Jun 2, 20264 minS9
<p>Host of Black Sheep William Ray recommends a new RNZ podcast for history fans, NZ Wars Collection - Kohikohinga o nga pakanga o Aotearoa. We’re bringing all our New Zealand Wars stories together in your favourite...
About this Podcast:
The shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters of NZ history. Join William Ray as he explores history through the lens of Kiwi dirtbags in NZ's most awarded podcast.
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Contact path
Verified email
Booking probability
33%
Guest openness
Selective
80/100
Required Score
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Signup to Generate a PitchQuestions about Black Sheep
What is Black Sheep about?
The shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters of NZ history. Join William Ray as he explores history through the lens of Kiwi dirtbags in NZ's most awarded podcast.
Who hosts Black Sheep?
Black Sheep is hosted by RNZ. The show has published 77 episodes to date.
What has Black Sheep covered recently?
Recent episodes include "What to Listen to Next: NZ Wars Collection" (2 June 2026, 4 minutes), "Original Westie: the story of Don Buck" (5 March 2026, 41 minutes), and "Defective: the story of Dr Theodore Gray" (26 February 2026, 48 minutes).
How often does Black Sheep publish?
Black Sheep publishes roughly weekly, with episodes averaging 34 minutes across 77 episodes.
How hard is it to get booked on Black Sheep?
Booking probability for Black Sheep is 33%, and the host is rated Selective on guests. Black Sheep requires a Pod Score of 80 or higher. Black Sheep's contact route on record: verified email.
About the host
RNZ hosts Black Sheep, a history podcast with 77 episodes published.
Verified host email: ████████@████.comSign in to unlock →
Recent episodes
Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.
Episode #6
Original Westie: the story of Don Buck
Mar 5, 202641 minS9<p>The founding father of West Auckland - Don Buck was notorious in the early 20th century for his hard drinking, hard living gum digging camp in the foothills of the Waitakere ranges. Black Sheep investigates the...
Episode #5
Defective: the story of Dr Theodore Gray
Feb 26, 202648 minS9<p>“Oh Mummy save me from Dr Gray, because teacher says he’s coming today, and if I’m stupid he’ll take me away”. William Ray looks at the life and legacy of Dr Theodore Gray, a staunch eugenicists who was head of New...
- Feb 19, 202651 minS9
<p>In part two, we look at the years Elsdon Best spent living in Te Urewera, attempting to preserve knowledge he believed was on the brink of being lost forever, the remarkable relatioship he built with Tūhoe leaders...
- Feb 12, 202638 minS9
<p>Described in his own time as "the white Tōhunga of Tuhoeland" and by some today as a "structural rascist" who "stole" knowledge, it's fair to say Elsdon Best is a controvesial character. In the first of a two part...
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Episode #2
Saturday Morning: Behind Black Sheep
Feb 8, 202615 minS9<p>New Zealand's most awarded podcast is RNZ's own Black Sheep, and it's back with its 9th season. Hosted and produced by William Ray - he explores New Zealand history through the lens of real life, shady, controversial...
- Feb 5, 202634 minS9
<p>In the second of Black Sheep's two-part episode on Elspeth Kerr, detectives unravel the mystery of 9-year old Betty Kerr's poisoning and uncover more potential victims of a beloved nurse, turned serial poisoner...
- Jan 29, 202625 minS9
<p>Elspeth Kerr was a beloved local nurse in 1930s Devonport, but when her husband died suddenly and her foster daughter fell into an inexplicable coma, locals discovered the shocking truth: Nurse Kerr was a serial...
Black Sheep
Black Sheep Season 9 | Trailer
Jan 22, 20262 minS9<p>Black Sheep returns on Friday 30 January for its 9th season with a new cast of rogues, villains and controversial characters. Murderous nurses, foul-mouthed goldfield barkeepers, sly grogging kāuri gum dealers and...
Episode #10
BONUS: Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt
Jun 6, 202550 minS8<p>We're ducking into your feed to bring you an episode of a new RNZ podcast: Kelly Tartlon's Final Treasure Hunt. This story has everything! Kidnapping, smuggling, scurvy, and imaginary islands full of Jewish gold...
Episode #9
Spy Scandal: the story of Bill Sutch
Sep 26, 202455 minS8<p>On 27 September 1974 New Zealanders woke to the news Dr Bill Sutch, a famous economist, historian, and former senior government official had been arrested and accused of spying for Soviet Russia. He was later found...
Episode #8
Bird Bandit: the story of Freddie Angell
Sep 12, 202443 minS8<p>Freddie Angell was New Zealand's most notorious wildlife smuggler. His repeated attempts at stealing and exporting native wildlife in the 1990s, including Kea and Tuatara, made him all but a household name. Black...
- Sep 5, 202451 minS8
<p>Early NZ missionary Thomas Kendall arrived in London in 1820 with the Ngāpuhi Rangatira Hongi Hika. He would return to Aotearoa a year later with the first ever written dictionary of Te Reo Māori, a newly won...
- Aug 29, 202444 minS8
<p>Early Missionary Thomas Kendall facilitated the sale of hundreds of muskets to Ngāpuhi Māori, helping to enable the bloodiest wars in New Zealand history. But there's more to Kendall's story. He was instrumental in...
Episode #5
Beastly Truth: the story of George Howe
Aug 22, 202444 minS8<p>In the 1900s a series of lurid headlines were published in the New Zealand Truth about George Howe, a "Beastly Brothel-keeper" who pimped out underage girls from his shop on Wellington's Adelaide Road. But what Truth...
Episode #4
Highwayman: the story of Robert Wallath
Aug 15, 202446 minS8<p>In 1892 a masked figure in a bizarre uniform began a 15 month crime spree, robbing people at gunpoint in and around New Plymouth. When he was finally arrested and unmasked, residents were dumbfounded to discovered...
- Aug 8, 202428 minS8
<p>"As morning dawned we stood and watched / That devastated scene / Where but a single yesterday / Had flourished Surafeen." In the final episode of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend...
- Aug 1, 202425 minS8
<p>"They went out to this village, and they went through it with the bayonet.” In the second of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre of December 1918.</p><p>Read more...
- Jul 25, 202431 minS8
<p>“There was a time when I was proud of you men of the Anzac Mounted Division. I am proud of you no longer.” In the first of a three-part series, RNZ's Black Sheep investigates the Surafend massacre.</p><p>Read more...
Black Sheep
Trailer: Black Sheep Season 8
Jul 11, 20242 minS8<p>Black Sheep Season 8 is just around the corner with a whole new cast of controversial, villainous, or simply misunderstood figures from New Zealand history.</p><p>Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details</p>
Recent guests
Recent guests on Black Sheep. Study who booked and why before you pitch.
Best industries to pitch Black Sheep for
Based on semantic analysis of episode topics and host coverage, this podcast is a strong guest fit for executives in:
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Industry fit is computed by PitchCentric using vector embeddings of the podcast's episode catalog.
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