October
FebruaryGreat Day
The recent passing of Adelaide race caller Bert Day brings closure to a significant piece of Australian race broadcasting history.
Bet Day, Bill Collins, Des Hoysted and Keith Noud, formed the nucleus of the Major Radio Network Sporting Service, which was broadcast over radio stations 5AD, 3DB, 2UE and 4BK from the early 1960s to the mid 1970s, when 5AD and 4BK withdrew their racing broadcasts.
Bert Day continued to call Saturday and public holiday races over 5AD’s regional network 5PI, 5SE and 5MU from 1976 to 1982.
I had the pleasure to meet this grand gentleman of broadcasting at the Gawler races one Wednesday afternoon and to listen to his stories of his time on Three Way Turf Talk and World of Sport was a delight to any media historian, notably his verbal ribbing of Des Hoysted over the success of Adelaide-trained horses in Sydney.
Bert Day will be remembered for his accurate, articulate race calls, his professional presentation of racing on World of Sport Racetrack, and above all his professionalism in the face of being treated shabbily by his employer, who ended his media career way too soon.
RIP Bert Day. You will always be one of the greats.
Fairview Park (SA)