Pride or shame? Searching for the story of Australia — with Tony Abbott, Mark McKenna and Sally Warhaft

Two authors. Two books. Two very different histories of Australia. Tony Abbott's Australia: A history and Mark McKenna's The Shortest History of Australia were released within weeks of each other. They share similar references, but diverge in key areas, especially when it comes to how the country should reconcile with its Indigenous past. So what is the real story of Australia? The conversation Australian history's great divide: how writers view our past was recorded at the Sorrento Writers Festival on 23 April 2026. Speakers: Tony Abbott Author Australia: A history and more Australian Prime Minister 2013 to 2015 President, Australian Liberal Party Mark McKenna Author, The Shortest History of Australia and more Professor of History at the University of New South Wales Sally Warhaft (host) Anthropologist, writer and broadcaster Editor, Well May We Say…The Speeches That Made Australia Further information: The Australian Wars with Rachel Perkins and Henry Reynolds — a watershed event at the Australia War Memorial Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 4 February 2026 Who can we become? Thomas Mayo and Ray Martin speak Black and White about Australia's future Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 3 March 2026 Victoria's new treaty with First Peoples — a turning point for Australia? Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 9 December 2025 A new future for Black and White Australia — Thomas Mayo, Margo Neale, David Marr with Natasha Mitchell Big Ideas, ABC Radio National, 15 May 2024