Dunstan

Dunstan (909 – 19 May 988) was an Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, a Bishop of Worcester, a Bishop of London, and an Archbishop of Canterbury, later canonised as a saint. His work restored monastic life in England and reformed the English Church. His 11th-century biographer, Osbern, himself an artist and scribe, states that Dunstan was skilled in "making a picture and forming letters", as were other clergy of his age who reached senior rank.

Dunstan served as an important minister of state to several English kings. He was the most popular saint in England for nearly two centuries, having gained fame for the many stories of his greatness, not least among which were those concerning his famed cunning in defeating the devil.

Early life (909–43)

Birth

Dunstan was born in Baltonsborough, Somerset. He was the son of Heorstan, a noble of Wessex. Heorstan was the brother of Athelm the bishop of Wells and of the Bishop of Winchester. It is recorded that his mother, Cynethryth, was a pious woman. Osbern's life of Dunstan relates that a messenger miraculously told her of the saintly child she would give birth to:

Don Dunstan

Donald Allan "Don" Dunstan AC, QC (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was a South Australian politician. He entered politics as the Member for Norwood in 1953, became leader of the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party in 1967, and was Premier of South Australia between June 1967 and April 1968, and again between June 1970 and February 1979.

The son of business executive, Dunstan grew up as part of the Adelaide establishment. He excelled academically before encountering his progressive political awakening while training in law and arts at the University of Adelaide. His upper-class background and scholarly bearing made him unusual for the Labor Party at the time, but he rose quickly and entered parliament at the age of 26. Dunstan quickly came to attention as Labor's standout performer, a charismatic and aggressive debater in an era of sedate political conduct. The dominant political figure at the time was Premier Thomas Playford IV, then leading the Liberal and Country League (LCL) through a 27-year hold on power, aided by a system of electoral malapportionment dubbed the Playmander, which gave undue weight to the LCL's rural base since its introduction by the LCL in 1936. Dunstan stridently pursued the LCL over the Playmander. In the late 1950s, Dunstan became well known for his campaign against the death penalty being imposed on Max Stuart, who was convicted of rape and murder of a small girl. He harried Playford aggressively over the matter, creating an uproar over what he saw as an unfair process. Playford eventually relented, and appeared shaken thereafter; the event was seen as a turning point in the LCL's decline, and Labor gained momentum. During Labor's time in opposition, Dunstan was prominent in securing some reforms in Aboriginal rights, and was at the forefront of Labor abandoning the White Australia Policy.

Maggie Beer

Maggie Beer AM (born January 1945) is an Australian cook, food author, restaurateur and food manufacturer.

Early life

Maggie Beer was born Margaret Anne Ackermann in Sydney in January 1945, to Ronald Ackermann, who has German ancestry from his paternal grandparents, and Doreen Carter, who has English ancestry from her maternal great-grandparents. Her father's ancestors lived in Hill End located in regional New South Wales and were gold miners. Beer believed they were Jewish, but this was refuted in an episode of Who Do You Think You Are?, as it emerged that her ancestors had been Catholic for as long as there were records.

She grew up with her family in Sydney's western suburbs. Beer's parents faced issues with bankruptcy as she was growing up and re-invented themselves as caterers. She stated this contributed to her strong work ethic later in life. Beer did not complete her high school education, instead choosing to leave school to help the family at the age of 14 and worked in various different jobs, including one as a elevator operator in a New Zealand department store and an assistant to a senior geophysicist for British Petroleum in Libya before returning to Sydney in 1968. Beer has traced her passion for food to her childhood: "Food was vital; there was a real interest in food and its quality and an obsession with freshness. Cooking was just accepted, it was part of the norm."