Chester (Reginald William Winchester) Wilmot was a journalist employed as a war correspondent by the ABC during World War II. The files in this series principally contain the radio talks he presented during his period as an ABC war correspondent, that is, for the period 1940 to 1943.

Wilmot's first posting with the ABC Field Unit in August 1940 was with the AIF in the Middle East. During his time in the Middle East he reported from Palestine, Syria, Libya, Greece, Crete, Lebanon and Tobruk. Scripts of his broadcasts from all of these areas are contained within this series. Wilmot retuned to Australia in March 1942 and in July he accompanied AIF contingents to New Guinea. Again, many of the speeches in this collection represent his experiences and the experiences of the Australian forces in New Guinea, particularly along the Kokoda Track.

In November 1942 Wilmot was expelled from New Guinea and lost his accreditation as a war correspondent after he became involved in a dispute between General Blamey and General Rowell. Wilmot returned to Australia, where he continued to work for the ABC's Talks Department. In December 1943 he was seconded to the BBC to work as a war correspondent in Europe. During this period he continued to forward scripts to the ABC for broadcast and these are also contained within this collection. After the war Wilmot continued to work as a journalist in Europe, until his death in an air crash over Italy in January 1954. 

In addition to his wartime scripts, this series also contains a collection of correspondence documenting Wilmot's career with the ABC. These files, from various departments of the ABC, were grouped together in response to a research request soon after Wilmot's death. It was decided to retain them within this series of records rather than return them to their original sources. This collection therefore includes his personnel file, original application for a position at the ABC, his accreditation as a war correspondent and official travel details. The collection also includes correspondence between Wilmot and the Talks Department, concering both his experiences in New Guinea and his subsequent European reports for the ABC. Details of his post-war projects are also included. Records are also held documenting his death and the broadcasting of his memorial service over the ABC.

This series has been completely item listed in the National Archives' RecordSearch  database.

Administrative information

Archives file number:     RWS50/4/13