Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial

The New Zealand Herald
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Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial

From the team behind The Front Page, the New Zealand Herald's daily news podcast, comes Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial.  Paulina Hanna was found dead at the Remuera home she shared with her husband of 30 years, Philip Polkinghorne, on Easter Monday 2021.  For 16 months, her death was treated as “unexplained”. That’s until it emerged Polkinghorne had been charged with murder. He pleaded not guilty in August 2022.   Over the coming weeks, The Front Page host Chelsea Daniels will be reporting regularly from the Auckland High Court as Polkinghorne stands trial.  Follow Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. 

  1. Accused: What to expect from the Polkinghorne trial

    EPISODE 1

    Accused: What to expect from the Polkinghorne trial

    On Easter Monday 2021, Paulina Hanna was found dead at the Remuera home she shared with her husband of 30 years, Philip Polkinghorne. For 16 months, her death was treated as “unexplained”. That’s until it emerged Polkinghorne had been charged with murder. He pleaded not guilty in August 2022. From the team behind The Front Page, the New Zealand Herald's daily news podcast, comes Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial. Listen to Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts, or in The Front Page podcast feed. You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network. Host: Chelsea DanielsSound Engineer: Paddy FoxProducer: Ethan Sills See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    10 min
  2. Day 1: Opening statements set stage for trial as jury hears 111 call

    EPISODE 2

    Day 1: Opening statements set stage for trial as jury hears 111 call

    Warning: This podcast contains disturbing content.  The Crown has alleged extramarital affairs, dealings with sex workers, and a drug habit.  The defence claims a suicide, casual drug use, and an open and loving relationship.  All the cards were laid on the table on the first day of Philip Polkinghorne's trial.  He’s accused of murdering his wife, Pauline Hanna – whose body was found in the couple’s Remuera home in April 2021.  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.   This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox.       See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    13 min
  3. Day 2: First responders paint picture of the morning of Pauline Hanna's death

    EPISODE 3

    Day 2: First responders paint picture of the morning of Pauline Hanna's death

    Warning: This podcast contains disturbing content.The second day of the trial focused on those who first attended the scene where Pauline Hanna's body was found.Was Philip Polkinghorne reasonably calm on the morning of his wife’s death or just composed and trying to help?Was the injury on his forehead a scratch, graze, scrape, or cut?How was Pauline Hanna’s body found - and what injuries did she have?And why, by late morning, before a statement was even given, did Police deem the scene suspicious?You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    13 min
  4. Day 3: Inside the scene examination and what Police saw

    EPISODE 4

    Day 3: Inside the scene examination and what Police saw

    Day three of the trial of Philip Polkinghorne centred around a bright orange rope hanging from a balustrade, and a detailed walk-through of the scene examination of the couple’s Remuera home.   The former Auckland eye surgeon maintains his wife took her own life on the morning of April 5, 2021 - an Easter Monday.   But, the Crown claims he staged the scene to look like suicide.  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    13 min
  5. Days 4 and 5: Ropes, laundry and photos focus of end of trial's first week

    EPISODE 5

    Days 4 and 5: Ropes, laundry and photos focus of end of trial's first week

    The first week of the trial of Philip Polkinghorne has come to an end.  While we’re in the early stages of evidence, the topics that will be covered in the case have been made clear.   Infidelity, threesomes, sex workers, a meth habit, financial concerns, depression, stress, and a Covid vaccine rollout: All this will be traversed over the next six weeks to answer the ultimate question of murder or suicide?  Day 4 focused on the rope found at the scene and analysis of it from a Canadian expert, before the state of the guest room and laundry in the couple's home was explored. Day 5 had a focus on some of the last photos seen of Hanna from the day before her death.  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    14 min
  6. Day 6: What forensic evidence was and wasn't found at the scene

    EPISODE 6

    Day 6: What forensic evidence was and wasn't found at the scene

    As the trial begins its second week, Day 6 began with a cross-examination of ESR forensic scientist, Fiona Matheson, and later the court heard from ESR forensic scientist Nicholas Curno, to discuss DNA evidence.  Last week, the jury heard how police and forensic scientists spent 11 days at the scene.   We already know the Crown isn’t relying too much on forensics done at the scene – but, it’s important for ESR to walk the jury through what they didn’t find, just as much as what they may have.  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    14 min
  7. Days 7 and 8: Court hears Polkinghorne's police interview after first glimpses at infidelity

    EPISODE 7

    Days 7 and 8: Court hears Polkinghorne's police interview after first glimpses at infidelity

    The court has gotten its first glimpse of evidence from those closest to Philip Polkinghorne and Paulina Hanna – and some insight into his infidelity. And we have heard directly from Polkinghorne, with the court hearing his interview with Police for the first time.   The former Auckland eye surgeon is accused of murdering his DHB boss wife in April 2021 - but he says, she took her own life.   Day 7 heard from a friend of the couple who owned the bach next to them, before the court heard from a power expert to analyse Polkinghorne's version of events from the morning Hanna died. On Day 8, more people who had come into contact with the couple, including a personal trainer due to see Hanna the morning she died. Police also detailed a raid on a chalet where Polkinghorne was staying with a sex worker in the weeks after his wife's death, before his Police interview was played.  For the transcripts from Polkinghorne's interview, go here:https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/crime/philip-polkinghorne-murder-trial-jurors-hear-defendant-in-his-own-words-as-police-interview-played/U7YXHIMVBRBO3NDL2BJRGO5NZI/  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    39 min
  8. Day 9: Pauline labels her husband a 'sex fiend' as more revealed about her mental health

    EPISODE 8

    Day 9: Pauline labels her husband a 'sex fiend' as more revealed about her mental health

    Pauline Hanna’s voice echoed throughout the courtroom on Day 9 of the trial of her husband, Philip Polkinghorne, who is accused of murdering her.   It came in the form of a covert recording of a family dinner – providing Hanna a chance to explain their relationship in her own words to the jury, who’ll decide whether she died of foul play, or, whether she took her own life.   That was before a bombshell was dropped by the defence, as they revealed new information about the state of her mental health in the decades before her death.  You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. Additional reporting by Craig Kapitan and George Block.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    19 min
See All Season 1 (21)

About

From the team behind The Front Page, the New Zealand Herald's daily news podcast, comes Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial.  Paulina Hanna was found dead at the Remuera home she shared with her husband of 30 years, Philip Polkinghorne, on Easter Monday 2021.  For 16 months, her death was treated as “unexplained”. That’s until it emerged Polkinghorne had been charged with murder. He pleaded not guilty in August 2022.   Over the coming weeks, The Front Page host Chelsea Daniels will be reporting regularly from the Auckland High Court as Polkinghorne stands trial.  Follow Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. 

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