Donald Alexander Leslie Seccombe (22 February 1931 - 30 December 1993) was an Australian

Logie Award The TV Week Logie Awards (known colloquially as The Logies) is an annual ceremony celebrating and honouring the best shows and stars in Television in Australia, Australian television, sponsored and organised by the magazine ''TV Week''. The eve ...

-winning television presenter. He is best known for his association with

QTQ-9 QTQ is an Australian television station, licensed to, and serving Brisbane, Queensland. It is owned by the Nine Entertainment Co., and is part of the Nine Network. It broadcasts on VHF Channel 8 ( digital). QTQ began broadcasting on 16 August ...

in Brisbane where he worked from 1962 to 1985. During this time, Seccombe anchored ''

Nine News Nine News (stylized as 9News) is a national News agency, news service on the Nine Network in Australia. Its flagship program is an hour-long ''9News'' bulletin at 6:00 pm, with editions produced by Nine's owned-and-operated stations in TCN, S ...

'', hosted the game show ''I've Got a Secret'' and presented documentaries. When he was paired with Melody Iliffe on ''Nine News'' in the 1960s, it's believed they formed the first male/female newsreading duo in Australia, which is still seen on many news bulletins throughout Australia. Seccombe is often remembered for his coverage of the

1974 Brisbane flood In January 1974 a flood occurred in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia after three weeks of continual rain. The Brisbane River, which runs through the heart of the city, broke its banks and flooded the surrounding areas. The cyclone that produced t ...

. In one

piece to camera In television and film, a piece to camera (PTC) is when a television presenter or a character speaks directly to the viewing audience through the camera. Details It is most common when a news or television show presenter is reporting or explainin ...

at a flood damaged home, Seccombe was left on the verge of tears as he surveyed a private library of books which were destroyed by floodwaters. With

Frank Warrick Francis Michael Warrick (1944 – 11 May 2021) was an Australian journalist and newsreader and TV game show host. Biography Warrick began his career in radio as a disc jockey in Toowoomba in 1963 with AM radio station 4GR, and in 1965 he was t ...

, he co-hosted ''A Flood of Memories'' - a television special reflecting on the tenth anniversary of the floods in 1984. Prior to joining QTQ-9, Seccombe worked in radio. Seccombe and his natural and relaxed style of delivery first came to attention in the late 1940's when he was a newsreader for the Queensland Radio News Service. He later hosted shows on

4BC 4BC is a radio station in Brisbane, Queensland, owned by Nine Entertainment. It broadcasts on 882 kHz AM and is Brisbane's only commercial talkback station. While the station's broadcasting facility is at Cannon Hill, its transmitting towe ...

in the 1950s including ''I Love Movies'' and the music quiz show ''Stop the Music''. In 1967, Seccombe won a

for Most Popular Male Personality (Queensland). He retired in 1985. Seccombe died on 30 December 1993 after he suffered a heart attack.

References

{{reflist Australian television newsreaders and news presenters 1931 births 1993 deaths