Martha Rendell Hanged 1909 | Guilty OR Not Guilty YOU Decide

Name: Martha Rendell Hanged 1909 | Guilty OR Not Guilty YOU Decide
Start: 2026-05-17T12:00:00+08:00
End: 2026-05-17T12:00:00+08:00
Location: Old Courthouse Fremantle

About

Martha Rendell: Song, Story & Judgment
Within the walls of The Old Courthouse Fremantle, a woman condemned speaks again.

Told though haunting folk songs and stark storytelling.
Martha’s story is revealed through competing truths.
Hers, the police, and the courts, leaving the judgment with you to decide…
Guilty or Not Guilty!

Martha Rendell | Executed 1909 Fremantle Prison | Murder
Date: Sunday 17th May
Time: Noon (please arrive around 11.45am)
Venue: Old Courthouse Fremantle
Cost: FREE
Duration: 60 mins

Booking link for the SHOW
Whilst the show is FREE, we ask you to book in for numbers, as we have a capacity limit in the event room at the Old Courthouse.
Booking link for the show: - https://www.trybooking.com/DJIZI

We’ll also leave room for walk-ins if you decide on the day to attend.

Booking link for LUNCH
We invite you to stay for lunch / drink, which is at your own expense.
If you’re having a meal, it’s best to book a table, our show will finish at 1pm
The details including their menu and booking link are here: -
https://oldcourthouse.com.au/bookings

About MARTHA RENDELL
Martha Rendell (born in England in 1871) migrated to WA in the late 1890s and later formed a relationship with Thomas Morris, who had several young children.
Between 1906 and 1907, Morris’s children began to fall ill and die one by one. Rendell was charged with murder.
She was convicted of killing at least one child.
Despite maintaining her innocence, she was hung at Fremantle Prison in 1909.
Her case shocked the state, drew intense media attention, and sparked lasting debate about guilt, motive, and the harshness of justice in early 20th-century.
Debate today asks, “Did we hang an innocent woman”.

Ashlea Reale Folk Singer/Songwriter.
Ashlea has performed at folk festivals across Australia and in the UK, captivating audiences with performances that feel part campfire confession, part true-crime ballad. Over the years, she’s collaborated with a range of musicians to breathe new life into old, forgotten tales. On stage, Ashlea’s storytelling comes alive. Her performances are raw, magnetic, and impossible to look away from, the kind that draw a hush over the crowd one moment and have them leaning forward the next. With every word and every note, she holds her audience in the palm of her hand, weaving tension, truth, and emotion into something that feels both intimate and electrifying.

Sharyn McCaskey Curator, Storyteller.
Sharyn has a respect and love for sharing stories, and a lifelong passion for history, especially Australian Colonial. She is clear and passionate; you’re engaged from the first word. She maintains you die three times, when you die, when you’re buried and the last time someone says your name, her mission is to continue to say those names. Sharyn has curated several history exhibitions, including Doing the Bolt which connected convicts to bushrangers, now on permanent display in Jerilderie NSW. Sharyn was a tour guide at Fremantle Prison for 5.5 years. She has travelled to numerous countries researching, exploring, photographing, filming and writing history, she has visited every main historical site in Australia, numerous times.

This show is written by Ashlea Reale and Sharyn McCaskey and is performed with thanks and as part of the Fremantle Heritage Festival