Gina Rinehart’s father, Lang Hancock, is well known as a pioneer of the iron ore industry in Australia but few realise Hancock started his mining career on a smaller scale and digging for a different substance – blue asbestos. Hancock and his partner started the mining operation at Wittenoom in the 1940s before selling it to another company, CSR, which mined the area for 20 more years. Wittenoom has become synonymous with an immense tragedy that unfolded upon thousands of the people who lived and worked there due to exposure to asbestos fibres. In this episode of Gina, we interrogate some of the stories her family chooses to celebrate – and others they don’t Listen and subscribe to the Gina podcast at theguardian.com/gina
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1:14:07
Gina: The DNA request – update episode
In the last episode, we covered historical claims made over the years that Lang Hancock, Gina’s father, had two unacknowledged daughters with separate Indigenous women. Since then, the daughter of Sella Robinson, one of the Indigenous women who claimed to be Hancock’s daughter, has decided to speak publicly for the first time Listen to all the episodes of Gina at theguardian.com/gina
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17:51
Gina: The portrait – episode 5
It’s the portrait of Gina Rinehart that launched 1,000 memes, went viral globally and became Australia’s Mona Lisa. But it’s also a symbol of how wealth intersects with other areas of life, including art and sport. How does Rinehart use her money to control her image – and what would she rather you don’t see? This episode of Gina is about power and control, and the colonial history of Australia. It contains references to outdated offensive language and events that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people may find distressing. It also contains the names of Indigenous Australians who have died. Listen with care
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1:12:29
Gina: The first-born son – episode 4
Twenty years ago, John Hancock had dinner with his mother, Gina Rinehart. He says it’s the last positive interaction he had with her. In an in-depth interview, he explains how his relationship with his mother fell apart and discusses a high-stakes legal case that could threaten the foundations of her empire Listen and subscribe to the Gina Podcast at theguardian.com/gina
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44:49
Gina: Love and money – episode 3
Gina Rinehart has been Australia’s richest person for the last six years in a row. But where does her money come from? In episode three we unpack the bitter rivalries, court battles and family conflicts behind the Hancock fortune – and consider a fundamental question: is Rinehart a mining heiress or is she a self-made mining magnate? We then look at her crowning achievement to date in her time at the helm of Hancock Prospecting – owning and operating her own iron mine at Roy Hill, something her father was never able to do Listen and subscribe to the Gina Podcast at theguardian.com/gina
Gina Rinehart tops Australia's rich list. She is a success story, worth almost $40bn. She’s also a climate sceptic, a Trumpette, a litigant – even against her own kids – and the woman who saved Australian swimming. She doesn’t shy from a fight and she’s sensitive about controlling her image. As her wealth continues to rise, so do her power and her influence. For her whole life she has advocated for rightwing causes – she’s a fierce critic of bureaucracy, and wants to cut red and green tape to boost the country’s prosperity. We explore how much power she has. Hearing from a range of her critics and defenders, and tracing her influence from the Pilbara to the corridors of power, this series asks: who is Gina Rinehart and what does she want? Listen and subscribe to Gina on Apple podcasts, Spotify or any other podcast app. You can also find all The Guardian's best other series by the Australian audio team here on this podcast feed.
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