Historian and Albany 2026 ambassador Malcolm Traill officially launched his new book South at the Albany Entertainment Centre last night, drawing a crowd eager to hear a snippet of the stories from the author.
Bringing together 62 articles originally published in local outlets since 2017, South is a compelling collection of historical stories and rare images. For the first time, these pieces sit side by side, forming a vivid and often surprising portrait of Albany’s layered past.
The evening was hosted by Lynn MacLaren, with an engaging on-stage conversation between Traill and Wayne Harrington, editor of Southerly Magazine. Their discussion moved easily between reflection and humour, offering insight into both the writing process and the stories themselves.
Traill noted the book came together “serendipitously in 2026,” aligning with the year Albany marks Western Australia’s first bicentenary. The manuscript, originally due in April 2023, arrived later than planned.
“So something went wrong there,” he joked. “And so it arrived in 2026, which is very fortuitous, really. It marked Albany’s 2026 bicentenary, which we couldn’t have done in 2023 if I’d been on time.”
He concluded with a grin, “So procrastination is a wonderful thing.”
Harrington reflected on what makes Traill’s work resonate, noting his ability to make history feel immediate and alive. He pointed to the unexpected humour woven throughout the book, from the tale of Chinese market gardener Ah Sim and the infamous exploding toilet incident, to the story of Jumbo the elephant, who once escaped the circus and charged along Stirling Terrace, immortalised in a chapter titled Trunk and Disorderly.
Drawing on his background in journalism, Traill said his aim has always been to make history accessible.
“I really try to make my writing accessible, funny and quirky,” he said. “I do come across a lot of people that say, ‘oh, history’s so boring,’ but it’s not really history that’s boring, it’s probably the way it’s been taught. To actually inject some life into history, I think that’s part of what I try to do.”
For those keen to dive in, South is available now from Paperbark Merchants.
And there may be more to come. Harrington hinted that Traill still has around 130 unpublished articles, suggesting South could be the first in a future series.
