Lorin Clarke is a writer, director and performer.

But Also John Clarke (a feature documentary written, directed and executive-produced by Lorin) has become one of the most watched local documentaries across Australia and Aotearoa/New Zealand across 2025/26. Reviewed as “remarkable”, “delightful”, “entertaining, touching, and very, very funny”, the film was nominated for two AACTA Awards, an Australian Critics’ Circle Award, An Australian Film Critics Association Award, and won Best Director at the Capricorn Film Festival and Best Documentary Script at the 2026 AWGIE awards.

The film follows Lorin’s memoir, Would That Be Funny (Text, 2023), described as “the kind of clear-eyed, open-hearted writing that’s a privilege to read” and “a memoir to be grateful for”. Lorin narrates the audio version of the book (described in The Monthly as ‘a note-perfect performance’) which you can find on audible.

Lorin is perhaps best known for creating (and narrating) three seasons of the award-winning and internationally renowned radio serial, The Fitzroy Diaries, starring the wonderful Caroline Craig (Gayle, from such a lovely street in Brighton), the incredible Pamela Rabe (playing Suzannah, ‘a bit of a shut-in’), the terrifying Stewart Farrell (Luminous Ute Guy), and Absolute Fitzroyalty Uncle Jack Charles (who played Alan with breathtaking sensitivity). Joel Davey played half of the couple from 100 and Damo the bird-watching construction worker, alongside Julia Harari (Kylie with the smiley shoe). Alex Hines played the other half of 100, Frankie. Luke Ryan played local dreamboat Greg, who always sees you first, and who fell in love with deadpan Bec (darling of the stage Xing Huan Chan). The series was produced by Sophie Townsend and the incredible sound designers and producers from Radio National. Described as “simply superb” by The Australian, the series won the Best Fiction award at the Australian Podcast Awards in May 2019. Fans of The Fitzroy Diaries should keep their eyes peeled for upcoming live performances, which happen too rarely but most entertainingly.

Lorin’s kids’ TV credits include Beep and Mort (ABC TV), Eddie’s Lil Homies (NITV/Netflix) The Wonder Gang(ABC TV), Kangaroo Beach (ABC TV), Big Words, Small Stories (ABC TV), Larry the Wonderpup (Seven, ABC TV), Kitty is Not a Cat (Seven) , Bluey (ABC TV), and Monster Beach. Her children’s book, illustrated by Mitch Vane, Our (Last) Trip to the Market, was an ACBA Most Notable Book in 2018.

Lorin writes the popular ‘Public Service Announcement’ column in The Big Issue (you can see some past columns on this website). She is also a radio broadcaster, and has an arts/law degree. She does emcee work, writes for other people, appears on podcasts, and has appeared on judging panels.

For the die-hard Stupidly Small fans: we have recently re-posted the ancient episodes of The Stupidly Small podcast to iTunes. Stupidly Small was a short, erratic, incredibly shambolic podcast with excellent idiot Stew Farrell. More here

Previous projects

I’ve done a bunch of radio. I used to co-host with Alicia Sometimes a weekly show about books, writing and spoken word, called Aural Text. I worked in commercial radio with Mick Molloy, Robyn Butler, and Alan Brough once in 2004 where I learned how not to freeze on air mid-sentence. I’ve done a bit of ABC radio here and there including an art show, a culture show, and my personal favourite, The Fitzroy Diaries.

I have been on various judging panels for film/theatre/audio/writing prizes including, most recently, the John Clarke Prize for Humour Writing, which I helped create (that was fun) as part of the Victorian Premier’s Literary Awards, and The Age book of the year (non-fiction) prize.

There’s a chapter by me in this book about Paul Kelly. I have written a few essays for Meanjin (one about theatre, one about the role of law in Australian politics and one about the Melbourne International Comedy Festival which is discussed here on the Conversation Hour on 774 ABC radio). In July 2012 I did a critiquing cultures residency at Varuna, The Writers' House and a Hot Desk Fellowship at the Wheeler Centre (supported by the Readings Foundation). I have done two residencies at Bundanon and one at Varuna.

While I was at Melbourne University, I wrote a play called People Watching, which was awarded second prize in London in the International Student Playscript Competition, judged by playwright Sir Alan Ayckbourn. Another show, For We Are Young and Free (about an intellectually curious Paris Hilton and an Australian girl seeking asylum in Canada) was one of three shows in the 2007 Melbourne International Comedy Festival to be nominated for a Golden Gibbo Award.

I have an arts/law degree. 

One of my favourite jobs was working at a complaints desk. I met the most weird and wonderful people with the strangest things to say about the stupidest stuff. It was glorious.