form y separately published work icon Vivian Bullwinkel single work   film/TV  
Issue Details: First known date: 1987... 1987 Vivian Bullwinkel
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AbstractHistoryArchive Description

Vivian Bullwinkel was a volunteer nurse during the Second World War. While she was being evacuated from Singapore, the ship on which she was travelling sank. The small group of survivors who washed ashore surrendered to Japanese occupying Banka Island. In a horrific turn of events, Japanese troops bayonetted the surviving soldiers and ordered the nurses back into the water. Bullwinkel was shot but miraculously survived. Bleeding and in a state of shock, she drifted ashore and hid in the jungle. Discovering a badly wounded British soldier, she realised the only chance of survival was to again surrender to the Japanese troops.

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

      ca. 1987 .
      Extent: 48 min.p.
      Series: y separately published work icon Michael Willesee's Australians Australians Trans Media Productions (publisher), Sydney : Trans Media Productions Film Australia Roadshow Coote and Carroll , 1987-1988 Z1587935 1987-1988 series - publisher biography

      A series of documentaries about Australians from all walks of life, the series was produced and hosted by former television current-affairs presenter Michael Willesee.

      Among the best-known people included in the series were infamous singer/dancer Lola Montez, actor Errol Flynn, athlete Betty Cuthbert, actress Lottie Lyell, radio personality Jack Davey, boxer Les Darcy, and Gallipoli hero Private John Simpson. The series also explored the lives of the Durkin family (Soldier Settlers), aviator Clyde Fenton, Sister Mary Mackillop, WWII nurse Vivian Bullwinkle, press baron John Norton, and General Henry Gordon Bennett, who fled Singapore in 1942, just prior to the island being invaded by the Japanese, leaving his army behind.

Works about this Work

From Martyr to Robo-Nurse : The Portrayal of Australian Nurses on Screen Lisa Milner , Cathy Brigden , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: Studies in Australasian Cinema , vol. 8 no. 2/3 2014; (p. 110-122)
'Nurses have traditionally been seen as among the most trusted of workers, with cultural connections with caring and femininity long been associated with their profession. While the portrayal of nurses in overseas screenworks has had some attention, Australian productions have not. This study identifies four categories of screenworks: popular entertainment, training and recruitment films, wartime nursing, and nurses as workers and unionists. Although more recent mainstream media portrayals of nurses increasingly depict strong, assertive professionals, little research has been conducted into the fourth category, a significant number of which are made by nurses. When nurses take on the film-making task, different outcomes are produced. New types of film about nurses and by nurses offer an evolving representation of the profession and are helping to change the identity of nurses.' (Publication abstract)
From Martyr to Robo-Nurse : The Portrayal of Australian Nurses on Screen Lisa Milner , Cathy Brigden , 2014 single work criticism
— Appears in: Studies in Australasian Cinema , vol. 8 no. 2/3 2014; (p. 110-122)
'Nurses have traditionally been seen as among the most trusted of workers, with cultural connections with caring and femininity long been associated with their profession. While the portrayal of nurses in overseas screenworks has had some attention, Australian productions have not. This study identifies four categories of screenworks: popular entertainment, training and recruitment films, wartime nursing, and nurses as workers and unionists. Although more recent mainstream media portrayals of nurses increasingly depict strong, assertive professionals, little research has been conducted into the fourth category, a significant number of which are made by nurses. When nurses take on the film-making task, different outcomes are produced. New types of film about nurses and by nurses offer an evolving representation of the profession and are helping to change the identity of nurses.' (Publication abstract)
Last amended 7 Oct 2010 09:47:52
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