About

Talking Prisoner started on the 18th of June 2021, during the middle of Covid-19 lockdown.

Well... that is not entirely true. Let's go back to where it all really started!

One night back in 1985 (when I was 7), I came out of bed to ask my Mum a question and saw she was watching Prisoner. She quickly told me to get back to bed but I didn’t.. I hid behind the couch and this show intrigued me.

Over a few weeks, I continued to sneak out of my room to watch this show until one night my Mum caught me. She let me off that night and allowed me to watch Prisoner with her (which is not the show to allow your 7 year old son to watch but my Mum was cool with it).

My Mum loved Prisoner. It was her favourite show and we watched many episodes together. Mum has since passed and I hold memories like that close to my heart.

I love many TV shows but Prisoner is my all time favourite Australian TV show. During my teens, Channel 10 re-ran every episode of Prisoner at 4:00am every morning. I woke up most mornings to watch it and stayed awake until it was time to go to school during the week.

Why did I start Talking Prisoner ? I've always been intrigued with behind the scenes of TV shows and movies and I love watching interviews from cast and crew of shows. I could never find any interviews with the cast and crew of Prisoner Cell Block H so I decided to start the Talking Prisoner Podcast Channel during the Covid-19 pandemic.

I connected with Ken Mullholland via Facebook. Ken was the senior Cameraman from Episode 1 to Episode 692. I pitched him the idea of hosting this podcast with me to which he agreed. Ken had amazing stories and memories of his time on the Prisoner set and it was an honour to have him host Talking Prisoner up until his retirement from episode 52.

It has been the most amazing ride. I have interviewed everyone from Maggie Kirkpatrick, Val Lehman, Collette Mann, Louise Le Nay, Gerard Maguire, Ian Smith, Susan Guerin, Louise Siverson, Coral Drouyn, Pepe Trevor, Wendy Playfair, Glenda Linscott, Tottie Goldsmith, Debra Lawrance, Maggie Millar, Rod Hardy, Ian Bradley, Maxine Klibingaitis, and many more! I have made friends with fans and cast along this journey and held annual Talking Prisoner events, connecting fans and cast together each year.

I have so many more cast and crew to interview as well as individuals associated in the world of true crime.

Thanks for reading and your ongoing support.

Matt Batten
Creator, Host and Producer