After a glittering media career spanning 50 years, legendary Nine Network sports presenter Ken Sutcliffe has today announced he will retire from full-time news reading and presenting at the end of 2016.
Making the announcement in tonight’s Nine News Sydney bulletin alongside close friend and colleague Peter Overton, Sutcliffe called time on a long and illustrious career that has seen him become a household name in Australia.
From modest beginnings in the central western New South Wales town of Mudgee, Sutcliffe honed his skills in regional radio and television before joining the Nine Network in 1979.
Sutcliffe cited a desire to spend more time with his family and the opportunity to travel as key factors in his decision to retire from full-time duties.
“I have always said you retire while they still want you and that’s the case at Nine. I have worked with and alongside some of the giants of Australian television including Brian Henderson, Graham Kennedy and Ray Warren,” he said.
“After 50 years of broadcasting it’s time for new challenges which I am looking forward to, including living in Mudgee and travelling with my wife Anne.”
#BREAKING: @Channel9’s veteran Sports Presenter @Ken_Sutcliffe has announced his retirement. #9News https://t.co/1uW5qvzXkN
— Nine News Sydney (@9NewsSyd) November 2, 2016
Overton praised Sutcliffe for his extraordinary contribution to not only Australian television but for mentoring so many journalists and presenters at Channel Nine.
“I will miss his warmth, friendship, sparkling smile and laugh, as will the millions who have got to know Ken so well over the decades via their TVs. Ken is a rolled-gold Australian television legend,” Overton said.
Sutcliffe will not be lost to Nine altogether, with the network adopting an open-door policy should he wish to appear across any news or sports programming. He leaves Nine News in great shape, having already won the ratings year in Sydney for 2016.
“Nine has left the door open for me to return from time to time, which I appreciate. Also, working with Peter Overton, a dear friend, has been a joy,” said Sutcliffe.
Replacing Sutcliffe on the coveted Sydney Nine News desk alongside Overton and Georgie Gardner will be seasoned sports presenter Cameron Williams, who will assume the role of Sports Editor.
Cameron Williams said:
“It was an easy decision to rejoin the best news and sports team in the business.”
“Like anyone who loves sport and TV I was saddened to hear Ken is calling time on his wonderful career. We have spoken at length and he was as kind and encouraging as he was the first day we met.
“It’s an honour to be asked to sit in his chair alongside Pete Overton five nights a week and continue a tradition of breaking news to Nine viewers.”
Williams joins one of the most exclusive clubs in Australian television history. Only three other people have held the positon before him. Ron Casey, Mike Gibson and Ken Sutcliffe.
Ken Sutcliffe – now in his 50th year of broadcasting – began his career in 1966 in his hometown of Mudgee. After four years as a sports presenter/reporter and disc jockey on Mudgee and later Young radio, he joined CBN-8 Orange as a newsreader.
He then moved to North Queensland for eight years where he performed general television duties in Townsville and Cairns.
Sutcliffe joined TCN-9 in 1979 as an offsider to Ron Casey, producing and presenting feature spots on World Of Sport.
He began presenting sport on Nine News — a position he still holds — in 1982 and later that year began filling in as co-host on Wide World of Sports and the Today show.
After seven years with Wide World of Sports, he spent a year in 1988 as co-host of Graham Kennedy’s late night news programme. He then took over from Mike Gibson as host of Wide World of Sports in 1989. Prior to that he spent a year hosting and reporting on the America’s Cup defence in Fremantle.
During his time with Wide World of Sports, Sutcliffe travelled many miles for the Nine Network. He was in Los Angeles in 1984 for the Summer Olympics, while the Winter Olympics took him to Calgary in 1988, to Albertville in 1992, and to Lillehammer in 1994.
He has also hosted three Commonwealth Games for the network: Brisbane in 1982, Auckland in 1990 and Kuala Lumpur in 1998.
In addition to this he presented the Wimbledon coverage for Nine for 20 years and the US Open Tennis Championships for more than a decade. He was in Augusta, Georgia, in 1997 to host the Masters telecast when Tiger Woods broke through for his historic victory and also covered two soccer World Cups in Germany and South Africa.
Sutcliffe has hosted Rugby League Grand Finals and the State of Origin series, as well as the US Open Golf, the Pan Pacific and Olympic Swimming Trials, plus the World Swimming Championships in Japan and the Brisbane Goodwill Games. He was also part of the hosting team for the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games, as well as Nine’s broadcast of the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games and the London Summer Olympics.
His love of sport dates back to his Mudgee childhood which saw him enthusiastically playing tennis, rugby union, rugby league, swimming and basketball.
Ken Sutcliffe is a father of three — Rachael, Simone and Scott — and grandfather to Kathleen, Patrick, Rosie, Thomas, James, Charlie and Nancy.
