Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt

40 years after the untimely death of Kelly Tarlton, a team made up of friends, family and marine enthusiasts embark upon an adventure to complete one of his final expeditions.

Hosted by Hamish Williams

Podcast cover with a purple background. At the top, it reads 'Kelly Tarlton’s Final Treasure Hunt' in bold white capital letters. At the bottom is an illustrated red diving mask with directional arrows on the lenses.

Follow this podcast

RSS

Get this podcast straight from the source in the free RNZ app: Apple App Store or Google Play

Meet Kelly

Episode 1
Most people know Kelly Tarlton as the founder of a famous underground aquarium in Auckland. What you may not know is that he was also New Zealand's most successful treasure hunter. 40 years after his death, a tale told on the high seas ignites a quest to complete his final treasure hunt.
Kelly Tarlton was New Zealand's most successful treasure hunter.

Gold, Jewels and Gelignite

Episode 2
Former treasure hunters from Kelly Tarlton’s crew share the outrageous and often dangerous expeditions from around New Zealand's coastline and the world. What do they know about the lost anchor, and can it be found?
I'll it tomorrow

The Voyage of the Saint Jean Baptiste

Episode 3
A French ship on an illicit smuggling mission, a crew dying from scurvy and 125-year-old map to a dangerous island known as New Zealand. Our would-be treasure hunters find out how the anchors of the St Jean Baptiste came to be left on the seabed of Doubtless Bay.
Two scuba divers conduct an underwater survey over a rocky seabed. Both wear black wetsuits and are using measuring tools, with one diver kneeling and the other stretched out horizontally. Air hoses extend upward from their tanks, and the scene is tinted with a greenish-blue underwater hue.

Kelly Tarlton's Underwater World

Episode 4
The final year of Kelly Tarlton’s life saw him forever change the way that aquariums around the world were built. Those who were there share the memories of this achievement and the legacy that’s endured.
I'll add it tomorrow

Anchor Me

Episode 5
Combining the journals of Captain De Surville, the notes of Kelly Tarlton and the stories of past divers, the treasure hunt is about to become submerged. With a crew assembled and using cutting edge technology the seabed of doubtless bay is scoured to rediscover the final anchor of the St Jean Baptiste.
At the time of his sudden death, Kelly Tarlton was on the brink of a brand-new adventure.

The Final Treasure Hunt

Episode 6
Hamish is confronted with a shocking twist in his effort to complete Kelly Tarlton's final treasure hunt. The anchor isn't where it was supposed to be... So where is it?
I'll add it tomorrow

Bonus: We Found It!

Bonus episode
Critical new information is found prompting a one man mission to see if it will lead to completing the treasure hunt.
Blurred image of a rusted anchor underwater

Introducing: Kelly Tarlton's Final Treasure Hunt

Trailer
Kelly Tarlton is widely known as the visionary of Kelly Tarlton’s Underwater World. He was also a highly successful treasure hunter of multiple ship wrecks across the world. 40 years after his untimely death a team made up of friends, family and marine enthusiasts embark upon an adventure to complete one of his final expeditions.

Other podcasts
like this one

More podcasts with similar themes or ideas that you might enjoy.

  • Black and white grainy image of Ross Appelgren (left hand side) and Darcy Te Hira (right handside) with their faces partially obscured by the end of the image. Prison bars appear behind then, with the word 'Nark' in all caps in white with a black strip behind the words.

    Nark

    A prison murder, a jailbreak, and a love story. But is it justice?

  • Image of Kura Turuwhenua, Brett Graham and Ngahuia Te Awekotuku smiling with te reo Maori word "Tukua" in neon blue behind them.

    TUKUA

    Exploring an intergenerational response to arts and cultural events.

  • A podcast cover with a bright blue background, featuring vintage vinyl records with a scratched-out song (physically scratched on the vinyl surface) and scratched-out labels, and the title Not for Broadcast.

    Not For Broadcast

    Exclusive

    Not For Broadcast tells the story of New Zealand’s banned songs.

  • Stylised shapes representing the flow of ideas frame the word "Paewhiri".

    Paewhiri

    Te reo Māori

    A bi-lingual chatcast steeped in te ao Māori.

  • The name of the podcast - Thrift, decorated with stack of coins and a plant

    Thrift

    Looking for wise ways & top tips to beat the cost of living crisis? This is it.

  • Two men face the camera with serious but open expressions. Text reads "Context, Corin Dann and Guyon Espiner"

    Context

    It's the backstory to the front page with Guyon Espiner and Corin Dann.

  • A sharp yellow pencil is placed in the center of a tile with a light grey background. The title 'Recovering' is above the pencil, with an underscore after 'Re'. The Media Chaplaincy New Zealand logo is at the bottom of the tile.

    re_covering

    NZ journalists discuss the one story that impacted them most.

  • Image of a smiling woman with her hands raised in the air in a "praising" style. The words "The Lodge" appear above her hands. Her eyes are covered with a teared page rip across her face and across the image below. There are mountains in the distance behind her. The image is in a purple wash.

    The Lodge

    In a world obsessed with wellness, would you trust a cult to make you better?

  • Witi Ihimaera looks up. Behind him and going over his shoulders is a graphic of water. Centered at the bottom is text that reads: "Witi Underwater."

    Witi Underwater

    Witi Ihimaera throws himself into a full-immersion Māori language course.