f Crime on the Airwaves: The Carter Brown Mystery Theatre

In the mid-1950s, Carter Brown Mystery books were selling in the millions in Australia; their robust humour and simple plots made them ideal fodder for radio adaptation. The Carter Brown Mystery Theatre did not make a great impact upon Australian radio per se, but it was popular enough to be onsold overseas. This article explores the Carter Brown Mystery Theatre as an exemplar of recuperating an unexplored area of the Australian radio industry: popular crime serials. Finally, it posits a ‘grammar’ of radio.