The gripping courtroom drama surrounding Erin Patterson has transformed ABC’s Mushroom Case Daily into a national podcast sensation. As the accused mushroom poisoner faced trial in Victoria’s Supreme Court, Australians turned to the daily podcast in droves, pushing it up a staggering 136 places to land at #5 overall in the May Australian Podcast Ranker.
With 625,029 monthly listeners and more than 3.3 million downloads, the show is now the ABC’s most successful podcast in a decade. Driven by real-time trial coverage and front-line reporting from Kristian Silva and Stephen Stockwell, Mushroom Case Daily has tapped into the public’s deep fascination with the bizarre and tragic case, where Erin Patterson stands accused of killing three people, allegedly via a beef Wellington laced with death cap mushrooms.
ABC’s Head of Audio on Demand, Jessica Radburn, said the podcast’s rise has been fuelled by strong audience engagement.
“This case is captivating Australia and the world and the ABC has endeavoured to create a responsible and honest portrait of the trial as it unfolds,” she said. “Listeners are incredibly engaged with the show, with our team receiving hundreds of emails daily. I’m very proud that our team has been able to respond to this audience’s need and bring listeners as close to the court experience as possible”.
Podcasting Hits Peak Popularity — Again
Mushroom Case Daily’s meteoric rise helped push Australian podcasting to new heights. According to Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA), 7 million Australians listened to podcasts weekly in May, matching the record-breaking peak set in March. Monthly podcast downloads also soared past 100.5 million, a 10.1 per cent increase from April, and a 7.5 per cent year-over-year jump.
The month’s top podcasts were a mix of self-help, news, and homegrown favourites. SiriusXM’s The Mel Robbins Podcast retained the top spot with 1,034,681 monthly listeners, followed closely by Hamish & Andy with 902,293. Other strong performers included ABC News Top Stories (#3), Mamamia Out Loud (#4), and Shameless (#6), reflecting the public’s appetite for trusted news and relatable storytelling.
In terms of genres, Society & Culture podcasts topped the chart with 5.5 million monthly listeners, followed closely by News (5.4 million) and True Crime (4.7 million) — the category where Mushroom Case Daily made its most significant impact. Sport (4.3 million) and Comedy (3.8 million) rounded out the top five.
Publisher Power Plays
ARN/iHeart held on to its #1 publisher position for the 61st consecutive ranker, drawing in 4.4 million monthly listeners and 23.9 million downloads — up 12 per cent and 8 per cent month-on-month, respectively. Its lineup included standout local titles like The Kyle & Jackie O Show (up 10 places to #7), Life Uncut (#11), and The Daily Aus (#22) which reached its highest listener count on record.
“With podcast consumption hitting record highs, iHeart continues to deliver consistent growth across both local and global titles. From the enduring strength of The Kyle & Jackie O Show to the strong cultural connection and loyalty around Life Uncut and The Daily Aus, our slate connects highly engaged audiences with trusted, premium content. As Australia’s #1 podcast network, ARN’s iHeart offers advertisers unmatched scale and opportunities at every stage of the customer journey,” said Corey Layton, ARN’s head of digital audio.
LiSTNR (SCA) took the top spot in sales representation, reaching 8.6 million monthly listeners across its partner network, which includes SiriusXM, Wondery, DM Podcasts, and NBCUniversal. With six of the top 20 podcasts under its banner, including Mel Robbins, Hamish & Andy, The Imperfects (#9), and Dan Does Footy (#14), LiSTNR continues to dominate the commercial podcasting space.
“LiSTNR’s continued strength in podcasting is driven by our investment in our podcast creation teams and premium partnerships to connect with listeners at scale. To hold the number one and number two ranked podcasts in Australia, with Mel Robbins and Hamish & Andy, along with placing 29 titles in the Top 100 is a clear reflection of that. It’s particularly encouraging to see growth in key genres like Factual over the month of May where we’ve benefited from strong audience interest with both short and long-form storytelling. From a commercial perspective, with our world class AdTech and known audience, the sales team continue to maximise the reach of the LiSTNR Audience Network to lead podcast commercialisation via programmatic and direct revenue streams,” said executive head LiSTNR operations and audience, Grant Tothill.
As Australia’s podcast market continues to evolve, the mushroom murder trial has proven just how powerful, timely, and high-quality storytelling can be, not just for public broadcasters but for the podcast ecosystem as a whole. In an age of endless content, it’s the podcasts that listen closely, report carefully and move with the moment that continue to stand out.
As Patterson’s fate hangs in the balance, Mushroom Case Daily has already delivered its verdict- not in the courtroom but in the court of public engagement.
