Category Archives: Alternative theatre

In 1977 several members of the Australian Performing Group (APG), together with Marius Webb, a radio producer at the Australian Broadcasting Commission, put together a series of radio programs titled “Domestic Contradictions”.

Just before the program was due to go to air (June 1977) the series was banned by ABC management.  But after protests by  a “prominent actors group” and  after making some “minor alterations and deletions”,  the program was re-instated (July 1977).

“Domestic Contradictions” was written by Bob Daly and Bill Garner (APG members) and Peter Dickie (an anti-capitalist political cartoonist). Publicity and the show’s narrator described it as:

“… the continuing story of a rare experiment in building socialism in one room – the Blue Hills of collective living.”

The performers/voices from the APG were  Max Gillies, Evelyn Krape, Fay Mokotow, Bill Garner and Tony Taylor, and the music was by Jack Weiner of the APG.

Two years after “Domestic Contradictions” went to air on the ABC, Greig Pickhaver of the APG (who went on to be HG Nelson) said the program was “the Pram’s most ambitious and successful radio exercise” (The Perambulator, Jan 1979).

Most of this information about the program comes from newspaper reports in The Age and its radio and TV guide, The Green Guide, copies of which appear below.

Although reportedly a nine-part series,  copies of twenty episodes can be found on the YouTube channel of VancePackardTV (whoever that is!).  I have prepared a schedule of those 20 episodes with  links to the YouTube videos. See below.

Note: “Domestic Contradictions” was also broadcast on Melbourne’s community radio station 3 CR

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