Update: The Nannup Four

Update: The Nannup Four

Author: Sarah Steel May 3, 2026 Duration: 34:34

The ABC’s internationally award-winning podcast Expanse, exploring big stories from across Australia, looked at the mysterious case of the Nannup Four for its sixth season. Host Dominique Bayens investigated the 2007 disappearance of Chantelle and Leela McDougall, Tony Popic, and a man known as Simon Kadwill from the town of Nannup in Western Australia. Simon was actually a name taken on by a man called Gary Felton who led a doomsday group called The Truth Fellowship. Dominique spoke with Let’s Talk About Sects about the series in March, and is back to give us an update and a way that listeners may be able to help the families and loved ones left behind.


Links


You can support Let's Talk About Sects here. Find Sarah's audiobook Do As I Say here. If you have been personally affected by involvement in a cult, or would like to support those who have been, you can find support with or donate to Cult Information and Family Support if you’re in Australia (via www.cifs.org.au), and you can find resources outside of Australia with the International Cultic Studies Association (via www.icsahome.com). If you or someone you know is in crisis or needs support right now, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 in Australia, or find your local crisis centre via the International Association for Suicide Prevention website at www.iasp.info.


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Each month on Let's Talk About Sects, host Sarah Steel selects a different group for a thorough and thoughtful examination. The approach is narrative, building the story of each organization from the ground up. You’ll hear about the origins and the figures who founded these movements, the specific methods used to draw people in, and the lived realities of those who joined. Steel delves into the psychological frameworks at play and recounts the significant, often troubling events that defined each group's timeline. This award-winning documentary series fits within broader conversations about society, culture, and belief, but its strength is in the specific, human details. The tone is engaged and curious, avoiding sensationalism in favor of a clear-eyed look at complex histories. For those who find this podcast compelling, there are additional ways to engage with the work beyond listening. Sarah Steel has also authored a related book, *Do As I Say*, which expands on these themes. The monthly format allows for deep research into each subject, making every episode a comprehensive portrait rather than a superficial overview. It’s a resource for anyone interested in the mechanics of belief and control, presented through careful storytelling.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Let's Talk About Sects
Podcast Episodes
Avatar [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 49:44
Harry Palmer created Avatar after his presidency of the Church of Scientology's Elmira Mission ended in the mid-1980s, as a result of legal proceedings around trademark infringement. Avatar says that it aims to create an…
Interview Episode: Thomas Parsons [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:15:57
Thomas Parsons joined the Twelve Tribes community in Hiddenite, North Carolina in April 2019, and left in November 2021. With Hiddenite being the unofficial headquarters of the organisation, he had direct contact with a…
Woodford Folk Festival Live Show: The Twelve Tribes [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:15:22
This episode was recorded live at Woodford Folk Festival on 1 January 2024. Many people in the audience would have come across the Twelve Tribes previously at that very festival, as they used to build a big Common Ground…
Interview Episode: The Hate Next Door with Matson & Tawni Browning [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:26
Matson Browning is a law enforcement officer who, along with his wife Tawni, spent years undercover infiltrating various hate groups to research and report on the rise of hate crimes and white supremacy in the United Sta…
Interview Episode: Chabad and Zionism [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:24:43
Yaakov Aharon and Shula Kirovsky’s lives in Sydney’s famous beach suburb of Bondi were lived largely separate from mainstream society, within the Chassidic sect of Chabad. Their families’ lifestyles were a world away fro…
Interview Episode: IndoctriNation with Rachel Bernstein [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:48
Rachel Bernstein is an LA-based therapist who has specialized in cult intervention and re-acclimation for over 30 years. She serves on the advisory board of the International Cultic Studies Association and has worked wit…
Xenos / Dwell – Part 2 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:59
Xenos was originally set up as a leaderless group that rejected the structures and trappings of mainstream churches. Springing forth from the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, it focused on meeting in peo…
Xenos / Dwell – Part 1 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:21
Xenos was originally set up as a leaderless group that rejected the structures and trappings of mainstream churches. Springing forth from the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s, it focused on meeting in peo…
Theatre of All Possibilities / Odyssey Study Group [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:25
In many ways, this theatre troupe and Fourth Way school became the most secretive this podcast has looked into yet. Most members didn’t know each other’s jobs, marital status, or even surnames. They didn’t see each other…
International Cult Awareness Month: Andrew Pledger and BJU [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:59:33
Andrew Pledger was raised in the Independent Fundamental Baptist movement, and after completing his homeschool education, attended Bob Jones University. He is the creator of the limited podcast Surviving Bob Jones Univer…