Australia can’t get enough true crime stories. Cold cases are reopened by podcasts. Gruesome murders become award-winning dramas. And even the most recent cases are going under the microscope in extended non-fiction storytelling.

The Stan Original documentary series Revealed: Death Cap Murders is a three-part series that delves into every aspect of the 2023 mushroom murder case that made headlines around the world. Erin Patterson was eventually convicted of three counts of murder for serving beef Wellington containing the toxic death cap mushrooms to relatives of her estranged husband at a lunch at her home in Leongatha in rural Victoria.

This excerpt from Episode 1 (The Crime) explores how the case became a viral news story, with clips from overseas news bulletins and people from around the world offering hot takes over social media. It reflects that social media is now a primary vehicle for people to receive and digest news and current affairs. Pithy commentary on the case’s appeal comes from criminologist Dr Vicky Nagy. Her observations about the crime taking place outside the city, in an environment usually considered safer, are supported by shots of rural Leongatha and comments from locals. Sightings of Patterson before her arrest add to the clip’s interest.

In September 2025, intense public fascination with the mushroom murder case led to it becoming the first Victorian sentencing hearing to be broadcast live.

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