In November 2020 the ABC launched a new podcast with a very blunt title: Stuff the British Stole. Arriving in the wake of global protests that saw statues ripped down and colonial legacies scrutinised with renewed vigour, the series offered an accessible beginner’s guide to the British empire’s long shadow and sticky fingers.
As host Marc Fennell travelled the globe with microphone in hand, the show teased out messy, contested histories not always captured in the “polite little plaques” found in museums and galleries. There were famously controversial entries including the Parthenon marbles, Benin bronzes and the Gweagal shield, but also lesser-known stories such as Tippoo’s Tiger at the V&A or the Mokomokai of Aotearoa/New Zealand (tattooed heads of Māori ancestors that were preserved and traded in the 19th century).
