The Skull | 5

The grave of the prime suspect in the 1993 murder of WWII veteran Les Ball is empty, after his body was surreptitiously dug up and cremated. The bizarre revelation forms the centrepiece of this final episode, throwing a dramatic final twist into a thirty-year cold case that has frustrated Queensland detectives for decades. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Brian "The Skull" Murphy claims David Phillips confessed to Les Ball’s murder. As we investigate the Skull’s testimony, we uncover the ultimate deception: David wasn't the decorated hero he claimed to be, but a master forger hiding a history of violence in plain sight. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A breakthrough shatters years of silence as cold-case detective Liz McNaughton uncovers an alleged confession made by former police officer David Phillips regarding the murder of his father-in-law, Les Ball. We re-examine the contradictory timelines shared with police and Coroners over the years, unpack these shocking claims, and trace how one detective’s deep dive turned a cold case on its head. Note: This episode has been updated; we explain in episode 5. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Les Ball’s final days were fraught with financial tension and an unhappy living arrangement centred around tens of thousands of dollars allegedly owed to him by his son-in-law, a former Victorian police detective. In this episode, we trace the convoluted money trail, examine conflicting accounts of these loans, and follow a tenacious Irish cold-case detective as she uncovers a reality that changes everything we thought we knew. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The disappearance of Les Ball is a cold case spanning decades, but a single, forged train ticket has emerged as a pivotal piece of evidence. This crucial detail, alongside conflicting accounts and a meticulously constructed deception, is casting a stark new light on what happened to the 71-year-old just before he vanished.In this episode, we scrutinise a heavily debated hospital visit, unpack a trail of suspicious financial behaviour, and follow police as they race to identify whether a burned-out trailer holds the dark secret to Les’s final days. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It was a routine welfare check - something police officer Ian Ninness had done countless times before, but this time, he knew something was different. Three police investigations and two coronial inquests have failed to find out what happened to WWII veteran Leslie Ball, who vanished more than 30 years ago.  In the premiere episode of Perfect Alibi, investigative reporters Jo Townsend and Callum Denness begin their two-year investigation into the mystery surrounding his disappearance. They re-examine the facts behind a man who seemingly vanished into thin air after building his dream retirement home, leaving his daughter, Le-Chelle, on a 33-year mission to find the truth. Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three police investigations and two coronial inquests have failed to find out what happened to Leslie Ball, who vanished more than 30 years ago. Investigative reporters Jo Townsend and Callum Denness have spent two years trying to unravel what happened to the war veteran and grandfather as part of news.com.au's six-part true-crime podcast series Perfect Alibi. They’ve tracked down family members and former police investigators, uncovered evidence of fraud, and found links to the Melbourne underworld. They have also uncovered proof they say identifies who killed Mr Ball. The podcast launches on August 10, with new episodes dropping every Monday and Wednesday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Oscars of Porn: where dreams are made and egos are shattered. After a week of vanishing acts, Bonnie Blue resurfaces in a $40,000 Louis Vuitton gown, convinced she's about to claim her crown as the industry's reigning queen. But reality has other plans. As journalist James Weir captures the industry's biggest night, he witnesses what happens after the climax — obsessed fans bankrupting themselves for glimpses of online sex tapes while veteran Charlie Ford delivers brutal truths during a frantic desert drive to the ceremony. Rival Lily Phillips prepares for war in her hotel suite, and porn legends gather to celebrate an industry Bonnie claims to have conquered. When the self-proclaimed queen arrives fashionably late (just as the red carpet is being packed away), her grand entrance becomes a desperate scramble. And in the Nevada desert, blue fades to black.  Read more and watch exclusive video content hereFollow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhq Facebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.auSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After days of hunting Vegas for the internet's most wanted woman, journalist James Weir finally tracks down Bonnie Blue to her million-dollar hideout - and walks straight into a house of cards collapsing in real time. The self-proclaimed queen of porn sits surrounded by her panicked entourage as the controversial tapes from her "world record" gang bang flicker on computer screens, but whispers suggest these videos may never see daylight. The woman who built an empire on claims of independence and control discovers the brutal truth: she was never really in charge. Crisis meetings, emergency calls, and the suffocating weight of global infamy have transformed the confident provocateur into something far more fragile. As her team scrambles to contain the damage and industry insiders question whether her most famous stunt was elaborate fiction, Bonnie faces a terrifying reality - everything she has built could vanish overnight. Bonnie calls herself “the main character” - and she wants to be the story. … Until James Weir starts to tell it.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to porn's most brutal career pivot: one day you’re a wide-eyed ingénue. And the next? You’re a single, working MILF. This transition into motherhood (or… MILF-hood) isn't optional - it's inevitable. Journalist James Weir gets welcomed into the family. Real-life mothers, like Molly Manning, are often trapped between school runs and gang bangs, competing against childless twentysomethings like Charlie Forde, who've never changed a diaper but play stepmom for profit. Then there’s Seka Black, the 70-year-old grandma who has turned her exhibitionism into a family business. James discovers industry legends facing their own expiration dates and feminist producers cringing on the sidelines. For someone like Bonnie Blue, who built her empire sleeping with “barely legal” boys, the maternal transition seems inevitable — but is she ready for what that means?" After she disappears again amid swirling tabloid headlines, James gets a message that leads to her hideout.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.