Centre for Stories

Growing up in a working-class family in Nottingham, UK, Sandra Brentnall’s dad recognised his daughter’s indisputable talent for playing soccer, and decided to relocate his family to Perth, WA to champion her rise in the game. At just 15 Sandra made it into the State team and by 17 she was flying the flag for Australia and playing for the Matildas. Game Changers is a collection of stories from WA...

What does a “good death” look like? How important is choice and control to having a dignified end-of-life? Why is death still such a taboo topic for some communities, and how might community be the very answer to some of our most difficult questions concerning death? Brought to you in partnership with Palliative Care WA, listen back to our fascinating panel conversation on these topics, all in cel...

Recipient of the Patricia Kailis International Writing Fellowship and acclaimed Indonesian writer and poet, Norman Erikson Pasaribu, sits down in conversation with local Perth author, Rashida Murphy. Together, they discuss navigating the literary world as a writer in translation, the labels of Western literature and queer Indonesian writing. This conversation was held at the University Club Banque...

At 84 years old, Betty McGeever has no plans of slowing down. Growing up as a country girl on a farm before later working as a librarian, Betty is grateful for the life she’s had. She discusses why she doesn’t grieve for those she’s lost; how her weekly kayaking keeps her sane; and why helping others less fortunate than herself brings her more joy than anything else she’s ever done. Death and Dyin...

Mother, grandmother and dressmaker, Sandy Mitchell, lives in an isolated town in the southwest region of Western Australia, with a population of around 400 people. She shares how the losses she has experienced in her life – losing her dad to dementia, her newborn baby to a heart defect and her mother to cancer – have impacted her views on life and death. Death and Dying is an oral history collecti...

Graham Bullock was shocked when, at the age of 65, he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and only given a few year’s to live. His wife Helen, a retired nurse, became his full-time carer. They discuss why Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD) is the most compassionate way to face the end for people with painful terminal illnesses like Graham. Death and Dying is an oral history collection commissione...

Natalie Bogoias is a Homeless Healthcare street nurse and Trish Owen is a survivor of homelessness. They discuss why people are dying on the streets, what happens to them when they do, and why society deems a homeless person’s life to be of less value than others. Death and Dying is an oral history collection commissioned by the State Library of Western Australia and produced by Centre for Stories...

Lena Van Hale, manager of the sex worker rights organisation, Magenta, is a sex worker activist and trans person. In this interview she breaks down the misinformation around violence and death for sex workers, why (and when) suicide is actually prevalent among trans people, and how deaths from the HIV pandemic affect everyone today. Death and Dying is an oral history collection commissioned by the...

Lifeline WA ambassadors Leon and Adrian discuss men’s mental health, dance and haka as a medicine, and suicide prevention. Death and Dying is an oral history collection commissioned by the State Library of WA and produced by Centre for Stories. Head to centreforstories.com to find out more.

Leanne is the founder and owner of South West Grief and Loss Centre and is an experienced grief and bereavement counsellor. Here she discusses how grief is not linear, but rather made up of a million tiny moments; why our communities need to come together to better support people in their mourning; and how living our values and having self-awareness are key to healing and moving forward after loss...

Trigger warning: This story discusses suicide. Award-winning artist Abdul-Rahman Abdullah discusses how he uses art and sculpture to create open spaces that encourage conversations around death and grief. He reflects on the loss of his grandfather to suicide, capturing his feelings on death through his sculpture, Pretty Beach, how he believes the Western world has ‘sterilised’ death, and the ways...

Dr Marilyn Metta is a trauma counsellor and founder of the Metis Centre, a social justice and human rights organisation. In this interview, Marilyn talks about ending her mother’s life in Malaysia according to her mother's wishes; her own near-death experience; spirituality and Buddhism; and why trauma influences our views on death. Death and Dying is an oral history collection funded by the State...

Professor Jaya Dantas is Dean International in the Faculty of Health Sciences and is Professor of International Health in the School of Public Health at Curtin University, where she leads a programme of research in refugee and migrant health. Jaya discusses how she believes vulnerable populations were let down in the Australian government’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly migrants...

Karijarri and Yawuru woman Judy Anne Edgar and her daughter, Japanese Yawuru woman, Maya Shioji, discuss their multicultural upbringings in Broome, Western Australia, and the rituals and customs that occur during their traditional Indigenous funerals, as well as Japanese funerals. Death and Dying is an oral history collection funded by the State Library of Western Australia and produced by Centre...

Amber Dennis was born with spina bifida and hydrocephalus, and has been in a wheelchair for most of her life. She is also the founder of Wheelie Good Perth, an accessibility auditing business which she was inspired to create after the passing of her father and grandmother. Amber discusses why, despite being close to death herself on many an occasion, she embraces life with a passion and has used h...

Sheryl Blanksby moved to Australia from the Philippines when she was a young woman, in search of a better life. In this episode, she shares the harrowing journey of her baby boy Thomas being diagnosed with cancer and making the decision to not proceed with treatment - choosing quality of life over quantity. This is her journey of unimaginable loss, Facebook support groups, and finding strength fro...

Forbidden Love is a Centre for Stories project dedicated to love in all its forms. Four storytellers worked along-side story trainer Sukhjit Kaur Khalsa to perfect their stories for a series of live events. Whether it’s waiting at a bar for an hour to meet your next Tinder date or putting up with your partner’s questionable taste in music, love makes us do strange and wonderful things. So let’s ce...

Forbidden Love is a Centre for Stories project dedicated to love in all its forms. Four storytellers worked along-side story trainer Sukhjit Kaur Khalsa to perfect their stories for a series of live events. Whether it’s waiting at a bar for an hour to meet your next Tinder date or putting up with your partner’s questionable taste in music, love makes us do strange and wonderful things. So let’s ce...

Side Walks is an annual one-day sprawling adventure of literature and storytelling across Perth City and Northbridge, celebrating local stories, and activating spaces with arts and culture. In 2020, Side Walks was held on 5 December and made possible with funding from City of Perth, Aspen Corporate Financial Planning, Rayner Real Estate, and Herbert Smith Freehills. Combining stories from Centre f...

Side Walks is an annual one-day sprawling adventure of literature and storytelling across Perth City and Northbridge, celebrating local stories, and activating spaces with arts and culture. In 2020, Side Walks was held on 5 December and made possible with funding from City of Perth, Aspen Corporate Financial Planning, Rayner Real Estate, and Herbert Smith Freehills. A TikTok-inspired, lip-sync bat...

Side Walks is an annual one-day sprawling adventure of literature and storytelling across Perth City and Northbridge, celebrating local stories, and activating spaces with arts and culture. In 2020, Side Walks was held on 5 December and made possible with funding from City of Perth, Aspen Corporate Financial Planning, Rayner Real Estate, and Herbert Smith Freehills. In My Worst Critic, Maanas Tiwa...

Trish Owen – 'Finding Home' by Centre for Stories

Matilda G – 'Dwelling' by Centre for Stories

Zena Ibrahim – 'Resilience Is Not An Achievement' by Centre for Stories

Jonathan Shapiera – 'More Than Four Walls' by Centre for Stories