Ned Kelly cover art

Ned Kelly

A Short Life

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Ned Kelly

By: Ian Jones
Narrated by: Paul English
Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £16.99

Buy Now for £16.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

 Author, Ian Jones, acknowledged Kelly authority, shares with us the results of a lifetime's research. For the first time, Ned Kelly truly emerges as a man - a man who hated conflict yet never escaped it. A private man incapable of being ordinary and unnoticed. A man who was seen, even in his own lifetime, as what he represented rather than what he was.©1995 Ian Jones (P)2008 Bolinda Publishing Australia, New Zealand & Oceania Historical Murder True Crime

Editor reviews

Author and screenwriter Ian Jones offers a detailed, in-depth look at bushranger Ned Kelly, a uniquely Australian outlaw celebrated in some circles as a folk hero while condemned as a murderer in others. Listeners fascinated by Ned Kelly and the layers of legend around him will appreciate Jones’ historical research, masterful sense of storytelling, and sympathetic yet even-handed account. Performer Paul English brings a crisp enunciation and lilting accent to the story of one of Australia’s most famous figures, whose words at the gallows - "Tell ‘em I died game" - have become an Australian catchphrase.

Critic reviews

"This is his immense contribution to the Kelly story." (The Age)

"Here at last, the ironclad figure is revealed with striking clarity … This is the best Kelly biography by a country mile." (The Australian)
All stars
Most relevant  
A fascinating story, well told. The narrator's 'Oirish' accents are cringeworthy, but otherwise it is easy listening and the story is compelling.

The making of a legend

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A fascinating book by a writer who is immensely knowledgeable about Ned Kelly and the era. The only negative is when the narrator goes into an Irish brogue that is cringe worthy. The narration doesn't need this caricaturing of an Irish accent - Irish listner

Great book - terrible accents

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
If you are interested in the circumstances that created the outlaw hero Ned Kelly, buy this audio book. The author draws on all available resources to separate the man from the myth. I have to echo the thoughts of other reviewers regarding the poor Irish accents. Despite that, it is well read. This book is a fascinating account of Ned Kelly's life. It also serves to show the difficulties birthing a nation from a British penal colony, used to pacify Ireland.

Ned Kelly the wild colonial boy

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A very detailed telling of the man who was too big for his boots. The friends he had, the explanation of their decisions, in both good and bad, helps open up the legend of Ned Kelly. A man of many flaws, and even more strengths, who would tower over the indignant ending he got.
I appreciate that the story doesn’t attempt to make Ned more than he was. The at times almost saddening details surrounding his life and personality helps build up the man. We all have weaknesses, and flaws, but Ned towered above them, and his legacy is everlasting.
If one likes defiance, determination, and a refusal to let corruption hold you and your peers down, they will love Ned Kelly. I know I do.

Insight into the greatest Australian man to live.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Some of the accents were deplorable.
The author is very biased in Ned Kelly’s favour.
Aussie terms like larrikin and dunny always seem to be slang, but then they appear in a work like this.

A bit too long and academic, and quite biased.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.