Blinky Bill, Chapter 3: Naughty Escapades

Blinky goes exploring, and finds more than he bargained for! 

Blinky Bill was first published in 1933, and as such it contains material that might be outdated, inaccurate or offensive, as well as material that would now be considered quite dark for children’s fiction. Aside from language that Madame Magpie is personally uncomfortable using, the text has been left as it was originally published. There is no bad language, but below is a list of potentially distressing content that appears in this episode:

• Mentions of death/culling and taxidermy: "Now, we are so rare that we have become a curiosity, something to be put in zoos, for children to see; and actually in museums. I believe our grandparents sit there in glass cases, stuffed with something inside to make them appear alive, and, oh dear, glass eyes. In New South Wales, I think we could wander for miles from one corner to another and never meet a koala. I don't know why we were all killed. As you know, we don't eat the farmers' crops or ruin their orchards. All we asked for were our own gum-trees."
• Mentions of spanking: "Oh, you naughty cub. Where have you been? Just wait until you climb up the tree--"
  "Don't smack me, mother," Blinky whimpered. "I'll never run away again."
  Bit by bit he climbed the tree, all the time imploring his mother not to spank him. He was so long in reaching the branch where Mrs Koala and Mrs Grunty and Snubby were waiting, and they were so pleased to see him safely home, that Mrs Koala forgot to spank him. 

Blinky Bill was written and illustrated by Dorothy Wall, first published by Angus & Robertson in 1933. Sound effects are from Zapsplat, Epidemic Sound, Pixabay, Soundly and Dylan Barfield.

All images are made by Josh Dykgraaf using Dorothy Wall's original illustrations. Madame Magpie is a creation of Alix Roberts. Narration and character voices by Alix Roberts.

Madame Magpie’s Bedtime Stories are recorded and edited by Alix Roberts (aka Madame Magpie) on the lands of the Wurundjeri and Bunarong Peoples of the Kulin nation. Madame Magpie acknowledges the rich and extensive history of storytelling among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and pays her respects to past and present elders of all nations.