Debra Oswald

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Debra Oswald (born 1959) is an Australian writer for film, television, stage, radio and children's fiction.

She began writing as a teenager. Her first play was workshopped at the 1977 Australian National Playwrights Conference when she was 17, and then broadcast on ABC Radio. She studied at the Australian National University and at the Australian Film Television and Radio School and has since made her living as a writer for film, television, stage and radio as well as publishing a number of novels for children. She lives in Sydney with the author and radio personality Richard Glover; they have two sons.

Her best-known play, Dags, has had many productions around Australia and has been published and performed in Britain and the United States. Debra’s other plays include Going Under, produced by Adelaide’s Troupe Theatre in 1983, and Lumps, which premiered at the Q Theatre in 1993. In 1996, a co-production of Debra’s play Gary’s House by Playbox and the Q Theatre played in Melbourne, Penrith and the Gold Coast. There have also been productions in Adelaide, Hobart, Newcastle, Canberra and Hjoerring, Denmark. Gary's House is on the New South Wales Year 12 drama syllabus. In 2000, her play Sweet Road was presented in Melbourne and Adelaide in a Playbox/STC of SA co production, and in Sydney by the Ensemble Theatre. Sweet Road and Gary’s House were both short-listed for the NSW Premier’s Literary Award. Mr Bailey's Minder and The Peach Season both premiered at Griffin Theatre Company.

She is a prolific writer of Australian television series. These include the mini series Palace of Dreams (1985) as well as Dancing Daze (1986), Police Rescue (1991), Bananas in Pyjamas (1992), Wildside (1997), The Secret Life of Us (2001), and Outriders (2001). Her Police Rescue scripts have been nominated for AFI, AWGIE and State Library awards. She also wrote the screenplay for the film Police Rescue (1994)

Debra is also the author of the children's novels Me and Barry Terrific (1987) and The Return of the Baked Bean (1990), and two Aussie Bites - Nathan and the Ice Rockets (1998) and Frank and the Emergency Joke (2000). The Redback Leftovers (2000) is an entertaining story for upper primary students about the debut season of the worst soccer team ever. Her most recent book is The Fifth Quest (2002).

Her plays include:

The Peach Season (2006)
Mr Bailey's Minder (2004)
Skate (2003)
Sweet road (2000)
Gary's house (1996)
Lumps (1993)
Dags (1987)

[edit] Awards

Queensland Premier's Literary Awards, Best Drama Script (Stage), 2005: shortlisted for Mr Bailey's Minder
Griffin Award for New Australian Playwriting, 2004: winner for Mr Bailey's Minder