Rosie Batty: Hope

An intimate discussion about what it takes to get through the very worst of times with Rosie Batty — a woman who has experienced tragedy, who had lost all hope, yet now is intent on finding it again.

On a warm summer’s evening in February 2014, 11-year-old Luke Batty was killed by his father at cricket practice. It was a horrific act of family violence that shocked Australia. The next morning, his mother Rosie bravely stood before the media. Her powerful and gut-wrenching words about family violence galvanised the nation and catapulted her into the spotlight. From that day on, Rosie Batty campaigned tirelessly to protect women and children, winning hearts and minds with her courage and compassion, single-handedly changing the conversation around domestic violence in this country. Rosie’s remarkable efforts were recognised when she became the 2015 Australian of the Year and a year later, she was named one of the World’s Greatest Leaders by Fortune magazine. However, behind Rosie’s steely public resolve and seemingly unbreakable spirit, she was a mum grieving the loss of her adored son.

Following on from her runaway best-seller A Mother’s Story, which detailed the lead-up to her son’s murder, Hope shares what happened to Rosie the day after the worst day of her life and how she reclaimed hope when all hope was lost. She shares her struggles with anxiety, PTSD, self-doubt and self-loathing and how she finally confronted her grief. She shares the stories of those who have inspired her to keep going and given her hope when she needed it most. In this heartfelt and at times heartbreaking memoir, Rosie tells how she found the light on her darkest days and how she found the hope to carry on.

Rosie Batty is a British-Australian family violence campaigner and speaker. After her 11-year-old son, Luke, was killed by his father in a violent incident in February 2014, Rosie became a passionate campaigner on the issue of family violence. She won the Pride of Australia Award in 2014 and was named Australian of the Year in January 2015. She was made an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 2019. Her first memoir, A Mother’s Story, was published in 2016.

An award-winning journalist, Sue Smethurst has written for Australia’s biggest and most respected titles, including The Australian Women’s Weekly, The Weekend Australian Magazine, The Age Good Weekend, New Idea, Woman’s Day and The Herald Sun. Her career has taken her around the globe interviewing a who’s who of celebrities, newsmakers, colourful identities, sports stars and politicians. In addition to her editorial career Sue has worked on and off camera with A Current Affair and Sunrise, and spent five years as a weekly commentator with Neil Mitchell on 3AW.