Table Talk (magazine)

Table Talk: A Journal for Men and Women, was a weekly magazine published from 26 June 1885^[1] until September 1939 in Melbourne, Australia.^[2] It was established in 1885 by Maurice Brodzky (1847–1919), who obtained financial assistance^[3] to start his own publication after resigning from The Herald.^[2]

Table Talk was a social magazine that catered for both male and female readers.^[4] It included articles about politics, finance, literature, arts and social notes.^[4] Its gossip style attracted readers with articles about local notables and famous people from overseas, commenting on, among other things, their fashions, relationships, and social engagements.^[4] It was most popular during the 1880s Land Boom in Melbourne.^[2]

In 1893, trade unionist Frederick Bromley sued Brodzky after Table Talk drew public attention to the link between Bromley and George Sangster, who had illegally used union funds. The jury found for Bromley, awarding him £500 damages,^[5] and Brodzky left for America. G. V. Allen took over as proprietor and publisher, to the disgust of at least one commentator.^[6]

In 1899, the format of Table Talk changed to include photographs and different font sizes.^[7] It had a folio-size format, and initially was 16 pages, increasing to 20 pages by 1885, and was 24 pages by 1888. It was initially sold for threepence but the price had increased to sixpence by 1903.^[8]

In September 1924, Table Talk was sold for a reported £15,000.^[9] In 1926, it absorbed the illustrated magazine Punch.^[10] The last issue was dated 7 September 1939.^[11]

Personnel

• Eugenia Stone, was a reporter and poet. She married Sir George Doughty on 16 August 1913.
• George Vesey Allen (died 14 November 1913), educated at Prince Alfred College, worked as a journalist with The Daily Telegraph (Melbourne) and The Age before becoming proprietor and publisher in 1905. After quitting journalism, he was the organiser of the Bendigo Exhibition and Launceston Exhibition, before working in the administration section of the Neglected Children's Department of the New South Wales Government. He was author of Sinbad the Sailor, a pantomime.^[12]

References

1. "Cover". Table Talk (magazine). No. 1. Victoria, Australia. 26 June 1885. p. 1. Retrieved 26 May 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
2. Michael Cannon, Brodzky, Maurice (1847–1919), http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/brodzky-maurice-5365 Retrieved 23 July 2014.
3. Lew, Henry R. (2011). The Five Walking Sticks: The Story of Maurice Brodzky Investigative Journalist Extraordinaire. Melbourne: Port Campbell Press, p. 221
4. Lew, Henry R. (2011). The Five Walking Sticks: The Story of Maurice Brodzky Investigative Journalist Extraordinaire. Melbourne: Port Campbell Press, p. 223
5. "The libel action". The Argus (Melbourne). 31 March 1903. p. 6. Retrieved 6 January 2020 – via Trove.
6. "Mulga Chestnuts". The Spectator (Perth). Western Australia. 20 June 1903. p. 8. Retrieved 29 May 2023 – via Trove.
7. Lew, Henry R. (2011). The Five Walking Sticks: The Story of Maurice Brodzky Investigative Journalist Extraordinaire. Melbourne: Port Campbell Press, p. 224
8. Stuart, Lurline (1979), Nineteenth century Australian periodicals; an annotated bibliography. Sydney: Hale & Iremonger, p. 152, ISBN 0908094531
9. "Topical". Labor Call. Melbourne, Vic. 25 September 1924. Retrieved 17 December 2023 – via Trove.
10. "Newspapers and Periodicals". eMelbourne. School of Historical & Philosophical Studies, University of Melbourne. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
11. "Cover". Table Talk (magazine). No. 3722. Victoria, Australia. 7 September 1939. p. 1. Retrieved 26 May 2016 – via Trove.
12. "Personal Gossip". The Critic (Adelaide). Vol. VIII, no. 379. South Australia. 4 January 1905. p. 7. Retrieved 29 May 2023 – via Trove.

External links

• Digitised Table Talk from the National Library of Australia