Trail Off Tuesdays: The Man Who Mailed Himself Home

Have you ever felt so desperate to get home that you'd try anything? Probably not as desperate as Reg Spiers, the Australian javelin thrower who, in 1964, packed himself into a wooden crate and mailed himself from London to Australia when he ran out of money after failing to qualify for the Olympics.

We dive into this extraordinary tale of desperation and survival as Reg constructed a simple 5x3 foot wooden box, equipped with only the barest essentials: a torch, blanket, some food, and water. The audacity of his plan was matched only by its dangers. For five excruciating days, Reg remained curled in darkness, unable to move, stretch, or even use proper bathroom facilities as his crate traveled across continents.

The journey nearly ended in tragedy when his human-carrying cargo was left baking on the tarmac in Bombay under the scorching sun. Inside his wooden prison, each breath became more labored than the last as oxygen dwindled and temperatures soared. By his own admission, just a few more hours would have been fatal. Yet somehow, Reg survived to complete his journey to Perth, where stunned customs officials discovered this human package and a legend was born.

Subscribe to Trail of Tuesdays for more unbelievable but true stories that make you wonder if they really happened. And if you enjoyed this episode, leave us a review, just don't try mailing yourself anywhere! :)

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:22

Welcome back to Trail of Tuesdays, the little side path of Cloutrelle, where we wander into the strange corners of history. Today's story, it's about a man who mailed himself home. Literally, he packed himself into a wooden crane, addressed it and trusted the postal system to deliver him across the ocean. It sounds impossible, but it really happened. Our story begins in the 1960s with Reg Spears, an Australian athlete. He was a javelin thrower talented enough to compete internationally. So in 1964, reg travelled to England to try for a spot in the Olympic team.

Speaker 1: 1:26

But things didn't go to plan. He actually missed out on qualification and, worse, he ran out of money. So he was now stuck in London with no way home. He had no ticket, no savings and no sponsorship. Most people in his situation might have gone to the embassy, borrowed from friends or taken whatever job they could find. But no, reg had a different idea. His plan was fairly simple what if he posted himself? The idea wasn't entirely new. You see, back in the early 20th century, when parcel post first started, there were stories of parents mailing their children shorter distances because it was cheaper than buying a train ticket. Distances because it was cheaper than buying a train ticket. But mailing yourself across continents. That was something else.

Speaker 1: 2:34

So Reg got down to business and started working out the logistics. First he didn't need a big enough box with air holes, some food and water. Then he would need to arrange for the crate to travel as air cargo, loaded into a plane bound for Australia. And lastly, he'd need to keep perfectly still for the journey. No bathroom breaks, no stretching and no standing up. It was very risky, uncomfortable and potentially deadly. But it was cheap and that was his goal. So Reg built himself a wooden box and in October 1964, he climbed into his makeshift crate, which measured about 5 feet by 3 feet. It had just enough room to curl up. He packed himself a small torch, blanket, some food and a bottle of water. Then the box was labelled and loaded as air freight at Heathrow airport, destination Third, western Australia.

Speaker 1: 3:59

At first everything went smoothly but, as you can probably guess, it didn't last. The journey was anything but direct. Cargo was reshuffled at every transfer, flights were delayed or rerouted without notice and the crate, unmarked and anonymous, was treated like any other piece of freight. To the handlers it was just another wooden box amongst thousands, stacked, pushed and rolled across concrete floors. Then the crate arrived in Bombay, where the cracks really began to show.

Speaker 1: 4:43

His crate was offloaded and left sitting on the tarmac under the blazing sun. And left sitting on the tarmac under the blazing sun. From the outside it looked harmless enough a box left in heat waiting for the next flight. Workers passed it without a second thought. But inside it was a different story. Each breath came shallower than the last. The air was unbearable. Each breath came shallower than the last. The air was unbearable. Each breath came shallower than the last. Sweat soaked his clothes and the wood pressing in around him as the hours dragged on. It was a slow, suffocating prison. A few more hours and the journey would have ended there. Red survived it, but only just After five long days in transit.

Speaker 1: 5:38

Five days curled in darkness, barely able to move. The crate finally reached bird. When customs officials pried it open, they weren't expecting to find a man inside, but out climbed Reg Spears, dusty, his clothes, damp with sweat, but alive. For a moment there was only stunned silence. Then came the disbelief, the questions and eventually the headlines. Within hours the story was out A man who had posted himself across the world in a wooden box. The newspapers couldn't resist. They dubbed him the man who posted himself home. They dubbed him the man who posted himself home.

Speaker 1: 6:38

Legally, his punishment was almost laughable compared to the ordeal. He received a fine for travelling without a ticket. But the attention was enormous. For a brief time, reg was a minor celebrity, known less for his athletic career but more for the audacity of mailing himself halfway across the globe and surviving, to tell the tale. Now you might think Reg would have settled down after such a stunt, but his life was anything but quiet. He later became involved in drug trafficking and served prison time. His great stunt was daring, but it was just one chapter in a turbulent life. Still, the story of mailing himself home has outlived all the rest. It captured the imaginations because it was so strange, so bold and so absurdly simple. He didn't have money for a ticket, but he had a box, some nails and an idea. That's the story of Reg Spears, the man who mailed himself home. Trail of Tuesdays is where we wander into the odd, the unbelievable and the stories that make you shake your head and wonder did that really happen? Until next time, stay curious. Thank you you.