Ten Pound Poms: Did the Australian dream pay off for British migrants?

Ros Taylor’s exploration of Britain’s postwar identity crisis continues. After the War, Britain was broke and broken. Between 1947 and 1981 over a million Britons left for a new life in Australia, some for just £10 passage. Ros looks at the lives of the ‘Ten Pound Poms’, their conflicted identities, the legacy of the racist ‘White Australia’ policy… and how a country that was once desperate for (white) migrants became a role model for immigration hardliners who wanted a points-based system in the UK.

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• “The ‘White Australia’ policy was designed to keep Australia white and English-speaking… It was Gough Whitlam’s reforms that made Australia more accepting of diversity.” – Prof Catherine Cole

• “The Ten Pound Poms didn’t just change Australia. They’re changing Britain now.” – Ros Taylor

Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Produced by Jade Bailey. Voiceovers by Eliza Davis Beard and Bryan Kassulke. Original music by Dubstar. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Jam Tomorrow is a Podmasters production

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