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  • Australian Story Lady Jane/The Good Sport (Season 2, Episode 14)
  • TV Episode | 27 min | Documentary, Biography

Australian Story

Lady Jane/The Good Sport (Season 2, Episode 14)
TV Episode | 27 min | Documentary, Biography
Lady Jane: Racehorse trainer Gai Waterhouse introduces the story of "Lady Jane" - Jane Slack Smith the twenty six year old girl from the bush who has become the first woman qualified to run an open cut coal mine in New South Wales. She ...See moreLady Jane: Racehorse trainer Gai Waterhouse introduces the story of "Lady Jane" - Jane Slack Smith the twenty six year old girl from the bush who has become the first woman qualified to run an open cut coal mine in New South Wales. She earns $100,000 a year and when she's not in grubby overalls deep underground, she listens to Beethoven, owns a racehorse and does fund raising for the Royal Blind Society. The coalminers in the Hunter Valley dubbed her Lady Jane because of her flaming red hair and her posh private school background. Her parents, who breed thoroughbred racehorses on a farm outside Dubbo, were horrified when she first chose to take up mining engineering. So why did she want to work underground? Because, she says, she'd been told she couldn't do it. Until 1989 it was actually illegal for women to go underground in New South Wales and one of her university lecturers had said "women shouldn't be in mining". At first she met a lot of resistance. Some men refused to work with her and their wives were hostile too. But in time, Jane won acceptance and became a sort of unofficial counsellor and social worker among the miners, helping to organise things like open days for families. Now she's making her way up the corporate ladder at Ulan Mines near Mudgee in the Hunter Valley. As a graduate, she was always destined for management, but she has just spent ten months on the nightshift as one of the regular crew on the coalface. This is a profile of a truly remarkable and very engaging, young Australian woman on the cutting edge of social change. PLUS: The Good Sport: The story of Bill Brown, who along with Sir Donald Bradman is the last survivor of the famous Australian Ashes team of the 30's. Now in his eighties, Bill remains the embodiment of the old sporting virtues of modesty, fair play, and team spirit. See less
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Status
Edit Released
Updated May 17, 1997
Release date
May 17, 1997 (Australia)
Awards
Series awards
9 wins & 12 nominations

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3 cast members
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