Major Les Hiddins of the Australian Army explores Arnhem Land, northern Australia, and learns Aboriginal survival methods. He's on a mission to record the many bush foods and medicines of northern Australia. Les travels to the closed Indigenous community of Ngukurr, where locals share some remarkable bush tucker secrets.

Arnhem Land

Major Les Hiddins uses his Bush Tucker knowledge, his bush craft and his fascination with the past to bring us this final series, 'Stories of Survival'.  In episode 1, Les travels to the West Australian coast where Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith's reputation was damaged following one of Australia's earliest aviation disasters.

The Coffee Royal Affair

The wilds of south-west Tasmania are the dramatic backdrop to this story of cannibalism. A bizarre survival technique used by one of Australia's earliest prison escapees, convict Alexander Pearce.

The Cannibal Convict

How Burke and Wills might have survived. In this episode, Les retraces the famous journey across Australia from south to north by explorers Burke and Wills. If only the men had known about the preparation of bush tucker - particularly Nardo - things might have turned out differently for the ill-fated party.

The Great Misadventure

The best European explorer of Australia. Les follows in the footsteps of the determined explorer John McDouall Stuart, who became the first European to cross Australia from South to North. Stuart also pioneered the overland Telegraph and rail route.

The Best of Them All

Were the first European Australians Dutch? Les follows various clues across Australia to investigate an intriguing report. According to the report, a Dutch colony was set up in Central Australia following a ship wreck on the west coast. If the stories and their dates were true, it would mean Europeans had settled in Australia 100 years before the First Fleet.

The Dutch Settlement

Is there unmined gold in Central Australia? Bush Tucker Man, Les Hiddins traces Lewis Lasseter's 1930s expedition to rediscover what Lasseter claimed was a rich gold reef in central Australia. Les assesses recent discoveries which may shed light on Australia's most intriguing legend.

Gold Fever

In this episode, Les looks at Ludwig Leichhardt's phenomenal journey across northern Australia from Moreton Bay near Brisbane to Port Essington north of Darwin. Leichhardt's early successes were due in part to his botanical observations.

The Passionate Prussian

Taming the country, Cape York Peninsula. Les Hiddins travels to Cape York Peninsula in a manner that contrasts strongly with the cumbersome expedition led by Edmund Kennedy. He shows how a seemingly inhospitable environment can be used to one's advantage.

Into The Vilest Country

Major Les Hiddins of the Australian Army was born in Queensland and was always interested in Aboriginal customs and practices and how those practices helped a people survive in a hostile environment for thousands of years. When he joined the Army he developed this interest into a skill and put it to good use. Learning how to survive in the Australian bush and then to teach others the same skills. He wrote various survival manuals for the Australian Armed forces and added survival notes to the back of maps used by pilots flying over the Australian bush. In this series of programmes Les shares that knowledge with us, teaching us some of his survival skills and his great respect for the Aboriginal people that taught him.

All Episodes of Bush Tucker Man

All Episodes of Bush Tucker Man

Season 1

Arnhem Land

Season 1 Episode 1 - Aired 7/31/1988