Christmas Tales

With special guest:

• William McInnes
  … in conversation with Bill Kable

Christmas means……what? The answer is not so easy these days with there being so much commercialisation of the season. What we can say is that Christmas raises lots of emotions in all of us including nostalgia, loss, indulgence, funny presents but most of all family and love.

Our guest today is the very well-known actor and author William McInnes who takes us into his own Christmases over the years in his new book Christmas Tales. William is able to illustrate those Christmas emotions and reactions during this most significant season in the year with lots of stories mostly funny but with a few that tear at your heart.

William starts with the first signs of Christmas such as the shop windows and Santa in the stores. Or is it Santa? Is he the same person as Kris Kringle and Father Christmas? Where do the birth of Jesus and the role of St Joseph fit in all of this? In the show today we get some answers thanks to the wisdom of William’s father Colin. We also delve into Christmas in July which has developed its own significance for William’s family.

It is always great fun talking with William and the actor in him relishes all the material on offer at Christmas time. We learn about some of the different jobs William has successfully applied for over the Christmas break even if the jobs themselves were not a great success. Not the best packer of groceries at his local Coles store William had a budding career as a store Santa until after a few missteps Santa wound up in the manager’s office being interrogated about frightening a customer. No hard feelings though because he later married that customer.

There was also a brief career as a nude model, acting only came later. William also explores the relationship some of his mates have with the festive season and some of them are to say the least unusual.

After listening to William everyone will get a fresh appreciation of the importance of family while having to laugh out loud at some of the situations our guest finds himself in. This program and William’s book are the perfect introduction to the Christmas period for all of us.

William McInnes

William McInnes is one of Australia’s most popular writers and actors. His books include the bestselling memoirs, Fatherhood, A Man’s Got to Have a Hobby and That’d Be Right. In 2012 his book Worse Things Happen at Sea, co-written with his wife, Sarah Watt, was named the best non-fiction title in the ABIA and Indie Awards.

Also an award-winning actor and best known for his leading roles in Blue Heelers and SeaChange, William has won two Logies and an AFI Award for Best Actor in the film Unfinished Sky. He starred in the TV dramas Deep Water and Rake.

William grew up in Queensland and lives in Melbourne with his two children.

Song selection by our guest: Space Invaders by Player One

Note: This program is an encore presentation of the one aired on 17 December 2020.

Podcast (mp3)