‘Not broken’: Madeleine West on going public with secret childhood sexual abuse in new Predatory podcast

Aussie star Madeleine West has appeared on television just hours after revealing her secret childhood sexual assault trauma in a new podcast. Warning: Distressing content

Madeleine West has appeared on The Sunday Project, just hours after the launch of her new podcast in which she talks publicly for the first time about years of childhood sexual assault that happened more than three decades ago.

The Neighbours and Underbelly actor was emotional, as she said she wanted to be visible publicly on the day her story came out.

“I think one of the greatest difficulties we have in prosecuting paedophiles is victims feel obliged to stay silent because they feel so ashamed,” she said.

“And I felt today, of all days, when this story came out, I needed to be visible. I needed to be seen going about my business, earning a living, making some jokes, being a mum.

“A little bit bruised and battered, certainly, but not defeated. And not broken. And not to blame for what happened to me when I was a very small child. It happened to me. It doesn’t define me anymore.”

Madeleine West appeared on The Sunday Project talking about the new Predatory Podcast series. Picture: Ten Play

And she revealed that after years of trying to escape the child she was, even to the point of dyeing her hair, she had returned to her original colour.

“It’s only now that I can look at that photo and look at that little girl – you might have obviously noticed I’m going back to blonde, which is my natural colour – I can look at her and say, you were never to blame. It was never your fault. This was done to you. You are more than this,” she said.

West was sexually abused from the age of five to 10 years by a “monster” who lived in the same town. He assaulted her “many, many times”, for some periods it was a daily occurrence.

For legal reasons, the Neighbours and Underbelly actor cannot reveal more detail about the attacks.

But breaking her silence is more than just personal – she is now on a mission to encourage others to speak out and help put offenders behind bars.

Madeleine West as a child. Picture: David Caird

West has teamed up with high-profile former police detective Gary Jubelin for Predatory, an eight-part podcast exposing the taboo subject of child sexual abuse.

LISTEN TO EPISODE 1 OF THE PODCAST BELOW:

While the bulk of the first podcast is dedicated to West and her story, they also speak to child sexual abuse survivors and campaigners calling for a national public child sex register and changes to laws to fairly compensate victims.

Madeleine West and Gary Jubelin. Picture: David Caird

They also speak with child sex crime detectives and explore how the face of predators and paedophiles has changed – leaving children and their parents more vulnerable.

“The sheer number of people who’ve reached out to me from the beginning of this process to say, ‘it happened to me,’ is mind-blowing,” West told The Sunday Project.

“The topic is uncomfortable because the idea of anyone preying on a child in that manner is so uncomfortable. But it’s happening. In numbers much greater than we want to think. It’s happening not overseas or far away. It’s happening in our schools. In our towns. In our very backyards. We have an obligation to do something.”

Predatory is available with a subscription and features expert advice from police and cyber safety experts, exclusive video interviews and award-winning journalism.

Originally published as ‘Not broken’: Madeleine West on going public with secret childhood sexual abuse in new Predatory podcast