Dave Warner

Dave Warner is the author of eleven crime novels, including the winner of the 1996 WA Premier’s Award for Fiction (City of Light) and the 2016 Ned Kelly winner of Best Australian Crime Fiction (Before it Breaks). He has also written a children's book series and seven non-fiction titles, and screenwritten for film and TV.

Dave Warner originally gained national recognition as a musician-songwriter in the late 1970s with Bob Dylan referring to Dave and Richard Clapton as his “favourite Australian artists”.
As early as 1973 Dave had formed Australia’s first punk band, Pus, playing early versions of tracks such as Suburban Boy and Hot Crotch which he was later to record with Dave Warner’s from the Suburbs. In 1975, Dave went to London and wrote many new songs which expressed a clearly-defined vision of Australia, including tracks such as Convict Streak and Oklahoma. Suburban Boy become the cornerstone of this new style of music, which Dave labelled suburban rock. Warner’s music is probably best described as Lou Reed meets Tomas Pynchon.

Dave's feature films include the cult-horror CUT (starring Kylie Minogue and Molly Ringwald) and GARAGE DAYS (co-written with director Alex Proyas). His many TV credits include scripts for MCLEOD’S DAUGHTERS and PACKED TO THE RAFTERS.

Dave was educated at Aquinas College and the University of Western Australia, graduating with a B.A. (Hons.), majoring in Psychology. Growing up an ardent supporter of the East Fremantle Football Club, his passion of Australian football remains and he recently wrote the biography of AFL star Marlion Pickett.