Freda Stark (left) had many lesbian relationships throughout her life. She met actress Thelma Trott (centre) in 1933 and the pair became lovers. The relationship continued after Thelma married conductor Eric Mareo (right), and Freda was a regular guest in the couple's home. Thelma Mareo died in 1935 as a result of poisoning and her husband was convicted of her murder. The intimate relationship between the two women was exposed during the trial. Listen to Stark, in later life, describing her relationships with married women and an occasion when Eric Mareo found her in bed with Thelma.

Sound file courtesy of the Oral History and Sound collection, Alexander Turnbull Library.