FROM the moment Maria Korp was found barely clinging to life in the boot of her car, all of Australia was fascinated.

An average suburban housewife, the 50-year-old Korp had disappeared without a trace four days earlier, leaving her family worried and police baffled.

A security guard at Melbourne's Shrine of Remembrance spotted Korp's car while making his rounds and phoned detectives.

They found her locked in the boot, unconscious, dehydrated and oxygen-starved.

Then the real mystery began.

Just who would have wanted to attack the woman described as "quiet and loving" by her daughter? What would they possibly hope to gain?

As the investigation went on, police started to unravel a story of sex, jealousy and love gone wrong. They found out about a husband living a double life and a lover who had every reason to want Korp out of the way.

While Korp lay in a coma, with doctors unsure if she'd ever wake, more sordid details emerged. Her story made headlines around the country until, finally, two people were dead and murder charges were laid.

"It was a decision I didn't take lightly," actress Rebecca Gibney says of playing Maria Korp in Wicked Love, "because obviously there are still family members around but the script was so beautifully written.

"And, rather than like in most other crime dramas that just follow the police investigation, this focused on the three key people at the centre of things - Maria, her husband and his lover - so you really got an insight into how far people will go for love."

The role is a world away from Gibney's regular job, as Packed to the Rafters' Julie Rafter, with Gibney getting into character - and costume - as the woman who was willing to do anything to keep her husband.

At one stage she appears in suspenders and lingerie, a move she says she found challenging but absolutely necessary.

"I looked completely different and that was great because it really helped to embody the character," Gibney says.

"I wanted to give Maria the dignity that she deserved. When the story came to light years ago, the press tended to focus on the sordid side of things ... I hope people will get an understanding of why [Korp] stayed in the relationship and why she paid the greatest price in the end."

Scott Ellis

Sun Herald