Jeremy Nicholas Cordeaux (born 18 September 1945) is an Australian radio and television presenter best known for his work in the

talkback radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. They may feature monologues, dialogues between the hosts, interviews w ...

format. Cordeaux worked in radio from 1962 to 2021, rising from runner, to presenter and host, to managing director of a radio station. Cordeaux was the host of the Australian TV dating show ''

Blind Date A blind date is a romantic meeting between two people who have never met before. Both parties arrange a date with little to no information about each other, hoping for the possibility of making a lasting impression. Typically, a family member or ...

'' in 1970 and co-anchored the Adelaide edition of ''

Seven News Seven News (stylised 7NEWS) is the television news service of the Seven Network and, as of 2021, the highest-rating in Australia. National bulletins are presented from Seven's high definition studios in South Eveleigh, Sydney, while its flags ...

'' in the late 1980s. His career has also been marred by controversy, from implication in a cash-for-comment affair in 1999, to two DUI charges, to his 2021 sacking for on-air comments about alleged rape victim

Brittany Higgins In February and March 2021, a number of allegations involving rape and other sexual misconduct against women involving the Australian Parliament and federal politicians were raised, causing controversy especially for the federal Liberal–Natio ...

. Cordeaux has been named Best Talk Show Host in the World three times,2015 - Jeremy Cordeaux
Winners and Finalists: Hall of Fame,

Commercial Radio Australia Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) is the peak body for the commercial radio broadcasting industry in Australia. CRA was formed in 1930 as the Federation of Australian Radio Broadcasters. It provides representation and advocacy on common statuto ...

. Accessed 19 November 2018. and has been inducted into the Australian Commercial Radio Hall of Fame. In 2003, Cordeaux was made a Knight of the

Order of St. John The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there u ...

(KStJ) for services to broadcasting and the community and, in 2006, he was made a

Member 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 ...

(AM).

Career

Radio work

Born in

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 ...

, Cordeaux began his career in radio during 1962, at the age of 16, when he became an errand boy for

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 ...

2GB 2GB is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia, owned by Nine Radio, that also owns 2UE. 2GB broadcasts on 873 kHz, AM. In 2024, 2GB held 14% of the total radio ratings share, making it one of the most widely listened-to radio sta ...

.Debelle, Penny (24 March 2017
The return of talkback king Cordeaux
'' The Advertiser''. Retrieved 18 November 2018. He later moved to Grafton to work at 2GF before a 12-month stint at 2KY in Sydney, returning to 2GB in 1973 to take over the morning show.(25 September 2004
I've had 42 wonderful years in radio: Jeremy Cordeaux
''radioinfo''. Retrieved 19 November 2018. Cordeaux then became the station's breakfast presenter in 1974.2015 - Jeremy Cordeaux
Winners and Finalists: Hall of Fame,

. Accessed 19 November 2018. In 1976, Cordeaux moved to

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. There he hosted ''The Court of Public Opinion'' on

5DN Cruise 1323 (call sign: 5DN) is one of Adelaide's longest running radio stations. In its 80+ years it has changed considerably. It was the first commercial station to begin broadcasting in South Australia. History Radio 5DN began operating ...

for almost thirty years. After acquiring a 10% interest in 5DN, he was promoted to the position of

Managing Director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

. He later sold his interest in 5DN, and purchased 5AD and 5SE from Hoyts Media. He sold the stations to the

Australian Radio Network ARN Media Ltd., formerly Here, There & Everywhere and APN News & Media, is an Australian media company. Divisions include broadcast radio and Out-of-home advertising. The company previously had assets in New Zealand, and previously owned Adsh ...

in 1996. Cordeaux retired from 5DN in 2004. He returned to radio in 2014, commencing work with

FIVEaa FIVEAA (pronounced ''Five Double A'') is Adelaide's only commercial talkback radio station. The station has a range of programs including news, sports, current affairs, social issues, football calls, gardening, lifestyle, cars, travel and healt ...

. In December 2016, Cordeaux announced he was leaving FIVEaa, after mistakenly believing the station wanted him to move to another timeslot to replace Alan Hickey, assuming Hickey's employment was being terminated. However, after being informed that Hickey was leaving the station to undergo cancer treatment, Cordeaux elected to stay. Cordeaux was sacked by FIVEaa in March 2021 following on-air comments about alleged rape victim

Television work

Cordeaux's best known television role was as host of Australian dating show ''

'' in 1970. In the late 1980s, Cordeaux anchored the Adelaide edition of ''

'', alongside

Graeme Goodings Graeme Goodings (born 21 June 1948) is an Australian television and radio presenter. Early career Goodings's break in media came in 1963 when, after working as a panel operator at Melbourne radio station 3AW, he went on air Christmas Morning ...

. He also hosted his own show on Adelaide community station in the early 2010s on Channel 44. Cordeaux was a guest on

ABC Television ABC Television most commonly refers to: *ABC Television Network of the American Broadcasting Company, United States, or *ABC Television (Australian TV network), a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia ABC Television or ABC ...

's weekly panel show '' Q&A'' in 2013.

Charity work

Cordeaux was the founding chairperson of the Variety Club of South Australia, and has been associated with the

Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children NextSense, formerly the Royal Institute for Deaf & Blind Children (RIDBC), in Sydney provides a range of educational services for students with vision and/or hearing impairment, including specialist schools for signing deaf students, oral deaf ...

, the

Motor Neurone Disease Association The Motor Neurone Disease Association (MND Association) focuses on improving access to care, research and campaigning for those people living with or affected by motor neurone disease (MND) in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. MND is also kno ...

Red Cross The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...

, SA Great and The Smith Family.

Cash for comment affair

In 1999, Cordeaux was implicated in the

cash for comment affair The cash for comment affair was an Australian scandal that broke in 1999 concerning advertorial, paid advertising in radio that was Native advertising, presented to the audience in such a way as to sound like editorial commentary. John Laws, a sho ...

when

's '' Media Watch'' program aired allegations by former 5AD

news director A news director is an individual at a broadcast station or network who is in charge of the news department. In local news, the news director is typically in charge of the entire news staff, including journalists, news presenters, photographers, ...

Neil Wiese.Ackland, Richard (26 July 1999
Media Watch - 26/7/99
ABC Television. Retrieved 18 November 2018. Wiese claimed he had been pressured to tailor news bulletins to incorporate an endorsement deal for 5AD's advertisers in 1993, which guaranteed them undisclosed and subtle preferential treatment during general on air programs and news bulletins. ''Media Watch'' cited a letter of complaint Wiese had sent to the

Australian Broadcasting Authority The Australian Broadcasting Authority was an Australian government agency whose main roles were to regulate broadcasting, radio communications and telecommunications. The Authority took over the functions of the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal ...

, and a memo allegedly outlining the deal which claimed the station would have sought to create "industry authority status" for the businesses through news bulletins and program segments. ''Media Watch'' criticised the Australian Broadcasting Authority for its lack of interest in the matter, and for their lack of action regarding a "serious deficiency" with the radio industry's code of practice. The Australian Broadcasting Authority subsequently announced it would investigate the claims made against Cordeaux on ''Media Watch''.Caldwell, Alison (10 February 2000
Broadcaster rejects claims he misled listeners
'' AM'', ABC Radio. Retrieved 18 November 2018. In response, Cordeaux said Wiese was a former employee who had been terminated for dishonesty, and who had orchestrated a "ten-year campaign of venom and vindictiveness", and who had since been employed by the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

. Cordeaux said he had never done anything wrong. Cordeaux later said the memo was an internal document which originated from a "think tank" discussion, and the endorsement deal outlined in the memo never eventuated. However, following the Australian Broadcasting Authority's investigation, Cordeaux was found to have substantially breached the industry's code of practice.Caldwell, Alison (2 August 2000
ABA releases final "Cash for Comment" report
'' The World Today'', ABC Radio. Retrieved 18 November 2018. The ABC found Cordeaux's undisclosed personal sponsorship deals with the likes of

Adelaide Casino Adelaide Casino, known commercially as SkyCity Adelaide, is a large casino and recreational venue on the north edge of the Adelaide city centre. Located in the heritage-listed Adelaide railway station building on North Terrace, Adelaide, the cas ...

Network Ten Network 10 (commonly known as the 10 Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Paramount Global's Paramount Networks UK & Australia, UK & Australia division and is o ...

GIO Gio or GIO may refer to: Science and technology * Gi/o, protein subunits * GIO, a computer bus * GIO (software), a library for accessing virtual file-systems * 11084 Giò, a main belt asteroid * Gibioctet, a unit of digital information * ...

and

Optus Singtel Optus Pty Limited is an Australian Telecommunications in Australia, telecommunications company headquartered in Macquarie Park, a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is a wholly owned subsidiar ...

had influenced the content on his programs. The ABA found 5AD to have breached the codes of practice on twelve occasions, prompting another enquiry into both 5AD and 5DN. In response, Cordeaux rejected his actions were "cash for comment", saying it was advertising rather than commenting. Cordeaux later said in a 2004 interview that there was nothing covert about the relationship he had with the businesses as everyone had known about his close association with the sponsors. He said although the rules changed, he was not breaking any rules in place at the time. However, he said he applauded the ABA for the changes as they require announcers to be more transparent, removing any ambiguity.

Personal life

Drunk driving

In May 2017, Cordeaux was convicted after pleading guilty to one count of driving with excess blood alcohol. He had recorded a reading of 0.102 during a breath test on 15 December 2016, while returning from a Christmas party. Cordeaux was issued with an immediate loss of licence for a period of six months. The magistrate recorded a conviction and fined Cordeaux $950. Cordeaux was ordered to pay $520 in court costs.Frewster, Sean (30 May 2017
Adelaide talkback king Jeremy Cordeaux fined after drink-driving at Norwood
''The Advertiser''. Retrieved 18 November 2018. The conviction and punishment were handed down in Cordeaux's absence, as he had failed to attend the court appearance at Adelaide Magistrates Court. He later complained about not knowing about the scheduling of the court proceedings, and said he had expected someone from South Australia Police to inform him when he was due to appear. Cordeaux faced a similar drink driving charge in 2005, after he allegedly recorded a blood alcohol reading of 0.085 during a random breath test in late 2004.

Vintage car collection

Cordeaux is known for his collection of

vintage In winemaking, vintage is the process of picking grapes to create wine. A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In certain wines, it can denote quality, as in Port wine ...

and

classic car A classic car is typically described as an automobile 25 years or older, although a car's age is not the only requirement it must meet before being considered a "classic." However, a standard criteria for recognizing cars as classics does not ex ...

s, which he keeps in a purpose-built

showroom A plumbing fixture showroom, Canada, 1921 A showroom is a large space used to display products or show entertainment. Marketing location A showroom is a large space used to display products for sale, such as automobiles, furniture, appliances ...

, collectively valued at approximately $2 million. In 2011, Cordeaux was involved in a legal dispute with Vartzokas Constructions over leaks in his custom-built showroom.

Dog killing incident

In July 1995, Cordeaux's two Jack Russell Terriers "Bollie" and "Bellini" were killed by an Angora goat breeder Peter Dansie, who claimed the dogs had killed two goats and injured ten others on his property.Rice, Steve (22 April 2017
Husband of woman who drowned in Adelaide parklands killed dogs of radio announcer two decades ago
''The Advertiser''. Retrieved 18 November 2018. The man claimed he used a rabbiting knife to kill the two dogs, but would have shot them had he had a gun.

Honours

Cordeax won a

Walkley Award The annual Walkley Awards are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in journalism. They cover all media including print, television, documentary, radio, photographic and online media. The Gold Walkley is the highest prize and ...

in 1984 for Best Current Affairs Report for "Conversation with William Miller". He won three Gold Medals from the International Radio Festival of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

in 1987, 1988 and 1989 for Best Talk Show Host in the World. Cordeaux became a

(AM) on 12 June 2006, in recognition for his service to the broadcasting industry, and for his support of various charitable organisations. He was inducted into the Commercial Radio Hall of Fame at the 2015

Australian Commercial Radio Awards The Australian Commercial Radio Awards (ACRAs), previously known as the rAWARDS, are an Australian award ceremony held to recognise outstanding achievements in the radio industry. They were first held in 1989, and recognise excellence in all are ...

.Robin, Myriam (12 October 2015
Cash for comment scandal all but forgotten for new Hall of Fame inductee
''

Crikey Crikey is an Australian online news outlet founded in 1999. It consists of a website and email newsletter available to subscribers. History Crikey was founded by the activist shareholder Stephen Mayne, a journalist and former staffer of the ...

''. Retrieved 18 November 2018. In 2003 Cordeaux was made a Knight of the

(KStJ) for services to broadcasting and the community.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cordeaux, Jeremy 1945 births Living people Radio personalities from Sydney Television personalities from Sydney Australian radio presenters Australian television presenters Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia