from adoption trauma &ndash; tells Moyra and Megan about the anguish of growing up in a highly dysfunctional abusive family to expose the truth behind a &nbsp;$236 billion industry in which children are no more than disposable commodities in a global child trafficking industry which needs to be recognised for what it is - one of the biggest human rights crimes of our generation.
---
LINKS
Follow @somebodysdaughter_podcast on Instagram
Follow @somebodysdaughterpodcast on TikTok
Follow @megannorris_author on Instagram
Follow @moyramajor on Instagram
Visit Origins Australia originsnsw.com
Visit Origins Australia facebook.com/groups/originsaustralia
Email us <a href="mailto:somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com">somedbodysdaughterpodcast@gmail.com</a>
Email Megan <a href="mailto:megan@newscoop.com.au">megan@newscoop.com.au</a>
Follow @woodworkpodcasts on Instagram and TikTok
CREDITS
Hosts: Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Guest: Moses Farrow
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 1: Moses Farrow. Part 1.

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/25ab0e7d-176b-482e-b8cc-b43900b9970a/transcript

Somebody’s Daughter – Someone Else’s Child

This season, the fight for justice is far from over.

We hear more heartbreaking stories from the survivors of forced adoption, about loss, lies and cover ups.

We go global, speaking with some of thebrave individuals leading the crusade for justice and truth.

Join us, and help give a voice to the hundreds of thousands of parents and adoptees whose lives were shattered by the illegal adoption practices of the past.

The brand new season. Somebody’s Daughter. Season 2.

Begins April 28, everywhere you get your podcasts.

#truecrime #stolengeneration #podcast #crimepodcast #somebodysdaughter

Somebody&rsquo;s Daughter &ndash; Someone Else&rsquo;s Child This season, the fight for justice is far from over. We hear more heartbreaking stories from the survivors of forced adoption, about loss, lies and cover ups. We go global, speaking with some of the brave individuals leading the crusade for justice and truth. Join us, and help give a voice to the hundreds of thousands of parents and adoptees whose lives were shattered by the illegal adoption practices of the past. The brand new season. Somebody&rsquo;s Daughter. Season 2. Begins April 28, everywhere you get your podcasts.
#truecrime #stolengeneration #podcast #crimepodcast #somebodysdaughter

Somebody’s Daughter: Someone Else’s Child. The brand new season, begins April 28. 

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/743d8c49-4f4c-42d5-9663-b43200b5271a/transcript

The Apology and Its Aftermath

The Impact of Forced Adoption

Government Inaction and Unmet Needs

The Forgotten Victims

The Ongoing Fight for Justice

In the final episode of the season, Megan and Moyra are joined by the Honorable Naheem Mushin, former Family Court Justice of 21 years, who was appointed by the Attorney General to head the committee investigating the practice of forced adoption and the claims being made by so many women, children and extended families.

He travelled the country multiple times over 2 years to hear submissions in person, and to then write the apology that was ultimately delivered by the then prime minister Julia Gillard in 2013.

He does not hold back revealing his findings and expressing his criticism of a dark chapter in Australian history.

---

The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1

Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Supported by Origins Australia

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

In the final episode of the season, Megan and Moyra are joined by the Honorable Naheem Mushin, former Family Court Justice of 21 years, who was appointed by the Attorney General to head the committee investigating the practice of forced adoption and the claims being made by so many women, children and extended families.
He travelled the country multiple times over 2 years to hear submissions in person, and to then write the apology that was ultimately delivered by the then prime minister Julia Gillard in 2013.
He does not hold back revealing his findings and expressing his criticism of a dark chapter in Australian history.
---
The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1
Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Supported by Origins Australia
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 7: Hon Justice Mushin

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/4cfb81b0-49a2-4116-bb96-b32500200657/transcript

Rosalie's Childhood in an Adoptive Family

The Baby Shopping Experience at the Hospital

Rosalie's Brother's Tragic Adoption Story

Rosalie's Own Pregnancy and Adoption

Somebody's Daughter Podcast Sponsorship

Life After Giving Up a Child

The Struggle with Shame and Mental Health

The Impact of Adoption Laws and Veto System

Reuniting with Her Son

The Trauma of Forced Adoption

Dealing with Shame and Isolation

A Message to Young Women

Origins Australia Support Services

Rosalie Wilson shares her own unique experience, firstly living in a home where her mother adopted other children. She recalls how her mother had given birth to two girls (herself & her sister), but instead wanted boys - so she simply decided to adopt one she liked from the public hospital in Melbourne.

Rosalie then goes on to describe the twist of fate that led to her being forced to adopt out her own child as an unwed, teenage mother.

---

The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1

Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Supported by Origins Australia

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Rosalie Wilson shares her own unique experience, firstly&nbsp;living in a home where her mother adopted other children. She recalls how her&nbsp;mother had given birth to two girls (herself &amp; her sister), but instead wanted boys - so she simply decided to adopt one she liked from the public hospital in Melbourne.
Rosalie then goes on to describe the twist of fate that led to her being&nbsp;forced to adopt out her own child as an unwed, teenage mother.
---
The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1
Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Supported by Origins Australia
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 6: Rosalie Wilson

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/f21badff-2f28-45d8-b65c-b315017978ae/transcript

Introducing Sophia's Story

The Mystery of Sophia's Birth Mother

Growing Up Adopted

A Terrifying Childhood

Escaping and Finding Purpose

The Holy Cross Connection

Healing and Self-Discovery

Closing Thoughts and Song Performance

Megan & Moyra are joined by Sophia Fletcher, who was forcibly adopted during this period.

Born in Brisbane in 1962, she was removed from her birth mother - who she has never found despite 40 years of searching. She speculates that her mother may have been an illegitimate child herself, making it incredibly difficult to connect the lines of her family history.

Sophia shares her subsequent experience with adoptive parents, and how the sequence of events has affected her relationship with her own child.

---

The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1

Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Supported by Origins Australia

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Megan &amp; Moyra are joined by Sophia Fletcher, who was forcibly adopted during this period.
Born in Brisbane in 1962, she was removed from her birth mother - who she has never found despite 40 years of searching. She speculates that her mother may have been an illegitimate child herself, making it incredibly difficult to connect the lines of her family history.
Sophia shares her subsequent experience with adoptive parents, and how the sequence of events has affected her relationship with her own child.
---
The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1
Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Supported by Origins Australia
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 5: Sophia Fletcher

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/3d6c1e79-951b-4960-a5a1-b31a0008436f/transcript

A Teenage Pregnancy Discovered

The Breakdown of Relationships

A Desperate Attempt to Escape

Life in Exile

The Birth and Separation

Isolation and Aftermath

Struggling to Cope

Returning Home After Trauma

Struggles in the Workplace

Breaking Point and Seeking Help

The Search for Her Daughter

Reunion and Aftermath

Health Challenges and Personal Growth

Contact Information for Origins Australia

In 1969, Queensland teenager Dianne Wells was in love and dreaming of a happy new life with her first boyfriend where she’d have children and a home of her own.

Tragically, those dreams came crashing down when the sixteen-year-old discovered she was pregnant out of wedlock.

Abandoned by her partner, and shamed by both families, Dianne was sent to live with strangers in another town where she found herself at the mercy of a system which sanctioned the theft of more than 150,000 newborn babies – all callously and systematically taken from young, vulnerable unmarried mothers under the Government’s forced adoption practices of the era.

Today, Dianne revisits that dark chapter in her life and tells us about the anguish of losing her much-wanted baby daughter and the lifelong destruction their forced separation caused to her.

---

The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1

Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Supported by Origins Australia

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

In 1969, Queensland teenager Dianne Wells was in love and dreaming of a happy new life with her first boyfriend where she&rsquo;d have children and a home of her own.
Tragically, those dreams came crashing down when the sixteen-year-old discovered she was pregnant out of wedlock.
Abandoned by her partner, and shamed by both families, Dianne was sent to live with strangers in another town where she found herself at the mercy of a system which sanctioned the theft of more than 150,000 newborn babies &ndash; all callously and systematically taken from young, vulnerable unmarried mothers under the Government&rsquo;s forced adoption practices of the era.
Today, Dianne revisits that dark chapter in her life and tells us about the anguish of losing her much-wanted baby daughter and the lifelong destruction their forced separation caused to her.
---
The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1
Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Supported by Origins Australia
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 4: Dianne Wells

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/8abaf630-e992-428c-97f9-b31a000838a5/transcript

A Teenage Pregnancy in 1960s Sydney

The Stigma of Illegitimacy

A Secret Birth and Cesarean Delivery

The Aftermath of Adoption

Finding Strength and Support

Reuniting with Her Daughter

The Shocking Truth Revealed

Moving On from Betrayal

The Shocking Reveal

A Violent Confrontation

The Aftermath and Loss

Finding Strength in Resilience

The Power of Sharing Your Story

Closing Thoughts and Support Information

Origins Australia Contact Information

My newborn daughter was stolen from me – and returned to steal my life.

In 1973, new mum Linda Davis, woke from a caesarean to discover that her newborn daughter was missing – one of 150,000 Australian babies stolen from young unmarried mothers under the Government’s illegal forced adoption practices of the era.

Today, more than fifty years later, Linda, 70, shares her horror story on a new true crime podcast aimed at shedding new light on the crimes Australia tried to hide.

“I went into hospital expecting to come home with my baby, only to find she had been earmarked for adoption and the only person who did not know about this, was me,” Linda reveals on the Somebody’s Daughter Podcast, which delves into the mass destruction caused by historic forced adoption practices on the lives of thousands of grieving mothers, their stolen children and their wider families.

In the podcast, hosted by Gold Coast radio personality Moyra Major and multi-award-winning true crime author Megan Norris, Linda reveals for the first time the trauma of being shamed, shunned and punished because she was pregnant out of wedlock.

Linda was seventeen in 1973 when she discovered she was four months pregnant from a single sexual encounter with her first boyfriend.

Immediately abandoned by her baby’s father, she was forced to spend her pregnancy confined to her bedroom to avoid the shame illegitimacy would bring on her family.

“I was made to stay there, even on Christmas Day, and only allowed out to attend medical appointments,’” she tells the podcast.

“My mother would bring the car into the garage and sneak me out to the doctor’s so nobody would see me.”

The shaming continued at the GP’s surgery where she was forced to sit away from the married mothers and ignored.

When Linda finally gave birth at Paddington Hospital in Sydney, her newborn daughter was immediately hidden in the hospital nursery where the teenager’s please to see her child fell on deaf ears.

‘I remember a social worker raising the subject of adoption, and when I refused, she told me I’d be the worst mother in the world,” she says.

Dosed on a powerful cocktail of psychotropic drugs, sedatives and drugs to suppress her breast milk, Linda was too drugged to remember signing her much-wanted baby for adoption.

“I returned home without my baby and the subject was never mentioned again – it was as if it hadn’t happened,” she says.

This unspoken grief plunged Linda onto a roller coaster of depression, anxiety and therapy as she struggled to come to terms with a loss too taboo to talk about.

It would be another two decades before a now married Linda was finally reunited with her long-lost daughter -though it did not bring the happy ending she’d dreamed of.

“She told me I was no more than an incubator and only wanted to meet me to find out her medical history,” Linda says, by now forty and expecting her second child.

Hoping to strengthen the bond with her adopted daughter, the family moved to Queensland where Linda later discovered her first born had embarked on an illicit affair with her husband that was about to bring her life crashing down.

“She took my husband, my family home – everything,” says Linda who immediately packed her bags and left, reliving her loss all over again.

To hear this tragic story of heartache, loss and the ultimate betrayal, tune into Somebody’s Daughter, a series created by Origins Australia (Supporting People Separated By Adoption).

“Forced Adoption remains one of the biggest human rights issues in Australian contemporary history, yet despite the 2012 National Apology from then Prime Minister Julia Gillard there has only been limited redress and nobody has ever been held accountable for what they did to us,” says Origins CEO Lily Arthur, whose newborn son was stolen from her in 1967.

“That’s why this podcast series is so unique – it gives a voice to casualties like myself and Linda, who were shamed into silence for years, in effect protecting the perpetrators of these crimes.”

Arthur, who also lives on the Gold Coast, has taken the fight for justice which is currently before the Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.

---

The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1

Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major

Supported by Origins Australia

Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio

Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

My newborn daughter was stolen from me &ndash; and returned to steal my life.
In 1973, new mum Linda Davis, woke from a caesarean to discover that her newborn daughter was missing &ndash; one of 150,000 Australian babies stolen from young unmarried mothers under the Government&rsquo;s illegal forced adoption practices of the era.
Today, more than fifty years later, Linda, 70, shares her horror story on a new true crime podcast aimed at shedding new light on the crimes Australia tried to hide.
&ldquo;I went into hospital expecting to come home with my baby, only to find she had been earmarked for adoption and the only person who did not know about this, was me,&rdquo; Linda reveals on the Somebody&rsquo;s Daughter Podcast, which delves into the mass destruction caused by historic forced adoption practices on the lives of thousands of grieving mothers, their stolen children and their wider families.
In the podcast, hosted by Gold Coast radio personality Moyra Major and multi-award-winning true crime author Megan Norris, Linda reveals for the first time the trauma of being shamed, shunned and punished because she was pregnant out of wedlock.
Linda was seventeen in 1973 when she discovered she was four months pregnant from a single sexual encounter with her first boyfriend.
Immediately abandoned by her baby&rsquo;s father, she was forced to spend her pregnancy confined to her bedroom to avoid the shame illegitimacy would bring on her family.
&ldquo;I was made to stay there, even on Christmas Day, and only allowed out to attend medical appointments,&rsquo;&rdquo; she tells the podcast.
&ldquo;My mother would bring the car into the garage and sneak me out to the doctor&rsquo;s so nobody would see me.&rdquo;
The shaming continued at the GP&rsquo;s surgery where she was forced to sit away from the married mothers and ignored.
When Linda finally gave birth at Paddington Hospital in Sydney, her newborn daughter was immediately hidden in the hospital nursery where the teenager&rsquo;s please to see her child fell on deaf ears.
&lsquo;I remember a social worker raising the subject of adoption, and when I refused, she told me I&rsquo;d be the worst mother in the world,&rdquo; she says.
Dosed on a powerful cocktail of psychotropic drugs, sedatives and drugs to suppress her breast milk, Linda was too drugged to remember signing her much-wanted baby for adoption.
&ldquo;I returned home without my baby and the subject was never mentioned again &ndash; it was as if it hadn&rsquo;t happened,&rdquo; she says.
This unspoken grief plunged Linda onto a roller coaster of depression, anxiety and therapy as she struggled to come to terms with a loss too taboo to talk about.
It would be another two decades before a now married Linda was finally reunited with her long-lost daughter -though it did not bring the happy ending she&rsquo;d dreamed of.
&ldquo;She told me I was no more than an incubator and only wanted to meet me to find out her medical history,&rdquo; Linda says, by now forty and expecting her second child.
Hoping to strengthen the bond with her adopted daughter, the family moved to Queensland where Linda later discovered her first born had embarked on an illicit affair with her husband that was about to bring her life crashing down.
&ldquo;She took my husband, my family home &ndash; everything,&rdquo; says Linda who immediately packed her bags and left, reliving her loss all over again.
To hear this tragic story of heartache, loss and the ultimate betrayal, tune into Somebody&rsquo;s Daughter, a series created by Origins Australia (Supporting People Separated By Adoption).
&ldquo;Forced Adoption remains one of the biggest human rights issues in Australian contemporary history, yet despite the 2012 National Apology from then Prime Minister Julia Gillard there has only been limited redress and nobody has ever been held accountable for what they did to us,&rdquo; says Origins CEO Lily Arthur, whose newborn son was stolen from her in 1967.
&ldquo;That&rsquo;s why this podcast series is so unique &ndash; it gives a voice to casualties like myself and Linda, who were shamed into silence for years, in effect protecting the perpetrators of these crimes.&rdquo;
Arthur, who also lives on the Gold Coast, has taken the fight for justice which is currently before the Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva.
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The Somebody's Daughter Podcast: Season 1
Hosted by Megan Norris and Moyra Major
Supported by Origins Australia
Mobile Podcast Recording and Digital Content Production: Ben Wood at Wood Work Digital Studio
Enquiries: ben@woodworkdigitalstudio.com.au

Episode 3: Linda Davis

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/fa326977-3de5-4283-9b8b-af3500c58607/clips/a2f5e487-be63-4865-9f5b-b31300128c76/transcript

150,000 stolen babies - The truth behind the crimes Australia tried to hide

150,000 stolen babies - The truth behind the crimes Australia tried to hide

Somebody’s Daughter

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