'Ian Cuthbertson has had three overlapping careers. He was as a psychiatric nurse from 1975 until 1995, initially in large psychiatric institutions and later in senior roles at community centres in Bondi and Cremorne. He began his journalism career in 1980, writing freelance pieces for music magazines and women's titles. Ian worked full time at The Australian from 2001 until 2013, writing on technology and arts, and for five years served as the paper's television editor. He is also a musician who started performing in folk clubs at the age of fourteen. (Source: Allen & Unwin website)