
David Williamson
Writing
Biography
David Keith Williamson, AO is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays.
Known For

Hosted by Hamish Macdonald, Q&A puts punters, pollies and pundits together in the studio to thrash out the hot issues of the week. It's about democracy in action - the audience gets to ask the questions.
Q&A

A young Australian reporter tries to navigate the political turmoil of Indonesia during the rule of President Sukarno with the help of a diminutive photographer.
The Year of Living Dangerously

When a Nordic Airlines flight to the USA is hijacked, a team of Swedish investigators must race against time to unmask the mysterious hijackers before they bring the airplane down or the US military shoot it out of the sky.
Hostage

Two Australian sprinters face the brutal realities of war when they are sent to fight in the Gallipoli campaign in the Ottoman Empire during World War I.
Gallipoli

The world has finally managed to blow itself up and only Australia has been spared from nuclear destruction and a gigantic wave of radiation is floating in on the breezes. One American sub located in the Pacific has survived and is met with disdain by the Australians. The calculations of Australia's most renowned scientist says the country is doomed. However, one of his rivals says that he is wrong. He believes that a 1000 people can be relocated to the northern hemisphere, where his assumptions indicate the radiation levels may be lower. The American Captain is asked to take a mission to the north to determine which scientist is right.
On the Beach

A couple move to Sydney from Melbourne, and soon become lured by the bright lights of the big city. Colin, the scriptwriter husband, is corrupted by his editor and then falls for the girlfriend of his writing partner, while Colin's wife Kate begins to lose sight of her ideals in a new world of hustlers and cynics.
Emerald City

As Indonesia prepares to invade the tiny nation of East Timor, five Australian based journalists go missing. Four weeks later, veteran foreign correspondent Roger East is lured to East Timor by the young and charismatic José Ramos-Horta to tell the story of his country and investigate the fate of the missing men. As East's determination to uncover the truth grows, the threat of invasion intensifie
Balibo

As Australian cinema broke through to international audiences in the 1970s through respected art house films like Peter Weir's "Picnic At Hanging Rock," a new underground of low-budget exploitation filmmakers were turning out considerably less highbrow fare. Documentary filmmaker Mark Hartley explores this unbridled era of sex and violence, complete with clips from some of the scene's most outrageous flicks and interviews with the renegade filmmakers themselves.
Not Quite Hollywood

An old captain & his young wife share a lot of adventures after they're shipwrecked and captured by Aborigines on an island near Australia.
The Adventures of Eliza Fraser

The final years of the Philippines under Ferdinand Marcos' rule, from the assassination of Benigno Aquino, Jr. in 1983 to the People Power EDSA Revolution in 1986 that ousted Marcos. The film focuses on American TV journalist (Gary Busey), who finds himself in the middle of key events that lead to the downfall of the Marcos regime.
A Dangerous Life

Phar Lap, the big bold chestnut reigned as the king of the turf in the depression that gripped Australia of the 1930s. From his humble beginnings the New Zealand bred horse raced on to become the hero of a nation.
Phar Lap

Susy Conner accuses former employer, Gary Fitzgerald, of harassment and unfair dismissal for failing to comply with his sexual demands. Relating the incident to conciliation lawyer, Marion Lee, Susy comments that the trauma experienced should entitle her to a compensation payment of $40,000.00.
Brilliant Lies

Scripted by four of Australia’s greatest authors (David Williamson, Thomas Keneally, Hal Porter and Craig McGregor), this quartet of carnal desires explores adultery and jealous fantasies, the end of innocence, the moral and spiritual conflicts of a priest and a nun in love. The stories define the exploration of women and the cultural upheaval of the early 70s.
Libido

A middle aged man, Ray Martin, faces a series of problems – his wife is cheating on him, his mistress wants to get married and Americans want to take over his toy business.
Duet for Four

Stork is a gangly young man, a virgin with an overactive imagination who thinks he’s a revolutionary. Bored with a design job at General Motors Holden in Melbourne, he drops out and moves into a share house with his mate Westy. He daydreams his way through life, bungling job interviews, upsetting ‘respectable’ people, and getting drunk. The only girl in the house, Anna resists Stork’s advances, because she’s already involved with the other two resident males, Tony and Clyde. But when she becomes pregnant and Clyde and Anna decide to marry, Stork, Tony, Clyde and Westy are shocked when they realize that either one of the foursome could be the father. Then the fun begins....
Stork

The world has finally managed to blow itself up and only Australia has been spared from nuclear destruction and a gigantic wave of radiation is floating in on the breezes. One American sub located in the Pacific has survived and is met with disdain by the Australians. The calculations of Australia's most renowned scientist says the country is doomed. However, one of his rivals says that he is wrong. He believes that a 1000 people can be relocated to the northern hemisphere, where his assumptions indicate the radiation levels may be lower. The American Captain is asked to take a mission to the north to determine which scientist is right.
On the Beach

Travelling North tells the story of Frank, a crotchety old man with an unending zest and passion for life and Frances his much younger companion travelling to Queensland to enjoy their retirement and each other. Unfortunately the North cannot calm Frank's complex personality and Frances watches helplessly as Frank struggles to understand his own emotional and physical limitations.
Travelling North

For two brilliant young athletes - Roger Bannister of England and John Landy of Australia - the 1952 Helsinki Olympics present an exciting challenge. But events help set them on the path to something even more memorable than an Olympic gold medal - the race to break the four-minute mile....
The Four Minute Mile

Kate McLelland's life is a normal one of a girl her age in the eastern suburbs, until her discovery that she is adopted. This is the story of her search for her natural mother and the resulting relationship.
Touch the Sun: Princess Kate

An adaptation of David Williamson's play; John Hargreaves and Peter Cummins star as a good and bad cop who assist a battered wife as she tries to escape her belligerent husband.