On April 26 1915, the day after the dawn landing at Gallipoli, Sapper Duncan McRae (2nd Field Co. of Engineers) was shot in the shoulder by a Turkish sniper. He was evacuated to Egypt and from there to a military hospital in England. Unfortunately it was
Read more →
THE WORST TOURIST IS A TINY ONE During the off-season, invading armies of visitors withdraw from the museums and galleries of Europe to be replaced by assault squads of schoolchildren. I find them more alarming than bag snatchers. They knock people over and make a great deal
Read more →Well last week I went on a holiday to Tasmania in search of two special little girls called Ellie and Ash. My elderly guardians Pauline and Rob are their great auntie and uncle. I reckon this might make me their adoptive fourth cousin thrice removed. OK, so
Read more →
WIRE IN THE BLOOD Growing up on a small farm in Tasmania, I often felt that the whole place was held together with barbed wire and binder twine. Most of our fences were made of wire and wooden ‘droppers’. My sister and I quite enjoyed collecting snagged
Read more →
Let me say at the outset that my darling mother was the most gentle, kind hearted person you could hope to meet. However, she did have a penchant for filling our heads with the most terrifying information imaginable. We kids were both fascinated and appalled. Her stories
Read more →
OH I DO LIKE TO BE BESIDE THE SEA! I grew up near Ulverstone, a seaside town on the north west coast of Tasmania. Boxing Day was traditionally beach day. During the nineteen fifties we were still without a car, and travelled the four miles (8km) from
Read more →
DAYDREAMS I was raised on a small dairy farm near Ulverstone, on the north west coast of Tasmania. Many would consider this an idyllic childhood, and in retrospect it was. However, owing to a steady diet of American comic books I eventually longed to be anywhere else
Read more →
A TOUR OF TASMANIA VIA ITS MAGICAL CAVES After an absence of many years, my partner Rob and I returned to Tasmania, where we both grew up. While we were staying on the North West Coast we went to see Gunns Plains caves. My first visit was
Read more →
OLD MEMORIES LINGER! I grew up on a hilltop farm in Tasmania….next stop ANTARCTICA! In winter, biting winds and sleet often prompted my father’s diary entries to begin, “Very rough day!” No wonder we appreciated my mother’s ‘comfort cooking’ ; rabbit pies, rich beef stews, pastries and
Read more →MEMORIES FROM OLD COOKBOOKS We all become a bit nostalgic around Christmas time, especially when it comes to food. One of my favourite photos is of my mother Myra making Kiss Biscuits with her grandchildren back in the 1980s. Katey and Graeme now have children of their
Read more →