FSN - Freo Life

Fremantle Shipping News

Fremantle Shipping News at https://fremantleshippingnews.com.au is an online magazine all about the historic port town, Fremantle in Western Australia. Fremantle is known for its vibrant community and as an incubator of ideas, activism and talent of all sorts - in literature, arts, music, politics, the environment - you name it.

  1. 5 DAYS AGO

    The Catalpa Escape Podcast Series – Episode 11

    Regular listeners of Episodes 1-10 will know that the escape moment has nearly arrived. In this episode, Episode 11, we arrive at the pointy end of the great escape story. In Episode 10 we heard that the alarm seemed to have been raised on the escape. The mounted soldiers were on the beach at Rockingham shadowing the escaping whaleboat fully laden with a boatload of 16 men, including the 6 escaping Military Fenians. What will happen next? After all this time, will the story have a Hollywood ending, or a tragic Colonial one? Fingers crossed. We wish them all the luck of the Irish! You can read the original article for this episode on FSN here, where you will find a helpful photograph (courtesy of Fremantle and fellow Catalpa historian, Mike Lefroy) of a typical late 19th century whaleboat now to be found in the Maritime Museum, Fremantle. And in case you missed the earlier episodes, here they are – Episode 1:  here’s Episode 1 Episode 2:  here’s Episode 2 Episode 3: here’s Episode 3 Episode 4: here’s Episode 4 Episode 5: here’s Episode 5 Episode 6: here’s Episode 6 Episode 7: here’s Episode 7 Episode 8: here’s Episode 8 Episode 9: here’s Episode 9 Episode 10: here's Episode 10 Support the show

    49 min

  2. 6 MAR

    View From the Round House With Martin Drum – Iran, Iran, Iran

    Welcome back to our politics podcast, View From The Round House With Martin Drum. Today, our Editor, Michael Barker asks the Prof about one thing and one thing only, well, three things one supposes: IRAN, IRAN, IRAN. Martin Drum is the Executive Dean for the Faculty of Arts, Sciences, Law and Business and Professor of Politics and International Relations at the University of Notre Dame Australia, a frequenter of Fremantle, and a well known political pundit. You can read the original article on FSN here.  And in case you missed our earlier podcasts, you’ll find them all here! ~ If you’d like to COMMENT on this or any of our stories, don’t hesitate to email our Editor. Support the show

    26 min

  3. 26 FEB

    Interview with Lara Bianca Pilcher – Audacious Artist

    Lara Bianca Pilcher is an international performing artist, author, speaker, and ICF PCC-certified creativity coach with over 25 years of experience across musical theatre, choreography, education, and leadership. She has worked internationally in Australia, London, and the United States, and holds a Master’s in Musical Theatre Creative Practice (ArtsEd London), a Bachelor in Creative Arts (Dance), and a Graduate Diploma in Education (Dance and Drama). Her debut book, Audacious Artistry: Reclaim Your Creative Identity and Thrive in a Saturated World – just released in the Northern Hemisphere and soon to be released in Australia – introduces the Creative Brief for the Audacious Artist — a powerful identity-based framework for staying grounded, courageous, and self-directed through the realities of creative life: obscurity, doubt, rejection, comparison, and the fear of being overlooked. With deep experience as both artist and coach, Lara speaks and teaches globally, equipping artists to build emotionally, artistically, and practically sustainable careers. She is also the creator of The Healthy Wealthy Wise Artist Podcast and lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and two children. The Editor of Fremantle Shipping News, Michael Barker, was very pleased to catch up with Lara Bianca Pilcher before her planned Australian speaking tour (including in Perth, her home state) to make the podcast (that you’ll find at the very foot of this post) where we discuss how to be an Audacious Artist!  It’s a great listen. Lara is a brilliant communicator! You can read the original story on FSN here. Support the show

    28 min

  4. 16 FEB

    View from the Round House with Martin Drum – Ley Loses, Taylor Triumphs, All Eyes Turn To Farrer!

    Welcome to our regular politics podcast, View From The Round House With Martin Drum. This episode is titled LEY LOSES, TAYLOR TRIUMPHS, ALL EYES TURN TO FARRER! In this episode, our Editor, Michael Barker, asks the Prof about only one thing, the battle for the Australian Liberals leadership and how and why former Opposition Leader Sussan Ley lost and new Opposition Leader Angus Taylor triumphed, and what comes next. Turns out the by-election in Farrer comes next following Sussan Ley’s resignation from Parliament. Fascinating days ahead. The Prof explains all! Martin Drum is the Executive Dean for the Faculty of Arts, Sciences, Law and Business and Professor of Politics and International Relations at the University of Notre Dame Australia, a frequenter of Fremantle, and a well known political pundit. You can view the original article on FSN here. Support the show

    27 min

  5. 12 FEB

    The Catalpa Escape Podcast Series – Episode 10

    In this Episde, Episode 10, at long last we begin to get to the business end of the rescue and escape. Captain Anthony in Bunbury and Breslin/Mr Collins in Fremantle are in regular touch by telegram over the Easter weekend. The 6 Fenians are on alert in The Establishment preparing themselves for the word to abscond. Breslin and Desmond/Johnson are arranging horses and traps to convey two escape parties from Fremantle to near Rockingham to meet up with Captain Anthony and his crew and make their way out of Western Australia. King and Brennan are helping out. It’s gripping stuff. You can read the original article for Episode 10 on FSN here. And in case you missed the earlier episodes, here they are – Episode 1:  here’s Episode 1 Episode 2:  here’s Episode 2 Episode 3: here’s Episode 3 Episode 4: here’s Episode 4 Episode 5: here’s Episode 5 Episode 6: here’s Episode 6 Episode 7: here’s Episode 7 Episode 8: here’s Episode 8 Episode 9: here’s Episode 9 Support the show

    43 min

  6. 9 FEB

    Interview with Moshe Rosenzveig OAM - Head of Head On Photo Festival

    The Head On Photo Festival began in Sydney in 2004, and, for the first time, in 2026, it’s on show, in Perth Western Australia, right now! You don’t need to be a declared lover of photography to attend the Festival, but if you are, you will love it. And if you aren’t, you soon will be! The Festival is Australia’s premier photography event, showcasing the work of international and local photographers of all genres and career stages. Moshe Rosenzveig is the founder, artistic director and curator of Head On. His own career spans over 40 years as a photojournalist, commercial photographer, educator and an award-winning television producer/director at SBS Television. His work has been screened, published and exhibited in Australia and overseas. Our Editor, Michael Barker, was very pleased to catch up with Moshe Rosenzveig this week to make this podcast in which Moshe discusses how Head On came to be, the state of photography in the 2020s and, of course, the Head On Photo Festival Perth 2026, what you will find on show, and how best to enjoy it all. Here’s the original post on Fremantle Shipping News. And here’s the podcast. Enjoy! Support the show

    41 min

  7. 14 JAN

    The Catalpa Escape Podcast Series – Episode 9

    Here’s Episode 9 of this very popular podcast celebrating to escape of political Fenians from Colonial Western Australia on 17 April 1876 - coming up 150 years.  In this episode, the Catalpa arrives in Bunbury. It’s 27 March 1876. Breslin/Collins and Captain Anthony meet there. So much pretence. And lo and behold, Brennan, whom captain Anthony had refused to take on board in New Bedford, suddenly appears on the Georgette. Is that like throwing a spanner in the works? So many operatives now wanting to share the glory! Will too many cooks spoil the broth? Breslin and Anthony journey on the Georgette to Fremantle where they find HMS Conflict, a gun boat, in port. So much happening. Won’t the authorities smell a rat? So many cliches. Such a story! Suddenly, it’s 15 April 1876. You can read the original article for Episode 9 here. Don’t miss Episodes 1-8 in this wonderful podcast series: Episode 1: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 2: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 3: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 4: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 5: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 6: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 7: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Episode 8: on FSN and Apple Podcasts. Support the show

    48 min

  8. 02/12/2025

    The Catalpa Escape Podcast Series – Episode 8

    Welcome to Episode 8 of the Catalpa Escape Podcast Series. In Episode 1, our narrator, Margo O’Byrne, sets the scene for the famous 1876 Catalpa Escape of the ‘Military’ Fenians from just south of Fremantle, Western Australia. Episode 2 deals with the raising the money through the auspices of Clan na Gael – the Irish Association in America – and how John Devoy became the key plotter of the escape.  In Episode 3, we find ourselves in New Bedford in key meetings of key men. Devoy, Goff, Reynolds, Hathaway, Richardson – and George Smith Anthony. And Anthony’s wife Emma. A suitable ship needs to be found and purchased for the Fremantle mission. A Captain to sail her and control the mission needs to be found. Enter Anthony. The Catalpa is spotted. Reynolds takes out mortgage on his house to purchase the Catalpa. In Episode 4, Margo O’Byrne explains how the Clan-Na-Gael rescue committee needed to find a way to realise the funds to pay for the rescue attempt. Richardson and Hathaway move the Catalpa to New Bedford and prepare it for the voyage. Captain Anthony selects a crew. And it’s time, to think about who will be on the ground in Fremantle to coordinate the final moments of the escape of the Fenians. And you get to meet Duggan, Brennan, Breslin and Desmond. In Episode 5, Margot relates just how the Catalpa voyage progressed on its way to the Azores, then Tenerife, and onward. Who knew just where they were actually heading? Did Captain Anthony have to take Brennan aboard along the way? And just what luck did Captain Anthony have when he crossed a British ship on the Indian Ocean south of Port Elizabeth? In Episode 6, Margot asks what the Fenians in Fremantle were up to while the Catalpa crew were on the high seas catching whales and then encountering the Ocean Beauty and meeting with Captain Cousins in the Indian Ocean and receiving maps of the coastline of Western Australia, and the two US operatives, Breslin and Desmond, were aboard the speedy mail steamer, Cyphranes bound for Sydney. Were the Freo Fenians aware of any of these events? How many of them were still incarcerated? Were they kept locked up inside the Establishment?  In this episode, Episode 8, Breslin/Mr Collins and Desmond/Johnson are still in and around Fremantle and Perth. The Catalpa is awaited. In anticipation of her arrival, Breslin helps Foley depart the jurisdiction. He also visits the ‘interior’. And discovers the place from which he decides the Military Fenians should escape the shores of Western Australia forever. His love life is also becoming more complicated.  And on top of that who should enter the scene but McCarthy/Dixon and Walsh/Hopkins. Who are they and what are they doing in Fremantle? To complicate matters further, the money is running low. And where is the Catalpa? So many questions demanding so many answers! You can read the original article for Episode 8 here. Support the show

    42 min
See All (75)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

Fremantle Shipping News at https://fremantleshippingnews.com.au is an online magazine all about the historic port town, Fremantle in Western Australia. Fremantle is known for its vibrant community and as an incubator of ideas, activism and talent of all sorts - in literature, arts, music, politics, the environment - you name it.

Information

  • Creator
    Fremantle Shipping News
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    75
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Fremantle Shipping News
  • Show Website
    FSN - Freo Life