by PAUL COLLITS – THERE was a time when the ABC was, indeed, ours.
That was the era of James Dibble reading the seven o’clock news. It was the time of Bill Peach’s crack team of investigative, irreverent young journalists, like the young Mike Carlton, Mike Willesee, Richard Carleton, George Negus, Peter Couchman and Peter Luck, on This Day Tonight.
- Clive was and is a man of God and addicted to his privacy.
- His views on women were considered “problematic” [whatever that means], but listeners loved him.
- I very much doubt that today’s declining ABC would ever give him a job.
They were anti-establishment in the old sense of the term. Fighting for the underdog, they were not empty-headed, agenda-driven activists.
Even Four Corners did a job, then. A good job. Calling out things that needed to be called out. It was an ABC populated by the likes of Margaret Throsby and Caroline Jones.
TRUSTED
Many of us, including me, loved the ABC. We grew up with it and we trusted it.
I cannot imagine either Quadrant writers or Gerard Henderson spending so much time excoriating the old ABC, or anyone suggesting that it be de-funded or shut down.
Then, at some point, it all changed. Our ABC became their ABC.
I am not able to pinpoint exactly when that happened. With the Catholic Church, we can be more specific.
It all changed with Vatican II and the Novus Ordo. For many of us, things changed irrevocably. And not in a good way.
There is no suggestion of a hermeneutic of continuity with the ABC. What would Joseph Ratzinger have made of the ABC? Our ABC and their ABC are two different beasts.
All this came to mind this week, with the deeply distressing news that legendary broadcaster Clive Robertson had passed away.
Clive was a 2BL Sydney breakfast presenter in the seventies – and 2GB.
Then he was a Classic FM presenter. He revolutionised late evening TV news.
He was irrepressible, quirky, off-beat, curmudgeonly, innovative, soft-hearted and clear-headed. He changed broadcasting, several times over.
And he was a truly lovely and important man.
His passing has been suitably acknowledged. Some of the accolades include “one off”, “new breed”, “broke the mould”, an original, eccentric.
In a special program celebrating the 100th anniversary of ABC Radio Sydney last year, presenter Rod Quinn, who researched the history of the station, said Robertson broke the mould of the stiff and serious presenter.
“He became both the first of a new breed of announcer, but totally original — a one of a kind who is still remembered fondly today by listeners who tuned in each morning for his philosophical musings and quirky observations on life,” Quinn said.
“He won fans from other stations, too, and not just listeners from commercial radio who wanted to know what all the fuss was about, but other breakfast presenters who described Clive as brilliant, bordering on genius.”
ADVENTURE
Tony Twiss was Robertson’s producer on the Breakfast show and said working closely with him was always an “adventure”.
“He was wonderful with words, he was wonderful with music — he was a very clever man,” Twiss said.
Listeners fondly remember his daily exchanges with Caroline Jones and Margaret Throsby who hosted the Mornings program.
“He never abided by the rules,” Throsby told ABC Radio Sydney.
“He’d never say ‘So what’s on your show today?’ He’d pick up some fragment of something from somewhere and ask me about it and I was completely unprepared and we’d just have to riff.”
Throsby acknowledged that his views on women were problematic [whatever that means], but listeners loved him.
“He’d drive you mad if you took it seriously,” she said.
“But that was who he was. His program had a cult following — he really was incredibly, incredibly popular.”
All true. Throsby is worth listening to here, as well.
I have no idea on his politics, if he had any. I do remember he did a very sympathetic interview with John Howard, I think when he was on Channel Seven. No gotcha moments.
The endless Phillip Adams described him as the anti-shock jock. Fair enough, though with the inevitable Leftie sting in the tail.
Clive was a good listener and genuinely curious. Unlike the Squad girls of today, and their ilk.
Other breakfast presenters admired him: At age 33 Clive was number two in breakfast behind 2UE’s unassailable Garry O’Callaghan who described him as “the youngest eccentric I’ve ever met”.
Bob Rogers said of him “I think he’s brilliant, bordering on genius”. Ian MacRae, the biggest name at the then mighty 2SM, was simply grateful that Robertson started half an hour earlier than he did, saying “I get to listen to Clive driving to work each day so that I have plenty of time to gather material for my show”.
AD-LIBBED
He was that good. He once told his old friend and master wordsmith Kel Richards that the great Graham Kennedy – who Clive used to beat regularly, outside Melbourne, on late night television – used to have four writers, whereas Clive merely ad-libbed.
Such were the assessments of Clive’s peers, themselves greats. And all of them light years from the prattler, cacklers and yowling gobbledegook merchants that inhabit the breakfast airwaves today. Especially on FM radio.
We should never forget that the commercial radio industry voted him Australia’s best when the competition was Laws, Jones, Hinch, John Pearce, Doug Mulray, Ron E Sparx, Neil Mitchell and Ron Casey.
Clive was and is a man of God, with a deep faith and legendarily addicted to his privacy.
Robertson’s work as Classic FM breakfast presenter was emblematic and refreshing. He followed two of the greats, Christopher Lawrence and Guy Noble, and Robbo was neither a classical music broadcaster nor a classical musician, unlike his predecessors.
He was eventually moved on because his style “divided” listeners – inevitably.
After they finally dispensed with his services, I rang the ABC and asked if I could speak with Kel Richards. They put me through and it was a touching conversation. We agreed that it was a dumb move, and a sad one.
Robbo, Australia’s other great Clive, was old ABC and we loved him.
I very much doubt that the new ABC would ever give him a job. And, by the heavens, they need the ratings he would, no doubt, bring their way.PC
