ABC.net
08/09/2006

1.8 million people last night tuned in to watch Who Killed Dr Bogle & Mrs Chandler? on ABC TV, making it the most-watched Australian documentary ever screened on the network, and the most-watched program this year on ABC TV.

Premiering in the new Australian documentary time slot of Thursday 8.30pm, Who Killed Dr Bogle & Mrs Chandler? was the number one program across all networks (five capital cities).

The documentary, produced by Film Australia and Peter Butt's Blackwattle Films, finally provides an answer to one of greatest unsolved cases in Australia's crime history.

The film claims that the mysterious deaths of Dr Gilbert Bogle and his lover Mrs Margaret Chandler, whose bodies were found on the banks on the Lane Cove River in Sydney, was the result of highly toxic gas - hydrogen sulfide.

Who Killed Dr Bogle & Mrs Chandler? did particularly well in Sydney, where one in two viewers watching TV last night, were tuned to ABC TV.

Kim Dalton, Director of ABC TV said, "This has been one of the biggest nights on ABC TV this year. We are looking forward to screening more Australian documentaries with the new funding received from the Federal Government for the specific purpose of making quality Australian drama and documentaries."

Daryl Karp, Film Australia's Chief Executive Officer said, "Peter Butt is an overwhelmingly talented writer, director and producer. He has been making extraordinary documentaries with Film Australia for more than 15 years and has excelled himself with this program. To see it capture the interest of 1.8 million Australians makes us incredibly proud."