Simon Townsend

Media career In 1970, Townsend joined the ABC as a reporter with the current affairs program This Day Tonight, before he joined Nine's A Current Affair in 1973. Townsend moved into radio and was appointed producer on the John Laws Morning Show on Sydney's 2UW in February 1978. While working at 2UW, Townsend collaborated with comics artist Peter Ledger to create the comic strip Wonder World featuring the character of Dr. Data, a kind knowledgeable person who had the ability to provide readers with an array of odd facts. In November 1978, Townsend and Ledger were invited by Stan Lee to the United States to discuss the viability of developing Dr. Data into a comic book. The program was a success and over 2,000 editions of the program were aired over eight years. After the show ended, Townsend complained about how he had felt intimidated by the Children's Program Committee which advised the Australian Broadcasting Tribunal on matters pertaining to children's programming content. In April 1992, Townsend confirmed he had given permission for Wonder World to be revived, stating: it's flattering and I think it would be great if a Wonder World! program made some sort of comeback."

In September 1992, a two-hour special that Townsend had written and produced called Mystery Forces: Chance and Coincidence went to air on the Seven Network, hosted by Larry Emdur.

In 1993, building on an existing four-minute segment he had been doing for Nine's Live at 5 program, Townsend created a program for ABC TV called TVTV which he also initially hosted. It contained a mixture of interviews with television personalities promoting their shows and reviews of television shows new to the screen. Presenters included Edith Bliss (who worked previously on Simon Townsend's Wonder World), and musician James Valentine formerly of the band, Models. However, the program was poorly received by viewers and Townsend was denounced by television critics, prompting his departure from hosting the program after just six months. After he left the program, he vehemently complained about his perceived treatment during appearances on Nine's Midday and Seven's Real Life where he accused the critics of a partaking in a concerted effort to bring him down. His comments resulted in The Age's television critic Ross Warneke of accusing Townsend of having alleged "criminality", describing the accusation as "untrue" and "grossly offensive" and attempted to prompt Townsend into issuing a public apology.

Personal life and death On 3 April 1992, Townsend was involved in an altercation with a truck driver after the truck collided with the rear end of Townsend's Mercedes-Benz. The 42-year-old truck driver pleaded not guilty to negligent driving, alleging that Townsend had changed lanes dangerously as both vehicles turned into Macquarie Street in the Sydney CBD, after which Townsend left the scene of the accident. Michael Townsend and actress Nadia Townsend, who appeared on Channel 7's City Homicide. He also had another daughter, Lisbeth Kennelly, from a previous relationship.