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Helen Garner: A Life in Literature

Live Event

Celebrate Helen Garner’s 80th birthday with a far-reaching discussion about life, literature, love and the enduring importance of words. 

To mark one of Australia’s greatest literary figures turning 80, we’re hosting a celebratory in-conversation event chronicling Helen Garner’s life and career. Helen Garner is an iconic Australian figure. Her vast body of work – from non-fiction to fiction and her diaries – has held a significant place in the Australian cultural psyche for decades, earning a legion of dedicated fans at home and abroad. Hosted by beloved Australian actor Virginia Gay, this is your chance to hear a literary great in conversation with none other than super-fan Annabel Crabb, alongside an introduction by Miles Franklin Award-winning author Jennifer Down. Celebrate Helen Garner’s 80th birthday with a far-reaching discussion about life, literature, love and the enduring importance of words. 

This event will be photographed and recorded for use by the Wheeler Centre. The bookseller for this event is Readings.

Event and Ticketing Details

Dates & Times

Saturday 05 November
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM

Location

The Capitol

113 Swanston Street Melbourne Victoria 3000

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Accessibility

Auslan Interpreted

Wheelchair accessible

Accessible toilets available

You can learn more about the Wheeler Centre’s accessibility policies here. Please notify us of all access requirements when booking online so we can assist you with your visit. If you require further information, please contact reception on 03 9094 7800 or ticketing@wheelercentre.com.

Additional Notes

Celebrating rebirth, renewal and rejuvenation, Spring Fling is a short series of big ideas offering a delectable picnic spread of literary experiences with leading thinkers, writers and creators from Australia and abroad.

Spring Fling is supported by the Melbourne City Revitalisation Fund, a Victorian Government and City of Melbourne partnership.   

Featuring

Helen Garner

Helen Garner writes novels, stories, screenplays and works of non-fiction. In 2006 she received the inaugural Melbourne Prize for Literature, and in 2016 she won the prestigious Windham–Campbell Literature Prize for non-fiction ...

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Jennifer Down

Jennifer Down is a writer and editor. Her debut novel, Our Magic Hour, was shortlisted for the 2014 Victorian Premier’s Literary Award for an Unpublished Manuscript. The story collection Pulse Points won the 2018 Readings Prize and ...

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Annabel Crabb

Annabel Crabb is a South Australian-born writer and television presenter who as a university student paid full price for Cosmo Cosmolino in 1992, breaking a solid habit of waiting for new books to arrive at the library. She completed a ...

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Virginia Gay

Virginia Gay graduated WAAPA, then spent four years pretending to be a nurse on All Saints, six months pretending to be cop on Savage River (ABC), and then five years on Winners & Losers, where she pretended to know a lot ...

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