The Dinkum Oil

The Australian official war correspondent Charles Bean helped create The Dinkum Oil, an early example of the trench newspapers that appeared during the First World War. Bean noted in his diary on 7 June 1915 that Major Thomas Blamey had requested the production of a “Furphies Gazette” to quell “spy-mania” and the rumours constantly flying around the trenches. The idea, according to Bean, was that these damaging rumours would “be laughed out of court” through comic sketches and exaggeration.
Bean saw a copy of the 6th Battalion’s humorous trench newspaper Snipers’ Shots which he really enjoyed. He learned that the author, Company Quartermaster Sergeant Frank Noonan, had produced similar newspapers on his troopship and in Egypt and took steps to secure Noonan’s assistance. On 11 June, Noonan and Bean got together in Bean’s dug-out to compose the first issue of The Dinkum Oil. Bean noted modestly, “I can’t say I ever helped him. All I did was to hold the pen and write clearly. He really has a remarkable wit – the thing is very good indeed.”
Eight editions pointing out the absurdity of life at Gallipoli were issued over just a month.
Reading The Dinkum Oil today offers a glimpse of life on Gallipoli, revealing not only the concerns and experiences of the men but also their spirit and humour.