Simon Patterson's Story: Surviving Australia's Chilling Crimes and Court Trials

Simon Patterson is at the heart of one of Australia’s most chilling crimes, as the estranged husband of convicted murderer Erin Patterson. 

In this episode, we delve into the tragic story behind this high-profile court case, exploring Simon’s life after the devastating events surrounding a family lunch that went horribly wrong. 

He narrowly escaped death after missing a notorious mushroom meal that claimed the lives of his parents and aunt, which gives us a glimpse into the tragic aftermath of this case. We hear from friends who describe him as a survivor of toxic domestic abuse, and learn about his love for adventure and photography, capturing travels across the globe.

 As the case unfolds in the courts, we investigate Simon’s profound journey, showing the human side of a man entangled in a chilling narrative that has captivated Australia. 

Join us as we examine the unfolding court trials, revealing new insights into this tragic story.

Head to mushroommurdertrialcom to subscribe to the newsletter where I'll share photos related to this episode. Join me for an upcoming interview with John Ferguson from The Australian. You can follow me on social media or support my work through a $5 coffee membership that helps cover editing, studio hire, insurance and equipment.

#TrueCrimeAustralia #ErinPatterson #MushroomMurders #AustralianTrueCrime #CrimePodcast #TrueCrimeObsessed #CourtroomDrama #RealCrimeStories #WomenWhoKill #TrueCrimeCommunity #DeathCapMushrooms #UnderTheMicroscope #TrueCrimePodcasts #AussieTrueCrime #CrimeInvestigation #ErinPattersonCase #PodcastPromotion #TrueCrimeReel #TrueCrimeBreakdown

Chapters

• 0:01 Introduction to Simon Patterson's Story
• 1:27 The Australian Article Insights
• 4:04 Simon's Photography and Travel Stories
• 6:27 Family Life in the Australian Outback
• 9:11 Simon's Role in the Murder Trial
• 10:20 Closing and Support Information

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Hello, it's Lisa and welcome to the podcast about convicted triple murderer Erin Patterson and her murder trial. Before we launch into today's updates, please head to my website mushroommurdertrialcom to subscribe. If you haven't yet, please subscribe to this podcast as well on your preferred platform so you never miss a thing. Also, I'm going to be sending through the photos that relate to this episode on the newsletter tomorrow, so get ready. So today we're going to talk about Simon Patterson, the survivor father, and his life on the beaten track. For someone so central to this most bizarre and tragic case in recent Australian history, simon Patterson has remained remarkably private. Do you blame him? I don't. He's Aaron's estranged husband, the man who was meant to be at that infamous lunch that killed his mother and father and his aunt, but Simon didn't attend. While much of the focus has been on Erin, I want to take a moment to look at Simon, the man behind the headlines, because if you dig a little deeper, you'll find someone who, long before the courtrooms and media frenzy, had a deep love of remote travel, family time and the Australian outback. John Ferguson, from the Australian, had yesterday an excellent article in the Oz about Simon. I won't go into too much detail here today because John's going to be on our show, hopefully this week if I can get hold of the studio. But moving on, this is how John's article in the Oz started. Quote Simon Patterson lost a lot when he married the woman who was a stranger to the truth. Erin Patterson could be aggressive, nasty, vindictive, manipulative and lazy oh my God, she would hate that, can you imagine. But she was also the ultimate contradiction. If you believe the evidence, she could be a good mother, generous at times and bright. The Supreme Court heard. But how can a killer whose legacy is grief across two families and two communities ever be anything but bad? You'll have to excuse me now. It's absolutely pelting rain at the moment. I will try and get rid of most of it, but you'll have to forgive me. Those hardest hit by the murders, the Pattersons and the Wilkinsons, are in the midst of a very difficult recovery process, with experts warning that the post-verdict environment poses unique challenges for anyone.

Speaker 1: 2:50

To some of his friends, simon was a victim of sustained domestic violence from a nasty and unpredictable wife who manipulated situations and the children to maintain power over him. Quote Simon is a very good person, says one friend. He is decent and warm. But Erin, this is not John's article anymore, this is me, but Erin loved to spin a tale in the Facebook group about the man who she originally called Hubby, even though this was 2019 and they had originally split in 2015. Hubby that implies to me connection and regard. I don't know what she was up to there. Maybe it was perception management. Others from the group told me later that Patterson had a very unhappy marriage and she alleged quote coercive control. Looks like someone was giving herself away unintentionally there. In my opinion, to date we don't know a lot about Simon because he's chosen to stay silent, which is his choice, and no one would ever blame him for that but a few things have flown under the radar.

Speaker 1: 4:04

He was a keen photographer who loved to travel to places such as China, iran and Africa. Now his photo blog was deleted, but I'm fortunate that I saved on my iCloud a few things that he had put out publicly, such as photos from China of his dad, don, frozen in time outside a refreshment stand where they made their way to the top of the world. And this is what he said. I've just come back from a trip to China, an amazing country with probably an extreme and a highly photogenic example of about every natural phenomenon there is. My favourite China experience was Mount Everest, beautifully moonlit at night. Standing at the foot of the world's highest mountain is simply incredible. I stood transfixed for about five hours and I couldn't drink it all. In Quote where would you like to go next? He says the Silk Road from far Western China to Turkey would be an amazing journey.

Speaker 1: 5:12

In a blog post titled Australian Outback Adventures the Anne Beadle Highway, simon wrote about taking his family on a 1,350-kilometre journey across some of the most isolated desert highways in Australia. He described now, if you're on YouTube, I put a photo up of a campsite with stars. That's Simon and Erin and their young son. He described the experience of camping under the Milky Way, far from civilisation, pitching tents near an old nuclear test site, though carefully avoiding the radioactive zones. Here's a quote. There's nothing like the peace and tranquillity hundreds of miles from civilisation. It's a real privilege to safely pitch a tent with one's family and enjoy a simple campfire meal in the crisp, clean air. Moreover, he said they were on a corrugated sandy track through the Australian desert and they were moving a corrugated sandy track through the Australian desert and they were moving home across Australia. So that's obviously when they're coming back from Perth. So maybe we're talking 2013, especially when it's a four-year-old child traveling with his dad, even more so when the route goes past old nuclear bomb sites, which continue as an active military testing range to this day.

Speaker 1: 6:36

I'll put this in the newsletter as well. It's quite jarring to see photos of their campsite, their grey four-wheel drive's in the background, and there's three camp chairs set up outside a tent. One is a tiny child's seat. And then Simon writes about playing cricket several times a day with their four-year-old son. This is a man, at least at that time, who found value in simplicity, in unplugging, in watching the stars with his family. It's an image that's hard to reconcile with the horror that would unfold years later.

Speaker 1: 7:09

Ports describes Simon as a quite decent man who is deeply religious. He's respected in his Gippsland community and someone who, after separating from Erin in 2015, tried to maintain civility for the sake of their two children. And yet there were questions. He'd been hospitalised in 2022 with a mysterious stomach illness. He wrote in a since-deleted Facebook post that he'd nearly died and had to be revived many times. In court.

Speaker 1: 7:43

Salmon became a crucial witness. He spoke with visible emotion about his parents and their faith. He confirmed that he'd fully cooperated with the police handing over his devices and their faith. He confirmed that he'd fully cooperated with the police handing over his devices and assisting the investigation. Simon never asked to be at the centre of this story, but here he is a father, a son and a survivor, not just of a toxic lunch but of the fallout that followed. Now it's interesting.

Speaker 1: 8:09

In one of the photo blogs Simon's mentioned in, he describes himself as discovering the truth of things Interesting. He is a very enthusiastic amateur photographer and he wrote about being a volunteer photographer for a small-town community magazine. That might have been the one that Erin coordinated, and so did Don and Gail Patterson, his parents. He was asked to shoot a newly repurposed meeting room. The challenge the room was formerly a public toilet, making it a less than ideal subject. The task came with a tight deadline, just days after he returned from overseas.

Speaker 1: 8:51

He also writes about Namibia, days after he returned from overseas. He also writes about Namibia. He describes Namibia in Africa as a great place for self-driving and camping, with safe, comfortable accommodation. English and German are the common languages and there's affordable food and fuel. Now Simon has a photo here of a self-contained setup with two rooftop tents on their four-wheel drive that they hired in Namibia. He said it was a good way to travel, and they've got bamboo ladders that lead to the tents.

Speaker 1: 9:22

I've just got to say something. I would take my chances with the wildlife rather than camping with Erin Patterson in Namibia, just saying Because she's her own type. She's a predator at the end of the day. So it was a really good place for them to self-drive and camp, and there were supermarkets everywhere and they're full of food for a westerner's palate. Accommodation was safe and comfortable. Simon also mentions that they got a four-wheel drive that had a missing wheel nut, and they had to drive on the flat, lonely desert road in Namibia and attach a spare tire as best they could. So they drove for a fortnight through Africa with one wheel not entirely attached to the car. The wheel never fell off, though, so we learnt in Namibia that attaching wheels via all six nuts is perhaps overrated. So thank you for listening. For more information, go to my website. Make sure you subscribe to the newsletter mushroommurdertrialcom.

Speaker 1: 10:27

I will be speaking with John Ferguson this week, so hope you tune in for that one. Speaking with John Ferguson this week, so hope you tune in for that one my social media. You can follow me there. That's linked in the show notes. And also, if you would like to reward me for all these hours of research and reporting and social media, you can buy me a coffee membership for just $5. And I would appreciate that so much, but only if you can afford it. This money goes towards editing, studio hire, liability insurance, equipment, sound and voiceovers. Plus, there's exclusive membership material on the site just for you that I'm going to update very soon. So thank you so much for listening today. I appreciate it so much and I will speak to you very, very soon. Thank you, goodbye.