Terra nullius was long ago exposed as a myth – and this was enshrined in law with the Mabo case in 1992.If we acknowledge that Australia was colonised on a lie, then what should we do about it? How d…
Prime ministers inevitably attract media scrutiny and public criticism. But Julia Gillard has had it particularly tough … with some of the fiercest opposition coming from within her own party, and…
This Australian classic follows the lives of two Australian orphans, Caro and Grace Bell, who move
to England in search of a better life. It’s a heartbreaking tale of unrequited passionate longing.Mi…
It’s cold outside, but inside the Wheeler Centre, we’re gathering for four consecutive Mondays of indigenous storytelling.Oral storytelling is almost a lost art in these days of blogs, high-speed…
Dr Chris Sarra is one of the most outspoken and recognised educators in Australia today. He’s experienced many of the issues faced by indigenous students throughout their schooling first-hand –…
It’s cold outside, but inside the Wheeler Centre, we’re gathering for four consecutive Mondays of indigenous storytelling.Oral storytelling is almost a lost art in these days of blogs, high-speed…
Bill Garner – historian, playwright and television writer – is just an ordinary camper with perhaps an unusually dogged curiosity. A casual conversation at Wilson’s Promontory several years ago…
It’s cold outside, but in the cosy surrounds of the Moat, we’re gathering for four consecutive Mondays of indigenous storytelling.Oral storytelling is almost a lost art in these days of blogs…
Western women today enjoy unprecedented freedom and power – but it can sometimes seem to be a game of two steps forward, one step back.Yes, Julia Gillard is our first female prime minister … but her …
The broadcaster, former Monthly editor and indomitable host of our Fifth Estate events series takes her distinctive brand of political and cultural savvy to the new Museum of Australian Democracy at …
When Father Bob Maguire was forced to retire from his South Melbourne parish, the community – and wider Melbourne – was devastated and outraged. Father Bob is an iconoclast, known for his radio and t…
It’s cold outside, but inside the Wheeler Centre, we’re gathering for four consecutive Mondays of indigenous storytelling.Oral storytelling is almost a lost art in these days of blogs, high-speed…
Born to a world without welcome, Isobel observes it warily – an alien trying to pass for a native.
She’s more at ease with imaginary friends than the flesh-and-blood people she meets.Cate Kennedy…
It’s been a tumultuous term in the federal government – and now it’s time for us voters to decide if we’re ready for change. And as we prepare to exercise our democratic duty to vote our government i…
The iconic Australian ideal of the ‘fair go’ is under threat, says Nick Cater.He identifies a new breed of ‘sophisticated’ Australians, who hate corporations, miners and the Murdoch media – as well a…
Les Murray is undoubtedly one of Australia’s greatest living poets – and an international literary legend.The New Yorker has described him as ‘now routinely mentioned among the three or four leading …
Apathy towards rights protections. An underdeveloped rights culture. Opposition to the equal sharing of rights. All these things undermine Australia’s (otherwise good) record on human rights…
Apathy towards rights protections. An underdeveloped rights culture. Opposition to the equal sharing of rights. All these things undermine Australia’s (otherwise good) record on human rights…
The front page of today’s Age pictures a newlywed Altona couple, aged 25 and 27, as examples of the typical Australian, worried about rising costs of living.They earn $130,000 a year between them…
The plucky bravery of the Anzacs is one of our great national stories – it plays into our idea of who we are. But why is one of the touchstones of our identity based on a historic defeat?Some are…
The plucky bravery of the Anzacs is one of our great national stories – it plays into our idea of who we are. But why is one of the touchstones of our identity based on a historic defeat?Some are…
Our Texts in the City series – a gift to students, their teachers and lifelong learners – brings the VCE English and Literature lists to life. This week, we delve into One Night the Moon, Rachel…
We’ve created an Australian Classics book club, just for you – with special writerly guests each month.Last year’s hugely popular Australian Literature 101 set the scene by introducing ten texts our …
We can’t wait to get back on the road again – bringing some of our favourite writers to regional Victoria. We’ll be packing up the car with books and authors, travelling from country to coast … and m…
By Jill Stark What’s the place of alcohol in our lives? When does fun become a habit too hard to break? And how are the culture, alcohol companies, Australian sports and even our friends lined up to…
Studying a book or film can be a short-cut to consigning it to boredom. But our Texts in the City series – a gift to students, their teachers and lifelong learners – brings the VCE English and…
Studying a book or film can be a short-cut to consigning it to boredom. But our Texts in the City series – a gift to students, their teachers and lifelong learners – brings the VCE English and…
J.M. Coetzee is one of the world’s most prized literary treasures – and we’re lucky enough to have him living right here in Australia.The first author to win the Booker Prize twice, he won the Nobel …
We’ve created an Australian Classics book club, just for you – with special writerly guests each month.Last year’s hugely popular Australian Literature 101 set the scene by introducing ten texts our …
What is the role of the modern ambassador? How much influence do they really have? While the days of Argo are probably long gone, so too is a life of garden parties, cups of tea and private clubs…
What is the role of the modern ambassador? How much influence do they really have? While the days of Argo are probably long gone, so too is a life of garden parties, cups of tea and private clubs…
Studying a book or film can be a short-cut to consigning it to boredom. But our Texts in the City series – a gift to students, their teachers and lifelong learners – brings the VCE English and…
We live in the foodie age – where celebrity chefs are the new rock stars. But while organic food is a must-have fashion accessory, obesity and food intolerances are on the rise.But there are good…
Once the Apple Isle, Tasmania’s size and isolation made it the butt of mainland jokes. But those qualities – and its stunning natural environment – are now seen as major advantages. And the buzz…
Sarah Marland is a human rights campaigner, researcher and author. Since 2006, she has worked as Amnesty International’s Campaign Coordinator and Researcher on Indigenous Rights.Using participatory m…
Once the Apple Isle, Tasmania’s size and isolation made it the butt of mainland jokes. But those qualities – and its stunning natural environment – are now seen as major advantages. And the buzz…
Joyful Strains, as the title suggests, is a new anthology exploring the sometimes bittersweet experiences of new migrants to Australia. From the relief of being welcomed to a new homeland, to…
Joyful Strains, as the title suggests, is a new anthology exploring the sometimes bittersweet experiences of new migrants to Australia. From the relief of being welcomed to a new homeland, to…
2013 is an election year and we know that domestic issues will dominate the campaign and decide our next prime minister. But, at a time when the world is confronting major changes, our foreign…
2013 is an election year and we know that domestic issues will dominate the campaign and decide our next prime minister. But, at a time when the world is confronting major changes, our foreign…
Last year’s hugely popular Australian Literature 101 set the scene by introducing ten texts our experts deemed unmissable Australian reading. This year, we invite you on a brand new, leisurely…
We’ve created an Australian Classics book club, just for you – with special writerly guests each month.Last year’s hugely popular Australian Literature 101 set the scene by introducing ten texts our …
Melbourne is famously multicultural – but the past year has proven that racism is also rife.For instance, a VicHealth survey reported 97% of Aboriginal Victorians had experienced racism in the past 1…
Melbourne is famously multicultural – but the past year has proven that racism is also rife.For instance, a VicHealth survey reported 97% of Aboriginal Victorians had experienced racism in the past 1…
In 30 years, Melbourne’s CBD will have another 220,000 new residents. A ‘second CBD’ has been proposed for Melbourne’s west, along with a third runway for Tullamarine airport – and more green wedge l…
Swedish indie songsmith Jens Lekman is renowned for his lyrics; his songs are pure storytelling set to music. Pitchfork has called him ‘one of the most distinct and observant singer-songwriters in…
By Maria TumarkinMaria Tumarkin emigrated to Australia from the former Soviet Union in 1989. She reflects on her memories of ‘being new’, of compulsively doing ‘compare and contrast’ with the old…
The obsession with the perfect diet, germ-free homes, selective socialising, harm minimisation through choice of the correct fabrics, risk minimisation with helmets, knee and elbow pads, stranger…
There has never been more time, energy and thought spent on the raising of babies, toddlers and children – and it is detrimental, counterproductive and narcissistic, argues 1970s parent Catherine…
Michael Leunig is best loved as our wizard of whimsy, creator of quirky characters like Mr Curly, the duck and Vasco Pyjama. Asked how those creations were born, he says, ‘I felt maybe society…
Michael Leunig is a national treasure – one of those rare Australians we recognise by one name only.Leunig is best loved as our wizard of whimsy, creator of quirky characters like Mr Curly, the duck …
Saving the redfinned blue-eye is no great greenie-pinko conspiracy – it just makes sense. It might work, it might not, but I reckon it’s worth a go.
– Dr Adam KerezsyDr Adam Kerezsy is a freshwater e…
In the clash between money and conservation, money usually wins – with devastating results in a land that tolerates few mistakes. Tim Flannery delivers a wake-up call about the consequences of…
In the clash between money and conservation, money usually wins – with devastating results in a land that tolerates few mistakes. Tim Flannery delivers a wake-up call about the consequences of…
It’s the ultimate writing championship! Come see Australian authors go head-to-head in a fearsome battle of wits, words and waggery. Jeff Sparrow, Amy Espeseth, Shane Maloney and Wayne Macauley will …
Five years ago, the tone of discussion about the book industry shifted from ‘confidence’ to ‘crisis’, as online shopping and the emergence of e-books shook up the established ways of doing business.I…
Geordie Williamson, one of our leading literary critics, approaches books and writing with the ardour of an enthusiast – though he’s also alarmed at the way classic Australian literature is falling o…
Geordie Williamson, one of our leading literary critics, approaches books and writing with the ardour of an enthusiast – though he’s also alarmed at the way classic Australian literature is falling o…
What is ‘forced people movement’, or ‘mixed flow migration’ – and where do refugees fit? We use many terms for those people who feel compelled to leave their home country and relocate.Forced…
In the fight against the Japanese during World War II, the most disturbing events endured by the Australian soldiers occurred at Sandakan, in North Borneo.Join Sydney-based historian Paul Ham, as he …
Eleanor Hogan lived and worked in Alice Springs for several years. She came back to urban life with a book, recently published in the New South Cities series, a nuanced understanding of issues like…
Richard Gill has worked in music and education for 50 years – and has never missed a chance to sing the praises of both. In a frank and fearless new memoir that will get tongues wagging, he shares…
Pyjama Party
Event · Sun, 21 Oct 2012
Bedtime stories are a treasured ritual for parents and children everywhere – and not just because they’re the best recipe invented for a good night’s sleep.Mem Fox and Judy Horacek, the much-loved…
Australia has long been haunted by the spectre of ‘cultural cringe’ – nowhere more so, perhaps, than in our arts.But in the globalised new millennium, has all that changed? Have we finally stopped…
Step into a time capsule and go back 20 years … Paul Keating is prime minister of Australia. The Twin Towers dominate New York’s skyline and September 11 is the date of a Chilean coup. Pauline…
Most of the time reading and writing are solitary activities. But this is the night where that changes. This is the night for dinner and celebration with a literary flavour. It’s probably time to…
Most Melburnians know Lily Brett as a literary bestseller, her novels peopled with wisecracking Holocaust survivors obsessed with food and death. But in the swinging sixties, she was a rock…
Charlotte Wood is an Australian novelist whose fourth novel, Animal People, set in inner-urban Sydney, was longlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award this year. It featured a character who had…
Today’s consumer culture persistently uses girls as icons of sexual attractiveness in advertising, film and television. In the nineteenth century, print media did not dare positively associate girls …
It’s the fiftieth anniversary of Lego being sold in Australia – and to celebrate, Lego has commissioned British photographer Mike Stimpson to put together scenes of ten great Australian moments, in L…
For many, multiculturalism has come to mean a flawed approach to integrating migrants. But has it been a failure? Political philosopher and commentator Tim Soutphommasane puts forward his case for…
For many, multiculturalism has come to mean a flawed approach to integrating migrants. But has it been a failure? Political philosopher and commentator Tim Soutphommasane puts forward his case for…
The next American election will decide the future of capitalism, at a time when the global economy and environment – and America’s status as a world superpower – are precarious.On the eve of the…
When Michael Kirby retired from the High Court in 2009, he was Australia’s longest-serving judge. But it’s not his time on the bench that makes him so beloved; rather it’s his long record of human…
Q: What’s as Australian as Vegemite and as American as apple pie? A: The new issue of McSweeney’s, the US literary journal so hip it should be wearing black-framed glasses and riding a bicycle.…
Q: What’s as Australian as Vegemite and as American as apple pie? A: The new issue of McSweeney’s, the US literary journal so hip it should be wearing black-framed glasses and riding a bicycle.…
Q: What’s as Australian as Vegemite and as American as apple pie? A: The new issue of McSweeney’s, the US literary journal so hip it should be wearing black-framed glasses and riding a bicycle.…
David Marr’s Quarterly Essay on former PM Kevin Rudd marked the beginning of the end. Was it a well-timed coincidence, or a body blow he never recovered from? Now, Marr turns his pen to…
David Marr’s Quarterly Essay on former PM Kevin Rudd marked the beginning of the end. Was it a well-timed coincidence, or a body blow he never recovered from? Now, Marr turns his pen to…
Australia’s population has become a political hot potato. With forecasts of 30–40 million people by 2050 and up to 60 million by 2100, Australians are becoming increasingly concerned about the…
Australia’s population has become a political hot potato. With forecasts of 30–40 million people by 2050 and up to 60 million by 2100, Australians are becoming increasingly concerned about the…
In this heated discussion about the benefit and sustainability of economic growth, host Sally Warhaft is joined by risk analyst and author Satyajit Das, and economist, author, and former senior…
Australia is famous for its blokey blokes and strong, silent types. But few men fit the lazy stereotype of being obsessed with beer, babes and balls. In ‘What Men Really Think About…’, we slide…
In the annual Walter Lippmann Memorial Lecture, hear former Federal Minister for Finance andDeregulation, Lindsay Tanner argue that while the mechanical effects of immigration on the Australian…
In 2012’s instalment of the annual Walter Lippmann Memorial Lecture, hear former Federal Minister for Finance and Deregulation, Lindsay Tanner argue that while the mechanical effects of immigration o…
Left Turn
Event · Thu, 21 Jun 2012
In the Australian election of 2010, hundreds of thousands of voters chose not to cast a ballot. A new book of essays, edited by Jeff Sparrow and Antony Loewenstein, and aimed at engaging the many…
Judge John Smallwood is currently the Judge in charge of the County Koori Court which sits in the regional area of the Latrobe Valley. In this presentation, he discusses the concept of the court…
An Incredible Race of People is a highly personal and at times challenging investigation of our politics and industry over many decades: heroes are applauded and pretenders dismissed, urgent issues a…
Expanding on his recent essay for Griffith Review, historian and biographer Jim Davidson examines the complex history of Australia’s relationship with the British monarchy, and the various attempts t…
Leading political journalist Laura Tingle argues that something deep in our culture now amplifies antagonism and complaint. She’s joined in discussion by veteran ABC political correspondent Fran…
Australia seems gripped by a fever of disenchantment. We’ve escaped from the world financial crisis with barely a scrape, yet we rail at the prime minister, whinge about minority government and…
Expanding on his recent essay for Griffith Review, historian and biographer Jim Davidson examines the complex history of Australia’s relationship with the British monarchy, and the various attempts t…
No matter how compelling a novel or a film might be, if you have to study it, there’s always the risk you’ll end up hating it. Not any more! A gift to VCE students, their teachers (and of course…
How does the relationship between Australia and Indonesia work? In the past week Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced that three Indonesian nationals accused of people smuggling – who claimed to…
How does the relationship between Australia and Indonesia work? In the past week Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced that three Indonesian nationals accused of people smuggling – who claimed to…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?With major…
In this special video-only edition of Texts in the City, the Wheeler Centre’s Jenny Niven looks at Collected Poems of Gwen Harwood with Chris Wallace-Crabbe – writer, Australian Poetry chair and…
The Fifth Estate is the Wheeler Centre’s new series of fortnightly forums: a more measured approach to news and current affairs. Provocative and studied, authoritative and unhurried, this is real…
Bad for business, good for ‘struggle street’, sharing the resource boom, hampering overseas investment. This is just some of what’s being said about Labor’s 2012-13 budget.One week on from budget…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
In this instalment of our series exploring seminal Australian texts, host Ramona Koval is joined by writer and academic Susan Sheridan, who presents a lecture on Kate Grenville’s classic novel…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all? If there is, Hilary…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
In our series of lectures and discussions on the classics of Australian literature, Ramona Koval and critic Kerryn Goldsworthy bring Helen Garner’s classic book (later a successful film), Monkey…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
In this major new weekly series hosted by Ramona Koval, running in parallel with the university calendar, contemporary writers speak on seminal Australian texts, giving context, sharing their…
One of the leading Aboriginal Australians involved in the highly controversial Racial Discrimination case that dominated news agendas throughout 2011, writer and activist Anita Heiss charts her…
In this major new weekly series hosted by Ramona Koval, running in parallel with the university calendar, contemporary writers speak on seminal Australian texts, giving context, sharing their…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
Speculation about a change in political leadership seems almost perpetual in Australia—it is a tenuous bargain, with more similarities to street gangs than business enterprises. Glyn Davis…
For the first time in history, humans sit unchallenged at the top of the food chain. To coincide with the publication of the latest Quarterly Essay, Us and Them, Anna Krien investigates the…
Rebecca Starford, managing editor of Kill Your Darlings, writes back to Geordie Williamson’s Long View essay on Australian rural writing and wonders: what does this trend of privileging the rural…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all? In this major new…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
Robert Dessaix has long been one of Australia’s foremost essayists. Also a compelling public speaker, Dessaix brings his trademark eloquence to this leisurely guided tour of his chamber of…
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Australian Writers’ Guild, a major State of the Industry Address will be presented by David Williamson AO, president of the AWG and Australia’s most…
Brilliant in a bust and selfish in a boom – that’s the assessment of ‘the Australian moment’ by one of our most authoritative and independent political commentators. George Megalogenis speaks on…
No matter how compelling a novel or a film might be, if you have to study it, there’s always the risk you’ll end up hating it. Not any more! A gift to VCE students, their teachers (and of course…
No matter how compelling a novel or a film might be, if you have to study it, there’s always the risk you’ll end up hating it. Not any more! A gift to VCE students, their teachers (and of course…
Brilliant in a bust and selfish in a boom – that’s the assessment of ‘the Australian moment’ by one of our most authoritative and independent political commentators. George Megalogenis speaks on…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
In this weekly series hosted by Ramona Koval, running in parallel with the university calendar, contemporary writers speak on seminal Australian texts, giving context, sharing their responses and…
The Fifth Estate is the Wheeler Centre’s new series of fortnightly forums: a more measured approach to news and current affairs. Provocative and studied, authoritative and unhurried, this is real…
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
Novelist Alex Miller and historian Jim Davidson mark the first anniversary of the untimely passing of their friend Hazel Rowley. In the space of just four books, Rowley established herself as one of …
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all? In the debut event of …
Who tells the story of a country? What story does a country’s national literature tell about its people and its identity? Is there such a thing as Australian literature at all?Australians are…
No matter how compelling a novel or a film might be, if you have to study it, there’s always the risk you’ll end up hating it. Not any more! A gift to VCE students, their teachers (and of course…
In The Fifth Estate’s debut event, and in the wake of Kevin Rudd’s challenge to Julia Gillard’s leadership, Lindsay Tanner, former Finance minister and ALP heavyweight, talks with Sally Warhaft…
When the University of Melbourne’s undergraduate course in Australian literature was not offered last year, there was an uproar – not just from the literary community, but from the students…
Publisher Hilary McPhee, editor of celebrated film-maker Tim Burstall’s diaries, explores the impetus to diarise and the appeal of diaries as windows to the past. Burstall’s diaries in particular…
Portable patriotism. (Source: Stephen Barnett/Flickr)
Today, ideas of national identity, patriotism, community and equity come to the fore in the…
In a nice departure from the traditional Australia Day focus on flags and sporting heroes, The Sunday Age has marked the lead-up to the occasion with an editorial decrying our ‘tendency to…
The year in Australian politics was one characterised by tumult, indifference and a degree of soul searching – but there were big changes, too. Julia Gillard succeeded in introducing the
Must-Read Histories is marks the launch of a new website, History Speaks. Fully searchable and interactive, it features Australia’s leading historians discussing historical research, and the place…
In Must-Read Histories — an event marking the launch of the History Speaks website — contributors ‘go live’ to discuss the question: what are the indispensable works of Australian history? Hosted by …
In the last Lunchbox/Soapbox event for 2011, Thomas Keneally spins a tale hatched in his Campsie yard as a child of seven — of racial anxiety, wartime politics and the life and death of White…
The Slap
Video · Thu, 24 Nov 2011
The ABC’s television production of The Slap has been a high note in recent Australian drama. Christos Tsiolkas' eponymous novel has lost none of its sting in its journey from page to screen. In a…
Is the world split between those who want to save the planet and those who want to save themselves? In Quarterly Essay 44, Andrew Charlton exposes the rift that will shape our future: progress…
Is the world split between those who want to save the planet and those who want to save themselves? In Quarterly Essay 44, Andrew Charlton exposes the rift that will shape our future: progress…
(Click to watch video.)
“This year two thirds of all world growth has come out of the developing economies. And we think we can have a debate about the…
Opium dens, illegal brothels, and men with names as colourful as their pasts: our panel uncovers Melbourne’s criminal record. Featuring Shane Maloney, LM Robinson, Andrew May and Jeff Sparrow.Melbour…
(Click to watch video.)
Historian Bill Gammage’s recent Lunchbox/Soapbox event was subtitled ‘How Aborigines made Australia’. In the course of his address, …
Andrew Rule and Tom Noble discuss the truths of true crime. Andrew Rule co-wrote The Age’s ‘Naked City’ (with John Silvester) column for many years and, again with Silvester, co-wrote (and…
Despite their differences, both of our major parties profess to share a common approach to illegal boat arrivals: lock them up and send them somewhere – anywhere – else. But, after years of…
Paul Keating
Video · Sun, 06 Nov 2011
It was the prime ministerial event we had to have. On this special Sunday evening presentation, Paul Keating joined Robert Manne for a conversational marathon, coinciding with the publication of his …
Paul Keating
Event · Sun, 06 Nov 2011
The Wheeler Centre is proud to announce the prime ministerial event we had to have. In this very special Sunday event, Paul Keating will be in conversation with Robert Manne to coincide with the…
Christina Stead, one of Australia’s most important writers, was a master of satire and wit. Stead wrote 15 novels and several volumes of short stories in her lifetime including the acclaimed The Man…
The State Library of Victoria is asking Victorians to help choose a book that describes the Victorian experience and can represent the state in the 2012 National Year of Reading ‘Our Story’ program.U…
Bill Gammage AM is an Australian academic historian. In this Lunchbox/Soapbox presentation, he discusses the mistaken belief that Aboriginal Australians were passive occupiers of the land before…
Alex Miller
Video · Tue, 25 Oct 2011
Alex Miller is the author of ten novels and one of Australia’s most cherished literary greats. To mark the publication of Autumn Laing, he talks about his life and work with critic Geordie…
From the battles for basic civil rights four decades ago, to the overturning of terra nullius and the stolen generations apology, Australian Indigenous activists have achieved much over successive…
High density living is great for the environment, right? But what does it do to our heads and hearts? The Australian psyche was moulded by the myth of the ‘wide brown land’, so what might life…
The Wheeler Centre joins forces with Australian Poetry to celebrate the release of the latest Australian Poetry Journal with a night of readings and discussion. Coinciding with the publication of…
Detail of an image of Kalgoorlie’s super-pit gold mine (the biggest man-made hole in the world) courtesy Kate Raynes-Goldie/Flickr
Journalist Paul Cleary has warned that…
In this Lunchbox/Soapbox, highly respected Australian journalist Paul Cleary expands on his polemic on the insidious effects of Australia’s mining boom.Lunchbox/Soapbox is a simple idea: an…
In this Lunchbox/Soapbox, highly respected Australian journalist Paul Cleary expands on his polemic on the insidious effects of Australia’s mining boom. He takes on our dependence on digging stuff…
Don Watson
Event · Mon, 12 Sep 2011
Don Watson reflects on ten years since the publication of his acclaimed biography, Recollections of a Bleeding Heart.Don Watson was employed as Paul Keating’s speechwriter. On its release, his…
Don Watson
Video · Mon, 12 Sep 2011
Famously employed as Paul Keating’s speechwriter, Don Watson reflects on ten years since the publication of his acclaimed biography, Recollections of a Bleeding Heart. Watson is joined by former…
Julian Burnside has written on the High Court’s decision overturning the government’s Malaysian solution on the ABC’s The Drum. Here’s an excerpt of what he wrote:In the past 15 years, most boat…
“It’s been pretty pathetic all the way through,” said Tasmanian writer Geoffrey Dean, who passed away last week at the age of 80 after half a century of writing short stories. Dean was describing…
Iconic Australian literature doesn’t come much more iconic than For the Term of His Natural Life, the quintessential convict tale. We remember its author: journalist, poet and novelist Marcus…
Iconic Australian literature doesn’t come much more iconic than For the Term of His Natural Life, the quintessential convict tale. We remember its author: journalist, poet and novelist Marcus…
(Click to watch video.)
The Wheeler Centre recently hosted an event in our series, ‘The Late, Great…’, on Ruth Park. Today, as we publish the…
As each name is added to the growing list of Australians killed serving in Afghanistan, the government assures the nation that the sacrifice in lives has been for a good cause and in the national…
In this Lunchbox/Soapbox, author and academic Sarah Maddison tackles the issue of mainstream Australia’s unacknowledged, unresolved guilt over the brutality of white settlement over two centuries…
De Tocqueville claimed that all places “bear some mark of their origin; and the circumstances which accompanied their birth… affect the whole term of their being.” On the day that his new book 1835…
Kerryn Goldsworthy (Adelaide) and Matthew Condon (Brisbane) discuss the culture, architecture, landscape and mood of the cities that have inspired them with Louise Swinn.Presented with the…
“The essay is to prose what the lyric is to poetry; it is intensely personal. It is not a statement of facts, it is not a cold, abstract argument, it is not an inflammatory harangue; it is a quiet…
In this Lunchbox/Soapbox, author and academic Sarah Maddison tackles the issue of mainstream Australia’s unacknowledged, unresolved guilt over the brutality of white settlement over two centuries…
Manning Clark is a giant of Australia’s cultural landscape. His impact and influence on our history and our way of understanding our history constitute a lasting legacy – which is exactly what Clark …
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that Jonathan Franzen, author of The Corrections, has weighed in on a debate surrounding a proposed development of a house in the picturesque waterside suburb of
(Click to watch video.)
According to writer Guy Rundle, in the last couple of years populist attacks on Islam, indigenous Australians, African immigrants…
(Click to watch video.)
We love a sunburnt country – as long as it stays on the far side of a picket fence. We partition our wide brown land into lots of…
Image of a storm breaking over Robinson, an outstation near Borroloola in the Northern Territory’s Gulf country, by Peter Nihill via WikiCommons.
Publisher Simon &…
(Click to watch video.)
Earlier this week we reported on a new campaign by Clubs Australia opposing proposed reforms to pokies venues. As part of the…
Based on his Quarterly Essay, David Marr discusses Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s personality and politics including “Rudd’s passion for martyrs”, how he has “been underestimated at every stage of his c…
