Evdokia Petrov, flanked by two Russian couriers, is escorted to the plane at Mascot Airport. 19 April, 1954. Image courtesy of Gary O’Callaghan (second from left).

Gary O’Callaghan at Mascot airport. Courtesy of 2SM and Garry O’Callaghan. Click icon to play 130k audio file

Rarely does a political event capture a nation’s imagination like the Petrov Affair. Fifty years ago the Petrov Affair dominated Australia’s headlines. For months Australians devoured stories of espionage and charges of political conspiracy.

The defection of the Petrovs came to be regarded by Western intelligence services as one of the most important of the Cold War era. The Petrov Affair had a profound and lasting impact on the Australian political landscape, with the Labor Party Split a direct consequence of the events of 1954-1955.

Join us in this exploration of the people and events surrounding the Petrov Affair…

Michael Bialoguski, doctor, classical violinist, Polish emigre and part-time ASIO agent, code name ‘Diabolo’.

Photographer – Ern McQuillan. Image courtesy of the Mitchell Library. State Library of New South Wales.

The Petrov Affair was played out against the background of the Cold War – the rivalry that developed during the second half of the twentieth century between countries espousing different political ideologies. The Cold War was characterised by mutual distrust and suspicion.