Melbourne Postcard

Though I set most of my fiction abroad, I love my hometown of Melbourne. So I was delighted to be invited to contribute a ‘Melbourne Postcard’ for ABC Melbourne radio’s The Friday Revue, hosted by Richelle Hunt and Brian Nankervis:

Melbourne Postcard is a chance for us to share stories about our city. Each week The Friday Revue invites a different guest to read a short letter with a connection to Melbourne.

I chose to address my postcard to my paternal grandfather Les Savage, known as ‘Father Bear’ (I have written about Bear previously on this blog, here and here, for example). As it turned out, my Melbourne Postcard went to air within a week of the 35th anniversary of his death.

Father Bear and me in 1981; although unsmiling because of the braces on my teeth, the photo captures the closeness of our relationship (& the ’70s obsession with weird crocheted things)

My postcard begins,

Dear Father Bear,
There are lots of things about Melbourne that have changed for the better since you left us 35 years ago, like the laneways and lorikeets, accessible trams and the Melbourne Museum.
But there’s one change you’d never have gotten used to: the fate of your beloved Fitzroy Football Club.

You can read the rest and/or listen to me read (and sing!) my postcard here.