Martin Bryant carried out the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, killing 35 people in Australia’s deadliest mass shooting and changing the nation forever. The attack at the historic Tasmanian tourist site shocked Australia and the world as survivors, emergency crews and police confronted scenes of unimaginable violence. The massacre would ultimately lead to sweeping gun law reforms and remain one of the darkest events in Australian history.

On April 28, 1996, visitors at the historic Port Arthur site in Tasmania were enjoying a normal afternoon when gunman Martin Bryant launched one of the deadliest mass shootings in modern history. Armed with semi-automatic weapons, Bryant opened fire inside the Broad Arrow Café before continuing his attack throughout the surrounding area, targeting tourists, staff and passing motorists as panic spread across the site.
Emergency responders and police rushed to Port Arthur as the scale of the massacre became clear. Survivors described scenes of terror and confusion as Bryant moved rapidly between locations, firing indiscriminately at victims. The attack ultimately claimed 35 lives and left many others seriously wounded, devastating families and shocking communities across Australia and internationally.
Following the massacre, Bryant fled the scene before later barricading himself inside a nearby guesthouse, triggering a lengthy police siege. The tragedy led directly to major firearm law reforms across Australia, including the introduction of strict national gun control measures and large-scale firearm buyback programs. Decades later, the Port Arthur massacre remains one of the most significant and traumatic criminal events in Australian history.

Previously unseen police interrogation footage reveals chilling new insight into Port Arthur mass killer Martin Bryant and Australia’s deadliest massacre. Decades after the 1996 attack that killed 35 people in Tasmania, investigators, legal experts and those closest to Bryant revisited the case to examine the mindset, behavior and disturbing psychology behind one of the world’s most infamous mass shootings.

Martin Bryant carried out the Port Arthur massacre in 1996, killing 35 people in Australia’s deadliest mass shooting and changing the nation forever. The attack at the historic Tasmanian tourist site shocked Australia and the world as survivors, emergency crews and police confronted scenes of unimaginable violence. The massacre would ultimately lead to sweeping gun law reforms and remain one of the darkest events in Australian history.