Dr. Sydney (Syd) Church Harrex studied at the University of Tasmania and was appointed Teaching Fellow in the English Department. At this time he had only what he describes as a 'distant and uninformed interest' in Indian writing, but talking to James McAuley, who had recently returned from a visit to India, he decided to write his PhD thesis on the little-explored (at that time) subject of Indian writing in English. Before long he was committed to opening up this area, and his pioneering work was in the vanguard of the growing interest in South Asia and Southeast Asia by scholars and creative writers. Harrex continued to research and publish in this area throughout his career. Publications in the field include The Fire and the Offering: The English-Language Novel of India 1935 - 1970 (Calcutta: Writers Workshop. 1977).
In 1966 he was made a foundation staff member of the English Department of Flinders University, where he continued to teach English Literature and Creative Writing until his retirement in November 2001.
During a study leave in 1976 which included a visit to India, Harrex became convinced of the potential value of a Centre for Research in the New Literatures in English, and in 1977 he established the CRNLE at Flinders University, the first of its kind in the world. He was foundation Director of the Centre and continued to hold that office until his retirement.
As well as his writing, he edited the CRNLE Reviews Journal 1979-2001, and has edited a number of works on the new literatures in English. As a specialist critic, scholar, editor and anthologist in his field he has maintained a close link between his scholarly and creative works. He considers that his professional activities, which have brought him in contact nationally and internationally with contemporary writers, have significantly nourished his own development as a poet.
Harrex's poetry has been widely published both overseas and in Australia, and in retirement he continued both to write and to be involved in the teaching of creative writing. He was the keynote speaker at an international seeminar at the University of Mysoree in March 2007 to mark the centenary of R. K. Narayan.
