Mark Colvin (13 March 1952 – 11 May 2017) was an Australian journalist and radio and television broadcaster for the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
(ABC), and worked on most of the flagship current affairs programs. Notably, based in Sydney, he was the presenter of ''
PM''— the radio current affairs program on the
ABC Radio network — from 1997 to 2017.
Biography
Career as a journalist and broadcaster
Colvin graduated from
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
with a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in English literature and arrived in Australia in 1974.
With no clear career ambitions and failing as a builder's labourer, being susceptible to heat stroke in the strong Australian sun, the dole office steered him toward journalism. In that year he commenced a traineeship with the ABC but had doubts during the year that he would stick with journalism. Nevertheless, in January 1975 he commenced at the ABC's rock music station Double Jay (2JJ, now known as
Triple J
Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...
) as one of the foundation staff, initially working as a cadet journalist. While at 2JJ, he presented news, conducted interviews, and produced current affairs and documentary specials until 1978. With strong foreign language skills in French, Italian and Spanish,
[ he was posted to the Canberra bureau and was appointed a television news producer. A year later he was one of the first reporters on '' Nationwide'', along with Jenny Brockie, Paul Murphy, and Andrew Olle.]
In 1980, at the age of 28, Colvin was appointed foreign correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locat ...
in London, and travelled to cover major stories, including the American hostage crisis in Tehran and the rise of Solidarity
''Solidarity'' is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. It is based on class collaboration.''Merriam Webster'', http://www.merriam-webster.com/dicti ...
in Poland. During his time covering the Middle East, Colvin was deeply affected by the death of his interpreter, Bahram Dehqani-Tafti, a secular Iranian murdered and dumped outside a Tehran prison. Colvin believed that the mullahs had a dispute with Dehqani-Tafti's father, the Anglican bishop of Iran in exile in London.[
Colvin returned to Australia in 1983 and was initially a reporter on both '' AM'' and ''PM'', before agitating for the establishment of a midday news and current-affairs radio program.][ Colvin became the founding presenter of '' The World Today'' on ABC radio. The following year, Colvin went to ]Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
as Europe correspondent, and covered the events across the continent as the Cold War began to thaw and the Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet politician who served as the 8th and final leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to the country's dissolution in 1991. He served as General Secretary of the Comm ...
era started the process that would lead to the lifting of the Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...
.[
Between 1988 and 1992, Colvin was a reporter for '']Four Corners
The Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. The Four Corners area ...
'', making programs focused on, ''inter alia'', the French massacre of Kanaks in New Caledonia, the extinction of Australia's fauna and the Cambodian peace process. His feature on the Ethiopian famine won a gold medal at the New York Film Festival
The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center (FLC). Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, it ...
and was runner-up for an International Emmy Award
The International Emmy Awards, or International Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based International Academy of Television Arts and Sc ...
.[ In 1992, Colvin accepted another London posting, this time for television, mainly reporting for '']Foreign Correspondent
A correspondent or on-the-scene reporter is usually a journalist or commentator for a magazine, or an agent who contributes reports to a newspaper, or radio or television news, or another type of company, from a remote, often distant, locat ...
'', the '' 7.30 Report'' and ''Lateline
''Lateline'' was an Australian television news program which ran from 1990 until 2017. The program initially aired weeknights on ABC TV. In later years it was also broadcast internationally throughout Asia and the Pacific on the Australia Plu ...
''. His language skills and long European experience paid off in stories such as his series on the relationship between Italian organised crime and government, which culminated in the trial of former Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti
Giulio Andreotti ( , ; 14 January 1919 – 6 May 2013) was an Italian politician and statesman who served as the 41st prime minister of Italy in seven governments (1972–1973, 1976–1979, and 1989–1992) and leader of the Christian Democracy ...
.[
In 1994, Colvin was deployed by the ''7.30 Report'' to Africa to cover the unfolding tragedy in Rwanda. Travelling via ]Zaire
Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...
, he witnessed an extensive human tragedy, in which about a million refugees were living in camps with poor sanitation and hygiene, with cholera and dysentery
Dysentery (UK pronunciation: , US: ), historically known as the bloody flux, is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea. Other symptoms may include fever, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete defecation. Complication ...
commonplace. Colvin was diagnosed with granulomatosis with polyangiitis
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), previously known as Wegener's granulomatosis (WG), is a rare long-term systemic disorder that involves the formation of granulomas and inflammation of blood vessels (vasculitis). It is a form of vasculitis ...
, a rare inflammation of blood vessels,[ which nearly killed him.] After several months in hospital, during his convalescence he became aware of a side effect of the treatment—his hip joints collapsed and both hips had to be replaced. He spent the next 18 months in Europe.
In 1997, Colvin returned to Sydney and started in his role as presenter for ABC Radio's ''PM''. In November 2017 Colvin was inducted into The Australian Media Hall of Fame.
Organ transplant
On 22 March 2013, Colvin received a kidney transplant
Kidney transplant or renal transplant is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with chronic kidney disease, end-stage kidney disease (ESRD). Kidney transplant is typically classified as deceased-donor (formerly known as cadaveric) or li ...
from a living donor. Colvin, and the hospital and staff, allowed the process to be recorded for television.
In a televised interview on 1 May 2013, the living donor of Colvin's transplanted kidney was revealed to be Mary-Ellen Field, whom Colvin had met while reporting on victims of the ''News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling En ...
''/News International phone hacking scandal
The News International phone hacking scandal was a controversy involving the now-defunct ''News of the World'' and other British newspapers owned by Rupert Murdoch. Employees of the newspaper were accused of engaging in phone hacking, police b ...
. Field had received unwanted notoriety after details of her working relationship with Elle Macpherson
Eleanor Nancy Macpherson (; née Gow; born ) is an Australian model, businesswoman, television host, and actress.
She is known for her record five cover appearances for the ''Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue'' beginning in the 1980s, leading ...
had been revealed through reporting of messages from Field's hacked phone, causing Macpherson to sack Field. It was revealed that Colvin and Field had established a correspondence after the interview, finally meeting in 2011; that Field had decided to become a donor before revealing this to her husband; that the pair had considered naming the kidney "Rupert" (after Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
, chairman and chief executive officer of News Corporation
News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp.), also variously known as News Corporation Limited, was an American multinational mass media corporation controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Ne ...
, the parent company of News International that owned ''News of the World''); and, that Colvin had declared a conflict of interest to his employer and ceased reporting on Field.
During 2010, Colvin worked to raise the profile of organ donation
Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ (anatomy), organ of their own to be removed and organ transplantation, transplanted to another person, #Legislation and global perspectives, legally, either by consent while the donor ...
through interviews with a number of media agencies including ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'',[ '']The Australian
''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition, ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964.Bruns, Axel. "3.1. The active audience: Transforming journalism from gatekeeping to gatewat ...
'',[ '' The Drum'', ''The 7.30 Report'', and '']Life Matters
''Life Matters'' is a radio program that has been broadcast on Radio National by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by ...
''.
Stage play
The story of Colvin's kidney donation and the circumstances surrounding it was the subject of a stage play titled ''Mark Colvin's Kidney
''Mark Colvin's Kidney'' is a stage play by playwright Tommy Murphy.
Plot
The ''Sydney Morning Herald'' journalist Andrew Taylor described the play in a recent article: "Mary-Ellen Field's kidney is one of the better known body parts in Australi ...
'' by playwright Tommy Murphy. The play was produced by the Sydney theatre company Belvoir with David Berthold
David Berthold is one of Australia's most prominent theatre directors and cultural leaders. He has directed for most of Australia's major theatre companies, as well as in London and Berlin, and has led several key arts organisations. He was Artis ...
as director, and a cast including actor John Howard
John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
as Colvin and Sarah Peirse as Mary-Ellen Field.
Autobiography
In 2016 Colvin released his autobiography, ''Light and Shadow: Memoirs of a Spy's Son''.
Family
The Colvin family had a long history of military and administrative service to Australia, and previously to the British Empire
The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading post ...
. Colvin's father, John Horace Ragnar Colvin
John Horace Ragnar Colvin, CMG (18 June 1922 – 4 October 2003) was a British sailor, intelligence officer, banker and military historian.
Family
The Colvin family had a long history of service to Queen and country, both in the military and adm ...
, was a Cold War diplomat, and the grandson of Admiral Sir Ragnar Colvin
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English language, English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist i ...
. He is the great-grandson of the India Office
The India Office was a British government department established in London in 1858 to oversee the administration, through a Viceroy and other officials, of the Provinces of India. These territories comprised most of the modern-day nations of ...
mandarin
Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to:
Language
* Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country
** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China
** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...
Clement Sneyd Colvin, whose father was John Russell Colvin. John Russell, son of an East Indies
The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and aroun ...
trader, ended up lieutenant-governor of the North-West Provinces of British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
during the mutiny of 1857
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against Company rule in India, the rule of the East India Company, British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the The Crown, British ...
, had ten children and founded a dynasty of Empire-builders. Through this line, Mark Colvin's extended family includes Walter Mytton, Auckland Colvin, also lieutenant-governor of the North-West Provinces and Oudh
The Oudh State (, also Kingdom of Awadh, Kingdom of Oudh, or Awadh State) was a princely state in the Awadh region of North India until its annexation by the British in 1856. The name Oudh, now obsolete, was once the anglicized name of ...
; the landscape architect Brenda Colvin (1897–1981), and Sidney Colvin, a critic, curator, and great friend of Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as '' Treasure Island'', '' Strange Case of Dr Jekyll ...
.
Through his mother, Elizabeth Anne Manifold,[ Colvin was the great-great-nephew of a Prime Minister of Australia, ]Viscount Bruce of Melbourne
Stanley Melbourne Bruce, 1st Viscount Bruce of Melbourne, (15 April 1883 – 25 August 1967) was an Australian politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Australia
The prime minister of Australia is the head of govern ...
, who went on to be an international statesman and the first Chancellor
Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
of the Australian National University
The Australian National University (ANU) is a public research university located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton encompasses seven teaching and research colleges, in addition to several national academies and ...
. He was also the step-son of Admiral Sir Anthony Synnot. Colvin was married twice. He married his second wife, Michele Francesca McKenzie, in 1987. McKenzie is the mother of his two sons, Nicolas and William.
Death
On 11 May 2017, Colvin died aged 65, at the Prince of Wales Hospital
Prince of Wales Hospital is a large of Tertiary referral hospital and large of teaching hospital from Faculty of Medicine in Chinese University of Hong Kong in Sha Tin, New Territories in Hong Kong..
Named after Charles, Prince of Wales (no ...
in Randwick, over twenty years after contracting granulomatosis with polyangiitis
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA), previously known as Wegener's granulomatosis (WG), is a rare long-term systemic disorder that involves the formation of granulomas and inflammation of blood vessels (vasculitis). It is a form of vasculitis ...
, the rare auto-immune condition which caused kidney failure in 2011. Colvin survived the kidney transplant only to be diagnosed with melanoma and then just before Easter in 2017 was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. He asked that anyone wishing to mark his death or honour his passing donate to the Prince of Wales Hospital Foundation.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colvin, Mark
1952 births
2017 deaths
ABC radio (Australia) journalists and presenters
Mark
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* F ...
Alumni of the University of Oxford
English people of Australian descent
Journalists from Sydney
Kidney transplant recipients
Deaths from melanoma
Deaths from lung cancer
Deaths from cancer in New South Wales