Special Award Winners
1972-2026
Life Members
Life Membership is he highest level of membership in the Australian Writers’ Guild. Our Life Members are well-respected pioneers of the industry, many of whom are founding members of the AWG.
| Year | Writer |
|---|---|
| Mary Wilton | |
| Judith Colquhoun | |
| Peter Yeldham | |
| Moya Wood | |
| Chris Tugwell | |
| Joan Ambrose | |
| David Allen | |
| Hugh Stuckey | |
| Eleanor Witcombe | |
| Mary Wright | |
| Stuart Glover | |
| Kim Dalton | |
| William Pryor | |
| Raymond Lawler | |
| Nan Witcomb | |
| Ron Blair | |
| David Williamson AO | |
| Mary Wilton | |
| Angela Wales Kirgo | |
| Frank Hyam | |
| Peter Connah | |
| Bryan Wright | |
| Joan Levy | |
| Allan Seymour | |
| Michael Boddy | |
| Richard Aspinall | |
| 2006 | Cliff Green |
| 2010 | Marcia Hatfield OAM |
| 2012 | Tony Morphett |
| 2019 | Patrick Edgeworth |
| 2021 | Rob George |
| 2022 | Mac Gudgeon |
| 2026 | Geoffrey Atherden |
| 2026 | Anne Brooksbank |
| 2026 | Michael Harvey |
| 2026 | Shane Porteous |
| 2026 | Roger Simpson |
The Richard Lane Award
For Outstanding Service and Dedication to the Australian Writers’ Guild
| Year | Writer |
|---|---|
| 1988 | Richard Lane |
| 1989 | James Workman |
| 1990 | Cliff Green |
| 1991 | Angela Wales |
| 1992 | Tony Morphett |
| 1993 | Rob George |
| 1994 | Joan Ambrose |
| 1995 | Janette Paramore |
| 1996 | Shan Benson |
| 1997 | Roger Simpson |
| 1998 | Brian Wright |
| 1999 | Fran Ross |
| 2000 | Michael Harvey |
| 2001 | Peter Yeldham |
| 2002 | Mac Gudgeon |
| 2003 | Ted Roberts |
| 2004 | No award |
| 2005 | David Williamson AO |
| 2006 | Geoffrey Atherden |
| 2007 | Alan Payne |
| 2008 | Mark Poole |
| 2009 | Jack Brislee |
| 2010 | Peter Walford |
| 2011 | Ian David |
| 2012 | Graeme Koestveld |
| 2013 | Simon Hopkinson |
| 2014 | Jon Stephens |
| 2014 | Bruce Pulsford |
| 2015 | Tim Pye |
| 2016 | Karin Altman |
| 2017 | Kelly Lefever |
| 2018 | Michelle Offen |
| 2019 | Jan Sardi |
| 2020 | No award |
| 2021 | Jacqueline Elaine |
| 2022 | No award |
| 2023 | No award |
| 2024 | Shane Brennan |
The Dorothy Crawford Award
For Outstanding Contribution to the Profession and the Industry
| Year | Writer |
|---|---|
| 1984 | Carmel Powers |
| 1985 | Katherine Brisbane |
| 1986 | Betty Burstall |
| 1987 | Hector Crawford |
| 1988 | Ray Lawler |
| 1989 | Anthony Buckley |
| 1990 | Oscar Whitebread |
| 1991 | Joan Long |
| 1992 | John Summer |
| 1993 | Penny Chapman |
| 1994 | John Flaus |
| 1995 | Des Davis |
| 1996 | Murray Oliver |
| 1997 | No award |
| 1998 | John Morris |
| 1999 | The Australian National Playwrights’ Centre |
| 2000 | Jack Davis |
| 2001 | Kooemba Jdarra Aboriginal Theatre Corporation & The Yirra Yaakin Noongar Theatre |
| 2002 | Carillo Gantner |
| 2003 | No award |
| 2004 | Aubrey Mellor |
| 2005 | No award |
| 2006 | Ian Jones |
| 2007 | Roger Le Mesurier |
| 2008 | Liz Jones |
| 2009 | No award |
| 2010 | Karin Altmann |
| 2011 | Currency Press |
| 2012 | Kim Williams AM |
| 2013 | Neil Armfield |
| 2014 | Everett de Roche |
| 2015 | Alan Seymour |
| 2016 | John Romeril |
| 2017 | No award |
| 2018 | No award |
| 2019 | Mac Gudgeon |
| 2020 | No award |
| 2021 | Wesley Enoch |
| 2022 | Philip Dalkin |
The Fred Parsons Award
For Outstanding Contribution to Australian Comedy
| Year | Writer |
|---|---|
| 1988 | Ken Shadie |
| 1989 | Ralph Peterson |
| 1990 | John Pinder |
| 1991 | Ted Robinson |
| 1992 | Ian McFadyen |
| 1993 | John Clarke |
| 1994 | Graham Bond |
| 1995 | Maurice Murphy |
| 1996 | No award |
| 1997 | Gary Reilly and Tony Sattler |
| 1998 | No award |
| 1999 | David Sale |
| 2000 | No award |
| 2001 | John Doyle & Greig Pickhaver |
| 2002 | No award |
| 2003 | No award |
| 2004 | Ted Emery |
| 2005 | Hugh Stuckey |
| 2006 | John O’Grady |
| 2007 | John Eastway |
| 2008 | Doug Macleod |
| 2009 | No award |
| 2010 | Gina Riley & Jane Turner |
| 2011 | Chris Lilley |
| 2012 | Ian Simmons |
| 2013 | Guy Rundle |
| 2014 | Andrew Denton |
| 2015 | Bill Harding |
| 2016 | Barry Humphries |
| 2017 | Julian Morrow |
| 2018 | No award |
| 2019 | Magda Szubanski |
| 2020 | No award |
| 2021 | Tim Minchin |
| 2022 | Phil Lloyd & Trent O’Donnell |
The Hector Crawford Award
For Outstanding Contribution to the Craft as a Script Producer, Editor or Dramaturg
| Year | Writer |
|---|---|
| 1991 | Moya Wood |
| 1992 | Harold Lander |
| 1993 | Graeme Farmer |
| 1994 | No award |
| 1995 | No award |
| 1996 | Michael Brindley |
| 1997 | Keith Thompson |
| 1998 | No award |
| 1999 | No award |
| 2000 | No award |
| 2001 | No award |
| 2002 | No award |
| 2003 | No award |
| 2004 | Sue Smith |
| 2005 | John Alsop |
| 2006 | Tom Hegarty |
| 2007 | No award |
| 2008 | No award |
| 2009 | May-Brit Akerholt |
| 2010 | No award |
| 2011 | Denise Morgan |
| 2012 | Graeme Koetsveld |
| 2013 | Kym Goldsworthy |
| 2014 | Peter Matheson |
| 2015 | No award |
| 2016 | Marcia Gardner |
| 2017 | No award |
| 2018 | Tony Ayres |
| 2019 | No award |
| 2020 | No award |
| 2021 | No award |
| 2022 | Peter Gawler |
David Williamson Prize
For Excellence in Writing for Australian Theatre. Find out more about the Prize here.
| Year | Writers | Script |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Alana Valentine | Grounded (Australian Theatre for Young People) |
| 2014 | Andrew Bovell | The Secret River (Sydney Theatre Company) |
| 2015 | Finegun Kruckemeyer | The Boy at the Edge of Everything (Trusty Sidekick and Seattle Children’s Theatre) |
| 2016 | Angus Cerini | The Bleeding Tree (Sydney Theatre Company) |
| 2017 | Leah Purcell | The Drover’s Wife (Belvoir St Theatre) |
| 2018 | PJ Hogan | Muriel’s Wedding the Musical (Sydney Theatre Company and Global Creatures) |
| 2019 | Kate Mulvany | Harp in the South (Sydney Theatre Company) |
| 2020 | Suzie Miller | Prima Facie (Griffin Theatre Company) |
| 2021 | Ellen Graham and Jamie Hornsby | Claire Della and the Moon (Madness of Two) |
| 2022 | Maxine Mellor | Horizon (Playlab Theatre) |
| 2023 | Dylan Van Den Berg | White Fella Yella Tree (Griffin Theatre Company) |
| 2024 | Blake Erickson and Jay James Moody (Book) and Laura Murphy (music and lyrics) | The Dismissal: An Extremely Serious Musical Comedy (Squabbalogic) |
| 2025 | Sheridan Harbridge and Dean Bryant with Mathew Frank | My Brilliant Career (Melbourne Theatre Company) |
Monte Miller Awards (1972-2006)
The Monte Miller Awards celebrated the outstanding achievements of AWG’s Associate members. From 2007, the prize was split between two categories – Long Form and Short Form. In 2024, it was renamed the Emerging Writers’ Awards.
For a full list of Long Form and Short Form winners since 2007, see here.
| Year | Writers | Script |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Peter Scott | Rally Round |
| 1973 | Terry Wanka | Toy Soldiers |
| 1974 | Jay Bland | The Anthem |
| 1975 | Denise Burt | One For The Carnival |
| 1976 | Barbara Eite | We Used To Play Together |
| 1980 | Greg Branson | My Friend the Assassin |
| 1981 | Pierre R Cochrane | Thunderbolt |
| 1982 | Julia Britton | Exits and Entrances |
| 1982 | Christopher Kennedy | The End of the Course |
| 1983 | Donald Crick | The Veronica |
| 1984 | Ann Turner | Celia |
| 1985 | Donald Crick | A Different Drummer |
| 1986 | John Carr-Gregg | In The Shade of the Spring Leaves |
| 1987 | Vic Wilson | The Seventh Crossing of Reshah |
| 1988 | Robyn Sinclair | Start Out Fine |
| 1989 | Stuart Wood | Bloods |
| 1990 | Nick Stevens | Over in One |
| 1991 | Peter Fleming | May We Find God |
| 1992 | Patricia Best | The Punch & Judy Man |
| 1993 | Dennis Smith | Love & Levitation |
| 1994 | Alan Woodruff | Precious |
| 1995 | No Award | |
| 1996 | Chris Cudlipp | Dear Walter, Dear Claudia |
| 1997 | Gabrielle Prendergast | Breathe |
| 1998 | John Dobson | The Big Pelican |
| 1999 | Richard Howard | On The Road with Generation X |
| 2000 | Nick Stevens | Onotoa |
| 2001 | Andrew Duval | Sea of Dreams |
| 2002 | Alan Woodruff | My Brother, My Self |
| 2003 | Christine Grace | The Magnetist |
| 2004 | Stelle Kinsella | Veris |
| 2005 | Jacqueline Cook | Raw |
| 2006 | Evan Clarry & Robert Rabiah | Jericho |
Previous Awards
Australian Writers’ Guild Lifetime Achievement Award, proudly presented by Foxtel (2015-2021)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 2015 | Laura Jones |
| 2016 | Craig Pearce |
| 2017 | Andrew Knight |
| 2018 | Sue Smith |
| 2019 | No award |
| 2020 | No award |
| 2021 | Roger Simpson |
Foxtel Fellowship, in recognition of a Significant and Impressive Body of Work (2007-2014)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 2007 | Mac Gudgeon |
| 2008 | John Alsop |
| 2009 | Christopher Lee |
| 2010 | Sue Smith |
| 2011 | Kris Mrska |
| 2012 | Kristen Dunphy |
| 2013 | Jacquelin Perske |
| 2014 | Kelly Lefever |
Australian Writers’ Foundation Playwriting Award (2014-2015)
| Year | Senior Award | Junio Award |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Katherine Thomson ($25,000) | Sue Smith ($15,000) |
| 2015 | Patricia Cornelius ($25,000) | Angela Betzien ($10,000) |
Kit Denton Fellowship, for Courage and Excellence in Performance Writing (2007-2012)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 2007 | Ian David |
| 2008 | Suzie Miller |
| 2009 | Back to Back Theatre |
| 2010 | George Catsi |
| 2011 | Kate McCartney and Kate McLennon |
| 2012 | Angela Betzien |
CAL Peer Recognition Prize, awarded to the Major Award winner (2008-2010)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Peter Gawler, Greg Haddrick and Felicity Packard (Underbelly) |
| 2009 | Warwick Thornton (Samson and Delilah) |
| 2010 | David Michôd (Animal Kingdom) |
Richard Wherret Prize, recognising Excellence in Australian Playwriting, judged from the winners of the AWGIE Award theatre categories (2007-2009)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 2007 | Angela Betzien (Hoods) |
| 2008 | No award |
| 2009 | Patricia Cornelius (Tenderness/Slut) |
Ian Reed Award for Best Script by a First-Time Radio Writer (1998-2000)
| Year | Writers |
|---|---|
| 1998 | Sarah Rosetti (Surfers Tension) |
| 1999 | No award |
| 2000 | Michael Neaylon(Sixpack) |
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