Chris Gardner (writer)

Chris Gardner was the pen name for Marjorie Gardner, an English-Australian writer of television, radio and theatre.

She was born in England and emigrated to Australia in the 1950s, settling at Woody Point, Queensland. Gardner started writing when briefly bed-ridden due to a slipped disc then became more serious about it when she joined a Brisbane radio group in 1956.

Her radio plays were produced by the ABC. She also wrote for stage and television. Her stage play The Pub at Pelican Creek was commended in the 1958 General Motors play competition. Her television play Dark Under the Sun featured one of the first interracial romances on Australian television.

Select credits

 * The Masterpiece (1957) - short story
 * A Gift for George (1957) - short story
 * The Pub at Pelican Creek (1958) - stage play
 * Conflict (1958) - short story
 * Dark Under the Sun (1960) - television play, also adapted for radio
 * The House of Mancello (1962) - television play, also adapted for radio
 * A Private Island (1964) - television play, also adapted for radio in 1965
 * A passage in the life of Mr Watkins Tottle - radio play
 * Who's Perfect? - radio play
 * Kate's Journal - radio play