John Silvester is an Australian
journalist and crime writer. He has written for major Melbourne based newspapers such as The Age, the Sunday Herald Sun and others. Silvester has also co-written a number of bestselling books with
Andrew Rule, based on
crime in Melbourne. Some of their works formed the basis of the hit Australian TV series
Underbelly.[1] He also appears weekly on
3AW's breakfast program as "Sly of the Underworld".
Career
Silvester received a Bachelor of Arts in politics and legal studies at
La Trobe University in 1978, according to an article in the university's Alumni newsletter, Agora, which also stated that his father, Fred Silvester, was a former
Victoria PoliceAssistant Commissioner, and head of the
Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence. In 2007, Silvester won the Graham Perkin Australian Journalist of the Year for his work covering crime and corruption.[2]
According to his profile at The Age:
John Silvester has been a crime reporter in Melbourne since 1979, moving to The Age in 1993. He has worked with The Sunday Times insight team in London, won an ASEAN-AJA scholarship to study crime and corruption in South East Asia and has given evidence at Royal Commissions on police corruption. Silvester has published more than 30 crime books that have sold more than one million copies. He has won three Walkley awards, six
Victorian Press Club Quills, a
Ned Kelly award for true crime writing, a Ned Kelly lifetime achievement award and nine Victorian Law awards. He has been judged the
Graham Perkin Australian Journalist of the Year and has twice been commended in the same award. He appears regularly on radio station 3AW to discuss crime matters.
He has contributed to several ABC crime documentaries including Terry Carlyon's 2015 two-part documentary on police shootings – Trigger Point. Silvester writes "the Naked City", an award-winning weekly crime column in The Saturday Age. John hosts a true crime podcast, The Naked City.
Personal life
Silvester is also a passionate supporter of the
Hawthorn Football Club. He once fought a draw with former world champion
Barry Michael in a charity boxing match.
Bibliography
Inside Victoria: A Chronicle of Scandal,
Bob Bottom with John Silvester, Tom Noble & Paul Daley
ISBN0-3302726-1-6 (1991)
The Silent War: Behind the Police Killings That Shook Australia, John Silvester,
Andrew Rule & Owen Davies
ISBN0-6462506-4-7 (1995)
Underbelly: True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-646-33924-9 (1997)
Underbelly 2: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9586071-1-7 (1998)
Underbelly 3: Some More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9586071-3-3 (1999)
Underbelly 4: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9586071-6-8 (2000)
Underbelly 5: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9586071-8-4 (2001)
Underbelly 6: True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9579121-3-7 (2002)
Tough: 101 Australian Gangsters: A Crime Companion, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9579121-2-9 (2002)
Underbelly 7: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9579121-6-1 (2003)
Underbelly 8: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9752318-2-0 (2004)
Leadbelly: Inside Australia's Underworld Wars, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9752318-0-4 (2004)
Underbelly 9: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9752318-7-1 (2005)
Gotcha: How Australia's Baddest Crooks Copped Their Right Whack, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9752318-5-5 (2005)
Underbelly 10: More True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9775440-3-6 (2006)
Rats: Crooks Who Got Away With It: Tails of True Crime and Mystery from the Underbelly Archives, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9775440-0-1 (2006)
Underbelly 11: True Crime Stories, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN0-9775440-5-2 (2007)
Underbelly: The Gangland War, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN978-0-9775440-6-6 (2008)
Underbelly: A Tale of Two Cities, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN978-0-9775440-9-7 (2009)
Underbelly: The Golden Mile, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN978-0-9806971-0-0 (2010)
Underbelly: The Golden Casket, John Silvester & Andrew Rule
ISBN978-0-9807170-3-7 (2010)