Robin "Pop" Ordell (16 June 1920 – 3 February 1945) was an Australian actor and radio announcer. He acted as a child in his father Tal's film '' The Kid Stakes'', later working with the radio station 2GB as a teenager and adult. He was killed in 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 ...

Biography

Early life and acting career

Ordell was born in Sydney on 16 June 1920 to nurse Ethel Phillips and actor Tal Ordell. Tal had acted for around two decades before his son's birth. In January 1927, aged six, Ordell was cast in his father's film ''The Kid Stakes'' as the main character, Fatty Finn. ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British Sunday newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of N ...

'' described him as a "wistful looking youngster, with a direct heart appeal, and an uncanny instinct for his work. His sense of comedy and face play of varying emotions are delightful." In the mid-1930s, Ordell began acting in radio plays for 2GB. He appeared as

Peter Heywood Captain Peter Heywood (6 June 1772 – 10 February 1831) was a British Royal Navy officer who was on board during the mutiny of 28 April 1789. He was later captured in Tahiti, tried and condemned to death as a mutineer, but subsequently p ...

in ''

The Mutiny of the Bounty ''The Mutiny of the Bounty'' is a 1916 Australian-New Zealand silent film directed by Raymond Longford about the mutiny aboard . It is the first known cinematic dramatisation of this story and is considered a lost film. Plot The story deals wit ...

'' (1934) and as the boy in ''

Murder at 2FC ''Murder at 2FC'' is a 1935 Australian radio play by Edmund Barclay. It was an adaptation of the British film ''Death at Broadcasting House'' with the action relocated to Australia - specially at the Sydney radio station 2FC run by the Australian ...

'' (1935). He appeared in other serials throughout the late 1930s like ''Raising a Family''.

Radio announcing career

After graduating from

Sydney Grammar School Sydney Grammar School (SGS, colloquially known as Grammar) is an independent, non-denominational day school for boys, located in Sydney, Australia. Incorporated in 1854 by an Act of Parliament and opened in 1857, the school claims to offer "c ...

in 1937, Ordell joined 2GB as a junior radio announcer. In 1939, when Dick Fair was transferred from the early morning radio session (between 6:00 and 8:45a.m.) to the evening programme, Ordell filled his place, becoming the youngest radio announcer in Australia at the time. In June 1940, Ordell created '' The Youth Show'', a programme on 2GB focusing on radio stars below the age of 21. It was broadcast throughout Australia.

Military service

In late 1941, Ordell underwent medical examinations and was accepted by the

Royal Australian Air Force The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is the principal Air force, aerial warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Army. Constitutionally the Governor-Gener ...

to serve as an airman in the

. ''The Cumberland Argus and Fruitgrowers' Advocate'' explained that "always a flying fanatic, Robin has realised his boyhood ambitions, and holds high hopes of becoming a fighter pilot." On 25 April 1942, he enlisted in

Woolloomooloo Woolloomooloo ( ) is a harbourside, inner-city eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 1.5 kilometres east of the central business district, in the local government area of the City of Sydney. It is in a low-lying, former dockla ...

;

Jack Davey John Andrew Davey (8 February 190714 October 1959), known as Jack Davey, was a New Zealand-born singer and pioneering star of Australian radio as a performer, producer, writer and host from the early 1930s into the late 1950s. Later in his caree ...

replaced him as morning announcer on 2GB. During his service, Ordell trained as a pilot in Canada under the

Empire Air Training Scheme The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP), often referred to as simply "The Plan", was a large-scale multinational military aircrew training program created by the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand during the Second Wo ...

and performed for other servicemen during posting in London. He was assigned to No. 100 Squadron RAF, serving as an

Avro Lancaster The Avro Lancaster, commonly known as the Lancaster Bomber, is a British World War II, Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to ...

bomber pilot. On 3 February 1945, Ordell, a flight lieutenant, engaged in a bombing raid against industrial plants in Germany's

Ruhr The Ruhr ( ; , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr Area, sometimes Ruhr District, Ruhr Region, or Ruhr Valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 1,160/km2 and a populati ...

region. During the raid, he and five other crew members were

killed in action Killed in action (KIA) is a casualty classification generally used by militaries to describe the deaths of their personnel at the hands of enemy or hostile forces at the moment of action. The United States Department of Defense, for example, ...

when their plane was shot down. The only survivor, tail gunner J. Harper, was wounded and taken prisoner. Initially reported

missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty (person), casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoner of war, prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been ...

, Ordell's body was recovered and buried in

Venraij Venray or Venraij (; ) is a municipality and a city in Limburg, the Netherlands. The municipality of Venray consists of 14 towns over an area of , with 43,494 inhabitants as of July 2016. About 30,000 of those inhabitants live in the city of Ve ...

before being interred in Mierlo War Cemetery after the war. In April 1946, he was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for "displaying the utmost fortitude, courage and devotion to duty."

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ordell, Robin 1920 births 1945 deaths Male actors from Sydney 20th-century Australian male actors Australian male film actors Australian male radio actors Australian radio personalities Australian male child actors People educated at Sydney Grammar School Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II Royal Australian Air Force officers Missing in action of World War II Australian military personnel killed in World War II Australian recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)