David was brought up in inland Australia and, as a young man, worked as a jackaroo on sheep and cattle stations in the far west of Queensland. When he turned twenty-one, he gave all of that up  and went to London to study art. He enrolled at St Martins School of Art and while in Beginners' year, received, from Puffin Books, his first commission for book illustration .

      His main aim at that time was to be a painter; but he realised in the end that his natural skills lay in story telling  through words and drawing. His first story was published by Elizabethan Magazine in London , then by Lighthouse Magazine in New York.

David singing  narrator's part for POVERELLO

     David spent eight years in Europe, mostly in the UK,  but also some time in France and Spain. When he returned to Australia, worked for many years in the newspaper industry. In 1978, he won a Walkeley Award for newspaper illustration.  He has written many children's books and libretti for children's opera, which he has illustrated,  and he has also illustrated numerous books by other authors. Since nineteen ninety, David has worked as a freelance author and illustrator.  He is married to Australian composer, Betty Beath and together they have produced a number of songs, song cycles and music theatre pieces.

     Their most recent collaboration was POVERELLO  a music theatre piece commissioned by the Brisbane Mandolin Orchestra and performed at St John's Cathedral, Brisbane. It is a forty minute work that gives a glimpse into the life of St Francis of Assisi. David wrote the lyrics for some of the songs (others were the words of Carlo Caretto and Brother William SSF) and also a narration, which he also delivered in performance. 

David many years ago