Athol Thomas was a journalist and popular columnist in Western Australia. While studying at the University of Western Australia, he edited the student newspaper, Pelican and, in 1948, was on the board of the student magazine Black Swan. He joined the Fairfax bureau in London, England before returning to Western Australia where he joined the West Australian newspaper in 1962. He wrote for the newspaper until he retired in 1987. During his time with the West Australian he also contributed a fortnightly column on Western Australian to the Canberra Times. Athol Thomas continued to write articles in retirement. He also wrote fiction and non-fiction.
Source: Jack Waterford, 'Canberra's Scribe from WA a Journalist, Author for 78 Years', The Canberra Times (20 November 2012): 5
