Special Series (Part 1 of 3) Up the Line to Goodna: stories from inside the asylumSpecial Series (Part 1 of 3) Up the Line to Goodna: stories from inside the asylum
All In The Mind
As old as the state of Queensland itself, Goodna Mental Hospital became Australia's largest asylum, housing 50,000 people over its lifetime. In this series All in the Mind shares stories from people who lived and worked there; from a nurse who worked there from the 1940s to a woman incarcerated as a young ward of the state, now fighting for justice. Warts-and-all recollections of madness, care and abuse.
30:17•12 Jul 2008
Up the Line to Goodna: Inside Australia’s Longest-Running Asylum
Episode Overview
- Goodna’s 150-year history mirrors Queensland’s development, revealing how people labelled "insane" were hidden away and forgotten.
- Former patients describe severe neglect, overcrowding, violence and traumatic seclusion practices that left lifelong scars.
- State wards like Sue Treeweek recount being placed as children in adult forensic units, calling it "government-sanctioned child abuse."
- Mental health professionals acknowledge past human rights abuses while outlining changes toward person-centred, short-stay care.
- Survivors show that, despite deep institutionalisation and trauma, it is possible to reclaim agency, relationships and meaningful work.
“"Your whole day was ran by mealtimes and medication times. That's how you knew that the day was nearly over."”
What remarkable journeys have people faced head-on against addiction, trauma and mental distress? This special series opener of All In The Mind heads "up the line to Goodna" to lay out raw, first-hand accounts from inside Queensland’s longest-running mental asylum. Across 150 years, Goodna housed 50,000 people, and you'll hear how it shifted from being called the Woogaroo Lunatic Asylum to the Park Centre for Mental Health.
Historian Mark Fennane explains how it once acted as a "dumping ground" for society’s most vulnerable, including "the lonely alcoholic shepherd who had nowhere to go". The heart of the episode lies in lived experience. Marina, a long-term resident, contrasts the early 1970s with life now, joking darkly about the food back then: "The milk was 20 days old...
you couldn't have you sick of the dog." Her art now brightens a very different facility, hinting at how much has changed – and how much still hurts. Then comes Sue Treeweek’s harrowing story of being sent to Goodna at 15 as a ward of the state.
Her account of abuse, heavy medication, self-harm and deep institutionalisation is confronting: "Your whole day was ran by mealtimes and medication times." Her later escape, recovery, reconnection with her son and work supporting others offer a fierce sense of survival and hard-won dignity.
Curator Jo Besley and psychologist-turned-advocate Nadia Beer share contrasting memories of violence, seclusion rooms and staff–patient relationships, while psychiatrist Dr Paul White bluntly acknowledges psychiatry’s role in "human rights abuses" and the shift toward short stays and person-centred care. This episode suits anyone interested in mental health history, institutional abuse, trauma recovery and the human cost of being locked away.
If you’ve ever wondered how people rebuild a life after being written off, this story might stay with you long after it ends.
Do you want to link to this podcast?
Get the buttons here!
More From This Show
The latest episodes from the same podcast.