Australia Florence Broadhurst, 78, Murdered, Paddington, Sydney, 1977

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Florence Maud Broadhurst (28 July 1899 – 15 October 1977) was an Australian painter and wallpaper and fabrics designer as well as a businesswoman. She was murdered in the Sydney suburb of Paddington, New South Wales and the perpetrator has not been apprehended.

Broadhurst was bludgeoned to death with a large piece of timber in her Paddington studio on 15 October 1977. The murder was never solved, but there has been some speculation that Broadhurst was a victim of English Australian serial killer John Wayne Glover, who was convicted of murdering six elderly women on the Sydney North Shore district between 1989 and 1990, and is thought by police to have been responsible for other deaths.[5]

In Gillian Armstrong's Unfolding Florence: The Many Lives of Florence Broadhurst, friends and employees of Broadhurst stated that they believed the killer may have been known to her and that the motive may have been financial. This was due to the presence of two cups of tea near her body, suggesting a meeting or appointment, and the killer's apparent knowledge of her factory's layout.

Florence Broadhurst - Wikipedia

I just bought a mug with one of her designs on it, from Big W and that's what reminded me of her unsolved case.

 

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Almost half a century after designer Florence Broadhurst's gruesome murder, her granddaughter breaks her silence

The murder of the influential wallpaper designer in her Sydney factory in 1977 remains unsolved. Now her granddaughter wants answers.

www.abc.net.au

Wallpaper designer Florence Broadhurst's granddaughter breaks silence 46 years after her unsolved murder​

 

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Australian Crime Stories S04E04 Killing Florence​

 

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New to me, the designer and the crime.

May 18, 2014
Florence Broadhurst created a design legacy, which is embraced today. The rich combination of her various 'lives', travels and personas combined with the rich, highly distinctive design library and fabulous product make fertile ground for compelling retail promotions and consumer experiences, as well as a wonderful script for a romantic Hollywood film. Delve into the extensive archive with us as we reveal the decadent selection of stylised flowers, textured graphics, traditional tapestries and dramatic abstracts and the vast array of high end products that boast her style and creative designs.

 

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I was just thinking the other day and feeling sad that someone got away with killing her.

 

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ABC Radio National

02 | Florence: a murder still unsolved

13th December 2025

Here is the link to Part 1 Florence: A life papered over – Part 1
Sat 9 Nov 2024

Florence: A life papered over – Part 1 - ABC listen

She’s one of Australia’s most prolific and popular designers, and yet not many people know her name, let alone her audacious life story. Florence Broadhurst was from regional Queensland but people who met her later in life, thought she was English aristocrat. She reinvented herself many...

www.abc.net.au

In a shocking and brutal end to a colourful life, Australian wallpaper designer Florence Broadhurst was murdered in her Paddington studio on the 15th of October, 1977.

So who was suspected of this crime and why is the case still unsolved to this day?

Please listen with care - this episode contains graphic content.

29 Minute Audio

02 | Florence: a murder still unsolved - ABC listen

In a shocking and brutal end to a colourful life, Australian wallpaper designer Florence Broadhurst was murdered in her Paddington studio on the 15th of October, 1977. So who was suspected of this crime and why is the case still unsolved to this day? Please listen with care - this episode...

www.abc.net.au