Peter Allan Williams (born 6 March 1954) is a New Zealand former broadcaster and
sports writer
Sports journalism is a form of writing that reports on matters pertaining to sporting topics and competitions. Sports journalism started in the early 1800s when it was targeted to the social elite and transitioned into an integral part of the n ...
who worked for the national broadcaster
TVNZ between 1979 and 2018. His roles with TVNZ included hosting the ''
1 News
''1 News'' (stylised as ''1News'') is the news division of New Zealand television network TVNZ. The service is broadcast live from TVNZ Centre in Auckland. The flagship news bulletin is the nightly 6 pm news hour, but ''1 News'' also has ...
'' 6pm weekend bulletin and serving as the southern editor of
TVNZ Sports in Wellington. Between 2019 and 2021, Williams also hosted the morning talkback programme on
Magic
Magic or Magick most commonly refers to:
* Magic (supernatural), beliefs and actions employed to influence supernatural beings and forces
* Ceremonial magic, encompasses a wide variety of rituals of magic
* Magical thinking, the belief that unrela ...
Talk, a
MediaWorks radio network.
Early life and family
Williams was born in
Geraldine in 1954, the son of Elizabeth Ann (née McLaren) and Allan Huia Williams.
He was educated at
Waitaki Boys' High School from 1967 to 1971, and then West High School in
Corning, New York
Corning is a city in Steuben County, New York, United States, on the Chemung River. The population was 10,551 at the 2020 census. It is named for Erastus Corning, an Albany financier and railroad executive who was an investor in the company t ...
as an
AFS scholar from 1971 to 1972.
Williams played in the Otago schoolboys golf team in 1970 and was a North Otago cricket representative in 1971.
Williams married Cecile van Dyk in 1976 and the couple had three children.
Broadcasting
TVNZ, 1979–2018
Williams started his broadcasting career at
Radio Otago's
4XO, now
More FM
More FM is a New Zealand radio network that plays hot adult contemporary music. It is operated by MediaWorks New Zealand.
More FM broadcasts in 25 centres throughout New Zealand on 81 transmitters with a mix of local and network programming. ...
, in
Dunedin
Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...
in 1972. During the 1970s, Williams later worked as a sports broadcaster at the
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 ...
–based television channel
TV2. In 1979, Williams joined the national broadcaster
TVNZ, serving as a sports
anchorman
A news presenter – also known as a newsreader, newscaster (short for "news broadcaster"), anchorman or anchorwoman, news anchor or simply an anchor – is a person who presents news during a news program on TV, radio or the Internet ...
, commentator and reporter before joining the ''
1 News
''1 News'' (stylised as ''1News'') is the news division of New Zealand television network TVNZ. The service is broadcast live from TVNZ Centre in Auckland. The flagship news bulletin is the nightly 6 pm news hour, but ''1 News'' also has ...
'' team full-time in his main role as ''Breakfast''
newsreader in 2002.
Williams has covered seven Olympic Games, including the
2008 Beijing Olympics, from which he garnered the
TP McLean Award for Sports Television. He has also covered five Commonwealth Games, three Rugby World Cups, two Cricket World Cups and two Masters golf tournaments.
In addition, Williams fronted
1 News
''1 News'' (stylised as ''1News'') is the news division of New Zealand television network TVNZ. The service is broadcast live from TVNZ Centre in Auckland. The flagship news bulletin is the nightly 6 pm news hour, but ''1 News'' also has ...
' coverage of the
Pike River Mine disaster
The Pike River Mine disaster was a coal mining accident that began on 19 November 2010 in the Pike River Mine, northeast of Greymouth, in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island following a methane explosion at approximately 3:44 p ...
.
In 1999, Williams was awarded the
New Zealand Rugby Union
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to t ...
's Supreme Media Award for his work at the
1999 Rugby World Cup. He has twice been New Zealand Golf Broadcaster of the Year.
Between 2003 and 2016, Williams presented the news bulletins on
Television New Zealand
, type = Crown entity
, industry = Broadcast television
, num_locations = New Zealand
, location = Auckland, New Zealand
, area_served = Nationally (New Zealand) and some Pacific Island nations such as the Cook Islands, Fiji, and the Solo ...
's ''Breakfast'' and ''Good Morning'' shows, followed by the half-hour ''1 News at Midday''; from 2008 he combined this duty with that of presenting weekend editions of ''1 News at Six''.
In 2010 and 2011, TV Guide readers voted him New Zealand's best news presenter.
Williams retired from TVNZ with his last broadcast on the Sunday evening news on 16 December 2018.
Magic Talk, 2019–2021
In January 2019, Williams became a talk show host at the
Tauranga
Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...
–based
Magic Talk
Magic is a New Zealand oldies radio network owned by MediaWorks New Zealand. The network targets New Zealand's growing population of baby boomers with a line-up of veteran broadcasters. Its breakfast show, Magic Breakfast (formerly Magic in the ...
radio station, hosting the current affairs programme "Magic Mornings."
On 12 February 2021, Williams drew controversy when he directed listeners to an
anti-vaccine site run by the "
Voices for Freedom" group which was spreading
COVID-19 misinformation
False information, including intentional disinformation and conspiracy theories, about the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic and the origin, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the disease has been spread through social media, text messagin ...
.
In mid February 2021, Williams questioned the
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president ...
and
Finance Minister
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", ...
Grant Robertson
Grant Murray Robertson (born 30 October 1971) is a New Zealand politician and member of the Labour Party who has served as the 19th deputy prime minister of New Zealand since 2020 and the minister of Finance since 2017. He has served as Member ...
about his views on the possible implications of the
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
's
Great Reset for New Zealand, and the related
Great Reset Conspiracy Theory. In response, Robertson ended his weekly Magic Talk interviews, stating that he did not want to "shoot down conspiracy theories."
In early September 2021, Williams announced that he would be retiring from Magic Talk at the end of the month, stating that he wanted to "enjoy a life with fewer commitments" following a lengthy broadcasting career.
Media Works confirmed that he would be succeeded by broadcasters Leah Panapa and Danny Watson, who would host the morning and afternoon programmes respectively.
Reality Check Radio, 2023–present
In March 2023, ''
The Spinoff
''The Spinoff'' is a New Zealand online magazine and news website that was founded in 2014. It is known for current affairs coverage, political and social analysis, and cultural commentary. It earns money through commercial sponsorship and su ...
'' reported that Williams had become a host on
Voices for Freedom's online radio station
Reality Check Radio
Reality is the sum or aggregate of all that is real or existent within a system, as opposed to that which is only imaginary. The term is also used to refer to the ontological status of things, indicating their existence. In physical terms, rea ...
.
Other pursuits
Williams was a sports writer and columnist from the beginning of the ''
Herald on Sunday'' in 2004 until the end of 2009. He wrote predominantly about golf, a sport with which he had a close involvement during the first decade of the new century. That included a period as a selector of Auckland representative teams in 2008 and as a director of New Zealand Golf Inc during 2008 and 2009.
In 2010, he concentrated his sporting activity on triathlon and completed the Port of Tauranga Half (2 km swim, 90 km bike and 21.1 km run) on 8 January 2011. His time was 6 hours and 37 minutes. The effort raised over $8000 for Look Good Feel Better, an organisation which helps women suffering from cancer with make-up and hair assistance.
Williams joined the board of the
New Zealand Taxpayers' Union
The New Zealand Taxpayers' Union is a self-described taxpayer pressure group founded in 2013 to scrutinise government spending, publicise government waste, and promote an efficient tax system. It claims to be politically independent and not alig ...
in April 2022, and in June spoke on behalf of them at a
Groundswell NZ rally against the
Three Waters reform programme.
Personal life
Williams' first wife Cecile died of ovarian cancer in November 1996. During the time of her illness she received assistance from Look Good Feel Better.
Williams lives with his third wife Sara at Mount Maunganui
Mount Maunganui (, ) is a major residential, commercial and industrial suburb of the Tauranga metropolitan area, located on a peninsula to the north-east of Tauranga's city centre. It was an independent town from Tauranga until the completio ...
in Tauranga
Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...
.
See also
* List of New Zealand television personalities
This is a list of New Zealand television personalities, including presenters and journalists. It includes those who left the profession, retired, or died.
A
* Suzy Aiken – television personality and Prime News presenter
* Peter Arnett – te ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Peter
1954 births
Living people
People from Geraldine, New Zealand
People educated at Waitaki Boys' High School
People from Auckland
New Zealand columnists
New Zealand television presenters
New Zealand television journalists
New Zealand rugby union commentators
New Zealand sportswriters