On a lush north Queensland cattle property in April 1942, a strange shape emerging from the clouds caught a woman's eye as she hung up the washing.

A mushroom-shaped cloth attached to a glittering figure was descending from the low-lying cloud cover, the parachutist's feet furiously steering away from the farmhouse. 

Eyewitnesses quickly mounted their horses and rode to the landing site, but the shadowy figure had vanished.

It is a tale that seems almost fictional, one bound to happen far from Australia's shores.

But Australian historian Ray Holyoak from James Cook University has uncovered radar records, police reports and eyewitness accounts revealing evidence of a concerted foreign espionage effort in wartime northern Australia.

Discover more in the link below... https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07-19/historian-uncovers-wwii-spy-tales-in-townsville/105544678