Eurydice Dixon’s family speaks about her horrific murder
EURYDICE Dixon, whose body was found in a Melbourne park, had a difficult past which included a heroin-addicted mother who died in a shopping centre.
THE family of slain comedian Eurydice Dixon has broken its silence about her tragic death after she was murdered while walking home from a stand-up gig in a Melbourne bar.
Ms Dixon’s great uncle, Eric Dixon, told 9 NEWS that she “was blossoming” prior to her death in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
“You see these things on TV but all of a sudden it’s in your family — the whole stark reality,” he said of the 22-year-old.
Ms Dixon was reportedly in high spirits following a successful performance of a new comedy routine at the CBD’s Highlander Bar on Tuesday night. She finished the gig with her partner of four months, Tony Magnuson, over a knock off drink before leaving the venue around 10.40pm, grabbing some food at a nearby store, and heading home.
“She was happy and content. She gave me a hug, blew me a kiss and said she was going for a walk,” Mr Magnuson told Fairfax Media of his final moments with Ms Dixon before they parted ways at Flinders Street Station.
“She was on top of the world because her gig went so well.”
Nearing her house in North Carlton, as she walked through a park, Ms Dixon pulled out her phone and messaged Mr Magnuson around midnight.
“I’m almost home safe, HBU [how about you],” she wrote to him on Facebook just after midnight. But Ms Dixon never made it.
A few hours later, her body was found just 900 metres from her home by a passer-by in Princes Park at North Carlton. She had been raped and murdered.
Police are closely guarding the details of Ms Dixon’s final hours. They have not confirmed a time or cause of death.
Jaymes Todd, 19, of Broadmeadows, has been charged with her murder and police believe the two had no previous connection.
Mr Todd — who went to Hume Secondary College but didn’t finish high school — will reappear in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court in October. His father Jason Todd told said his family was in shock and offered Ms Dixon’s family “our deepest condolences”.
“We’re all as appalled as the rest of society,’’ he said.
FOOTAGE EMERGES OF COMEDIAN’S FINAL GIG
On Thursday, video footage emerged of Ms Dixon performing her final comedy gig at the Highlander Bar just hours before she was killed.
The footage was posted on Twitter by Ms Dixon’s friend Paula Ferrari, who recorded the show at the city’s Highlander Bar, on June 12.
“Beautiful, clever, funny Eurydice Dixon at her gig at Highlander last Tuesday. RIP,” Ms Ferrari posted with the video.
Ms Dixon was a regular act at the venue where she had that night debuted her latest material.
The clip shows the up-and-coming comic on stage performing a set in which she joked about gender equality and feminism. In a place where people had come for good times and laughs, the notion that Ms Dixon’s life would come to a horrific end on her way home was unthinkable in that moment.
“I have a bit of a tendency to worry a lot — about things I shouldn’t worry about,” Ms Dixon said as she opened her routine.
“Sometimes I worry, am I going to wake up in a slave society? You know, just girly things! Just normal s**t, right?”
She joked about robots overtaking the world in the future and pointed out that it would at least achieve gender equality.
“I’m trying to be more optimistic, so I’m like: ‘A slave society … that means no one has any rights — we’ll finally have gender equality’. Equally s**t — still equal,” she said, drawing laughs from the audience.
Her final words to the crowd were, “All right that’s all I want to try, thanks!” before she walked off stage — completely unaware that within hours she’d never have the chance to perform again.
EURYDICE’S TRAGIC FAMILY PAST
Up until now, much has been said about the young woman’s blossoming career in stand-up, but little light has been shed on the tragic family life which reportedly brought the darkness to her unique brand of black comedy.
The Australian reported that Ms Dixon was just seven years old when police knocked on her front door to announce that her mother, Karen Walters, had been found dead in a Brunswick shopping centre.
Ms Walters had battled a heroin addiction for 10 years.
After the young mother died, it was left to her partner Jeremy Dixon, an “anarchist”, lawyer and political activist, to raise Ms Dixon and her younger brother on his own.
They lived in a commission flat in Parkville — a stone’s throw from where Ms Dixon’s body was eventually discovered.
Comedian Kieran Butler told The Australian about the first time he saw Ms Dixon perform stand-up. It was at a little club in Richmond and she had never tried comedy before. He became her mentor.
“She was young, like 19, and she was talking about subjects that nobody talks about when they’re 19,’’ he explained.
“She had a f**king hard time (growing up). By her own admission she was a strange sort of unit. And so she got bullied and she had a tough life at home. There’s been tragedy in her past.’’
BACKLASH OF COMEDIAN’S SENSELESS MURDER
The death of Ms Dixon this week sparked a public debate about the safety of women.
Premier Daniel Andrews took to social media on Friday to urge women to not change their behaviours.
“Go about your day exactly as you intend, on your terms, because women don’t need to change their behaviour. Men do,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
In a few days, women across Melbourne will hold a vigil in Princes Park for the life of Eurydice Dixon. They will do so firm in the knowledge that Eurydice died because of her attacker's decisions – not because of her own. They're right. And we need to accept that fact, too.
— Daniel Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) June 15, 2018
It's a tiny consolation about a man's murder of Eurydice Dixon to see the ferocious pushback against the victim-blaming garbage from police and media about "staying safe". Men don't let women be safe anywhere.
— Bernard Keane (@BernardKeane) June 14, 2018
A male is victim to a random 'one punch attack' on a night out and the whole Sydney CBD nightlife is shut down, venues closed and strict lockout laws put in place. In cases like #EurydiceDixon women are told to be more careful and have "situational awareness". #RespectWomen
— Alison Banney (@alisonbanney) June 15, 2018
Victoria Police issued a statement to “reassure the community that they can go about their usual business”.
“As police, it is our role to provide people with both reassurance but also tips on how we can all stay safe in our community,” it read.
But Police Minister Lisa Neville and Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp admit they did not always feel safe themselves.
“I want to be able to be safe in my community, I want to be able to walk through the streets, I want to be safe at home and unfortunately that’s not the case,” Ms Neville told reporters.
Victoria Police along with counsellors from the Red Cross and Victorian Council of Churches offered support services at the park where Ms Dixon’s body was discovered from 10am to 2pm on Saturday.
“People should be able to walk home at night without being in fear,” Acting Commander David Clayton said.
“And offenders need to be held to account for their behaviour.”
Red Cross volunteer Kathy Cooney said many locals were upset by Ms Dixon’s death and may need support from family or friends.
“This park is very well loved by people, and they’re thinking this place where they felt very safe has changed for them,” Ms Cooney said.
A vigil has also been organised for Monday evening at Princes Park, aimed at reclaiming the public space where Ms Dixon was found.
Meanwhile, Melbourne’s comic community has rallied together to pay tribute to Ms Dixon, with comedian Chris Franklin posting on social media that a memorial will be held at the Highlander Bar, where she performed the night she was killed.
More than 1000 people, including a number of comedians, have also raised more than $55,800 in two days on crowd-funding platform GoFundMe for Ms Dixon’s family.
— With AAP
megan.palin@news.com.au | @Megan_Palin
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