The much-loved actress has built a career out of supporting roles like unlucky-in-love netballer Sharon on popular Australian comedy Kath & Kim.

“I even played second fiddle to a pig in the Babe movies, which I was very happy to do,” Szubanski said.

But now the comedian is taking centre stage, appearing at Bendigo’s Capital Theatre on Friday night to launch her autobiography, Reckoning, a memoir about growing up the daughter of a World War Two Polish assassin.  

Zbigniew “Peter” Szubanski migrated to Australia 50 years ago when his daughter was aged four, but the book describes how his guilt haunted the family until he died in 2006.

Szubanski said her acting experience was useful when writing the book’s darker moments.           

“I’d re-enact the scenes in my head and go through the emotions,” she said. “I’d be sitting in my writing room in Melbourne and I’d be transported back 20, 30, 40 years.

“Sometimes it was uncomfortable because they were very painful memories to evoke.”

Szubanski said her father’s migration story remains important because multiculturalism is a fundamental part of the Australian identity and she was disappointed by a recent lack of political leadership on the issue.

“They’ve really dropped the ball,” she said.

“For all of our sakes and all of our safety, we need to be more intelligent than our fears.”

But Szubanski has no intention of becoming a “political animal” on the subject, saying she will use the arts as her outlet of expression.

The book also details her struggle with sexuality and the mental illness that accompanied it, explaining the character of Sharon emerged out of the depths of depression.

“In dark times, humour is a lifeline,” she said.

Szubanski came out on live television in 2012, a move she hoped would comfort other gay people coming to terms with their identity.

She said LGBTI Australians, including those in regional areas, should reach out for help.

“When I was young, I felt so isolated, but finding support and networking will nourish you in ways you didn’t expect,” she said.

“Love and accept yourself the way you are. Don’t be ashamed.”

For Szubanski, she was able to take a leaf out of Sharon’s book, describing the character as “indomitable”.