About
Colleen McCullough was an Australian novelist born on 1 June 1937 in Wellington, New South Wales, and died on 29 January 2015 on Norfolk Island. Trained as a neurophysiologist, she headed the neurophysiology unit at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital and later worked at Yale Medical School. Her first novel, Tim (1974), was adapted into a film. Her second novel, The Thorn Birds (1977), became an international bestseller with over 30 million copies sold. She is also known for her historical series Masters of Rome (1990–2007), critically acclaimed. She wrote 25 novels, including the Carmine Delmonico mystery series. Appointed Officer of the Order of Australia in 2006, she lived on Norfolk Island with her husband Ric Robinson.
* 1937-06-01 — † 2015-01-28
Major works
- Tim (1974)novel
- The Thorn Birds (1977)novel
- Masters of Rome (1990)novel series
- Morgan's Run (2000)novel
- Bittersweet (2013)novel
Key milestones
- 1993Awarded a Doctor of Letters by Macquarie University for historical research in the Masters of Rome series.
- 1997Named one of Australia's 100 National Living Treasures by the National Trust of Australia.
- 2006Appointed Officer of the Order of Australia for service to the arts as an author and to the community.
Themes
love and passionRoman historyfamily dramadestinymystery
Sources: portrait.gov.au · britannica.com · abc.net.au