Wodonga Regional Lecture: Spirit of the Digger

Tuesday 20 May 2014 - Mr Patrick Lindsay The Anzac spirit forms the bedrock of the Australian and New Zealand national characters. It was forged from a mateship which grew into something greater than the shared experiences of brothers-in-arms. The Gallipoli Campaign was a kind of crusade and a national rite of passage for three of the countries involved:  Turkey, Australia and New Zealand.  Each emerged from the devastating losses with an enhanced international reputation and its image clarified in its national consciousness. Patrick Lindsay is one of Australia’s leading non-fiction authors. He spent 25 years as a journalist and TV presenter before he began writing full-time in 2001. Since then he has written 20 books, including the best-sellers, The Spirit of Kokoda, The Spirit of The Digger, The Spirit of Gallipoli, Fromelles, Our Darkest Day, Cosgrove …Portrait of a Leader, The Coast Watchers and True Blue. Much of his work explores the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle that makes up what it means to be an Australian.  He sees the Anzac Spirit as a key piece of the puzzle.