Australian Bush Laureate Awards – 2010 winners

Winners in the 2010 Australian Bush Laureate awards were announced in Tamworth today (January 19).

In Book of the Year, Original Verse, two awards were presented... to Grahame Watt for “I Likes A Laugh” and the Winton Business & Tourism Association for “The Bronze Swagman Book of Bush Verse 2008”.

In Album of the Year, Original Verse, the Golden Gumleaf went to Noel Stallard for his “Bruce Simpson Bush Poetry” – a tribute to the poetry of Bruce Simpson.

In Bush Poem of the Year, the winner was “Brolga Dreaming” by Val Read.

The Single Recorded Performance of the Year went to “The Anzac On The Wall” by Jim Brown.

Children’s Poem of the Year, was won by Megan Bartlett-Home with “The Aussie Outback School”.

The Judith Hosier Heritage Award – for outstanding achievement in nurturing Australia’s heritage of verse – was presented to “Blue The Shearer”.

Real name Col Wilson, “Blue” is a writer, performer, satirist and retired bureaucrat who is legendary in Australia for his work as “resident poet” on ABC radio for many years. By the way, he’s not a shearer!

And in a moving presentation, Joy McKean was made patron of the Australian Bush Laureate Awards with the special presentation of a Golden Gumleaf.

Joy is recognised as one of Australia’s leading songwriters with a strong link to many of Australia’s bush verse writers.

This year was the 15th year for the Bush Laureate Awards which were established in 1997 to recognise excellence in published and recorded Australian bush poetry.

The Australian Bush Laureate Awards will be held in Tamworth again next January, with nominations scheduled to open in August.
www.bushlaureate.com.au.