There was a time when Australia seriously considered having ‘the bomb’. For two decades a small but powerful group of politicians and bureaucrats lobbied for Australia to have nuclear weapons. They became known as the ‘Bomb Lobby and by the late 1960s they had their wish. As the Cold War deepened, the Australian Government took the first steps down the path a nuclear weapons program.

The decade had started with the Cuban missile crisis and ended with the bloody and ongoing conflict in Vietnam. In between China had become a nuclear state, Indonesia had swung in and out of communist rule and Britain had announced its military withdrawal from Asia.

In the eyes of the Bomb Lobby, Australia was at its most vulnerable just as communist states in the region were considering atomic weaponry. The red tide of communism was spreading through South East Asia and before long, if not checked, could be on Australia’s doorstep armed with atomic weapons. Add to that their argument that Australia could no longer rely on her traditional allies and you have a heady mix of fear and fission.

To mark the 30th anniversary of the end of the Cold War, this program recounts a little known chapter in Australia’s history told by the people involved. Using archival recordings from the ABC, declassified cabinet papers, and the National Library of Australia’s Oral History Collection, James Vyver brings us the story of how the Bomb Lobby gained and wielded its power.

Guests: