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Jenny Hocking

Professor Jenny Hocking is an award-winning biographer, Emeritus Professor at Monash University and inaugural Distinguished Whitlam Fellow at the Whitlam Institute, Western Sydney University. She is the author of three biographies including the acclaimed two-volume biography of Gough Whitlam, short-listed for numerous literary awards including the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, The Age Book of the Year and the National Biography Award, and winner of the Fellowship of Australian Writers’ Barbara Ramsden Award.

In 2016, Jenny commenced legal action against the National Archives of Australia in the Federal Court, seeking access to the secret ‘Palace letters’ between the Queen and the Governor-General, Sir John Kerr, relating to the dismissal of the Whitlam government. In May 2020, in a 6:1 decision, the High Court found in Jenny’s favour, ending the Queen’s embargo over the letters, and paving the way for their release.

Professor Hocking’s latest book The Palace Letters: The Queen, the governor-general, and the plot to dismiss Gough Whitlam tells the story of this remarkable archival research journey and legal battle to secure the release of the Palace letters, and their impact on the history of the dismissal of the Whitlam government. It was published by Scribe Publications in November 2020 with a foreword by Malcolm Turnbull and has been described as ‘a political thriller’, an ‘absorbing courtroom drama’, and ‘vital Australian history’. The Palace Letters was awarded a commendation in the Mander Jones Awards and a Special Commendation in the Henry Mayer Award for best Australian non-fiction in 2020.

jenny hocking

Publications View All


Events

Book Launch: Vinyl Dreams by Tony Wellington

Noosa Arts Theatre 163 Weyba Road, Noosaville, QLD

Noosa Arts Theatre is pleased to host the launch of Tony Wellington’s latest book, Vinyl Dreams: How the 1970s Changed Music. Brimming with beguiling stories and little-known details, Vinyl Dreams...

Book Launch: Failed Ambitions by Lee-Ann Monk and David Henderson

RHSV Gallery Downstairs 239 A'Beckett St, Melbourne, VIC

La Trobe University and the Royal Historical Society of Victoria invite you to the launch of Failed Ambitions: Kew Cottages and Changing Ideas of Intellectual Disabilities. To be launched by Dr Colleen...

Book Launch: Cruel Care by Jordana Silverstein

Muse Ground Floor, East Hotel, 69 Canberra Ave, Griffith, ACT

Jordana Silverstein in conversation with Frank Bongiorno Australia has long grappled with how to treat refugees, particularly children, who come to our country. Cruel Care asks why Australia pursues such...

$10 – $42

Book Launch: Here Be Monsters by Richard King

The University of Notre Dame Australia School of Medicine (Level 3), 38 Henry Street, Fremantle, VIC

We are delighted to invite you to a special event to celebrate the launch of Here Be Monsters by Richard King. In this timely and provocative book, Richard King argues...