Don Watson (born 1949) is an Australian

author An author is the writer of a book, article, play, mostly written work. A broader definition of the word "author" states: "''An author is "the person who originated or gave existence to anything" and whose authorship determines responsibility f ...

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, former political adviser, and speechwriter.

Early life

Watson was born in 1949 at

Warragul Warragul is a town in Victoria, Australia, south-east of Melbourne. Warragul lies between the Strzelecki Ranges to the south and the Mount Baw Baw Plateau of the Great Dividing Range to the north. As of the , the town had a population of 1 ...

in the Gippsland region of Victoria, and grew up on a farm in nearby

Korumburra Korumburra is a town in the Australian state of Victoria. It is located on the South Gippsland Highway, south-east of Melbourne, in the South Gippsland Shire local government area. At the Korumburra had an urban population of 3,639. Sur ...

Academia and early career

Watson studied for his undergraduate degree at

La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 196 ...

and latterly completed PhD at

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university h ...

before spending ten years working as an academic

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

. He wrote three books on Australian history before turning his hand to TV and the stage. For several years he combined writing

political satire Political satire is satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics; it has also been used with subversive intent where political speech and dissent are forbidden by a regime, as a method of advancing political arguments where su ...

for the actor Max Gillies with political speeches for the then

Premier of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembl ...

John Cain John Cain may refer to: *John Cain (34th Premier of Victoria) (1882–1957), Australian politician *John Cain (41st Premier of Victoria) (1931–2019), Australian politician, son of the above *John Cain (lawyer), Victorian Government Solicitor (200 ...

. In 1992, he became Prime Minister of Australia

Paul Keating Paul John Keating (born 18 January 1944) is an Australian former politician and unionist who served as the 24th prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He previously ser ...

's speech-writer and adviser.

Screenwriting

In addition to regular books, articles and

essays An essay is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a letter, a paper, an article, a pamphlet, and a short story. Essays have been sub-classified as forma ...

, in recent years he has also written feature films, including ''

The Man Who Sued God ''The Man Who Sued God'' is a 2001 Australian comedy film starring Billy Connolly and Judy Davis, and directed by Mark Joffe. The film was a financial success, debuting at number one at the Australian box office in the week of its launch. Pl ...

'', starring Billy Connolly and

Judy Davis Judith Davis (born 23 April 1955) is an Australian actress in film, television, and on stage. With a career spanning over 40 years, she has been commended for her versatility and regarded as one of the finest actresses of her generation. Frequen ...

, and '' Passion'', a film about

Percy Grainger Percy Aldridge Grainger (born George Percy Grainger; 8 July 188220 February 1961) was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist who lived in the United States from 1914 and became an American citizen in 1918. In the course of a long an ...

starring Richard Roxburgh.

Prizes and recognition

Watson's historical work in exposing the role of pioneer pastoralist Angus McMillan as a leader of several massacres of Gunai Kurnai people in Gippsland, Victoria, has often been quoted in articles about the man and the massacres. In 2014 ''The Bush: Travels in the Heart of Australia'' was published to critical acclaim for its content and for the beauty and effectiveness of Watson's writing. It won Book of the Year in the

New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards The New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards, also known as the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, were first awarded in 1979. They are among the richest literary awards in Australia. Notable prizes include the Christina Stead Prize for Fiction, t ...

in 2015. ''American Journeys'' was awarded both

The Age Book of the Year ''The Age'' Book of the Year Awards were annual literary awards presented by Melbourne's ''The Age'' newspaper. The awards were first presented in 1974. After 1998, they were presented as part of the Melbourne Writers Festival. Initially, two awa ...

non-fiction and Book of the Year awards in 2008 It also won the 2008 Walkley Book Award. ''Death Sentence'', his book about the decay of public language, won the Australian Booksellers Association Book of the Year in 2008 '' Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM'' published in 2002 was awarded both

and non-fiction Prizes, the '' Courier-Mail'' Book of the Year, the National Biography Award and the Australian Literary Studies Association's Book of the Year. Watson's 2001 Quarterly Essay ''Rabbit Syndrome: Australia and America'' won the inaugural Alfred Deakin Prize in the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards.

Redfern Park Speech

In '' Recollections of a Bleeding Heart'', Watson described his writing of the Redfern Park Speech in 1992, which, he claims, by way of praising Keating for his courage, the Prime Minister delivered without changing a single word. Keating has disputed Watson's authorship, saying the speech developed out of dozens of conversations between them.

Personal life

Watson is divorced from the publisher

Hilary McPhee Hilary Jane McPhee (born 1941) is an Australian writer and editor. She was awarded an Order of Australia for service to the Arts in 2003. Biography McPhee was born in 1941. She is a graduate of the University of Melbourne. She was a foundi ...

. He has an adult daughter from an earlier marriage, and two young children with the writer Chloe Hooper.Konrad Marshall
"Lunch with Don Watson"
'' Sydney Morning Herald'', 3 October 2014. Retrieved 26 September 2016

Bibliography

*''Brian Fitzpatrick: A Radical Life'' (1978) Hale & Iremonger *''Caledonia Australis'' (1984) William Collins *''Story of Australia'' (1984) McPhee Gribble *'' Recollections of a Bleeding Heart: A Portrait of Paul Keating PM'' (2002) *''Death Sentence: The Decay of Public Language'' (2003) *''Watson's Dictionary of Weasel Words: Contemporary Cliches, Cant and Management Jargon'' (2004) *''American Journeys'' (2008) *''On Indignation'' (2008) Melbourne University Press *''Bendable Learnings. The Wisdom of Modern Management''. Sydney, Knopf. (2009) *''Worst Words: A compendium of contemporary cant, gibberish and jargon.'' Vintage Australia (2015) * *''A Single Tree'' (2016) Penguin Australia *''There it is again: Collected Writings'' (2018) Vintage *''The Passion of Private White'' (2022) Scribner

References

External links

Don Watson at Perth Writers' Festival 2010
ABC Big Ideas * Don Watson's author profile a
Penguin Books AustraliaDon Watson at Random House Australia''The Unknown Soldier'' SpeechDon Watson on speech-making in American politics
on SlowTV

MWF session with David Sedaris and David Rakoff

on ABC Radio

Life Matters ''Life Matters'' is a radio program that has been broadcast on Radio National by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by ...

Talking about ''Recollections of a Bleeding Heart''
Romana Koval – ABC Radio * Watch a recording of th
Redfern Address
o
australianscreen online
* The Redfern Address was added to the

National Film and Sound Archive The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia (NFSA), known as ScreenSound Australia from 1999 to 2004, is Australia's audiovisual archive, responsible for developing, preserving, maintaining, promoting and providing access to a national c ...

's Sounds of Australia registry in 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Don 1949 births 20th-century Australian non-fiction writers 21st-century Australian non-fiction writers Australian essayists Australian historians Australian humorists Australian literary critics Australian male dramatists and playwrights Australian male non-fiction writers Australian memoirists Australian political writers Australian satirists Australian screenwriters Australian television writers Australian travel writers Cultural critics La Trobe University alumni Living people Monash University alumni People from Warragul Australian social commentators Social critics Walkley Award winners Writers from Victoria (Australia) Australian male television writers