Article: ‘How long are you meant to pay?’: Craig McLachlan case revisited as partner launches podcast
The court cleared him, audiences back him, so why can’t the performer get work?
Vanessa Scammell keeps returning to the same unsettling question: in the court of public opinion, how long is someone meant to keep paying for an allegation, even after they’ve been acquitted?
Most Australians wouldn’t recognise her name. They don’t need to. Scammell is formidable and accomplished in her own right – an orchestral conductor who works across symphony orchestras, ballet and opera companies – but that isn’t why she has stepped into the public arena now.
She is here because of the man she stood beside when everything fell apart.
His name is Craig McLachlan. Yes, that Craig McLachlan.
After years of working mainly in silence, Scammell will release Not Guilty – The Craig McLachlan Case, a podcast examining the criminal case McLachlan faced, the media coverage surrounding it, and the aftermath of his acquittal.
For Scammell, the decision to finally speak out came after years of watching what she describes as selective interpretations of the court’s findings harden into permanent public judgment.
“There’s been this cherry-picking of the magistrate’s phrases and commentary – cherry-picking of magistrate rulings, I should say – that continues without any understanding or context of those rulings,” she told Mediaweek.
She said the podcast was never about reopening the case, but about addressing what happened after it formally ended.
“We want to move forward. We want to move past all of this and continue with our lives,” Scammell said.
“But he’s been prevented from working by the industry, despite audiences wanting him back on stage.”
Scammell said McLachlan’s exclusion from work is not being driven by public sentiment, but by a small group within the industry.
“We want to move forward. We want to move past all of this and continue with our lives,” she said. “But he’s been prevented from working – not by audiences, but by the industry.”
Life behind the scenes
Scammell and McLachlan have been together for around 15 years. She was present throughout the tour of The Rocky Horror Show and said her firsthand experience of that period sits in stark contrast to how events were later portrayed.
“So I was there for the whole tour. We were together, and I toured with him, staying with him, visiting the theatre unannounced, of course, and the people at the stage door would just let me through anytime I liked. I didn’t have to sign in. I was part of the family,” she said.
She said those experiences shaped her perspective – and ultimately her decision to speak publicly now.
“And that’s why I think my sense of justice is so strong,” she said. “Because it doesn’t add up.”
Scammell said she had long considered writing a book or producing a podcast, but repeatedly felt the timing was wrong – until a recent professional setback brought everything back into focus.
The Cluedo fallout
In September last year, McLachlan appeared to receive the lifeline he had been hoping for, with his casting announced in the national tour of Cluedo.
That opportunity was short-lived.
Within days, McLachlan stepped down from the production following a renewed wave of online backlash. Scammell said the campaign against him intensified rapidly, leaving him once again shut out of the industry.
“It was a very grubby ordeal,” she said. “After the Cluedo fiasco happened, we were let down incredibly.”
In a statement at the time, McLachlan said a social media campaign had begun impacting the production, later describing the backlash as “bullying” in an Instagram post.
“It came from the industry,” Scammell said. “From a small group of people, many who don’t even know Craig, deciding to become the judge, jury and executioner.”
She said the reaction to McLachlan’s Instagram post following his recent withdrawal from the Cluedo stage show (more on that later) underscored that divide.
“That post got 1.4 million views,” Scammell said. “And the overwhelming message was: why shouldn’t he be allowed to go back to work? He was acquitted. Enough.”
According to Scammell, and as evidenced by the comments on the post, the court of public opinion has largely moved on – and is, in fact, behind him.
She said the group continues to wield disproportionate influence over whether McLachlan can return to the stage, despite what she describes as clear public support.
At its core, Not Guilty – The Craig McLachlan Case asks a question Scammell says has been left hanging since the verdict was delivered.
“How does the justice system hold up against social media?” she said. “How long are you meant to pay for an allegation when you’ve gone through the highest court, the highest level of law?”
Why speak now
Scammell said the decision to release Not Guilty – The Craig McLachlan Case was driven by what she sees as the continued misrepresentation of the court’s findings.
“There’s been this cherry-picking of the magistrate’s phrases and commentary that continues without any understanding or context,” she said.
She stressed the podcast was not about retaliation.
“This is not about revenge. It’s not about payback. I’m not interested in that,” she said.
“All I’m asking is to be allowed to tell the story from my side – from Craig’s side – just as the women did eight years ago when they had their moment to tell their story.”
‘How long are you meant to pay?’
Scammell said McLachlan did not urge her to speak out, describing the podcast as a decision she reached on her own.
“He always knew I was planning to do something,” she said. “But believe me, it was never him saying, ‘You need to do this.’”
Each episode will conclude with an unscripted interview segment featuring McLachlan, allowing him to respond at a “very human level,” as Scammell describes.
“My part of it is quite forensic at times,” she said. “But it gives context. Craig provides the human side – because he’s the person it all happened to.”
Ultimately, she said, the series is about due process – and what comes after.
“All I’ve ever asked is for people not to judge unless they know all the facts,” she said.
You can hear and see the podcast here or wherever you get your podcasts, or subscribe below:
