A Local Man : A Play About Ben Chifley

This title presents an intimate portrait of a great Australian statesman.

Ben Chifley has been called Australia's best-loved prime minister.

His life story, from engine driver to prime minister, with his steadfast loyalty to his humble origins throughout his political career, has become one of Australia's iconic legends.

Late in the afternoon of 9 June 1951 in his modest home in Bathurst, Ben returns to write a key speech he is to deliver the following day at the ALP conference in Sydney.

Having recently led his party to its second defeat at the polls, it is a time of challenge for the Labour leader.

The dreams Ben Chifley had for post-war Australia lie shattered and his health is failing.

His life now seems but an epilogue to earlier times of aspiration and power.

It is a time for decisions. It is equally a time for reflection by Chifley on his life as a national political leaders and as a man - a local man.

He died in Canberra on 13 June 1951.