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The Teacher's Pet

ByThe Australian
29 episodes

Podcast Summary

Lyn and Chris Dawson appear to have the perfect marriage. He's a star footballer and popular high school teacher. She's a devoted wife and mother. They share a beautiful home above Sydney's northern beaches. But when Lyn goes missing, dark secrets are buried. This is no fairytale, but a sordid story of strangely close twin brothers, teenage student lovers, and probable murder. The Australian's Hedley Thomas digs deep into a cold case which has been unsolved for 36 years, uncovering startling new evidence.

#1

Episode 1 - Bayview

Lyn was a devoted wife and mother. She adored her husband, but he betrayed and humiliated her in the most callous way. Now she's gone - missing, a likely victim of murder. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-05-18•41mins
#2

Episode 2 - Cromer High

Cromer High School's pin-up sports teacher Chris Dawson pursued high school student JC with the sort of relentless determination he showed as a star of rugby league. Chris had model good looks, an easy charm, and students looked up to him.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-05-23•55mins
#3

Episode 3 - Bruised

As Chris brazenly moved his teenage lover into the family home, Lyn saw the cracks in her marriage widen. It was crumbling all around her. Unable to believe the worst of her husband, she responded with denial, but to her family and friends Lyn's suffering was clear. And the toll was not just emotional. In this episode, a former babysitter for the Dawsons speaks for the first time about the violence she witnessed in the home.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-05-31•49mins
#4

Episode 4 - Soft Soil

Humiliated and broken by her husband's affair, Lyn finally asked JC to leave the Bayview home. The teenager walked out, and into the home of Chris's twin brother, Paul, a few hundred metres down the same street. Tensions continued to rise. And then suddenly, Lyn vanished. Years later, JC suggested Lyn's remains were buried at Bayview, in the 'soft soil' - outside what were her daughters' bedroom windows. In this episode, a surprise new witness speaks publicly for the first time about something he was told in 1987, indicating the possible whereabouts of a body.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-06-07•1hr 2mins
#5

Episode 5 - A Lovely Drink

In January 1982, as most Australians enjoyed a carefree holiday season, Lyn Dawson was trying to pick up the tattered threads of her marriage. JC was taking tentative steps to extricate herself from her affair with Lyn's husband. And Chris Dawson was desperately seeking solutions. In this episode, a damning piece of evidence - once thought lost - is recovered, and it is something that should be vitally important to the Director of Public Prosecutions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-06-14•1hr 4mins
#6

Episode 6 - Gone

In the days and months following Lyn's disappearance, Chris Dawson put forth a range of suggestions as to her possible whereabouts. Perhaps she had gone north to think about their marriage. Maybe she'd joined a cult, or a religious group. But whatever he said, he clearly believed she was never going to return, as he promptly moved JC back into the family home where she became the new mother to his two children. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-06-21•57mins
#7

Episode 7 - The Rings

On January 15, 1984, Chris and JC wed at Bayview. With no veil, and in a non-traditional dress, the young bride looked like a flower girl. On her hand, she wore Lyn's rings. Chris's brother Paul and his wife Marilyn were witnesses.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-06-28•1hr 7mins
#8

Episode 8 - Hopeless

Lyn Dawson had been missing for three years when her worried friend Sue wrote to the Office of the Ombudsman - an independent government watchdog - about the lack of police action in the case. We go looking and recover a long-forgotten file after decades in storage, and the contents highlight the hopeless responses of police to a probable murder - and raise more questions, as public anger grows. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-07-05•1hr 6mins

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#9

Episode 9 - Dreamworld

Leaving the dark shadow of Lyn’s disappearance behind, Chris moved his young new wife and children north to Queensland, into a home on acreage near the newly-opened theme park, Dreamworld. Isolated behind high fences, JC lived the life of a 'Stepford wife', and was expected to meet all of her husband's demands ... including continuing to look like a school girl. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-07-12•1hr 4mins
#10

Episode 10 - Damaged

After six difficult years, the volatile marriage was over. JC felt she had become ‘disposable’, as Lyn had been years before, and feared for her life. She fled back to Sydney, telling friends she was convinced Chris had murdered his first wife. In this episode, you'll hear what Chris Dawson told detectives when he was interviewed in 1991. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-07-19•1hr 24mins
#11

Episode 11 - Loyalty

Chris Dawson was interviewed by police in 1991, and then never again. But Sue Strath, Lyn's loyal friend, kept agitating for a further investigation, and in 1998 Detective Damian Loone was assigned to the case. Curiously, the earlier investigation notes had vanished.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-07-26•1hr 15mins
#12

Episode 12 - Momentum

The detective Damian Loone escalates his murder investigations, interviewing many witnesses in a quest for the truth. And the area of "soft soil" comes back into focus.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-08-02•1hr 12mins
#13

Episode 13 - The System

Before the first coronial inquest, police tap phones in the lead-up to digging in a relatively small area around the swimming pool at Bayview, where they find a woman's cardigan. The crime scene officer on that dig describes what he believed were stab marks in the garment. He suspects Lyn's remains are still on the block - and may have been narrowly missed because the dig was restricted for budgetary reasons. The coronial inquests get under way and they are bad for Chris - but the system fails Lyn and her family again. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-08-09•1hr 30mins
#14

Episode 14 - Decision Time

After 36 long years, failed police investigations, two coronial inquests, and countless appeals from Lyn's family, the case is stronger now - and once again it's in the hands of the office of the DPP. Regardless of their decision, the NSW police commissioner pledges to keep investigations going, and he plans to order a much more significant dig at the Bayview property. In this episode, former coroner Carl Milovanovich explains why he believes a jury would convict Chris over the probable murder of Lyn - and why the case still troubles him today, 15 years after his inquest in a Sydney courtroom. And Lyn's daughter Shanelle has final words in honour of her mother. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-08-17•2hr 2mins
#15

Episode 15 - Digging

Following an incredible groundswell of community interest ignited by this podcast, September saw a stunning development in the case with police returning to the Bayview house to conduct a new and more thorough search for the remains of Lyn Dawson. This dig was a necessity - not just to try to uncover new evidence, but also to restore public confidence and to prove to Lyn’s family that the police, this time, would do their jobs properly. Meanwhile, new witnesses come forth with compelling stories of encounters with Chris Dawson and his explosive temper. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-11-29•1hr 29mins
#16

Episode 16 - Arrest

Nearly 37 years after Lyn Dawson disappeared, police have arrested Chris Dawson over the alleged murder of his wife, taking him into custody and preparing his extradition to Sydney where he will face court. When the knock on the door came, the 70-year-old was calm. The timing may have been a surprise, but he’d known for a long time that this day may come. Calling the matter "a cold case murder", the magistrate denied Dawson's application for bail citing a high flight risk, and said the crown alleged domestic violence allegations against Chris Dawson would be raised in evidence, as well as testimony from JC. But Dawson's family believe he will be cleared, releasing a statement saying that he is innocent and that there is clear and uncontested evidence that Lyn Dawson was alive long after she left her husband and daughters. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2018-12-05•45mins
#17

The Front: Inside podcasting with Hedley Thomas and David Murray

Hedley Thomas, Claire Harvey and David Murray reveal how our smash-hit podcasts get made. Find out more about The Front podcast here and read about this story and more on The Australian's website or search for The Australian in your app store. This episode of The Front is presented and produced by Kristen Amiet, and edited by Lia Tsamoglou. Our regular host is Claire Harvey and original music is composed by Jasper Leak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-09-12•43mins
#18

From The Front: Three more years for Chris Dawson

Grey, shrunken and hiding his face, Chris Dawson is sentenced for unlawful carnal knowledge of a schoolgirl. Hedley Thomas joins us. Find out more about The Front podcast here and read about this story and more on The Australian's website or search for The Australian in your app store. This episode of The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet, and edited by Lia Tsamoglou. Original music is composed by Jasper Leak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-09-15•18mins
#19

Bonus episode: Hedley reads Chapter 1 of his new book, The Teacher's Pet

Listen to Hedley Thomas reading Chapter 1 of his new book, The Teacher's Pet. The book is published by Pan Macmillan and is available at all good bookstores, and wherever you get audiobooks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-11-10•25mins
#20

From I Catch Killers with Gary Jubelin: Catching A Killer with Hedley Thomas (Part 1)

A school teacher, a missing wife, and the student caught in the middle. The Teacher’s Pet was the podcast that captivated the world. In this special episode of the I Catch Killers podcast, award-winning journalist Hedley Thomas joins host Gary Jubelin to discuss the ins and outs of the investigation into Lynette Dawson’s disappearance — ultimately landing murderer Chris Dawson behind bars.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-11-18•47mins
#21

From I Catch Killers with Gary Jubelin: Remembering Lynette with Hedley Thomas (Part 2)

Lynette Dawson, now remembered as Lynette Simms, went missing from her Bayview home in 1982. But it would take another 40 years for her husband Chris Dawson to be convicted of her murder. In this special episode of the I Catch Killers podcast, Hedley Thomas shares his personal connection to Lyn’s story with host Gary Jubelin.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-11-18•50mins
#22

Bonus episode: Hedley Thomas talks The Teacher's Pet with Raymond Bonner

Hedley Thomas sits down with Pulitzer Prize-winner and former NYT foreign correspondent Raymond Bonner to discuss his new book, The Teacher's Pet, at Bookoccino book shop on Sydney's Northern Beaches. The book is published by Pan Macmillan and is available at all good bookstores, and wherever you get audiobooks. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2023-11-27•1hr 1mins
#23

From The Front: The Teacher's Appeal

Christopher Michael Dawson has launched an appeal, arguing Justice Ian Harrison got it wrong — and claiming he’s not guilty of Lyn’s murder. The Front is covering the NSW Supreme Court proceedings every day. Find out more about it here, or keep up to date on The Australian's website and app. This episode of The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet and edited by Lia Tsamoglou. The multimedia editor is Lia Tsamoglou and original music is composed by Jasper Leak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2024-05-13•18mins

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#24

From The Front: Hedley Thomas’ new cold case podcast, 'Bronwyn'

Where is Bronwyn Winfield? The devoted mum has been missing since 1993 – and the man behind The Teacher’s Pet is on the case. Go to theaustralian.com.au/bronwyn to listen. Plus, you can read more about this case and see exclusive stories, maps, timelines, graphics, video and more. This episode of The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet and edited by Josh Burton. The multimedia editor is Lia Tsamoglou and original music is composed by Jasper Leak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2024-05-24•20mins
#25

Listen to episode 1 of BRONWYN

The Teacher's Pet creator Hedley Thomas returns with a new podcast investigation for The Australian. Subscribers to The Australian and registered users hear episodes of ‘Bronwyn’ first. Plus, you can read more about this case and see exclusive stories, maps, timelines, graphics, video and more at bronwynpodcast.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2024-05-31•1hr 12mins
#26

From The Front: Chris Dawson is staying in jail

This is an episode of The Australian's daily news podcast, The Front. Chris Dawson has suffered another humiliation, losing an appeal against his conviction for the 1982 murder of his wife Lynette in 1982. Find out more about The Front podcast here. You can read about this story and more on The Australian's website or on The Australian’s app. This episode of The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet and edited by Lia Tsamoglou. Original music is composed by Jasper Leak.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2024-06-13•17mins
#27

Introducing Dear Rachelle

For two decades, the family of murdered 23-year-old woman Rachelle Childs have fought for answers. Though her killer is still at large, they believe her case case can be solved. Dear Rachelle is hosted and investigated by journalist Ashlea Hansen, together with retired detective and cold case specialist Damian Loone, who appeared in The Australian’s award-winning podcast series The Teacher’s Pet and The Teacher’s Trial. Search 'Dear Rachelle' to listen now.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2025-04-09•3mins
#28

From The Front: Roger Rogerson’s first kill? The mystery of ‘Shotgun Johnny’ Regan

The 1974 murder of ‘Shotgun Johnny’ Regan has never been solved. Now, his family wants answers. That’s where The Australian’s new cold case investigation The Gangster’s Ghost comes in. Subscribers can listen to Episodes 1 and 2 now at gangstersghost.com.au. This episode of The Australian's daily news podcast The Front is presented by Claire Harvey, produced by Kristen Amiet and edited by Tiffany Dimmack. Our team includes Lia Tsamoglou, Joshua Burton, Stephanie Coombes and Jasper Leak, who also composed our music. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2025-05-08•13mins
#29

Listen to Episode 1 of The Gangster's Ghost: Dead Man Talking

The family of slain gangster Stewart John Regan has been frustrated by an unwillingness on the part of the NSW Police Unsolved Homicide Unit to share information about its investigation into his death. Police say they're reluctant to share important files because they're concerned publicity from podcasts like The Teacher's Pet will compromise their investigation. Catch up on Episode 1 of The Gangster's Ghost now, and subscribe to hear new episodes first at gangstersghost.com.au The podcast investigates the five-decade mystery of who killed psychopathic pimp and murderer Stewart John ‘The Magician’ Regan at the age of 29. One of Australia’s most notorious gangsters, Regan was gunned down by three assassins in a Marrickville laneway in 1974.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2025-05-30•45mins

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