Geoffrey John Harvey (6 August 1935 – 30 March 2019) was an English-Australian musician, pianist, conductor, musical director and television personality who worked at the Australian

Nine Network Nine Network (stylised 9Network, and commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of the five main free-to-air television ...

for 38 years. Known primarily for his appearances on ''

The Mike Walsh Show ''The Mike Walsh Show'' was an Australian variety daytime television series. Hosted by Mike Walsh. History An early version of ''The Mike Walsh Show'' was a Thursday night variety show broadcast on HSV-7, Melbourne, from August 14, 1969. It w ...

'' and ''

Midday Noon (also known as noontime or midday) is 12 o'clock in the daytime. It is written as 12 noon, 12:00 m. (for '' meridiem'', literally 12:00 midday), 12 p.m. (for ''post meridiem'', literally "after midday"), 12 pm, or 12:00 (using a 24-hour cloc ...

'', Harvey also composed a number of the theme songs for the network's programs.

Early life

Harvey was born on 6 August 1935 in London, England, and lived through

the Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was born into a musical family: his father played the fiddle while his mother was a piano player. Harvey began playing piano and the organ at the age of six and when he was eight he began playing at his local Catholic church. By age 14, he was playing in

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral, officially the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood, is the largest Catholic Church in England and Wales, Roman Catholic church in England and Wales. The shrine is dedicated to the Blood of Jesus Ch ...

. His first job was as a saxophonist in a band at the Round Towers Irish Club in

Holloway Road Holloway Road is a road in London, in length. It is one of the main shopping streets in North London, and carries the A1 road (Great Britain), A1 road as it passes through Holloway, London, Holloway, in the London Borough of Islington. The roa ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

as a 15-year-old. After completing his education and

national service National service is a system of compulsory or voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act ...

he began playing in

jazz club A jazz club is a venue where the primary entertainment is the performance of live jazz music, although some jazz clubs primarily focus on the study and/or promotion of jazz-music. Jazz clubs are usually a type of nightclub or bar, which is licens ...

s across Europe.

Nine Network

Harvey came to Australia in the early 1960s to join

EMI Music Australia EMI Recorded Music Australia Pty Ltd (called EMI Music Australia until May 2013) is an Australian imprint of Universal Music Australia, formerly a subsidiary label of EMI Recordings Ltd and, between 1979 and 1996, that of Thorn EMI. It is Austr ...

, producing records for the label with Bryan Davies. He was only due to stay in the country for a year but decided to remain, finding work in the new medium of

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

. Harvey joined the

in 1961 working on Bob Rogers' ''Tonight Show''. In 1963, he was appointed the musical director of ''Tonight with Dave Allen'' and then worked on ''The

John Laws Richard John Sinclair Laws CBE (born 8 August 1935) is a retired Australian radio announcer who had a broadcasting career that spanned 71 years. His distinctive voice earned him the nickname ''Golden Tonsils''. Career Best known as a talkback ...

Show'', ''Tonight Show with Charlie Brill and

Mitzi McCall Mitzi McCall (born Mitzi Joan Steiner; September 9, 1930 – August 8, 2024) was an American comedian and actress. She was known for her work with her husband, Charlie Brill, and their performance on ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' on February 9, 1964 ...

'', ''

Bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an ornamen ...

'', ''

Barry Crocker Barry Hugh Crocker (born 4 November 1935
Official Barry Crocker website) is an Australian

The Don Lane Show ''The Don Lane Show'' was an Australian television talk show which aired twice a week on the Nine Network from 1975 to 1983. The show was created by Don Lane who co-hosted it with Bert Newton. Channel Nine was reluctant to cast Bert Newton, w ...

''. His most prominent role was as the musical director of ''

''. and its successor ''

'' During the program's run he employed three bands which were rotated week to week. A firm advocate of live music on television, he often battled with the management of the network. During his time at Nine, he composed the theme songs for ''

A Current Affair ''A Current Affair'' may refer to: * ''A Current Affair'' (Australian TV program), 1971–present Australian current affairs program that airs on Nine Network * ''A Current Affair'' (American TV program), a 1986–1998 American television news ...

'', ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'', ''

Sunday Sunday (Latin: ''dies solis'' meaning "day of the sun") is the day of the week between Saturday and Monday. Sunday is a Christian sabbath, day of rest in most Western countries and a part of the Workweek and weekend, weekend. In some Middle Ea ...

'' and ''

The Sullivans ''The Sullivans'' is an Australian period drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran on the Nine Network from 15 November 1976 until 10 March 1983. The series tells the story of a fictional average middle-clas ...

'', the latter being originally composed for the wedding of his first wife's cousin. From 1984 to 2002, Harvey was also the musical director of

Carols by Candlelight Carols by Candlelight is an annual Australian Christmas tradition that was popularised in Melbourne in 1938. The tradition has since spread around the world. It involves people gathering, usually outdoors in a park, to sing carols by candlel ...

in Melbourne at the

Sidney Myer Music Bowl The Sidney Myer Music Bowl is an outdoor bandshell performance venue in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is located in the lawns and gardens of Kings Domain on Linlithgow Avenue close to the Arts Centre and the Southbank entertainment prec ...

before his successor John Foreman took over in 2003.

Post television career

Following the cancellation of ''Midday'', Harvey was sacked from Nine after 38 years on 6 May 1999. He appeared briefly on Sydney radio station 2GB alongside

Kerri-Anne Kennerley Kerri-Anne Kennerley (née Wright; born 22 September 1953) is an Australian television and radio presenter, actress and singer. She has more than 50 years in the industry, and is an inductee into the Logie Hall of Fame. Kennerley co-hosted Netw ...

in 2000. In 1998, Harvey was appointed as the joint patron of the

Mo Awards The Australian Entertainment Mo Awards (commonly known as the Mo Awards) were an annual Australian entertainment industry award, established in 1975, to recognise achievements in live entertainment in Australia. They were last awarded in 2016. ...

alongside

Tommy Tycho Thomas Tycho AM MBE DMus (11 April 19284 April 2013) was a Hungarian-born Australian pianist, conductor, composer and arranger. He was active in both classical music and pop. He was associated with musical productions on Australian televisi ...

who had been sole patron since 1981. They both continued in this role until 2005, with Harvey also serving as chairman in 1998 and from 2000 to 2002. Harvey returned to studying in 2002, receiving his Associate in Music, Australia in organ in 2004 from the

Australian Music Examinations Board The Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB) is a federated, privately funded corporation which provides a program of examinations for music, speech and drama in Australia. The organisation had its beginnings at the Universities of Melbourne ...

and four years later his licentiate from

Trinity College London Trinity College London (TCL) is an examination board based in London, United Kingdom which offers graded and diploma qualifications across a range of disciplines in the performing arts and English language learning and teaching. Trinity Colleg ...

. In October 2008, Harvey donated to the

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

his collection of 5,000 original arrangements and in 2011, he began teaching music in his studio at home. In 2017, Harvey still performed in live theatre, taking to the stage to play piano in his comedy

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatre, theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketch comedy, sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural pre ...

''Senior Moments'' with

Lex Marinos Alexander Francis Marinos (1 February 194913 September 2024) was an Australian actor and television director, radio personality and voice artist. He was most notable for his role as Bruno, in the 1980s television series '' Kingswood Country''. ...

Benita Collings Benita Collings (born 1940) is an Australian theatre, television and film character actress and children's television presenter best known for her role on ABC TV's '' Play School''. Collings has also featured in documentaries and commercials. ...

and John Derum.

Awards

Harvey was a recipient of the Medal of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

during the

2006 Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours 2006 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 17 June 2006, to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2006.Saint Lucia list: Antigua & Barbuda list: The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before th ...

for "service to the community as a musician and entertainer, and through support for charitable organisations". Harvey was a patron for ConnecTeD (Friends of the Connective Tissue Dysplasia, Children's Hospital at Westmead), from 1992.

Personal life

Known as a practical joker and for making "wild bets", he grew a beard as a result of losing a 1965 bet to

Don Lane Morton Donald Isaacson (born November 13, 1933 – October 22, 2009), known professionally as Don Lane, was an American talk show host and singer active mostly in Australia, best known for his television career in Australia, especially for host ...

on a football match. Harvey married fellow television personality Penny Spence and they had two children together: Eugenie in 1968 and Charlotte two years later. They lived together in the

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

suburb of Epping. He lived in the village of Berrima in the Southern Highlands of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

with his second wife of years, Katrina. Katrina also worked at Nine as the long-time personal assistant to executive

Sam Chisholm Samuel Hewlings Chisholm AO (8 October 1939 – 9 July 2018) was a New Zealand-born Australian media executive who was a significant figure in the Australian media. Career Chisholm attended King's College, Auckland. Chisholm had been ...

. He died on the Gold Coast in March 2019, aged 83.

Discography

Studio albums

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harvey, Geoff 1935 births 2019 deaths Australian conductors (music) Australian pianists Australian television personalities English conductors (music) English pianists English emigrants to Australia English television personalities Musicians from London Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia 21st-century British conductors (music)