Gough Whitlam The Vista of the New

Gough Whitlam was one of Australia’s most visionary and transformative leaders — a charismatic reformer whose bold ideas reshaped the nation. From universal healthcare and free tertiary education to cultural, legal and social reform, Whitlam’s legacy continues to define modern Australia. Yet his story is also one of towering ambition, political miscalculation, and one of the most dramatic downfalls in Australian history.

In Gough Whitlam: The Vista of the New, acclaimed political journalist and biographer Troy Bramston delivers the most comprehensively researched portrait of Whitlam ever published. Drawing on thousands of pages of newly uncovered archives and more than one hundred interviews, Bramston brings fresh insight into Whitlam’s family life, wartime service, rise through Labor ranks, time as Prime Minister, and the seismic events of his 1975 dismissal.

Rich with revelation and rigorous analysis, this commanding biography captures both the grandeur and the flaws of a man who dared to remake Australia — and paid the price. Five decades on from his dismissal, Whitlam’s story remains as compelling, controversial, and vital as ever.

About the author: 

Troy Bramston is one of Australia’s leading political biographers and a senior writer with The Australian. He is the author or editor of more than a dozen books on politics and history, including acclaimed biographies of Bob Hawke, Paul Keating, and Julia Gillard. Known for his meticulous research and balanced storytelling, Bramston is widely regarded as one of the foremost chroniclers of Australian political life.

Product details:

Author: Troy Bramston

Publisher: HarperCollins Australia

Dimensions: 14 × 150 × 230 mm

Pages: 720

Format: Paperback

Publication date: 28 October 2025

ISBN: 9781460763872