Sydney, Australia 1953, a city in the grip of a deadly crime wave. In just over a year more than one hundred people were poisoned. The shocking truth is that most of the killers were women.

When detectives commenced a murder investigation what they found was so diabolical
that it created a storm of public outrage...women were adding rat poison to cakes and cups of tea and feeding it to their unsuspecting loved ones.

Unlike the popular images of 1950s domestic harmony, Sydney was a melting pot of violence, poverty and tensions between the sexes. In this claustrophobic post-war society, both men and women were trapped in roles that no longer fitted. But there was a way out. With no colour, no taste and no smell, Thallium, the active ingredient in rat poison was the perfect murder weapon.

Recipe For Murder tells the true story of three notorious poisoners; Yvonne Fletcher, Caroline Grills and Veronica Monty. It follows the detectives cracking the cases, the media fuelling the crime wave and the women standing trial. Based on actual courtroom transcripts and newspapers of the time, the program combines gritty archival material with stunning film noir re-enactments and interviews with witnesses, to dramatically reveal the unique ingredients that created a recipe for murder.