​​​Explore the compelling and intimate stories behind Australia's political history, with some of this country's most acclaimed political historians, Chris Wallace and Frank Bongiorno, in conversation with Phillipa McGuinness.

Chris Wallace's Political Lives: Australian prime ministers and their biographers is an intimate history of image-making and image-breaking in national politics. Lively and astute, it takes us into their motivations and relationships, some well-known and some hidden, and in doing so shows us Australian politics in a fresh light.

Frank Bongiorno's Dreamers and Schemers: A political history of Australia is a compelling and comprehensive work, presenting a social and cultural history of Australia’s political life, from pre-settlement Indigenous systems to the present day. From local pubs and meeting halls to the parliament and cabinet; from pamphleteers and stump orators to party agents and operatives – this enthralling account looks at the political insiders in the halls of power, as well as the agitators and outsiders who sought to shape the nation from the margins.

Political historian Dr Chris Wallace is a professor at the Faculty of Business Government and Law, University of Canberra. Wallace was formerly a longstanding member of the Canberra Press Gallery, and her political analysis and commentary currently appears in Nikkei Asia, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The Saturday Paper and The Conversation. 

Frank Bongiorno is the author of three acclaimed histories: Dreamers and Schemers, The Eighties and The Sex Lives of Australians. He is professor of history at the Australian National University and president of the Australian Historical Association.

Phillipa McGuinness is the author of two books, The Year Everything Changed – 2001 and Skin Deep: The inside story of our outer selves and the editor of Copyfight. She has written for The Guardian, the Sydney Morning Herald, Griffith Review, Inside Story, Meanjin and The Weekend Australian Magazine. Previously a non-fiction book publisher, she is currently editor of the State Library of NSW’s quarterly magazine Openbook.

This initiative is proudly supported by the NSW Government through the Culture Up Late Program.