Tracey Arklay is a doctoral student at Griffith University, Queensland, and is writing a biography of Sir Arthur Fadden. She recently worked as a research assistant on the History of the Queensland Parliament 1957-89 project.

Neal Blewett, AC, was Professor of Political Theory, Flinders University, South Australia from 1974-77, member of the House of Representatives from 1977-94, minister in the Hawke-Keating governments from1983-93, and Australian High Commissioner in London from 1994-98. He is the author of A Cabinet Diary (1999).

Geoffrey Bolton, AO, Chancellor, Murdoch University, WA, has held chairs in history at Murdoch, London, Queensland and Edith Cowan universities. Author of biographies of Sir Richard Boyer (1967) and Sir Edmund Barton (2000), he is now writing a biography of Sir Paul Hasluck.

Judith Brett, Professor of Politics, Latrobe University, Victoria. She is the author of Australian Liberals and the Moral Middle Class: From Alfred Deakin to John Howard (2003) and Robert Menzies' Forgotten People (2002). Her edited book, Political Lives, was published in 1997.

Nicholas Brown is Senior Research Fellow at the Australian Dictionary of Biography, located in the Research School of Social Sciences at The Australian National University. He is the author of Richard Downing: Economics, advocacy and social reform in Australia (2001).

John Button was Labor Senator for Victoria from1974-93, Leader of the Government in the Senate from 1983-93 and Minister for Industry from 1983-93. He is the author of As It Happened (1998).

Lenore Coltheart taught political history in Australian universities for 25 years before retiring to Canberra in 1997. She prepared a revised edition of Jessie Street’s autobiography, Jessie Street: A revised autobiography (2004) and is currently writing a biography of Jesse Street.

David Day is a Research Fellow in the School of Historical and European Studies at Latrobe University, Victoria. He has written biographies of Curtin, John Curtin: A life (1999) and Chifley (2002).

Peter Edwards, AM, is a Visiting Professor at the University of New South Wales, Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra. His biography of Sir Arthur Tange, Arthur Tange: Last of the mandarins, was published in 2006.

Ian Hancock is a Visiting Fellow at the Australian Dictionary of Biography, at The Australian National University. His book, John Gorton: He did it his way, was published in 2002.

John Nethercote is the Consulting Editor of the Australian Journal of Public Administration. He has written obituaries of several senior Commonwealth officials, including Sir Frederick Wheeler, Dr H. C. Coombs, Dr Peter Wilenski, Sir John Bunting and Sir Allen Brown.

Rod (R.A.W.) Rhodes is Professor of Political Science and Head of Program in the Political Science Program, Research School of Social Sciences, The Australian National University. He is author, with Mark Bevir, of Governance Stories (2005) and Interpreting British Governance (2003). And, with Patrick Weller, The Changing World of Top Officials: Mandarins or valets? (2001).

Tim Rowse is Professor of History in the Research School of Social Sciences, The Australian National University. He wrote Obliged to be Difficult (2000) and Nugget Coombs: A reforming life (2002).

Philip Selth is Executive Director of the New South Wales Bar Association. He was formerly a senior executive in the Commonwealth, State and Territory sectors, and is an avid reader of political biographies.

James Walter is Professor of Political Science in the School of Political and Social Inquiry at Monash University, Victoria. He has published widely on Australian politics, history, biography and culture. Among his books are The Leader: A political biography of Gough Whitlam (1980) and The Ministers’ Minders: Personal advisers in national government (1986).

Rae Wear is a Senior Lecturer in Political Science at the University of Queensland. She wrote Johannes Bjelke-Petersen: the Lord’s Premier, published in 2002. She is Associate Editor of the Australian Journal of Politics and History and previously taught at the University of Southern Queensland.

Patrick Weller, AO, is Professor and Director of the Centre for Governance and Public Policy at Griffith University, Queensland. He is the author of Don't Tell the Prime Minister (2002), Australia's Mandarins: The frank and the fearless (2001), Malcolm Fraser PM (1989) and Dodging Raindrops (1999).