Scotch College

OSCA Veterans Luncheon

Featuring author Roland Perry (’65)

Topic: “Monash: The Outsider Who Won a War”

All members of the Scotch Family are invited to join all OSCA War Veterans for lunch on Friday 5 November in the Scotch College Cardinal Pavilion.

Roland Perry (’65) has had a distinguished career. He was at Scotch from 1959 to 1965. He began his writing career as a journalist on The Age Melbourne from 1969 to 1973. After five years in England making documentary films, he had his first book, a novel – Program for a Puppet published in 1979. It was an international best seller that was translated into several languages. It allowed Perry to work full-time as an author. He has since published 17 books, several of them international best sellers, and in a variety of genres, from biography to espionage, politics, sport and fiction.

He has written biographies on General Sir John Monash (Monash: the Outsider Who Won a War), Australian KGB agent of influence Wilfred Burchett (The Exile) and British espionage agent Victor Rothschild (The Fifth Man). Next year he will publish a third book on espionage: Last of the Cold War Spies, about the American member of the Cambridge University Ring of Russian spies. Perry covered three US Presidential elections as a journalist from 1976 to 1984. His political books include Hidden Power – the programming of the President, an investigation into the election and Presidency of Ronald Reagan. For apparent light relief, Perry has also written a biography of Mel Gibson.

Perry’s other two novels are Blood is a Stranger and Faces in the Rain.

He has written several bestsellers on cricket. They include Bradman’s Best, which reveals Sir Donald Bradman’s best ever cricket team; the definitive work on Sir Donald Bradman, The Don; biographies on Shane Warne (Bold Warnie) and Steve Waugh (Waugh’s Way). His Captain Australia, a History of the Celebrated Captains of Australian Cricket, profiles every Australian captain.

Perry, Melbourne born and based, lived 12 years in London and one in New York (1980), from 1973 to 1985. He is single with one son. Perry has an Economics degree (majors in Economics, politics) from Monash University (1972), and won the Frederick Blackham Exhibition Prize in Journalism at Melbourne University (1969).

Roland will be speaking about his recent book – Monash: The Outsider Who Won a War. John Monash was the finest commander of World War One. Yet at times he had more trouble with those on his side than he did in fighting the Turks at Gallipoli and defeating the Germans in a series of battles that decided the War. In reaching the top of the Australian army – the biggest corps of the war – he had to overcome what he called his ‘handicaps of birth’ – being a Colonial part-time soldier with German Jewish parents.

Monash: The Outsider Who Won a War reveals for the first time his relationships with those who would bring him down, including Australia’s prime minister, Billy Hughes, the country’s most influential journalists, Keith Murdoch and Charles Bean, and other powerful figures who clashed with Monash or resented his rise against all odds.

Author Roland Perry further draws on hitherto unpublished information from Monash’s intimate diaries and letters to chronicle his long relationships with the three main women in his life: his wife Vic, and two lovers Annie Gabriel and Lizette Bentwitch.

The biography also exposes one of the most mysterious stories in Australia’s history when one man, Monash, stood between democracy and anarchy. His power as a military commander caused many influential figures to urge him to lead a coup that would overthrow the Federal Government.

The powerful narrative of this brilliantly researched book reaches to the heart of an extraordinary character, making comprehensible the claim that Monash was the greatest Australian. It weaves together his exceptional life as a romantic, Renaissance man, engineer, lawyer and soldier.

A tour of the School will be conducted from 11.00. The Old Scotch Square, including plaques to all OSCA War Veterans, will be a feature of this tour.

Date: Friday 5 November

Time: 12.00 for 12.30pm

Venue: Boykett Room, Cardinal Pavilion, Scotch College

Price: $40 per person

Tickets are strictly limited so please contact Sue Mackay on 9810 4346 or by email at events@scotch.vic.edu.au to reserve your place at what promises to be an outstanding event.