STC stages play on Whitlam dismissal and Queen's secret letters
A new play dramatises historian Jenny Hocking's legal battle to access 211 secret palace letters about Gough Whitlam's 1975 dismissal.
The Palace Letters opens at Sydney Theatre Company in April 2027, telling the true story of historian Jenny Hocking's court battle to release correspondence between the Queen's private secretary and Australian governor-general John Kerr.
Georgie Parker plays Hocking, while Jonathan Biggins plays Whitlam. The play moves between the legal fight and the events of the dismissal, exploring the early friendship between Kerr and Whitlam and Whitlam's belief that the Queen would never support removing his government.
Nearly 50 years passed before the letters came to light. The play shows new details that are still being revealed today.
STC's 2027 season features Tim Minchin as Scrooge and Celeste Barber as a runaway Amish baker, and also includes a stage version of Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.
- April 2027 at Sydney Theatre Company
- Opening date
- Gough Whitlam removed from office in 1975
- The dismissal
Why it mattersThis play tells Australians the hidden backstory of one of the country's most difficult political moments. It reveals the Queen's role in the dismissal for the first time on stage.
AustraliaThe Palace Letters brings a pivotal Australian political scandal to Sydney audiences and tours nationally, letting people see the real consequences of the 1975 dismissal dramatized.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 10 d ago
