AUSTRALIAN TRUE CRIME –

The Widow of Walcha is a shocking true story that involves a mysterious death, love and lies in the small NSW town of Walcha.

In 2017, locals were rocked by the mysterious death of a wealthy and much-loved sheep farmer, Mathew Dunbar, who signed over his multimillion-dollar property to his new partner, Natasha Darcy, just months after meeting her.

“Don’t forget you need to change your will”, the 46-year-old had texted Mr Dunbar.

In June this year a NSW Supreme Court jury found Darcy guilty of murdering Mr Dunbar. She had adopted a false name to source animal sedatives and blended them with a cocktail of other drugs in a NutriBullet before gassing him with a party balloon helium canister. In a stranger than fiction twist Darcy’s estranged husband – who she had once been accused of trying to kill – was the first paramedic on the scene.

Police later uncovered hundreds of Google searches made by Darcy in the lead-up to Dunbar’s death, including ‘toxic wild plants that look like food’, ‘how to commit murder’ and ‘can police see past web history’.

Journalist and author Emma Partridge travelled to the cool and misty town of Walcha in the months after Mr Dunbar’s death, drawn by the town’s collective worry that Darcy was going to get away with murder. Partridge spent months researching this shocking case, interviewing Mr Dunbar’s friends, mother and Darcy herself in an attempt to uncover her sickening web of lies and crimes.

The story of one of the most extraordinary criminal trials in Australia’s history, The Widow of Walcha takes you inside Darcy’s twisted mind and her shocking history of crimes against her partners.

The Widow of Walcha is a shocking true story about death, love and lies in the small NSW town of Walcha. All farmer Mathew Dunbar ever wanted was to find love and have a family of his own. That’s why the much-loved grazier didn’t hesitate to sign over his multi-million-dollar estate to his partner, Natasha Darcy, just months after meeting her. ‘Don’t forget you need to change your will’, 46-year-old Natasha texted Mathew. After ensuring she was the sole beneficiary of his estate, Darcy adopted a false name to source animal sedatives, which were later blended with a cocktail of drugs before she gassed the 42-year-old with a canister of helium on his property, Pandora. In a stranger than fiction twist, Natasha’s estranged husband – who she was once charged with trying to kill – was the first paramedic on the scene after the murder. Police later uncovered hundreds of Google searches made by Natasha in the lead-up to Mathew’s death, including ‘toxic wild plants that look like food’ and ‘the science of getting away with murder’. Following a two-month trial in the NSW Supreme Court, a jury found Natasha guilty of murdering Mathew in June 2021. Journalist and author Emma Partridge travelled to the cool and misty town of Walcha in the Northern Tablelands of NSW in the months after Mathew Dunbar’s death, drawn by the town’s collective worry Natasha was going to get away with murder. Partridge spent months researching the case, interviewing Mathew’s friends, family and Natasha herself in an attempt to uncover her sickening web of lies and crimes.

• 371 pages : 24 cm #140225