The brave lives of Charmian and Neen: Memoir writer Nadia Wheatley

Nadia Wheatley with the stories of two women ahead of their time: the writer Charmian Clift and her own mother Nina Watkin.Two decades ago, Nadia published her acclaimed biography of the late Australian writer Charmian Clift.

Charmian is best known for her memoirs Peel Me A Lotus and Mermaid Singing about her family's poverty-stricken but wildly romantic life on the Greek Islands in the early 50s and 60s.

While her husband George Johnston worked on his novel My Brother Jack, Charmian also tried to carve out time to write, while caring for their three children in an old stone house without electricity or running water.

Making up for the practical challenges of life on Hydra was the beauty of the sea, and the endless talking and drinking with other expat artists, including Leonard Cohen and his lover Marianne Ihlen.

After moving back to Australia, Charmian's life ended tragically after a drunken misadventure.

Separating the truth from the mythology which had shrouded Charmian's life and death consumed many years of Nadia's working life.

Then a few years ago she began another big project about a woman ahead of her time; her own mother, WWII Australian Army nurse Nina Watkin.

Further information

Her Mother’s Daughter, A Memoir is published by Text

Learn more about the crowdfunding project for a new documentary about Charmian Clift's life

The Life and Myth of Charmian Clift is published by HarperCollins

Charmian Clift's memoirs of her life in Greece, Peel Me A Lotus and Mermaid Singing are published by HarperCollins

Suzanne Chick's Searching for Charmian is published by Melbourne University Press

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