The lecture: "How to Write Books with Geoffrey Blainey" is to be held at Duneira on Saturday 30th April from 5-6pm, cost $25 ($20 - concession). 
Professor Geoffrey Blainey comes to Duneira to give a rare insight into the craft of writing. He is one of Australia’s most pre-eminent social and economic historians. Professor Blainey has published more than 32 books, including A Short History of the World, The tyranny of distance, Triumph of the Nomads, The rush that never ended, and A History of Victoria. His literary prizes include the 1988 Britannica Award, the world’s major award for the dissemination of knowledge. He is equally well-known as a social commentator whose penetrating and often provocative statements have stirred national debate. Professor Blainey was professor of Economic History at the University of Melbourne, Ernest Scott professor of History, and is now Professor Emeritus. He was also inaugural chancellor of the University of Ballarat, and in the early 1980s he was visiting professor of Australian Studies at Harvard University. Professor Blainey has now been writing about Australian history for more than 50 years. I saw him address the Family History Feast in August last year, and he is still a powerful speaker with a grasp of a vast array of subjects. 
Professor Geoffrey Blainey comes to Duneira to give a rare insight into the craft of writing. He is one of Australia’s most pre-eminent social and economic historians. Professor Blainey has published more than 32 books, including A Short History of the World, The tyranny of distance, Triumph of the Nomads, The rush that never ended, and A History of Victoria. His literary prizes include the 1988 Britannica Award, the world’s major award for the dissemination of knowledge. He is equally well-known as a social commentator whose penetrating and often provocative statements have stirred national debate. Professor Blainey was professor of Economic History at the University of Melbourne, Ernest Scott professor of History, and is now Professor Emeritus. He was also inaugural chancellor of the University of Ballarat, and in the early 1980s he was visiting professor of Australian Studies at Harvard University. Professor Blainey has now been writing about Australian history for more than 50 years. I saw him address the Family History Feast in August last year, and he is still a powerful speaker with a grasp of a vast array of subjects. The 400 metre Main Drive lined with English elms & a carpet of bluebells and ivy
Duneira of Mount Macedon is a living reminder of Victoria's British heritage. It was purchased by Suetonius Henry Officer in 1872 (the same family that settled Mt Talbot station). The late-Victorian house is about 84 squares, with a large library and archive storage facility. Set in picturesque gardens, beyond the elms are groves of sycamore and oak. The sweeping drive passes towering firs, redwoods and cypresses that surround the large formal lawn.
An elevator at one end took wheat from railway trucks to ridge level where it was distributed by conveyor (there are a couple of conveyor shots in the set) along the length of the shed, creating a huge single mound of grain. Braced internal timber bulkheads on either side took the lateral thrust of the wheat, and conveyors at ground level outside the bulkheads took wheat back to the elevator for transport elsewhere.
The Public Records Office has a number of permanent displays in different rooms - Indigenous Victorians - early interactions with the government, including the Peppers at Ebenezer; Early Melbourne - settlement by Batman & Fawkner, and the Burke & Wills expedition; Ned Kelly - original documents, extracts from "The story of the Kelly Gang" film and the Kelly family tree; Crime & criminals - gangsters Squizzy Taylor, and female prisoner mug shots;
Victorians at work & on holiday - posters and photographs from the 1930-1950s; Victorian buildings - a range of architectural plans of public buildings; and Victorian democracy -how the gold miners helped shape Victoria's government.
