Blanche d'Alpuget, the widow of former Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke, has died at the age of 82, leaving behind a substantial estate that could become the subject of a contentious inheritance battle. D'Alpuget, an acclaimed author, inherited the majority of Hawke's estimated $18 million estate upon his death in 2019. Hawke had not allocated any funds to his three children from his first marriage, Hazel and their children. Instead, d'Alpuget received nearly all of the assets, including the $9.2 million sale proceeds from their Northbridge waterfront mansion.
While d'Alpuget provided $750,000 to each of Hawke's children, his estranged daughter Rosslyn Dillon initiated a $4.2 million claim, asserting her father had not made adequate provision for her. Dillon, who has publicly discussed her past struggles with addiction, argued she was living in poverty and had difficulty affording her rent. This matter was resolved out of court with an undisclosed settlement amount.
The extent of d'Alpuget's estate at the time of her death is not fully clear, but it is understood to include a $4.5 million apartment overlooking Hyde Park. Additionally, her literary career, which spanned from 1984 to 2025 with 11 published books, likely generated ongoing income. In 2019, she also raised $671,630 from the sale of Hawke's personal items, including memorabilia and smoking accessories.
An auction of Hawke's belongings in 2019 had previously caused friction between d'Alpuget and Dillon. One of Dillon's sons, Paul Dillon, reportedly texted d'Alpuget expressing dismay over the sale of items like a Harry Bilson painting, which sold for $7,800. Court documents indicate a dispute where Dillon questioned d'Alpuget's decision to sell, to which she responded that she had the right to sell "stuff that is legally mine," finding his texts threatening.
It is unclear how d'Alpuget's will distributes her assets among her heirs. While she was reportedly close to two of Hawke's children, Sue Pieters-Hawke and Stephen Hawke, it remains unknown if they are beneficiaries. Her will may favor her son, Louis Pratt, his wife, Brianna, and their daughter, Sienna. Under New South Wales law, step-children are not automatically entitled to an inheritance. To make a claim, they must demonstrate they were part of the deceased step-parent's household and were dependent on them. The success of such claims is often based on future need rather than entitlement.
D'Alpuget and Hawke were together for 43 years, beginning an affair in 1976 when both were married to other individuals. Their property portfolio included a luxury cottage on Scotland Island, near Sydney, and a five-story Northbridge mansion purchased by Hawke and his first wife for $1.23 million in 1991. They also owned a unit in Sydney's One30 Hyde Park, valued at $3.6 million, which d'Alpuget sold shortly after Hawke's death in 2019. She subsequently purchased a $4.5 million apartment in an adjacent building.
D'Alpuget's final message to the public, shared by her family, urged: "Our highest calling and greatest achievement is love, the rule of life. Love one another."
She is survived by her son Louis Pratt, and Hawke's three children, as well as multiple step-grandchildren. Hawke, Australia's longest-serving Labor prime minister, met d'Alpuget in Jakarta in 1970. Their relationship became public knowledge when she interviewed him for a biography, and their affair began in 1976. When Hawke left his first wife, Hazel, in 1995, d'Alpuget faced significant public criticism. She and Hawke married in 1995.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute to d'Alpuget, noting her skill as an author in both fiction and non-fiction, particularly her biographies of Bob Hawke. Derek Rielly, who co-authored "Wednesdays With Bob," shared a tribute highlighting d'Alpuget's belief in the transient nature of pain and her radiating love for humanity, quoting her as saying, "The more humans there are, the more love there is. Love is what distinguishes humans from the rest of creation."