Kristin Williamson is of mixed Anglo-Irish and Scandinavian descent; her father was a Swede. Williamson was awarded a BA (Hons) in History and worked as an actor, taught Drama in high schools and lectured in Drama and English at Melbourne State College in Victoria. She moved to Sydney in 1979, and in the 1980s wrote features for the
National Times and was a columnist for the
Times on Sunday. Williamson moved to Noosa Heads in Queensland in the 1990s. As well as works of fiction and biography, Williamson wrote
The Last Bastion (1984) on Australia's engagement in World War II, and a biographical study,
Brothers to Us: The Story of a Remarkable Family's Fight against Apartheid (1997). With her husband
David Williamson (q.v.) she co-wrote the screenplay for the film
Princess Kate.
