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Michael Charlton
Born (1927-05-01) 1 May 1927 (age 97)
Occupation
  • Broadcaster
  • journalist
  • reporter
  • sport commentator
Employer Australian Broadcasting Corporation, British Broadcasting Corporation
Known for Four Corners
Panorama
Relatives Tony Charlton (brother)
Awards Gold Logie

Michael Charlton (born 1 May 1927) is an Australian-born Gold Logie winning former journalist and broadcaster, who worked for the BBC in the United Kingdom for many years.


Biography

Charlton was born in Sydney to broadcaster Conrad and Hazel Charlton, both born in New Zealand, and is the elder brother of Australian sports broadcaster and Order of Australia recipient Tony Charlton. He initially worked for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) as a presenter in current affairs and commentator for Test cricket matches, but later moved to London. He was the Australian representative on the BBC radio cricket commentary team for the 1956 Test series between England and Australia.

In 1961 he was the inaugural presenter of Four Corners, an Australian current affairs programme. In 1963 he was the recipient of the Australian Gold Logie award.

From 1962 to 1976 he was a reporter and interviewer for Panorama, reporting live from America in the aftermath of the Kennedy assassination. In July 1969 he reported live from mission control for the BBC during the Apollo 11 Moon landing. Later, during the 1980s, he presented It's Your World, a phone-in programme on the BBC World Service. He also presented the news and current affairs programme 'Newsday' on BBC2 in the 1970s.

Charlton wrote the 1986 seven-episode documentary TV series Out of the Fiery Furnace with Robert Raymond. The series traced the development of metallurgy from the Stone Age to the space age. Nuclear industry advocate Ian Hore-Lacy also worked closely with the production team. The series was shown in 20 countries.

Awards

Association Award Year Work Result
Logie Awards Gold Logie 1961 Four Corners Won

Selected works

Production Year Role
Chequers Night Club (TV movie) 1967 Self
Doe's Father Know Best? (TVspecial- short) 1958 Host
1964 General Election (TV documentary) 1964 Himself as host/reporter
Election 70 (TV special) 1970 Himself as Reporter
Personal Choice (TV series) 1970 Himself as Interviewer
Election 74: Part 1 (TV special) 1974 Himself as Reporter
Election 74: Part 2 (TVspecial) 1974 Himself as Reporter
Four Corners -
Panorama (TV series) 1963-1972 Self as reporter (21 episodes)
Decision 79 (TV special) 1979 Seldfa reporter
Out of the Fiery Furnace (TV series documentary) 1984 Himself as host
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