Hazel Hawke
| Hazel Hawke AO | |
|---|---|
 Hazel Hawke in the 1980s |
|
| Born | Hazel Masterson 20 July 1929 Perth, Western Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Known for | Spouse of the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia |
| Spouse | Bob Hawke (mar. 1956; div. 1995) |
| Children | Susan, Stephen, Roslyn and Robert jr (dec.) |
Hazel Hawke, AO (born 20 July 1929) is the former wife of Bob Hawke, Prime Minister of Australia 1983–91. They divorced after he left the prime ministership. She worked in social policy areas, and was an excellent amateur pianist and a patron of the arts. After she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, she made public appearances in order to raise awareness of the disease and surrounding issues. She is now in high-level nursing care.
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[edit] Biography
Hazel Masterson was born in Perth, Western Australia in 1929. She met her future husband Bob Hawke at a church fellowship in Perth. They married on 3 March 1956. They lived in Melbourne from 1958 to 1983, including during his term as President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions. Bob spent much of his time in Canberra after his election to Parliament in 1980. After he became Prime Minister on 11 March 1983, the family lived in The Lodge in Canberra, until Hawke was replaced as Prime Minister by Paul Keating in December 1991.
During their marriage, Bob Hawke had an affair with Blanche d'Alpuget in the 1970s.[1][2] Hawke proposed to his mistress in 1978, but later withdrew the offer saying "Divorce could cost Labor three per cent."[2][3] D'Alpuget was initially so upset at Hawke's decision not to leave Hazel that she considered suicide or killing him, but they reconciled and remained friends—so much so that she became his official biographer.[3] From 1980 to 1982 d'Alpuget worked closely with Hawke in preparing his 1982 biography. In 1988 Hawke and d'Alpuget resumed their affair[2][3] but he remained ostensibly committed to his wife during his prime ministership. After he left office in 1991, he and Hazel announced their separation and later divorced. Hawke and d'Alpuget were married in 1995.[2][3]
Hazel and Bob Hawke have three children: Susan Pieters-Hawke (born 1957), Stephen (born 1959) and Roslyn (born 1960). Their fourth child, Robert Jr, died in his early infancy in 1963.
[edit] Views and interests
Hazel Hawke has acted as a prominent pro-choice advocate in Australia, often drawing on her personal experience of having an illegal abortion in 1952 so that her future husband Bob Hawke could further his education at the University of Oxford.
Hazel Hawke has written books including My Own Life: An Autobiography (1992)[4] and A Little Bit Of Magic: Thoughts For Women (1994).[5]
Hazel Hawke was an excellent amateur pianist. In 1990, she was one of the three soloists in Mozart's Concerto in F for Three Pianos and Orchestra, K. 242, the others being Duncan Gifford and Rebecca Chambers. They played at the Sydney Opera House with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra under John Hopkins. The performance was recorded and is available.[6][7]
She was the inaugural Patron of the Kendall National Violin Competition, and is now Patron Emeritus.[8]
[edit] Honours
In June 2001 she was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia. The citation read: "For service to the community, particularly through the promotion of the reconciliation process, support for continued improvement in the quality of children's television, as a contributor to the preservation of heritage items, and involvement with environmental and wildlife preservation groups".[9]
[edit] Alzheimer's disease
On 3 November 2003, the ABC aired an episode of Australian Story in which Hawke publicly revealed that she was suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Her family had noticed significant short-term memory loss, leading to the diagnosis in 2001. She had been reluctant to go public about the illness she called the 'Big A', but eventually did so to publicise a fund for supporting Alzheimer's sufferers that she had jointly set up with Alzheimer's Australia.
In 2004, Hazel Flynn and Hawke's daughter Susan Pieters-Hawke published a book, Hazel's Journey: A personal experience of Alzheimer's, describing the previous decade of Hawke's life and the onset of Alzheimer's. At the book launch on 1 November 2004, Pieters-Hawke revealed that her mother had reached the mid-stages of the disease and was now suffering from quite severe short-term memory loss. That year the Hazel Hawke Dementia and Care Fund was established.[10] Hawke's granddaughter Sophie Pieters-Hawke launched an education kit for schoolchildren about Alzheimers in 2007.
In August 2009, she was placed in high level care.[11]
[edit] References
- ^ "Panellists - All's fair in love and politics". Q&A. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/txt/s2335904.htm. Retrieved 2008-08-21.
- ^ a b c d "The secret life of Blanche". The Australian. 2 August 2008. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24107042-5012694,00.html. Retrieved 21 August 2008.
- ^ a b c d "'I really wanted to kill Bob,' Blanche reveals". The Sydney Morning Herald. 24 July 2008. http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/i-really-wanted-to-kill-bob/2008/07/23/1216492541175.html. Retrieved 21 August 2008.
- ^ Leura Books
- ^ AntiQBook
- ^ ABC Classic FM
- ^ espace@Curtin
- ^ Kendall National Violin Competition
- ^ It's an Honour
- ^ ABC Radio Guestbook
- ^ Hildebrand, Joe (22 August 2009). "Hazel Hawke placed in care as Alzheimer's disease worsens". www.news.com.au. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,25964810-36398,00.html. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
[edit] Sources
- Australia's Prime Ministers – Meet a PM – Hawke – Hazel Hawke
- Australia's Prime Ministers – Fast Facts – Hawke
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation (2003). Australian Story – The Big 'A'.
- Stephens, Tony (2 November 2004). When love shone through the fog, The Age.
- Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 10 Hansard (25 November 1998) Pages 2927 and 2928 (a public pro-choice letter from Hazel Hawke)
- It's an Honour Australian Government (Retrieved 23 September 2007)
- Hazel Hawke inspires mission
