Just less than a month ago our federal election delivered a resounding victory to the Labor Party.
Anthony Albanese became the first Australian Prime Minister in two decades to secure a second term.
But the election did not dominate global headlines to the extent that major U.S. or UK elections have done, attracting only moderate international media coverage.
And from those disappointed with the outcome there was no response similar to the one we saw on 6 January, 2022, following Trumps loss to Biden when a disaffected angry armed mob marched on the Capital.
One would think that our peaceful acceptance of the results would be worth celebrating in a world straining with conflicts.
Ironically, currently Australia is getting a great deal of global attention and not because we showed that despite diversity and differences we respect and accept the democratic process but because of the trial of an ordinary middle aged woman accused of fatally poisoning three relatives with death cap mushrooms (Amanita phalloides) in Leongatha, Victoria.
The trial, which commenced on 29 April, 2025, in the Supreme Court of Victoria, has attracted intense media interest, with numerous journalists, documentary-makers, and true crime writers covering the proceedings.
It’s a story with all the elements that would make crime writers or film makers fall over each other to get the rights to the story.
International outlets such as Reuters, The Guardian, The Times, The Independent, The Strait Times, Global News, and CBS News have extensively reported on the trial.
In the eyes of many people overseas Australia is often seen as a wild and scary place to visit (despite being one of the most urbanized societies in the world).
Seen as a land of a harsh and unforgiving environment of heat, bushfires, floods and cyclones, and teeming with deadly animals, both on land and sea.
This perception is usually exaggerated and shaped more by media, pop culture, and internet jokes than reality.
And so a stereotype develops.
And don’t forget the fictional Dropbears.
Said to be large carnivorous version of the koala that drop from trees to attack unsuspecting people, particularly tourists.
But real dangers do exist.
Australia is home to many venomous creatures —the funnel-web spider, box jellyfish, and eastern brown snake, sharks and saltwater crocodiles.
Then there is the vast remote outback setting with its stories of survival and cases of missing and murdered tourists.
The high profile case of Peter Falcone and his girlfriend Joanne Lee, the Ivan Millat backpacker murders and of course the nine week old Azaria Chamberlain who was snatched by a dingo from a tent at Uluru in 1980 inspired films and reality shows loosely based on these real events that have captivated overseas readers and viewers.
Think of Wolf Creek and Evil Angels.
These examples make any unusual or macabre event from Australia more likely to be interpreted through the lens of danger.
This also reflects the broader media tendency to prioritize immediate, visually compelling narratives over political events unless they have significant international implications.
And now the whole world is watching the mushroom case.
Mushrooms have held a mysterious and often magical place in folklore across cultures for centuries.
Their sudden appearance, strange shapes, and sometimes toxic effects made them natural symbols for the mystical, the dangerous, and the otherworldly.
In Australia, while mushroom poisoning deaths are relatively rare, the death cap mushroom is the leading cause of such fatalities.
Notably, the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) has recorded four deaths associated with death cap mushrooms since 2002.
The current case involves Erin Patterson, a 50-year-old woman accused of murdering three relatives by serving them a meal containing poisonous death cap mushrooms in July 2023.
The victims—her mother-in-law, father-in-law, and estranged husband’s aunt—died after consuming the meal at her home.
Patterson has pleaded not guilty to the charges, maintaining that the deaths were accidental.
She testified that she may have unknowingly searched for information on death cap mushrooms online and possibly used foraged mushrooms in the meal, contradicting her earlier claims of using only store-bought ingredients.
The trial is expected to conclude by the end of June 2025 .
Her cross examination resumes this week and there is much divided opinion.
Until the jury makes its decision we can only speculate.
Whether you see someone genuinely struggling with a life -long eating disorder and the role of a single parent, or you see a calculating ,vengeful woman hitting back at perceived hurts. Whichever it is we will have to let our judicial system play out.
Meanwhile it should remind us as much as foraging for free food has a romantic feel to it when mushrooms are involved avoid them unless you are an expert in Mycology.
Better to play it safe and purchase them from greengrocers or supermarkets.
Despite the stereotype about how dangerous Australia is It consistently ranks as one of the safest countries in the world for tourists.
Outside of Australia, deadly animal stories are often overrepresented — foreigners love the “Australia is dangerous” trope.
Inside Australia, those stories are taken more with humour.
Yes, the stereotype doesn’t hold up well—Australia may be dangerous in myth, but in practice when looking round surface level national stereotypes have limitations and if we want to talk about dangers we should have a more nuanced view of what danger really means beyond snakes and mushrooms and talk about trust, polarization and civic distrust and the future for our youth.
One of the most famous mushroom poems, Mushrooms by Sylvia Plath uses mushrooms as a metaphor for quiet, unnoticed rebellion. It captures both the natural mystery of mushrooms
and their symbolic potential for slow, silent uprising.
Mushrooms
Overnight, very
Whitely, discreetly,
Very quietly
Our toes, our noses
Take hold on the loam,
Acquire the air.
Nobody sees us,
Stops us, betrays us;
The small grains make room.
…
Our kind multiplies:
We shall by morning
Inherit the earth.
Our foot’s in the door.
