Desmond Zwar

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Desmond Zwar
Born1931
Beechworth, Victoria
Died27 April 2022
OccupationWriter for children
LanguageEnglish
NationalityAustralian
Years active1969-2010
Notable worksTalking to Rudolph Hess

Desmond Zwar (1931-2022) was born in Beechworth, Victoria, and was an author and veteran reporter from Melbourne, Australia. He studied at Scotch College, Melbourne, graduating in 1949. [1]

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He worked for the Border Mail in Albury, New South Wales, and The Herald (now the Herald Sun ) in Melbourne. He was a reporter, foreign correspondent, feature writer and acting features editor of the Daily Mail in London for 11 years. [1] Having previously lived near Cairns in Queensland, he resided in Beechworth until his death in 2022. [2]

Zwar was most famous for conducting an interview over several years with imprisoned Nazi leader Rudolf Hess. [3] That gained international attention because Zwar persuaded Hess to admit that he had been part of the planning team for the invasion of the Soviet Union. The imminent invasion was what had convinced Hess to try, at the last moment, to seek an alliance with Britain against Bolshevism by flying to Scotland in 1941. [3]

Zwar's son, Adam Zwar, is an actor in Australia.

Desmond Zwar passed away on 27 April 2022. [2]

Books by Desmond Zwar

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References

  1. 1 2 "Class of 1949". OSCAnet. Old Scotch Collegians' Association. Archived from the original on 17 February 2011. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
  2. 1 2 ""Desmond Zwar – October 20, 1931 to April 27, 2022"". Wangaratta Chronicle, 6 May 2022. Retrieved 22 April 2024.
  3. 1 2 ""How Rudolph Hess was persuaded to reveal Nazi secrets"". The Sunday Times, 5 June 2010. Retrieved 22 April 2024.