Jeff Newman
Jeff Newman and his brother Peter grew up in the Perth suburbs of South Perth, Wembley and Tuart Hill. They were raised by their war widow mother Margaret, who was a strong influence on both boys.
Jeff started his broadcasting career in radio, and was an announcer with 6GE Geraldton and 6PM in Perth, before joining STW Channel 9 in 1965, where he presented the Jeff Newman Show on Thursday nights.
Jeff also presented a teenage show called ‘Pad 9′ on Saturday afternoons, featuring local live bands.
Jeff Newman with Lloyd Lawson prior to Jeff joining TVW
In the early years, he participated in christmas pantomimes with his good friend and colleague Peter Harries, and appeared on Lloyd Lawson’s ‘Roundabout’ afternoon program.
Jeff first joined TVW Channel Seven in 1967 and has worked in various roles within the media industry since that time.
One of Perth ‘s most popular and experienced television personalities, Jeff admits to having done just about everything on television. During the 60’s and 70’s he successfully combined a managerial role with that of an on camera presenter. Newman was Production Manager of TVW7 during the period that saw many local and Australian wide programmes produced in Perth.
He was instrumental in creating the program “What In The World”, shown in many countries around the world.
One of the earliest memories viewers would have of Jeff Newman is his role as host of “It’s Academic”, the popular school quiz program that ran for ten years from 1969 – 1979. He also hosted and produced Perth’s New Faces, a series of Letterbox, Reach for the Stars and many national beauty pageant shows.
An early It’s Academic episode
“It’s Academic” was revived in 2001, once again with Newman as Executive Producer and compere. It was warmly embraced by the viewers and the show ran for four years.
Reach for the Stars
His extensive experience in television has won him five Logies as the State’s most popular male television personality.
Newman has been actively involved in community projects including Telethon, which he has anchored for 37 years. He is now a Trustee on the Board of Telethon.
Newman was awarded the Order of Australia Medal in 1994 for his contribution to Telethon and the Variety Club of Western Australia, which he founded 28 years ago.
He is also a Paul Harris Fellow and in 2002 he was awarded The Centenary Medal for his services to the community.
Jeff researches the weather conditions
Jeff has been with SEVEN NEWS since 1982 as a newsreader and during the last eight as the weather presenter. This is a task he is most comfortable with as it gives him the opportunity to inject some of his own anecdotal snippets to the viewers.
As the public face of the Channel 7 Telethon, none is as closely associated with the local charity as Jeff Newman, being one of the few remaining who participated in the first Telethon in 1968 , and the anchor person for most of them.
Jeff announces the opening of the 2008 TVW Telethon
He believes that Telethon’s continued success comes down to community involvement and the fact that Channel 7 has been producing the show for so long it’s now a part of our local culture.
