The Lab Detective
The Slow Newscast
Alice Sandelson
4.6 • 894 Ratings
🗓️ 22 July 2025
⏱️ 44 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Kathleen Folbigg was known as ‘Australia's worst female serial killer’ - she’d lost all four of her infant children and was convicted for killing them.
Until, after spending decades in jail, a scientist working in a lab uncovered the truth behind the deaths.
The Lab detective is the story of a shocking miscarriage of justice, and an investigation into why Kathleen’s story might not be the last. To listen to more episodes of The Lab Detective, go to Tortoise Investigates.
Our thanks to The Francis Crick Institute for sharing recordings and insights.
Reporter: Rachel Sylvester
Producer: Gary Marshall
Music supervisor: Karla Patella
Sound design: Rowan Bishop
Podcast artwork: Lola Williams
Executive producer: Basia Cummings
Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content head to our website observer.co.uk
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If you want to get in touch with us directly about a story, or tell us more about the stories you want to hear about contact hello@tortoisemedia.com
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Fancy a fever tree and vodka. |
| 0:03.8 | Yes, vodka, not gin. |
| 0:06.7 | Because this is fever tree Mexican lime soda. |
| 0:10.0 | Yes, soda, not tonic. |
| 0:13.0 | With Mexican lime and Japanese yuzu for a zesty, refreshing lime soda that's just sweet enough. |
| 0:19.6 | Delicious with vodka or on its own. Fever tree, Mexican lime soda that's just sweet enough. Delicious with vodka or on its own. |
| 0:23.1 | Fever tree Mexican lime soda mix with the best. |
| 0:27.7 | Mmm, now that hits the spot. |
| 0:34.4 | The Observer. Hello, it's Rachel Sylvester here. |
| 0:43.0 | I'm the political editor of The Observer. |
| 0:45.9 | Before you listen to this week's slow newscast, I'd like to tell you just a little bit about it. |
| 0:51.9 | For the last few months, I've been investigating the cases of mothers who've been |
| 0:56.7 | wrongfully imprisoned for murdering their own infant children, and how genomic science has uncovered |
| 1:03.3 | the truth about what really happened. It's called the lab detective, and it's our latest |
| 1:09.0 | series for Tortoise Investigates. |
| 1:11.7 | You're about to hear episode one of four. |
| 1:14.8 | If you'd like to listen to the rest of the series, |
| 1:17.6 | just search for Tortoise Investigates wherever you're listening. |
| 1:21.6 | The link is in the episode description and episode two is already available. |
| 1:28.5 | Do you remember the moment the police knocked on the door? |
| 1:31.8 | I'd been, you know, pottering out of the house just cleaning. |
| 1:35.1 | And the detective knocked on the door and as soon as I saw her, my face just just dropped. |
... |
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