Margaret Daphne Scott (20 June 1934 – 29 August 2005) was an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal A ...

author, poet, comedian, educator and public intellectual.

Background

Margaret, her first husband, playwright

Michael Boddy Michael Boddy (8 March 193413 April 2014) was an English-Australian actor and writer. His best known works include co-writing the play ''The Legend of King O'Malley'' with Bob Ellis. Personal Boddy was born in the village of Baldersby, Yorkshire ...

and her first son, Daniel, migrated to

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

from the United Kingdom in 1959. Two more children, Kate and Marcus, were born in Tasmania. From 1979, she lived with legal scholar Michael Scott and had her final child, Sarah, as well as becoming the step mother to Jane, Christian and Katharine Scott. In 1978, Margaret received her PhD from the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College, one of the university's residential colleges, first prop ...

, and was head of the English department at the university until 1989. She worked at the university for over 25 years, but left to devote herself full-time to her writing career. Her publications include four books of poetry, two novels, a libretto and numerous articles. She became well known in Australia in the 1990s as a regular guest on the television show ''

Good News Week ''Good News Week'' is an Australian satirical panel game show hosted by Paul McDermott that aired from 19 April 1996 to 27 May 2000, and 11 February 2008 to 28 April 2012. The show's initial run aired on ABC until being bought by Network Ten ...

''. She was also known for her activism on environmental issues and human rights. In 1995, a portrait of Margaret Scott by painter

Geoffrey Dyer Geoffrey Dyer (1947 – 7 October 2020) was an Australian artist. He was born and died in Hobart, Tasmania. Career He won the Archibald Prize in 2003 with a portrait of Richard Flanagan. He was a finalist of the 2011 Archibald Prize The Ar ...

was a finalist in the

Archibald Prize The Archibald Prize is an Australian portraiture art prize for painting, generally seen as the most prestigious portrait prize in Australia. It was first awarded in 1921 after the receipt of a bequest from J. F. Archibald, the editor ...

. The prize is awarded for a painting, "preferentially of some man or woman distinguished in Art, Letters, Science or Politics." In 2005, she was selected for the inaugural

Tasmanian Honour Roll of Women The State Government of Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type ...

and received the

Australia Council The Australia Council for the Arts, commonly known as the Australia Council, is the country's official arts council, serving as an arts funding and advisory body for the Government of Australia. The council was announced in 1967 as the Austr ...

Writers Emeritus Award. She died of emphysema. In 2007 the inaugural Margaret Scott Prize for best book by a Tasmanian author was awarded as one of the

Tasmanian Premier's Literary Prizes The Tasmanian Premier's Literary Prizes are literary prizes that are awarded biennially in four categories by the Tasmanian Government. There are two panels of three judges: one for the book prizes, the other for the emerging writers and young wr ...

Bibliography

Margaret Scott publications available at the State Library of Tasmania include: * ''The Baby Farmer'' (1990) * ''The Black Swans'' (1988) * ''Changing Countries : on moving from one island to another'' (2000) * Collected Poems (2000) * ''Convict Trail : Tasman Peninsula and Port Arthur'' (2000?) * ''Family Album : a novel of secrets and memories'' (2000) * ''In the shadows'' reviously published as ''The Baby Farmer''2001 * ''Port Arthur : a story of strength and courage'' (1997) * ''Tricks of Memory : poems'' (1980) * "Uneasy Eden : peace and conflict in a rural community" amphlet(1997) * ''Visited'' (1983) Margaret Scott's poetry has been featured in a number of anthologies including: * ''The best Australian poetry 2004'' (2004) * ''Effects of light: the poetry of Tasmania'' (1985) * ''New music: an anthology of contemporary Australian poetry'' (2001) * ''River of Verse: A Tasmanian Journey'' 1800–2004 (2004) * ''A writer's Tasmania. Vol. 1'' (2000) Recorded programs: * ''The nature of gardens''

our Australian writers explore what gardens mean Our or OUR may refer to: * The possessive form of " we" * Our (river), in Belgium, Luxembourg, and Germany * Our, Belgium, a village in Belgium * Our, Jura, a commune in France * Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR), a government utility regulat ...

– ABC sound cassette (2001) * ''That beauty is better than brains : the debate'' – ABC sound cassette (1994

Awards

Mo Awards

The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known informally as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, that where established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were l ...

), were annual Australian entertainment industry awards. They recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia from 1975 to 2016. Margaret (Maggie) Scott won six awards in that time. (wins only) , - , 1997 , Maggie Scott , Versatile Variety Performance of the Year , , - , rowspan="2", 1998 , Maggie Scott , Versatile Variety Performance of the Year , , - , Maggie Scott , Variety Performance of the Year , , - , rowspan="2", 1999 , Maggie Scott , Versatile Variety Performance of the Year , , - , Maggie Scott , Variety Performance of the Year , , - , 2002 , Maggie Scott , Female Comedy Performer of the Year , , -

Notes

External links

Tasmanian Honour Roll of Women 2005The Write Stuff website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Margaret 1934 births 2005 deaths Writers from Tasmania Australian women poets 20th-century Australian poets 20th-century Australian women writers English emigrants to Australia Deaths from emphysema Writers from Bristol