Norman Banks

Norman Tyrell Banks (12 October 1905 – 15 September 1985) was an Australian radio announcer, sports broadcaster, and television presenter. Banks was responsible for some of the first live broadcast reports of Australian Rules Football matches and founded the annual Melbourne Carols by Candlelight event. He later hosted conservative talk radio programs.

Early life Banks was born in Sandringham, Victoria, on 12 October 1905, the youngest of five children. His father, Charles Cecil Banks, died before he was born. His mother, Alice, worked as a draper to support the family after her husband's death.

Banks studied at St Aidan's Theological College, Ballarat and later at Ridley College, in Melbourne, intending to become an Anglican priest. However, at the age of 24, he decided to abandon his training and pursue a career outside the clergy, though he remained a member of the church throughout his life.

He worked as a car salesman for S.A. Cheney Motors and traveled to England and the United States as a company representative. After experiencing financial difficulties and returning to Australia, he worked on a farm in Colac owned by Joseph Gilmore before marrying Gilmore's daughter, Lorna May, at Christ Church on 6 May 1930.

Early radio career While in the United States, Banks developed an interest in the radio industry and gained some broadcasting experience. Soon after his marriage, Banks sought a position at 3KZ following the advice of his mother. Over the next 20 years, Banks broadcast from Melbourne, including programs such as Voice of the Voyager, Voice of the People, Voice of the Business Girl, Voice of the Shopper, Husbands and Wives, Junior Information, Spelling Bee, Victoria Varieties, Myer Musicale, and "OBs" (outside broadcasts) of football, tennis, athletics, swimming, and other events. Banks was one of the early football radio broadcasters. Banks was not initially allowed to broadcast from the grounds but found ways of observing the games without being seen. In 1931 at Princes Park, Carlton, Banks broadcast his first football match while standing on a ladder at the end of the dressing room. On another occasion at Princes Park, he broadcast from a hardwood plank protruding from a ladies' toilet. At Lakeside Oval, he once broadcast from an 18-meter steel tower.

On Victory in Europe Day, 1945, Banks was assigned to report on the celebrations at the end of World War II.

The event became an annual tradition and is now broadcast by 3AW on radio and Nine Network on television as a fundraiser for Vision Australia.

At 3AW, he covered the Olympics, football, current affairs, and outside broadcasts around Melbourne, as well as hosting in-studio programs. He served as the station's news editor for a period. He worked at 3AW until 1978, a career spanning 26 years. These views were often presented in on-air debates with journalist Claudia Wright or broadcaster Ormsby Wilkins, who called him "a sanctimonious old hypocrite".

He was inducted into the Melbourne Cricket Ground's Rogues Gallery in 1998, with his citation reading— An original football caller with 3KZ in 1931, he later moved to 3AW, combining sport and current affairs. (He) Called football for three decades. (He) Covered Helsinki and Melbourne Olympics.

In 1996, Banks was an inaugural inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in the Media category. His citation read— A pioneer of football broadcasts on 3AW and 3KZ. In 1931, (he) broadcast his first match from Princes Park, standing on a ladder at the end of the dressing rooms. (His) Broadcasting career spanned 60 years.