In this week’s episode of the Afternoon Light podcast, Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer talks to best-selling biographer Troy Bramston about the comparisons to be made between Robert Menzies and Bob Hawke, the longest serving prime ministers for each side of Australian politics.

When it comes to political longevity, Robert Menzies and Bob Hawke are record-breakers who are frequently held up as leadership models for successors to emulate. But despite their competing political philosophies, Menzies and Hawke have far more in common than simply winning elections. Both were born in remote townships on either side of the Victoria-South Australian border, both came from families containing active politicians and had fathers who served as religious ministers, both were filled with talent, ambition and drive from an early age, and both were able to adapt and learn over their careers. In an Australia that seems to be yearning for enduring and successful leadership, there are many lessons to be learned from their stories, and they come out all the clearer through a discussion of Plutarch-style ‘parallel lives’.

Troy Bramston is a senior writer and columnist with The Australian. He has interviewed politicians, presidents and prime ministers from multiple countries along with writers, actors, directors, producers and several pop-culture icons. He is an award-winning and best-selling author or editor of 11 books, including Bob Hawke: Demons and Destiny, Paul Keating: The Big-Picture Leader and Robert Menzies: The Art of Politics. He also co-authored The Truth of the Palace Letters and The Dismissal with Paul Kelly.