Aboriginal poet Oodgeroo Noonuccal, formerly known as Kath Walker, from Stradbroke Island in South East Queensland, was one of Australia's best-known writers and leaders. What is not commonly remembered is her experience on a hijacked BOAC aircraft in 1974 when Palestinian terrorists threatened passengers and took the life of a young German banker.
Kath Walker pleaded for the banker's life and the lives of the other passengers. The experience and the man's execution haunted her deeply. Brisbane writer and academic Sam Watson is Oodgeroo's bloodline nephew. He has been inspired by her stories and her poetry throughout his life and in 2009 his play Oodgeroo: Bloodline to Country was performed in Brisbane. This Encounter tells the story of the play and Sam Watson's own experience of Aunty Oodgeroo for her time and his own.
ABC Radio (Encounter program) interview with Sam Watson(transcript) about Noonuccal and the play
