Sir Ian Graham Turbott (9 March 1922 – 11 August 2016) was a New Zealand-Australian diplomat and university administrator.

Early life and education

Turbott was born in

Whangārei Whangārei () is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the largest settlement of the Northland Region. It is part of the Whangarei District, created in 1989 from the former Whangarei City, Whangarei County and Hikurangi Town councils to admi ...

, New Zealand, and attended

Takapuna Grammar School Takapuna Grammar School is a state coeducational secondary school located in the suburb of Belmont on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. Established in 1927, the school mainly serves the eponymous suburb of Takapuna and the entire Dev ...

. He later studied at

Auckland University College The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loca ...

and

Jesus College, Cambridge Jesus College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Jesus College was established in 1496 on the site of the twelfth-century Benedictine nunnery of St Radegund's Priory, Cambridge, St ...

. He served six years in the

New Zealand Army The New Zealand Army (, ) is the principal Army, land warfare force of New Zealand, a component of the New Zealand Defence Force alongside the Royal New Zealand Navy and the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Formed in 1845, as the New Zealand Mil ...

as part of the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force during

World War II 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 ...

, including service in Italy, the South Pacific and south-west Asia. He left the army with the rank of captain.

Working life

After leaving uniformed service, Turbott joined the

British Colonial Service The Colonial Service, also known as His/Her Majesty's Colonial Service and replaced in 1954 by Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service (HMOCS), was the British government service that administered most of Britain's overseas possessions, under the aut ...

with an appointment to the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony. After a secondment to the

British Colonial Office The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created in 1768 from the Southern Department to deal with colonial affairs in North America (particularly the Thirteen Colo ...

, he served as Administrator of Antigua between 1958 and 1964. In 1964 he was appointed Administrator of Grenada, continuing in the role after it became a governorship in 1967. He left Grenada in 1968. After two years in Britain, he emigrated to Australia, where he entered business. Between 1989 and 2000 Turbott served as chancellor of the

University of Western Sydney Western Sydney University, formerly the University of Western Sydney, is an Australian multi-campus public research university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The university in its current form was founde ...

. Turbott was the honorary consul-general for the

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

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 ...

from 1995 until his death.

Community

Turbott was appointed (1982–1954) as both the NSW chair of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award – Australia and a national board director

Honours

Turbott was made a

knight bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

in the 1968 British New Year's Honours List. In 1985 he was named

Australian Father of the Year The Australian Father of the Year Award is presented annually to "a distinguished father who has demonstrated support, guidance and love to his children or other children through his working role or family life." Awards The award was inaugurated ...

Personal life

Turbott met his future wife, Nancy Lantz, on Christmas Eve 1951 when a

Pan Am Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

Boeing Stratocruiser on which she was a flight attendant landed on

Canton Island Canton Island (also known as Kanton or Abariringa), previously known as Mary Island, Mary Balcout's Island or Swallow Island, is the largest, northernmost, and , the sole inhabited island of the Phoenix Islands, in the Republic of Kiribati. It i ...

, where he was stationed. They married soon after in the United States. Together they had three daughters. He died on 11 August 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turbott, Ian 1922 births 2016 deaths People from Whangārei Governors of British Grenada New Zealand emigrants to Australia Governors of Antigua and Barbuda Chancellors of Western Sydney University New Zealand military personnel of World War II New Zealand Knights Bachelor Australian Knights Bachelor Officers of the Order of Australia Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Australian Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order People educated at Takapuna Grammar School New Zealand expatriates in England New Zealand expatriates in Kiribati New Zealand expatriates in Tuvalu Australian expatriates in Kiribati