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History's Heroes

Eileen Kampakuta Brown and the Anti‑Nuclear Campaign

History's Heroes

BBC

History, Documentary, Society & Culture

4.8824 Ratings

🗓️ 3 February 2026

⏱️ 29 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

When a nuclear programme threatens Eileen Kampakuta Brown's traditional land in Australia, she brings together a group of Aboriginal women to resist. Their campaign across the country in a two-door wagon will take them all the way to the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

Stories of bold voices, with brave ideas and the courage to stand alone. Historian Alex von Tunzelmann shines a light on remarkable people from across history.

A BBC Studios production.

Producer: Michael LaPointe Written and presented by Alex von Tunzelmann Executive Producer: Paul Smith Commissioning editor for Radio 4: Rhian Roberts

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.

0:07.6

Resolutions, ideas of being different.

0:10.3

Can we create long-lasting change?

0:12.2

Doctors Chris and Zand Van Tullochin are on a mission to help us take better care of ourselves.

0:17.1

You tried, it didn't work, what could you put in place?

0:20.2

And chartered psychologist Kimberly Wilson is on hand to help make sense of mental health.

0:25.2

We are constantly being told what's wrong with us, but there's so much that's right with us.

0:30.7

Reset and recharge with What's Up Docks and Complex with Kimberly Wilson. Listen on BBC Sounds.

0:38.1

The 15th of October, 1953, South Australia.

0:43.5

Early in the morning, there was a sound like distant thunder.

0:47.1

Two loud bangs that really moved and rumbled through the earth.

0:57.9

Five hours later, a black mist rolled in.

1:01.6

And it was moving silently between the sand dunes and between the trees and the bushes.

1:04.9

The Yonkin Yura people had lived on these lands

1:07.3

for at least 30,000 years.

1:10.6

In all that time, they'd never seen something like this.

1:14.2

This black smoke that was heavy and oily and came with such toxic smell.

1:23.3

The British were testing nuclear bombs in this remote corner of Australia.

1:30.0

They detonated an atomic device called Totem 1,

1:33.6

but they hadn't expected it to produce this effect.

1:37.4

The mushroom cloud unfurled thousands of metres upwards.

1:42.1

Then it rolled over the land, all the way to the Aboriginal camp.

...

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