'I can do things no woman ever did before in the history of the circus business.' May Wirth

There's a brutal history behind the imposing walls of Melbourne's Pentridge prison, stretching from 1851 right up until its closure in 1997. Today there's a playground, supermarket, cinema and apartments on site – but not everyone's happy about it. Those who know Pentridge best offer their answers to a difficult question: how should you treat a site with such a violent past?

Underwater escapes, padlocked trunks and a magic trick featuring a wallaby called JoJo - the story of Esme Levante has it all. Yet for decades the life of this remarkable woman has been overshadowed by her more famous father, the Great Levante, one of Australia’s greatest magicians. So, who was Esme Levante, “the most daring girl in the world”?

With nothing to lose, Raymond Denning escapes Grafton prison in a rubbish bin. He has help from prisoner rights groups and an agenda to raise awareness about police corruption. The man-hunt for Denning turns farcical when he uses the media to make the police look foolish.

The story of one of Australia's most misunderstood criminals. After a traumatic childhood, Raymond Denning jumps from juvenile detention to jail. When an escape attempt goes wrong, a prison warder is critically injured and the finger is pointed at Denning. As his treatment within the correctional system deteriorates Denning begins to find his voice.

Have writers been imprisoned in Australia for their work?  Most definitely and PEN has worked to have them freed.  In this history of PEN in Australia Arnold Zable tells the story of Cheikh Kone, a journalist from the Ivory Coast who was detained in Port Hedland and writer Behrouz Boochani detained on Manus Island. As well as the letters members of PEN have written to imprisoned writers around the world, like those in Myanmar, to tell them that they are not alone. I am a stranger to you but please know that you are no stranger to me – Maria Tumarkin in a letter to Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian writer detained in Iran until recently.

Writers go to prison for the courageous pursuit of their craft and PEN has been working to get them out.  Melbourne writer Arnold Zable tells the story of PEN International - from its creation out of the scars of World War 1 to bring societies together through their literature, to its growing human rights work across the globe, protecting freedom of speech and supporting imprisoned writers. If you don’t know the truth you can’t act – Jennifer Clements - President of PEN International

How a South Australian geologist named Reg Sprigg helped solve Charles Darwin's dilemma

When a Norwegian container ship - the MV Tampa – rescued 438 asylum seekers from a sinking boat on August 26, 2001 who was to know the political fallout it would leave in its wake?

We travel to the west coast of Tasmania, to meet the mining communities who carry on a rich cultural tradition of storytelling in poetry and song.