Marie Bjelke-Peterson(1874-1969)
- Writer
'Marie Bjelke-Petersen' was born to a prospering family of Danish farmers in 1875.
After living in Copenhagen for most of their lives, the family migrated
to Tasmania in 1891. Marie was a multi-linguist, as well as an
accomplished musician and amateur painter. After years of extensive
travel around the globe, Marie began to write for newspapers, including
the 'Sydney Morning Herald' and the 'Sydney Mail'. She wrote several
short stories too, many of which were reproduced in 'The Times'
(London). Her first novel, 'The Captive Singer', sold 100,000 copies in
the United Kingdom. She spent the years 1921-23 around the wild, mining
area of the Savage River, collecting material for her book 'Jewelled
Nights', which was later filmed by a Hollywood Studio (Jewelled Nights (1925).