Sleepers: The Adelaide Oval Abductions #9

In 1973, seven-year-old Donna was at the Adelaide Oval the day Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon disappeared.

She played with two little girls outside the toilets. Then they were gone.

Police interviewed Donna soon after, took her statement, and promised to follow up on the matter. They never did.

For fifty years, her memories sat alone until now.

In this episode, Donna shares what she saw that day, what she later learned about her own father, and how her life became entangled with the family of the man long suspected of taking those girls — Stanley Arthur Hart.

Her testimony reveals a chilling web of names, methods, and silences stretching across generations:

• A father who used hypnosis like Hart once did.
• A grandson who repeated the same violence.
• Families whose lives kept circling the same dark secret.

It’s not coincidence. It’s connection.

And as this web tightens, the pattern of South Australia’s hidden crimes begins to take its true shape.

Hosted by Bryan Littlely. Narration by Max Marten.

Music by Cody Martin.

Produced by Bearslayer Media / Leave A Light On Inc.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episode 8 of Sleepers takes listeners back to Yatina, the remote mid-north town in South Australia, where truth and terror share the same ground.

In conversations with journalist Bryan Littlely, the survivor of the 1966 assault that ultimately led to the only prison time that Stanley Arthur Hart ever served, they recall growing up in Stan Hart's orbit, a man they would both quickly realise was the monster hiding in plain sight.

From their first memories of the terror to the police investigations and successive governments that failed them, their stories reveal the human cost of silence and the strength it takes to speak after so long.

Max Marten’s narration traces how a 2013 call to police set off the SAPOL Major Crime dig, how other survivors’ voices converged, and how two adjoining properties in Yatina have become a symbol of everything South Australia still refuses to confront.

As the final minutes unfold, one quiet statement from Amanda stops everything cold:

‘That wasn’t my shoe.’

A phrase that reopens the questions the state never answered, and propels Sleepers toward its most unsettling chapter yet.

⚠️ Content warning: This episode discusses child sexual abuse and trauma. Listener discretion is advised.

• Lifeline Australia – Crisis Support & Suicide Prevention: 13 11 14 (24/7)
• Kids Helpline – For young people aged 5–25: 1800 55 1800 (24/7)

Beyond Blue – free, confidential telephone counselling 24/7: 1300 22 4636

• MensLine Australia – Counselling for men: 1300 78 99 78
• 1800RESPECT – National Sexual Assault, Domestic & Family Violence Counselling Service: 1800 737 732 (24/7)

United States

• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): 1-800-656-4673 (24/7)
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Dial 988 (24/7)

United Kingdom

• NSPCC (for children & young people): 0808 800 5000
• Samaritans UK: 116 123 (24/7)
• NAPAC (National Association for People Abused in Childhood): 0808 801 0331

Canada

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868 (24/7)
• Talk Suicide Canada: 1-833-456-4566 (24/7)

New Zealand

• Safe to Talk (Sexual harm helpline): 0800 044 334 or text 4334 (24/7)
• Lifeline New Zealand: 0800 543 354

Europe (general)

• 116 123 – European standard suicide helpline (works in many EU countries)
• 116 111 – Child Helpline Europe

Global

• Child Helpline International: childhelplineinternational.org/child-helplines
• International Suicide Hotlines Directory: findahelpline.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of SLEEPERS, the silence is broken by voices that can no longer be ignored.

Three Warrior Women, survivors, witnesses, and sisters, step forward to reveal what they saw, what they lived through, and what was covered up.

Their accounts point deeper into the shadows of Stanley Arthur Hart and expose the cracks in systems that failed to protect the innocent.

What they share is confronting, unsettling, and impossible to dismiss.

And it is only the beginning. The revelations in this series are gathering momentum.

What lies ahead will challenge everything you thought you knew about the Adelaide Oval abductions.

SLEEPERS is not just unearthing the past. It is forcing the truth into the light.

⚠️ Content warning: This episode discusses child sexual abuse and trauma. Listener discretion is advised.

• Lifeline Australia – Crisis Support & Suicide Prevention: 13 11 14 (24/7)
• Kids Helpline – For young people aged 5–25: 1800 55 1800 (24/7)
• Blue Knot Foundation – Counselling for adult survivors of childhood trauma: 1300 657 380
• MensLine Australia – Counselling for men: 1300 78 99 78
• 1800RESPECT – National Sexual Assault, Domestic & Family Violence Counselling Service: 1800 737 732 (24/7)

United States

• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): 1-800-656-4673 (24/7)
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Dial 988 (24/7)

United Kingdom

• NSPCC (for children & young people): 0808 800 5000
• Samaritans UK: 116 123 (24/7)
• NAPAC (National Association for People Abused in Childhood): 0808 801 0331

Canada

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868 (24/7)
• Talk Suicide Canada: 1-833-456-4566 (24/7)

New Zealand

• Safe to Talk (Sexual harm helpline): 0800 044 334 or text 4334 (24/7)
• Lifeline New Zealand: 0800 543 354

Europe (general)

• 116 123 – European standard suicide helpline (works in many EU countries)
• 116 111 – Child Helpline Europe

Global

• Child Helpline International: childhelplineinternational.org/child-helplines
• International Suicide Hotlines Directory: findahelpline.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Sleepers, survivor Paul Cornelius speaks publicly for the first time about his abuse at the hands of disgraced magistrate Peter Liddy. His story shines a light on the hidden networks of power that thrived in South Australia through the 1970s and ’80s, linking surf clubs, politics, and the dark underbelly of Adelaide’s so-called establishment.

Cornelius’s testimony doesn’t just revisit Liddy’s crimes; it connects to Stan Hart’s network, our prime suspect in the abduction and murder of Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon. Paul's experience draws new lines to convicted offender Tony Munro. His account also reopens the trail to Steve Williams, Gypsy Jokers president, who vanished after revealing too much.

Snakes in the Grass is a story of survival and exposure, a reminder that the dangers were never just on the streets, but in the institutions meant to protect us.

⚠️ Content warning: This episode discusses child sexual abuse and trauma. Listener discretion is advised.

• Lifeline Australia – Crisis Support & Suicide Prevention: 13 11 14 (24/7)
• Kids Helpline – For young people aged 5–25: 1800 55 1800 (24/7)
• Blue Knot Foundation – Counselling for adult survivors of childhood trauma: 1300 657 380
• MensLine Australia – Counselling for men: 1300 78 99 78
• 1800RESPECT – National Sexual Assault, Domestic & Family Violence Counselling Service: 1800 737 732 (24/7)

United States

• RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network): 1-800-656-4673 (24/7)
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: Dial 988 (24/7)

United Kingdom

• NSPCC (for children & young people): 0808 800 5000
• Samaritans UK: 116 123 (24/7)
• NAPAC (National Association for People Abused in Childhood): 0808 801 0331

Canada

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868 or text CONNECT to 686868 (24/7)
• Talk Suicide Canada: 1-833-456-4566 (24/7)

New Zealand

• Safe to Talk (Sexual harm helpline): 0800 044 334 or text 4334 (24/7)
• Lifeline New Zealand: 0800 543 354

Europe (general)

• 116 123 – European standard suicide helpline (works in many EU countries)
• 116 111 – Child Helpline Europe

Global

• Child Helpline International: childhelplineinternational.org/child-helplines
• International Suicide Hotlines Directory: findahelpline.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In our first-ever Sleepers forum episode, the public steps forward, and the ripple effect is undeniable.

From firsthand memories of the Adelaide parklands to lost police reports, overlooked sightings, and new connections to persons of interest, this is the episode where long-held silence begins to crack.

You’ll hear directly from listeners, ordinary people with extraordinary insight, who may hold the missing pieces that were never pursued, never filed, and never followed up on.

As new witness names surface and old suspicions are re-examined, the question becomes unavoidable:

Were we told the whole story in 1973? Or were key voices left out?

The Sleepers are waking.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For over 50 years, Alex Bone’s name was absent from the record, omitted from the inquest, ignored in official files, and unknown even to Joanne Ratcliffe’s own sister. But Alex was there. He went to the football with the Ratcliffes. He searched for Jo and Kirste that afternoon. And, in this episode, he finally tells his story.

This is not just a recollection, it’s a revelation that challenges everything we thought we knew about the Adelaide Oval abduction. From a timeline that no longer holds to police being denied access to key areas of the Oval, unknown Bones uncovers details long buried, and asks the questions no one else has.

Because when the official story doesn’t match the lived truth… It’s time to listen to the voices left behind.

Abbreviations & Explanations

ACB = The Australian Cricket Board - the governing body of all cricket matters in Australia.

COPPERS = Australian slang for Police

FAT CAT = Fat Cat was a popular children's television program for South Australian Children.

FAT CAT CAME ON = Adelaide Local Television Channel 10 would put to air a 2-minute broadcast every weeknight at 7:30 pm of FAT CAT - 'going to bed'. - parental help at 'bedtime'

ST. JOHN'S = The St. John Ambulance Service, precursor to the SA Ambulance Service, volunteer uniformed community qualified first aiders who patrol and provide first aid and patron assistance at South Australian sporting and community events to the present day.

SACA = South Australian Cricket Association - co-owner and administrator of the Adelaide Oval to the present day

SANFL = South Australian National Football League - co-owner of Adelaide Oval to the present day

SAPOL = South Australia Police Force

REDLEGS = Norwood Football Club - One of the teams playing that day

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this powerful episode of SLEEPERS, we bring you the harrowing story of Alfredo Paglia, known to all as FRED. A survivor who has spent more than a decade trying to make his voice heard.

Fred's experience is not just personal; it’s deeply connected to the broader investigation into the Adelaide Oval abduction of Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon. He names names, maps connections, and details an alleged network of abuse that, until now, has remained mainly in the shadows.

With raw honesty and unwavering courage, Fred recounts the times he stepped forward to the police, to the powers that be, and the responses he received. He speaks not with bitterness, but with determination. And in doing so, he becomes a voice for many still waiting for justice.

Alongside our growing team of researchers, Bryan Littlely and Max Marten explore the significance of Fred’s revelations and the patterns of inaction that have haunted this case for decades.

This is not just another interview. It’s a call to remember. A call to act. A call to never again let these stories fall through the cracks.

Because at SLEEPERS, the past doesn’t sleep.

And neither do we.

Abbreviations - SAPOL = South Australian Police Force

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We had planned for this episode to focus on what is known about our prime suspect, Stan Hart. But two days after Sleepers Episode 1 dropped, everything changed. Out of nowhere came an extraordinary interview with Anthony Kilmartin, the then 13-year-old boy who stood just metres away from the man who abducted Joanne Ratcliffe and Kirste Gordon from Adelaide Oval in 1973.

Anthony isn’t just a witness. He’s the witness. The only person to see the abductor’s face up close and give the description that built the first identikit image in the case. For decades, his voice was largely absent from public view, until now.

In this raw, unfiltered conversation recorded just days ago, Anthony shares the details still burned into his memory half a century later, the sounds, the faces, and the moment that changed everything.

This is why sleepers is different. We’re not just telling you a story; we’re in the middle of a journalistic investigation, speaking directly to the people who lived it, and putting you in the room with us where, just maybe, the truth may emerge.

Click HERE for Episode Acknowledgements.

And remember…

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.