Bob Hawke's family photo album

Updated

Bob Hawke's grand, vibrant life, seen through his family photos.

I was born in Bordertown, South Australia, a very small country town. I was enveloped by love and concern and it was very sensible love too. I can remember my parents always insisted that I have my say, there was none of this be seen and not be heard. I have always felt indebted throughout my life for the sense of love and security with which I was surrounded as a child.

Mum and dad first met probably when they were 15 or 16 and I think it was 17 when they first went out. Their story very much was a love story. It was passionate, with all the passion and the naivety of youth.

When I arrived at the college in Oxford, there were advertisements on the noticeboard saying there were vacancies for the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve Squadron. I got through the IQ tests and the medical test and the last thing was a colour blind test. He said, 'you're colour blind.' I said, 'don't tell me, I got this far.' He said 'you may be alright if you can distinguish between green and red and white.' So I got one of the spots and there I was... We had a lot of fun.

On Christmas Eve [in India] they put on a big spread for us in the home of one of the wealthy Christians there... there were these big grounds with tables spread out, loaded with food, and I looked out and there at the gates were these poor Indians just looking in. I remember they were singing one hymn that said: the world of Christ we bring, Christ to the world, we bring. And I thought, 'Christ to the world, the world to Christ, there's the world, starving', and I just left. I went back to my digs and got some warm clothing I had and gathered it up and went down to where these kids were lying cold in the streets.

"I the Rhodes Scholarship in the latter part of 1952, and then I was a member of the Australian Delegation of Christian Youth, going to this world conference in India in a village called Kottayam in the southern state of Travancore-Cochin.

"And then on Christmas Eve they put on a big spread for us in the home of one of the wealthy Christians there, and so we turned up and there were these big grounds with tables spread out, loaded with food, and looked out and there at the gates were these poor Indians just looking in. I remember they were singing one hymn that said: the world of Christ we bring, Christ to the world, we bring. And I thought, 'Christ to the world, the world to Christ, there's the world, starving', and I just left. I went back to my digs and got some warm clothing I had and gathered it up and went down to where these kids were lying cold in the streets and so I gave them this stuff and it changed my thinking.

"I lost the whole commitment to the organised church, but the fundamental Christian tenets have remained with me ever since.

"It essentially goes back to what I said about dad's proposition, fatherhood of God, brotherhood of man that we are all brothers and sisters, we all owe a duty to one another and particularly to those who are less fortunate than ourselves. So, those tenets of Christianity remain very much with me."

Bob had this universal, and to some people's minds, irresistible matey-ness. He was extraordinarily exuberant, sometimes pugnacious but always high spirited. And people even then seriously asked the question of this chap who was in his late 20s and had really done nothing much in life, 'Do you think he'll be prime minister one day?' He exuded the idea that politics was sort of at his feet.

When Dad was home that was exciting because he wasn't home much. Whatever time you got with him was considered a bonus, really, because he belonged to everyone else. We knew that we came second; you know, his job was first always.

A lot of the time when he was home he just wanted to flop around and read the papers and not do much, which is fair enough, I suppose, given the rather hectic life he led.

I was asked to go to Papua New Guinea to represent the local officers. On one occasion, I took Hazel and the kids to Port Moresby. They had a marvellous time, they spent their time down on the beach at Moresby and mixed with the local kids and I loved seeing them playing together with them on the beach.

I've known Bob since Caulfield Cup day 1972 and since then, we've had a lot of laughs, a lot of good times, and I love him ... He's pretty soft under it all. Even though he's tough, he's still got his soft side to him.

Dad had classic Labor values. He grew up in the union movement, essentially. It wasn't just a job to him; it was something he believed in.

Bob was an absolutely brilliant prime minister. He touched every leadership base you can think of. He had a very strong sense of policy direction, he was an excellent communicator to the public, the world at large, he was charismatic to go with it and he was a terrific manager of people.

Well Gough and I were pretty direct with one another... at times he was critical of some of the things I said, and I was critical of some of the things he did. But it was a relationship based upon a deep respect we had for one another.

I would like history to talk about Paul and myself in terms of the great things we were able to do together. His ambition to become leader was perfectly justified and in the end he had his opportunity and he did some good things. So I hope history will look at the positives and not the occasional tiffs.

I think the period when mum and dad were in Canberra with dad as prime minister were really good years for our family. It was the beginning of the grandchildren era, and that's a wonderful thing in a family; it brings families together.

In the early years Bob and Hazel played a very significant role in parenting my brother and I and it was an amazing period of our lives. We followed them on their journeys and we were introduced to a lot of the dignitaries that came their way.

Particularly since I lost my mum, we've become extremely close. She's a very funny woman, very loving, very passionate and dad and her are so in love.

Topics: government-and-politics

First posted