Kate McNamara, born May 14, 1952 – died in Canberra, January 12, 2026

One of Canberra’s most colourful and individualistic arts personalities, Kate McNamara, has died after a long period of illness. She was 73.

A poet, playwright, and critical theorist who originally came from Nimmitabel, NSW, she was also for a time an English teacher in the ACT system, famous for her uproarious and entertaining classes, the envy of her colleagues.

McNamara became known for her extensive contributions to theatre and literature, particularly her work within the Australian Surrealism Movement.

A brilliant honours graduate at the Australian National University, McNamara was awarded the HC Coombs Fellowship in 1991. She was mentored in theatre by the late Dorothy Hewett and in poetry by AD Hope.

A founding member of the underground cult group Aktion Surreal, McNamara enjoyed  challenging the conventions of mainstage theatre.

McNamara’s plays were performed in countries including Japan, Ireland, Canada, and Greece. She served as a scriptwriter and dramaturg for almost 10 years with Canberra’s Splinters Theatre Company and delivered the keynote address at the Fourth International Conference of Women Playwrights in Galway in 1998.

Her short story Verity earned her the prestigious Banjo Paterson Award. Her notable publications also include The Rule of Zip, The Void Zone, and The Year of the Dog – the latter originally staged at Canberra’s TAU Theatre.

Her written works, published through Aberrant Genotype Press (AGP) and other journals, include the anthropological work Leaves, as well as poetry, short stories, and critical theory. Archival materials related to her career, including her papers and oral history interviews, are held in the manuscript collection of the National Library of Australia.

She is survived by her son, Emrys McNamara.

This post will be updated when details of a memorial are released.