This Month
Designer Perri Cutten remembered as ‘a pioneer of Australian fashion’
Known for giving Australian women a unique sense of style, Perri Cutten blazed a trail for designers who came after her.
Vale Gwen Robinson, intrepid journalist who could tame huge egos
The Asia expert was known for her network of contacts, bold reporting and extraordinary kindness to young journalists and anyone needing help.
March
Polarising and beloved, George Foreman sold us on his authentic self
He squeezed so many lives into his 76 years that some of his greatest admirers didn’t know him as a boxer.
George Foreman, ageless heavyweight boxing champion, dies at 76
US George Foreman, one of the great second acts in sports who reclaimed the heavyweight boxing title after coming out of retirement, died on Friday at age 76.
Donald Williams, Platypus Asset Management’s co-founder, dies at 59
The former star stock picker started the boutique funds management business in 1998 and stepped down in 2016 due to health reasons.
February
Pills found as police probe deaths of Gene Hackman and wife
An investigation is underway into the deaths of the 95-year-old actor and his pianist wife who were found dead alongside their dog in their New Mexico home.
‘Believable’ Gene Hackman was Hollywood’s consummate everyman
The actor never fit the mould of a Hollywood movie star but became one by playing seemingly ordinary characters with deceptive subtlety, intensity and charm.
January
Marianne Faithfull, pop star and Jagger muse, dies
The fresh-faced, feather-voiced 1960s pop star went from girlfriend of Mick Jagger to a homeless heroin addict, only to re-emerge as an acclaimed cabaret singer.
David Lynch, visionary filmmaker, dies at 78
The one-time painter broke through in the 1970s with the surreal Eraserhead. He rarely failed to startle and inspire audiences and critics in the decades after.
December 2024
Jimmy Carter was right about America, but nobody listened
“Too many of us now tend to worship self-indulgence and consumption,” he said in his famous 1979 speech.
Jimmy Carter, Nobel-prize winning US president, dies at 100
He lived longer after his term in office than any other leader of the nation. He also earned a reputation as a better former president than he was a president.
Manmohan Singh, leader who unleashed India’s economy, dies
The Oxford and Cambridge-educated former prime minister paved the way for the transformation of the South Asian nation’s economy.
November 2024
Vale Tom Hughes: Distinguished last cab off the rank
A giant of Australian law, reforming attorney-general and a powerful behind-the-scenes figure, Tom Hughes leaves behind a remarkable legacy.
Vale ‘one of a kind’ economist Geoff Carmody
Access Economics co-founder Geoff Carmody worked on economic policies for John Hewson, John Howard, Kim Beazley, Mark Latham, Tony Abbott and Steve Bracks.
October 2024
Leading financial reformer Percy Allan dies aged 78
Allan worked under some of the most prominent political figures in NSW, including Labor premiers Neville Wran and Bob Carr, and as a key reformist under Liberal premier Nick Greiner.
Ethel Kennedy, passionate supporter of the family legacy, dies at 96
The widow of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and a popular and vital force in the Kennedy political dynasty, died from after suffering a stroke last week.
September 2024
‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Downton Abbey’ star Maggie Smith dies
The 89-year-old actress was a shining star in a generation that included Judi Dench and Vanessa Redgrave.
What giving four eulogies in four years has taught me
If you’re called upon to praise the departed, resist the temptation to deliver an obituary. Recount your own memories, and you’ll say what many are feeling.
Corporate Australia mourns former BT boss Rob Ferguson
His Bankers Trust colleague Chris Corrigan remembered him as “an individual thinker with an inquiring mind, who never lost his curiosity about how the world works”.
Peru’s Fujimori, divisive head of a political dynasty, dies age 86
During his decade in power, he revived the economy and crushed two leftist insurgencies. But he was forced out in a corruption scandal and later imprisoned.