Mike Munro

AM
Born
Michael Kenneth Munro

(1953-04-12) 12 April 1953
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Other namesMike Munro
EducationSacred Heart Marist Bros School Mosman
Marist College North Shore
Occupations
  • Journalist
  • news presenter
  • television presenter
Years active1982−present
Notable credits
SpouseLea Munro
Children2

Michael Kenneth Munro, AM (born 12 April 1953), is an Australian journalist and television presenter.

Early life

Munro cites a tough childhood—with an abusive and alcoholic mother—as one of the main reasons behind his motivation to succeed.[1] Munro attended Sacred Heart Primary School in Mosman, New South Wales, and Marist Catholic College North Shore in North Sydney.[1] He began his career at 17 as a copyboy on The Daily Mirror in 1971.[1][2] He stayed in newspapers for 7 years, before trying television and not liking it. So he returned to newspapers when Rupert Murdoch sent him to New York to work in the NewsCorp bureau writing for newspapers in Great Britain and Australia.[2]

Television career

In 1982, he returned to Sydney and television, where he started as a senior reporter in the Channel 10 newsroom. In 1984, he joined the Nine Network and Mike Willesee on the Willesee current affairs program.[2] Two years later he replaced George Negus as the fifth male reporter on 60 Minutes, where he remained for the next seven years, becoming well known for his interviews with celebrities, including Madonna, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler and Katharine Hepburn.[2]

Munro became a reporter and later the host of A Current Affair.[2] In 1996, Munro was the reporter at the centre of the infamous Paxton family expose. Munro was replaced as the host of the show in 2003. His then boss, Peter Meakin subsequently described Munro's situation/demeanour at that time as "a little on the nose, a little out of favour, a little too brash".[1] Meakin added that he did "really admire his (Munro's) courage and his grace" ... "in those last few months at A Current Affair because he did a brilliant job" even when he knew he was going to lose the role.[1] Munro said he lost the job because he was continually complaining to management about A Current Affair becoming 'A Consumer Affair' and no longer doing serious investigations, instead focusing on consumer and diet stories. For Munro, the final straw came on the night he had to introduce another reporter's story on a toothbrush survey.[3]

He is synonymous with the biographical show This Is Your Life, which he hosted from 1995 until 2005 and then again in 2008.[4]

In 2005 he replaced Georgie Gardner on National Nine News Afternoon Edition. In 2006 he stepped down from National Nine News Afternoon Edition but continued to present Sydney's National Nine News weekend news, he remained in this position until 2008.

Also in 2006, Munro hosted the television series Missing Persons Unit and What a Year, alongside Megan Gale, which first aired on the Nine Network on 2 October 2006. But in 2007, they were replaced by Bert Newton and Julia Zemiro and since then the show had been axed.

On 26 October 2008, Munro resigned from the Nine Network after 22 years with the network.

On 7 January 2009, he signed a three-year contract with rival Seven Network to become the founding host of a new current affairs program Sunday Night.[2][5] In addition to this, he also substituted for David Koch on the top-rating breakfast show, Sunrise.

In January 2014, Network Ten announced that Munro had joined the network. On 9 February 2014, he commenced as the presenter of Ten Eyewitness News Weekend.[6] Munro later resigned in protest from Network Ten, after completing his 12-month contract, due to dozens of staff being retrenched from the news department.[7]

In 2014, Munro was made a member of the Order of Australia for his community work and services to journalism.[8]

In 2017, Munro hosted and helped to produce a four part science-based documentary[9] series for Foxtel's History Channel on Bushrangers. Lawless - The Real Bushrangers The four episodes featured the crime scenes of Ned Kelly, Ben Hall, Captain Moonlite, and the Kenniff brothers. One of the one-hour specials included Munro's great uncles, Paddy and Jimmy Kenniff, one of whom was hanged in Brisbane jail in 1903 after being convicted of murdering a police constable and a station manager in the Carnarvon Ranges in Queensland.

In 2018, Munro hosted Mateship – Australia & USA: A Century Together, a one-hour documentary on Foxtel's History channel celebrating 100 years of the close bonds that unite Australia and America. Since 4 July 1918, the United States of America and Australia have never fought a major war without each other. It is one of the longest alliances in modern history.[10]

In August 2019 HarperCollins published Munro's book, The Last Bushrangers: When History Becomes Personal — The Story of the Murderous Kenniff Gang.[11]

Honours

In the 2014 Queen's Birthday Honours List, Munro was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia (AM), for "significant service to journalism as a television current affairs reporter and presenter, and to the community as an ambassador for a range of charitable organisations".[8]

Personal life

Munro is married to Lea, and they have two children.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "This Is His Life". Australian Story website. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 September 2003. Retrieved 22 June 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Mike Munro - Speaker Profile - Saxton Speakers Bureau". Saxton.com.au. Saxton Speakers Bureau. Retrieved 22 June 2011.
  3. ↑ Mike., Munro (2003). A pasty-faced nothing. Random House Australia. ISBN 9781740512114. OCLC 223762437.
  4. ↑ Kalina, Paul (28 October 2004). "The sting". The Age. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  5. ↑ "Chris Bath tip for Sunday Night gig". Herald Sun. 8 January 2009. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
  6. ↑ Lehmann, John (28 January 2014). "Mike Munro making his TV news comeback with Network Ten". The Telegraph. News Ltd. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
  7. ↑ Knox, David (8 December 2014). "Mike Munro quits TEN | TV Tonight". tvtonight.com.au.
  8. 1 2 "The Queen's Birthday 2014 Honours List" (PDF). 8 June 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 June 2014. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "Mike Munro developing The Last Bushrangers for History channel". TV Tonight. 14 April 2014. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  10. ↑ Mateship – Australia & USA: A Century Together Foxtel History Channel
  11. ↑ Munro, Mike (2019). The Last Bushrangers. Sydney, NSW: HarperCollins. ISBN 9781460756850. OCLC 1101172910.
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