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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 8 Hansard (31 August) . . Page.. 2707 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

He was an inspiration to both his contemporaries and younger poets with his charming manner and essential gentleness as well as savage wit. I am sure that all members will join me in acknowledging the great contribution of AD Hope to Australia, to Canberra and to literature, and in expressing sympathy to his family, especially his sons Andrew and Geoffrey. He will be sadly missed.

MR STANHOPE (Leader of the Opposition): Mr Speaker, I would like to join the Chief Minister in this condolence motion. AD Hope had a long and significant connection to the Canberra region. He was born in Cooma and spent nearly 20 years, from 1950 to 1969, as professor of English at the Canberra University College, later the ANU.

AD Hope was born in 1907 and died in Canberra on 14 July 2000, a week before his 93rd birthday. He was a poet and academic. The recipient of many awards for poetry, he was awarded an OBE in 1972.

Hope was one of Australia's best known poets internationally and produced a remarkable body of poetry throughout his career. His first collection, The Wandering Islands, was regarded at the time of its publication as one of the most confronting volumes of poetry written by an Australian. His poetry was highly provocative and loaded with faultless satire and social commentary. Neither politics nor religion was safe. He was also acknowledged for his descriptions of physical intimacy and human relationship.

During a recent interview on ABC radio, noted Canberra poet Alan Gould said of AD Hope:

When he was nearing 70 years of age, AD Hope wrote in a poem called Spatlese:

In his writing life he lived up to this philosophy in what should be an inspiration to those of us who do ponder the passing of time in that Hope did not publish his first book of verse until he was almost 50 years old. He was still writing and publishing up until the last few years before his death. As the Chief Minister has indicated, AD Hope will be remembered as a great, talented and insightful Australian poet whose work will continue to inspire and as a person who contributed much to the life of Australia and Canberra.

MR MOORE (Minister for Health and Community Care): Only a couple of months ago we passed a condolence motion for another great Australian poet, Judith Wright, and at that stage I chose to read some of her poetry into the record as part of the condolence motion. I would like to do the same with regard to AD Hope. I have chosen two poems. The first one is about Australia and the second one touches on the savage criticism of which he was capable. I will start with the one on Australia, which is called Australia:

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