Ian W Shaw author talk

We are thrilled to be welcoming back Ian W Shaw, who will be speaking about his latest book, The Dark Prince Of Melbourne: The short flashy life of Squizzy Taylor and the birth of organised crime in Australia. In this first detailed biography of arguably Australia's best-known standover man, Ian W. Shaw traces the life of the criminal who set the trend in city gangster life, not only in Melbourne but Australia-wide.

From a Melbourne street urchin to the underworld, Squizzy fought and bought his way to the top of the Melbourne criminal pyramid. Fastidious about fashion, and with an eye for attractive women, Squizzy proved to be a masterful criminal, often using others and suborning the legal system if caught. His nemesis - Snowy Cutmore - was a street thug who moved to Sydney when warned off by Squizzy, but who returned to Melbourne for the Melbourne Cup and a fatal confrontation in a darkened bedroom in Carlton.

Copies of the book will be available for sale and signed by the author.

TICKETS WILL OPEN FOR BOOKING AT 9AM ON 17 AUGUST.

MEET IAN

Ian W. Shaw is an acclaimed writer of narrative nonfiction who has made an important contribution to Australian history and to the understanding of our nation with 12 works covering Australian and military history, all of which are characterised by his meticulous and far-reaching research, and his ability to locate and access hidden tales from our past. He has a gift for effectively and sympathetically rendering the individuals within these stories on the page. He writes on Australian history with a rare emotional depth, presenting clear, engaging and accurate narratives that help make our collective past accessible and relatable.

His publications include The Golden Gang, a biography of Australian bushranger Frank Gardiner, Missing, the tragic story of a WWII fighter pilot’s brutal sacrifice and the painstaking search for the truth, and Into the Sunset, exploring the story of the Dalton gang, as well as Operation Babylift, Murder at Dusk, The Rag Tag Fleet, The Bloodbath, On Radji Beach, The Ghosts of Roebuck Bay, and Glenrowan. Ian’s most recent book is The Dark Prince of Melbourne: The Short, Flashy Life of Squizzy Taylor published by ABC Books/HarperCollins in 2025.