The Big Fella

The never-before-told story of BHP Billiton's global conquests, told by the key players.The never-before-told story of BHP Billiton's global conquests, told by the key players.BHP is part of Australia's DNA; but it remains an enigma. The Big Fella- The rise and rise of BHP Billiton is the compelling story of how BHP and its partner Billiton rose from the humblest beginnings in the Australian Outback and on the Indonesian island of Belitung to starry heights on the great bourses of the world. Based on more than 60 exclusive interviews, it rips away the superficial gloss to expose the political and industrial forces that really drive Big Business in the 21st century.In an investigative tour de force, authors Peter Thompson and Robert Macklin reveal the visions, the schemes, the scandals and the corporate life-and-death struggles that have characterised BHP's evolution from the first lucky strike by the mysterious Charles Rasp at Broken Hill in 1883 to its merger with Billiton in 2001 to its daring $150 billion bid for Rio Tinto six years later. The result is a gripping story of foresight and blunder, of nation-building and rampant ego, of greed and of grace, written by two master storytellers with, for the first time, access to the key players themselves. The Big Fella won the 2010 Blake Dawson Prize for Business Literature.

Winner of Blake Dawson Prize for Business Literature 2010

Robert Macklin (Author)Robert Macklin wrote for the leading Australian newspapers and THE BULLETIN magazine. During 12 years at the CANBERRA TIMES from 1991 he was Arts Editor and then Associate Editor of the paper.Peter Thompson (Author)Born in Melbourne, Peter Thompson now lives in London, having enjoyed a successful career as a journalist in the UK. He has written biographies of Robert Maxwell and Jack Nicholson, among others. His most recent books are Pacific Fury, and, with Robert Macklin, The Big Fella-The Rise and Rise of BHP Billiton, Anzac Fury and Shanghai Fury. He visits Australia regularly.

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