Explore every episode of the podcast What I survived

Former Australian soldier Rob Langdon went to Afghanistan as a private security contractor. He would eventually be convicted of murder, sentenced to death and spend seven years inside one of Afghanistan's most notorious prisons.

But before the prison, the death sentence and the fight to stay alive, Rob had spent much of his adult life as a soldier.

In Part 1 of his story, Rob takes Jack back through his early life and the road that led him into the Australian Army. He talks about his years in the military, the experiences that shaped him and eventually his decision to leave and enter the rapidly growing world of private security contracting.

His work would first take him to Iraq before eventually leading him into Afghanistan, where he worked protecting convoys and operating in an extraordinarily dangerous environment.

In 2009, everything would change.

A confrontation with an Afghan colleague would end with Rob shooting and killing the man. Rob says he acted in self-defence. The Afghan courts would ultimately convict him of murder and sentence him to death.

This is Part 1 of Rob Langdon's story on What I Survived.

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After surviving malaria, starvation and near death in the Amazon, Benedict Allen was left with a question he couldn't shake: why had he survived? His search for an answer would take him deep into Papua New Guinea and into a brutal initiation ceremony designed to transform young men into “crocodile men.”

In Part 3 of Lost in the Amazon, Benedict explains why simply returning home wasn't enough. Surviving had changed him, and he felt compelled to understand what it meant to be tested, transformed and pushed to the limits of human endurance.

That search took him to live among tribal people in Papua New Guinea, where he underwent the dangerous initiation ceremony traditionally undertaken by young men as part of their passage into manhood.

Benedict also takes Jack through more extraordinary moments from a lifetime spent exploring some of the world's most hostile environments — including an Arctic expedition where he lost his dog team and once again found himself facing the possibility that he might not survive.

From the Amazon rainforest to Papua New Guinea and the Arctic, Benedict's story becomes about something much bigger than one expedition: why did surviving once leave him with the need to keep putting himself back on the edge?

This is Part 3 of Benedict Allen's story on What I Survived.

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Lost and alone in the Amazon, British explorer Benedict Allen contracted two forms of malaria, including a potentially deadly strain. Starving, feverish and running out of options, the 22-year-old faced a decision that would stay with him for decades.

In Part 2 of Lost in the Amazon, Benedict takes us deeper into his fight for survival as his physical condition deteriorates and the reality of his situation begins to set in.

With little food and his body being ravaged by malaria, Benedict was forced to confront an unimaginable choice: to survive, he would eat the dog that had become his companion during the journey.

Benedict tells Jack about that decision, what it took to make it, and the desperate condition he was in as he continued trying to find his way out of the Amazon alive.

What began as an ambitious expedition had become a battle against starvation, disease and isolation — with no guarantee that anyone even knew where to find him.

This is Part 2 of Benedict Allen's story on What I Survived.

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At just 22 years old, British explorer Benedict Allen set out to travel 600 miles through the remote northeast Amazon. It was supposed to be an expedition. Instead, it became a fight for survival.

Gold miners hunted him. His canoe capsized, swallowing his supplies. Malaria burned through his body — two types of it, including one that could kill him in 24 hours. Starving, feverish and alone, Benedict made a choice that would haunt him for decades.

He eventually walked out of the jungle. But something inside him forced him to confront his near-death experience and a question he needed to answer: why had he lived?

So he went back. Not to the Amazon, not yet, but to Papua New Guinea. There, he immersed himself in a culture that still held ancient rituals of manhood and underwent a secret ceremony alongside young tribal initiates — to be cut, scarred and beaten, and to try to understand what it meant to survive, to be tested and to be transformed.

This is the story of a young man running towards the very thing that nearly killed him. Of unfinished business in the jungle. Of the price of seeking answers that only survival can provide.

And of a man who has nearly died nine times.

This is Part 1 of Benedict Allen's story on What I Survived.

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Season 3 is almost here!

This season, we have an incredible line-up of guests, from an FBI agent who went undercover inside one of New Jersey’s most notorious Mafia crime families, a British explorer who found himself hopelessly lost in one of the most inhospitable places on Earth, the Amazon, and a lady who was kidnapped by pirates and told she would die unless her ransom was paid. Plus many more incredibel stories.

Our guests have all survived experiences unlike anything most of us will ever have to face. They’ve been pushed to their limits, endured the unimaginable and somehow made it through to the other side.

But surviving is only part of the story.

How do you come back from experiences like these? How do you rebuild, move forward and even thrive after everything you’ve been through?

What does it really take to survive?

What I Survived — Season 3 launches August 26th.

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I don't think a week goes by when someone doesn't mention to me the name Evaristo Salas Jnr.

Evaristo's story has touched so many people, it's had us in tears of sadness and of joy and today is most certainly the latter as I sit down with Jnr after almost 8 months of freedom to hear how he's going and what's next for the man who lost 27 years of his life because of a lie.

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After 27 years incarcerated for a murder he always maintained he was innocent of, finally the courts agree! Evaristo Salas Jnr is a free man!

Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995.

He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison. The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing.

His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

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After 27 years incarcerated for a murder he always maintained he was innocent of, finally the courts agree! Evaristo Salas Jnr is a free man!

Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995.

He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison. The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing.

His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

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After almost 30 years of incarceration Evaristo Salas Jnr is going home.

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Recently I caught up with Jnr Salas after a massive decision was recently made in the court of appeals and it seems some in this case will be forced to answer some seriously tough questions.

Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995.

He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison. The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing.

His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

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Recently I caught up with Jnr after I got word that he had a recent hearing that was the most positive yet!

Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995.

He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison. The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing.

His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot. Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him. 

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot. Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him. 

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot. Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him. 

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Evaristo Salas was accused of firing two shots into Jose Arreola’s head in Sunnyside in November 1995. He was tried as an adult and convicted by a jury of first-degree murder three days after his 16th birthday and was sentenced to nearly 33 years in prison.

The gun used in the murder was never recovered and there was no physical evidence linking Jnr to the killing. His conviction was based on the testimony of a police informant, Bill Bruhn, and Arreola’s girlfriend, Ofelia Cortez (formerly Gonzalez), who was there when her partner was shot.

Many TV shows have uncovered horrific truths about the so called 'evidence' in this case, yet Jnr still remains incarcerated.

This is his story, as told by him. 

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Holly Deane-Johns grew up in a comfortable suburb of Perth, Western Australia. But beneath the surface of a privileged childhood lay a darkness that would shape the entire course of her life. When her mother became addicted to heroin, the drug found its way into their home — and into Holly's life — before she was old enough to fully understand what it would cost her.

By her mid-twenties, Holly found herself in Bangkok facing a sentence that would take her breath away. Caught attempting to traffic heroin out of Thailand, she was sentenced to thirty one years in Lard Yao Women's Prison — one of the most notorious and brutal correctional facilities in the world. A place so far removed from anything she had ever known that she struggled to find the words to describe it.

This is the story of how a girl from Perth ended up behind bars in a foreign country, what surviving seven years inside a Thai prison actually looks like, and how Holly Deane-Johns found a way not just to endure — but to come back.

What I Survived is available on all major podcast platforms.

get Hollys book here

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Holly Deane-Johns grew up in a comfortable suburb of Perth, Western Australia. But beneath the surface of a privileged childhood lay a darkness that would shape the entire course of her life. When her mother became addicted to heroin, the drug found its way into their home — and into Holly's life — before she was old enough to fully understand what it would cost her.

By her mid-twenties, Holly found herself in Bangkok facing a sentence that would take her breath away. Caught attempting to traffic heroin out of Thailand, she was sentenced to thirty one years in Lard Yao Women's Prison — one of the most notorious and brutal correctional facilities in the world. A place so far removed from anything she had ever known that she struggled to find the words to describe it.

This is the story of how a girl from Perth ended up behind bars in a foreign country, what surviving seven years inside a Thai prison actually looks like, and how Holly Deane-Johns found a way not just to endure — but to come back.

What I Survived is available on all major podcast platforms.

get Hollys book here

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On the evening of November 26, 2008, British freelance filmmaker Will Pike and his girlfriend checked into the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai for a one-night stopover on their way to Goa. It was meant to be a treat. A single night in one of the world's most famous hotels.

By midnight, terrorists were moving through the corridors executing guests.

Will and his girlfriend barricaded themselves in their room as the siege unfolded around them. They could hear the gunfire, they heard people being executed in the hallway outside their door.

When smoke began filling the room they had no choice but to act. They broke the window, knotted together bedsheets and curtains, and tried to climb down the outside of the building, Will fell fifty feet.

He broke his back, his pelvis, both wrists and his elbow. He was confined to a wheelchair.

167 people died that night at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.

Will Pike survived and then came the part nobody tells you about, rebuilding a life, a body and a sense of self when the world that existed before November 26, 2008 is simply gone.

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On the evening of November 26, 2008, British freelance filmmaker Will Pike and his girlfriend checked into the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai for a one-night stopover on their way to Goa. It was meant to be a treat. A single night in one of the world's most famous hotels.

By midnight, terrorists were moving through the corridors executing guests.

Will and his girlfriend barricaded themselves in their room as the siege unfolded around them. They could hear the gunfire, they heard people being executed in the hallway outside their door.

When smoke began filling the room they had no choice but to act. They broke the window, knotted together bedsheets and curtains, and tried to climb down the outside of the building, Will fell fifty feet.

He broke his back, his pelvis, both wrists and his elbow. He was confined to a wheelchair.

167 people died that night at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.

Will Pike survived and then came the part nobody tells you about, rebuilding a life, a body and a sense of self when the world that existed before November 26, 2008 is simply gone.

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On the evening of November 26, 2008, British freelance filmmaker Will Pike and his girlfriend checked into the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai for a one-night stopover on their way to Goa. It was meant to be a treat. A single night in one of the world's most famous hotels.

By midnight, terrorists were moving through the corridors executing guests.

Will and his girlfriend barricaded themselves in their room as the siege unfolded around them. They could hear the gunfire, they heard people being executed in the hallway outside their door.

When smoke began filling the room they had no choice but to act. They broke the window, knotted together bedsheets and curtains, and tried to climb down the outside of the building, Will fell fifty feet.

He broke his back, his pelvis, both wrists and his elbow. He was confined to a wheelchair.

167 people died that night at the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel.

Will Pike survived and then came the part nobody tells you about, rebuilding a life, a body and a sense of self when the world that existed before November 26, 2008 is simply gone.

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Jim Latrache grew up poor in Denmark, joined the French Foreign Legion as a young man, and spent years as a high-end cocaine dealer to Copenhagen's wealthy elite before a prison sentence gave him five and a half years to reconsider his life choices.

What came next nobody could have predicted.

When Danish filmmaker Mads Brügger needed someone to pose as a shady arms dealer willing to negotiate illegal weapons and drug deals with North Korean regime officials, he needed someone who could be utterly convincing in the role. Someone with the background, the nerve, and the complete absence of fear that the job required.

He called Jim.

Under the alias Mr James, Jim travelled to Uganda, Spain, Norway and deep into North Korea itself, meeting with regime officials, sitting across tables from people willing to discuss Scud missiles and methamphetamine factories, all while wearing hidden cameras and knowing that if his cover was blown, people have been killed for considerably less.

The result was The Mole, one of the most extraordinary undercover documentaries ever made. But behind the footage is the story of the man who lived it — what it actually felt like to walk into the world's most dangerous dictatorship wearing a wire, and what it takes to come back out the other side.

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Jim Latrache grew up poor in Denmark, joined the French Foreign Legion as a young man, and spent years as a high-end cocaine dealer to Copenhagen's wealthy elite before a prison sentence gave him five and a half years to reconsider his life choices.

What came next nobody could have predicted.

When Danish filmmaker Mads Brügger needed someone to pose as a shady arms dealer willing to negotiate illegal weapons and drug deals with North Korean regime officials, he needed someone who could be utterly convincing in the role. Someone with the background, the nerve, and the complete absence of fear that the job required, he called Jim.

Under the alias Mr James, Jim travelled to Uganda, Spain, Norway and deep into North Korea itself, meeting with regime officials, sitting across tables from people willing to discuss Scud missiles and methamphetamine factories, all while wearing hidden cameras and knowing that if his cover was blown, people have been killed for considerably less.

The result was The Mole, one of the most extraordinary undercover documentaries ever made. But behind the footage is the story of the man who lived it what it actually felt like to walk into the world's most dangerous dictatorship wearing a wire, and what it takes to come out alive.

Jims books can be found here

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On the 19th of August 2007, British Army reservist and SAS trooper Jamie Hull was days away from completing his private pilot's licence when his aircraft engine caught fire during a solo training flight over Florida.

He had 45 seconds to decide how to survive.

With the cockpit engulfed in flames and the plane descending rapidly, Jamie did something that should have been impossible. He climbed out of the burning cockpit, stood on the wing of a plummeting aircraft, and jumped.

The plane exploded sixty feet behind him.

What followed was six months in intensive care, six months in a coma, third degree burns to 60% of his body, over 60 operations, and a 5% chance of survival. And then the longer, quieter battle, rebuilding a life, a body and an identity from the wreckage.

This is not just a story about surviving a plane crash. It is a story about what happens in the years that follow when the world moves on and the hardest fight is still ahead.

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On the 19th of August 2007, British Army reservist and SAS trooper Jamie Hull was days away from completing his private pilot's licence when his aircraft engine caught fire during a solo training flight over Florida, he had 45 seconds to decide how to save his life.

With the cockpit engulfed in flames and the plane descending rapidly, Jamie did something that should have been impossible. He climbed out of the burning cockpit, stood on the wing of a plummeting aircraft, and jumped.

The plane exploded sixty feet behind him.

What followed was six months in intensive care, six months in a coma, third degree burns to 60% of his body, over 60 operations, and a 5% chance of survival. And then the longer, quieter battle rebuilding a life, a body and an identity from the wreckage.

This is not just a story about surviving a plane crash. It is a story about what happens in the years that follow when the world moves on and the hardest fight is still ahead.

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In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

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In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

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In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

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

In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

Image Credit: Nigel Brennan

Nigels book is avaliable here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

In August 2008, Australian photojournalist Nigel Brennan travelled to Somalia on assignment. It would be the last decision he made as a free man for nearly a year and a half.

Within days of arriving, Nigel and Canadian journalist Amanda Lindhout were ambushed on the outskirts of Mogadishu and taken captive by members of a militant group. What followed was 462 days of unimaginable physical and psychological torment, starvation, isolation, beatings, and a desperate will to survive in conditions that would break most people within weeks.

But this is not just a story about captivity. It is a story about what happens to a human being when everything is stripped away. The fear, the negotiation, the impossible decisions made by families on the other side of the world trying to bring their loved ones home. The moments of dark humour and unexpected humanity in the most inhuman of circumstances. And the daring escape attempt that changed everything.

Then there is the question that haunts every survivor, who do you become on the other side? How do you rebuild a life, a sense of self, a relationship with the world, after 462 days in hell?

In this series Jack Laurence sits down with Nigel Brennan for an extraordinarily candid conversation spanning the months before the kidnapping, the ordeal itself, and the long and difficult road to recovery. It is one of the most remarkable survival stories ever told.

Nigels book is avaliable here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Born in 1968, the daughter of a former pilot who became a Gurnsey newspaper editor, Annie won a scholarship to a private school and would go on to study at Britain's elite Cambridge University.

In 1990, Annie sat a Foreign Office examination in hopes of becoming a diplomat but instead would receive a rather obscure letter suggesting there might be other careers that would suit her better and that was the start of her recruitment into the infamous MI5, Britain's secret service. She was posted to their counter-subversion department, officially known as 'F2' and almost from day 1 found herself uncomfortable with what was happening behind the scenes. In 1996, she resigned from MI5 in order to help her then partner and MI5 officer David Shayler reveal a series of alleged crimes committed by the agency.

In doing so they had broken the official secrets act, a crime punishable by imprisonment, David and Annie we're now Wanted and being hunted by their former employer.

You can get a copy of Annie's book here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Born in 1968, the daughter of a former pilot who became a Gurnsey newspaper editor, Annie won a scholarship to a private school and would go on to study at Britain's elite Cambridge University.

In 1990, Annie sat a Foreign Office examination in hopes of becoming a diplomat but instead would receive a rather obscure letter suggesting there might be other careers that would suit her better and that was the start of her recruitment into the infamous MI5, Britain's secret service. She was posted to their counter-subversion department, officially known as 'F2' and almost from day 1 found herself uncomfortable with what was happening behind the scenes. In 1996, she resigned from MI5 in order to help her then partner and MI5 officer David Shayler reveal a series of alleged crimes committed by the agency.

In doing so they had broken the official secrets act, a crime punishable by imprisonment, David and Annie we're now Wanted and being hunted by their former employer.

You can get a copy of Annie's book here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

David McMillan has lead a life that is almost unbelievable, its like something out of a Hollywood crime thriller.

Born in the UK to Australian parents David would travel back and forth between the two countries a few times until at the age of 10 his parents divorced and he, his sister and mother made the permanent move to Melbourne.

David was always different as a kid, he was expelled from school for trying to make a batch of LSD, a sign of things to come?

At eighteen David got a job at the city cinema and by chance would meet some retired safe crackers, safe crackers who were looking to invest their money in the drug business. With no one that could source it for them David jumped in head first and thus changing the course of his entire life.

David made millions of dollars, before an Australian task force swooped and he would spend 10 years in maximum security prison in Victoria. Once he was out he decided he was done with Australia and left for the UK, with a stop off in Thailand, a decision that would see him arrested again and facing the death penalty.

Just two weeks before he was to be killed by firing squad David did something that no western has ever achieved, he escaped.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

David McMillan has lead a life that is almost unbelievable, its like something out of a Hollywood crime thriller.

Born in the UK to Australian parents David would travel back and forth between the two countries a few times until at the age of 10 his parents divorced and he, his sister and mother made the permanent move to Melbourne.

David was always different as a kid, he was expelled from school for trying to make a batch of LSD, a sign of things to come?

At eighteen David got a job at the city cinema and by chance would meet some retired safe crackers, safe crackers who were looking to invest their money in the drug business. With no one that could source it for them David jumped in head first and thus changing the course of his entire life.

David made millions of dollars, before an Australian task force swooped and he would spend 10 years in maximum security prison in Victoria. Once he was out he decided he was done with Australia and left for the UK, with a stop off in Thailand, a decision that would see him arrested again and facing the death penalty.

Just two weeks before he was to be killed by firing squad David did something that no western has ever achieved, he escaped.

Get a copy of David's book here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

David McMillan has lead a life that is almost unbelievable, its like something out of a Hollywood crime thriller.

Born in the UK to Australian parents David would travel back and forth between the two countries a few times until at the age of 10 his parents divorced and he, his sister and mother made the permanent move to Melbourne.

David was always different as a kid, he was expelled from school for trying to make a batch of LSD, a sign of things to come?

At eighteen David got a job at the city cinema and by chance would meet some retired safe crackers, safe crackers who were looking to invest their money in the drug business. With no one that could source it for them David jumped in head first and thus changing the course of his entire life.

David made millions of dollars, before an Australian task force swooped and he would spend 10 years in maximum security prison in Victoria. Once he was out he decided he was done with Australia and left for the UK, with a stop off in Thailand, a decision that would see him arrested again and facing the death penalty.

Just two weeks before he was to be killed by firing squad David did something that no western has ever achieved, he escaped.

Get a copy of David's book here

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Christopher Douglas Emms is wanted for allegedly conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Specifically, conspiring to violate United States sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (“DPRK” or “North Korea”) by working with an American citizen to illegally provide cryptocurrency and blockchain technology services to the DP, Its quite the mouthful.

Chris is a British citizen who, due to his status of being Wanted, now calls Moscow home. He and I spoke via Zoom about the charges brough against and just how on earth he came to be accused of helping North Korea avoid global sanctions. He says this is a situation that has been completely blown out of proportion.

None the less he has had his entire life turned upside down over the last few years, not only can he not return home to the UK for fear of extradition to the United States but he also had all of his UK accounts frozen and has never been able to recoup his money.

This is the story of Christopher Emms.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Christopher Douglas Emms is wanted for allegedly conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Specifically, conspiring to violate United States sanctions on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (“DPRK” or “North Korea”) by working with an American citizen to illegally provide cryptocurrency and blockchain technology services to the DP, Its quite the mouthful.

Chris is a British citizen who, due to his status of being Wanted, now calls Moscow home. He and I spoke via Zoom about the charges brough against and just how on earth he came to be accused of helping North Korea avoid global sanctions. He says this is a situation that has been completely blown out of proportion.

None the less he has had his entire life turned upside down over the last few years, not only can he not return home to the UK for fear of extradition to the United States but he also had all of his UK accounts frozen and has never been able to recoup his money.

This is the story of Christopher Emms.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Once one of America's most wanted men, Wild Bill, as he's been called by authorities, was arrested as he attempted to make his way into Nicaragua via Costa Rica on July 26, 2010.

Bill was accused of the murders of 5 people, murders that he would later confess to. Bill says he worked in Panama as a gun for hire, a hitman, for a cartel of sorts. He says he was driven by greed and a severe lack of any morals.

Bill says he's not the man he once was, he does not speak of the murders that he has committed or even so much as mention their names, he says he is haunted by his crimes and he focuses on doing good in the world in which he now finds himself.

Once arrested and convicted he was sentenced to over 40 years inside a Panamanian prison where he remains today. While incarcerated Bill has become the prisons Chaplin and holds regular services for the other incarcerated men. He's also written a book about his experiences inside one of the worlds worst and most violent prisons, the link to which is below. Not only has he written a book but he also does a daily audio diary which he posts on youtube and has a Facebook page 'Friends of Brother Bill' that he uses to stay in touch with people on the outside.

But how did Bill become a killer, what happened in his life that would send him down this path? Bill tells me his story from his prison cell in Panama.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Once one of America's most wanted men, Wild Bill, as he's been called by authorities, was arrested as he attempted to make his way into Nicaragua via Costa Rica on July 26, 2010.

Bill was accused of the murders of 5 people, murders that he would later confess to. Bill says he worked in Panama as a gun for hire, a hitman, for a cartel of sorts. He says he was driven by greed and a severe lack of any morals.

Bill says he's not the man he once was, he does not speak of the murders that he has committed or even so much as mention their names, he says he is haunted by his crimes and he focuses on doing good in the world in which he now finds himself.

Once arrested and convicted he was sentenced to over 40 years inside a Panamanian prison where he remains today. While incarcerated Bill has become the prisons Chaplin and holds regular services for the other incarcerated men. He's also written a book about his experiences inside one of the worlds worst and most violent prisons, the link to which is below. Not only has he written a book but he also does a daily audio diary which he posts on youtube and has a Facebook page 'Friends of Brother Bill' that he uses to stay in touch with people on the outside.

But how did Bill become a killer, what happened in his life that would send him down this path? Bill tells me his story from his prison cell in Panama.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Once one of America's most wanted men, Wild Bill, as he's been called by authorities, was arrested as he attempted to make his way into Nicaragua via Costa Rica on July 26, 2010.

Bill was accused of the murders of 5 people, murders that he would later confess to. Bill says he worked in Panama as a gun for hire, a hitman, for a cartel of sorts. He says he was driven by greed and a severe lack of any morals.

Bill says he's not the man he once was, he does not speak of the murders that he has committed or even so much as mention their names, he says he is haunted by his crimes and he focuses on doing good in the world in which he now finds himself.

Once arrested and convicted he was sentenced to over 40 years inside a Panamanian prison where he remains today. While incarcerated Bill has become the prisons Chaplin and holds regular services for the other incarcerated men. He's also written a book about his experiences inside one of the worlds worst and most violent prisons, the link to which is below. Not only has he written a book but he also does a daily audio diary which he posts on youtube and has a Facebook page 'Friends of Brother Bill' that he uses to stay in touch with people on the outside.

But how did Bill become a killer, what happened in his life that would send him down this path? Bill tells me his story from his prison cell in Panama.

Bills Book

https://www.amazon.com.au/Long-Live-King-Wild-Bill-ebook/dp/B09P8WNZXP

Life inside Hell

https://www.youtube.com/@lifeinsidehell

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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

Once one of America's most wanted men, Wild Bill, as he's been called by authorities, was arrested as he attempted to make his way into Nicaragua via Costa Rica on July 26, 2010.

Bill was accused of the murders of 5 people, murders that he would later confess to. Bill says he worked in Panama as a gun for hire, a hitman, for a cartel of sorts. He says he was driven by greed and a severe lack of any morals.

Bill says he's not the man he once was, he does not speak of the murders that he has committed or even so much as mention their names, he says he is haunted by his crimes and he focuses on doing good in the world in which he now finds himself.

Once arrested and convicted he was sentenced to over 40 years inside a Panamanian prison where he remains today. While incarcerated Bill has become the prisons Chaplin and holds regular services for the other incarcerated men. He's also written a book about his experiences inside one of the worlds worst and most violent prisons, the link to which is below. Not only has he written a book but he also does a daily audio diary which he posts on youtube and has a Facebook page 'Friends of Brother Bill' that he uses to stay in touch with people on the outside.

But how did Bill become a killer, what happened in his life that would send him down this path? Bill tells me his story from his prison cell in Panama.

SIGNAL AWARDS 2026 VOTE HERE

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