Les Twentyman Wrote His Own Eulogy

Les Twentyman, social campaigner of Melbourne’s western suburbs, died in March 2024. At his state funeral, it was mentioned that Twentyman had even written his own eulogy in his 2017 memoir, ‘The Mouth that Roared’:

“Well-known trouble-maker and stirrer from the west, Les Twentyman, who devoted his life to disadvantaged kids, has shuffled off this mortal coil. Fallen off the perch, turned up his toes.”

Victorian Premier, Jacinta Allan, referred to this self-penned eulogy, saying it was typical of Twentyman—“funny, fiercely honest and, as always, playing down the enormous difference he made.”

Others talked up Twentyman the social campaigner, the staunch supporter of the Western Bulldogs and the face of the foundation that helps children stay at school and keep off the streets.

It’s a valuable exercise to follow Twentyman’s lead and write your eulogy in a nutshell.

What’s your life been about thus far?

To what and to whom have you devoted your life, time and energies?

Geoff Pound

More about Les Twentyman: Jewel Topsfield, ‘West’s Social Justice Champion Farewelled,’ The Age, 17 April 2024, p10.

Image: Les Twentyman.