Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial

It was a murder trial that gripped New Zealand, and the world.

Pauline Hanna was found dead in a Remuera home she shared with her husband, Philip Polkinghorne, on April 5, 2021.

What followed was a months-long investigation, Polkinghorne charged with murder, a mammoth trial and eventually, an acquittal.

A jury came back with the not guilty verdict in September – a moment that would not be mark the end of this saga.

That’s because on day one of the trial, former Auckland eye surgeon Philip Polkinghorne pleaded guilty to meth charges.

Today, he was sentenced to 150 hours community service – for possession of meth and a pipe.

You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.

This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineers Paddy Fox and Richard Martin.

Heaven's Helpline is a new investigative podcast from the NZ Herald. 

When journalist Murray Jones started looking into the finances of the Mormon church in New Zealand, an intriguing Facebook post alerted him to a much bigger - and much darker - scandal.

From the NZ Herald, Heaven's Helpline is a six-part investigation into how the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints built a system that protects its wealth and reputation – and shields sexual predators from the law. 

Listen to episodes now wherever you get your podcasts. Funded by NZ on Air. 

In the new season of the true-crime podcast, Chasing Ghosts, join NZ Herald senior reporter David Fisher as he re-investigates the case of potentially New Zealand's worst catfisher. After exposing her in 2011, he thought she had learned her lesson, until receiving an email nearly a decade after he last thought about the case.

Listen to episodes now in the Chasing Ghosts feed wherever you get your podcast. 

After eight weeks at the High Court in Auckland, on the first day of the ninth week, the jury has found Philip Polkinghorne not guilty of the murder of his wife, Pauline Hanna. 

For more on how the last day of the trial, NZ Herald crime reporter Craig Kapitan details the decision. 

You can listen to episodes of Accused: The Polkinghorne Trial through The Front Page podcast feed, or find it on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.

This series is presented and produced by, Chelsea Daniels, with producer Ethan Sills and sound engineer Paddy Fox. Additional production support by Helen King. Additional reporting by Craig Kapitan and George Block. 

Week Eight has the Crown and Defence issuing their closing statements.

The Crown alleges that Philip Polkinghorne killed his wife, Pauline Hanna, on April 5 2021.

He maintains she took her own life. 

After the Crown went first, it is now the turn of the defence - led by lawyer Ron Mansfield - to deliver its closing statement.