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TRANSCRIPT
George Negus was born in Brisbane in 1942.
A high school teacher before, in his own words, conning his way into print journalism, he then became the Press Secretary to Lionel Murphy, the Attorney-General in Gough Whitlam’s federal government in the 1970s.
There, he drew some attention for leaking to the press Mr Murphy’s authorisation of the famous police raids on ASIO’s St Kilda Road headquarters in Melbourne in 1973.
But it was later that decade that he burst upon the consciousness of most Australians, first on the ABC, and then, in 1979, when he was one of three reporters on the inaugural Australian version of 60 Minutes on the Nine Network, alongside Ian Leslie and Ray Martin.
Martin telling the Nine Network he and Negus soon shared a close bond.
"He was more than a colleague. He was a mate. A very good mate. I think that Logie created television for George Negus. I mean, he was probably the strongest TV character I can remember, on Australian television at least. He was outrageous. He was charismatic. He was loud. He was heavily opinionated. He was funny. But he was just a great bloke."
Negus was soon impressing many more than just his colleagues on 60 Minutes.
At its peak, 60 Minutes was attracting one-third of the Australian television audience on a Sunday evening.
Negus was a big reason why.
His colloquial and casual style bringing a complex and changing world to everyday Australians, in their vernacular.... even when he was reporting from dangerous locations- like the frontlines of the Iraq-Iran war.
"Is that Iranian fire or Iraqi fire"
"Iraqi"
"So that is going over our heads?"
"Yes"
Paul Hogan parodied it- and Negus' open-necked shirts and thick moustache- on his popular comedy show as George Fungus.
Negus going on to explain on a Nine Network production celebrating the 40th anniversary of 60 Minutes that it was a simple matter of respect for one's audience.
"A lot of ordinary Australians were not being treated with the right respect. They were treated like they were idiots because they watched commercial television. Well, what we were doing turned out to be a little better than idiotic."
Typical of his style was his famous 1981 interview with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
He asked just two of his 20 pre-approved questions to one of the most powerful women on earth... and wasn't afraid to be combative to one of the world's most combative leaders.
"Why do people stop us in the street, almost, and tell us that Margaret Thatcher isn't just inflexible, she's not just single-minded. On occasions, she's plain pig-headed, and won't be told by anyone?"
"Would you tell me who has stopped in the street and said that?"
"Ordinary Britons"
Senior journalist Peter Meakin worked on 60 Minutes in its peak years, going to be Executive Producer.
He says, despite the casual and unpretentious style that drew people to him, Negus was a man who took the craft of television journalism very seriously.
"He's memorable for so many reasons. I mean, superficially, for the moustache and the voice. But, what I remember the most is the commitment, and his love of a story."
Negus went on the host the Today Show on the Nine Network, Foreign Correspondent on the ABC...and Dateline on SBS.
The same style that made him a household name in the 20th century continuing in the 21st on Dateline... like when he interviewed former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.
"Why go back to Pakistan at all?"
"Pakistan is my country"
In 2021, Negus' family revealed he'd been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
He moved from his home on the mid-north coast of New South Wales to a nursing home in Sydney.
One of his two sons, Serge, accepting a Walkley award for Outstanding Contribution to Journalism in 2022 on his father’s behalf- and doing so in his father's famous garb of an open-necked shirt with no tie... even though the Walkleys is usually a black-tie event.
His family releasing a statement confirming his death, saying he died peacefully, surrounded by loved ones.
They've thanked the healthcare workers who took care of him in his final days... and are remembering him both for his varying interests, and on the most intimate level.
"While we know he will be celebrated for his unique contribution to journalism, football, and the environment, he would also want to be remembered for the incredible family man he was."
The tributes coming thick and fast... including from the highest office in the land.
A statement from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
"George sought and served the truth with steely determination and a twinkle in his eye. And, along the way, he made even the smallest TV screen feel that much bigger."
George Negus was 82.
