While the Billy Boils · Character

Tom Hopkins

A tall, slow-witted bushman whose comic misadventures among the shearers and cooks expose the rough humour and petty cruelties of shed life.

supporting

Also known as Long Tom Hopkins, Long Tom, Tom

First appearance: Settling on the Land

As a supporting figure in While the Billy Boils, Tom Hopkins is not background color—the story leans on what they do once the chapter opens.

Central figure in the story of selecting land at Dry Hole Creek and later losing his farm and sanity.

In the storyWhile the Billy BoilsOpen this moment free

See Tom Hopkins in While the Billy Boils Book page

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Tom Hopkins moves through the world of the shearing shed with a lumbering, good-natured bewilderment, caught up in the pranks and grumblings of the men around him. He is the sort of figure who watches a cook's poodle get shorn for a lark and then listens to the cook's furious teatime tirade with the same slow incomprehension. His presence anchors the comic set-pieces, showing how bush humour can be both bonding ritual and casual cruelty.

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The fuller portrait of Tom Hopkins sits in Reading Lens — open the free preview to keep reading with notes on the page.

See Tom Hopkins in Settling on the Land

Character Web

17 connections

A slice of how Tom Hopkins sits in the book — open the reader for the full interactive map.

Relationship types

Friendship
Other

Character groups

Eccentric Bush Characters
Protagonist
Recurring Bush Archetypes
Family and Mystery Figures

+12 more in the full Character Web

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Narrative arc

Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.

Setup
Escalation
Breaking point
Aftermath
Closing

This is the story's dramatic climax because it presents the emotional and psychological nadir of the outcasts'…

Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.

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Relationships

The Narrator
friendship · positive
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and… How this plays out →
Mr. James Mitchell
friendship · positive
The Narrator
friendship · positive
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and… How this plays out →
The Narrator
friendship · positive
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and… How this plays out →
Mr. James Mitchell
friendship · positive
Mr. James Mitchell
friendship · positive

The Narrator
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and camaraderie in the outback.
Mr. James Mitchell
Mitchell and Tom Hopkins are fellow swagmen and mates, sharing yarns and the camaraderie of the road.
The Narrator
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and camaraderie in the outback.
The Narrator
Tom Hopkins is a fellow bush worker and mate of the narrator, often sharing hardships and camaraderie in the outback.
Mr. James Mitchell
Mitchell and Tom Hopkins are fellow swagmen and mates, sharing yarns and the camaraderie of the road.
Mr. James Mitchell
Mitchell and Tom Hopkins are fellow swagmen and mates, sharing yarns and the camaraderie of the road.

Relationship notes

How these ties play out is in the reading companion — open the free preview.

See Tom Hopkins in Settling on the Land

In the story

Tom Hopkins appears across 3 companion beats. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

While the Billy Boils
Central figure in the story of selecting land at Dry Hole Creek and later losing his farm and sanity.
Settling on the Land
The protagonist who settles on the land and endures a series of agricultural and legal disasters.
His Father's Mate
Known as 'Long Tom' or 'Tom the Devil,' a one-eyed, good-natured English digger who stutters and is a special crony to Isley, often giving him tips on where to find gold.

Chapter companion notes

Spoil-light check-ins for Tom Hopkins unlock in the free preview.

See Tom Hopkins in Settling on the Land

See Tom Hopkins in While the Billy Boils