Peter Charles Sinclair (15 November 1938 – 8 August 2001) was an Australian-born New Zealand

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

personality and radio host.

Biography

Born in Sydney, Australia, Sinclair rose to fame in the 1960s and early 1970s firstly on New Zealand radio and then as host of ''Let's Go'', ''Happen Inn'' and ''C'mon'', New Zealand's primary

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

television shows of the time. In the late 1970s he reinvented his place in New Zealand television as presenter and quizmaster on ''

University Challenge ''University Challenge'' is a British television quiz programme which first aired in 1962. ''University Challenge'' aired for 913 episodes on ITV from 21 September 1962 to 31 December 1987, presented by quizmaster Bamber Gascoigne. The BBC ...

'' and ''Mastermind'', two popular television quiz shows which ran until the late 1980s. Sinclair's measured on-screen personality was suited to these kinds of interactive game shows. As a quizmaster he made the phrase "I've started, so I'll finish..." (originally coined by

Magnus Magnusson Magnus Magnusson, (born Magnús Sigursteinsson; 12 October 1929 – 7 January 2007) was an Icelandic-born British-based journalist, translator, writer and television presenter. Born in Reykjavík, he lived in Scotland for almost all his life, a ...

on the British version of ''Mastermind''), a New Zealand cultural cliché. Sinclair also hosted the 1982 '' Mastermind International'' contest in New Zealand. Sinclair was also a noted writer, penning a novel called The Frontman and writing regular columns for the

New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation of all newspapers ...

newspaper. In later years he was a radio announcer from 1986, for Radio Avon, in

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, the city he grew up in, which became C93FM, before moving on to

Easy Listening i Mix was a greatest hits radio station in New Zealand, broadcasting music from the 70s, 80s and 90s. Mix was owned and operated by New Zealand Media and Entertainment. Mix is targeted at 35 to 54-year-olds. Its head office and studios were loc ...

98FM and finally

Classic Hits FM The Hits is a Adult contemporary music#Hot adult contemporary, Hot adult contemporary music radio network, broadcasting to 26 markets across New Zealand. It was set up by New Zealand Government, Government broadcaster Radio New Zealand in 1993 ...

, hosting the popular ''Lovesongs till Midnight'' programme. While still in Christchurch he helped raise money to build a Police Kiosk in Cathedral Square, for people who needed a safe place to go at all times of the day in case of emergencies. In his later years, he developed a passion for computers and was one of the first New Zealanders to become actively involved with the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

. He wrote widely on internet issues, software developments and content. In the 2001 Queen's Birthday Honours, Sinclair was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to broadcasting. Sinclair died in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

on 8 August 2001, from

leukaemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

, aged 62.

References

External links

''NZ Herald'' obituaryMagazine ad from the 80s featuring Peter SinclairPhotograph of Peter Sinclair
standing outside Alicat, Jervois Road, Auckland. Auckland Museum {{DEFAULTSORT:Sinclair, Peter New Zealand television presenters Australian emigrants to New Zealand 1938 births 2001 deaths New Zealand game show hosts Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand writers New Zealand radio presenters People from Sydney University Challenge

Biography

See also

References

External links