Des Monaghan: pioneering TV journalism, ending the Post Office strike and waiting for David Frost...

Interview – 2015

Des Monaghan has made an enormous contribution to the television industry as a TV producer and network executive on both sides of the Tasman. Starting as a trainee producer with the NZ Broadcasting Corporation, Monaghan produced pioneering current affairs shows Gallery and Compass. Later he set up production company Screentime, who are behind popular shows Popstars, Underbelly, Police Ten 7 and Beyond the Darklands.

In this ScreenTalk, Monaghan talks about:

Working with a blind cameraman and deaf sound recordist in his early TV days
Having almost no content to broadcast when he began producing Town and Around
Playing an awful lot of pool with Brian Edwards, while producing Compass
Failing to realise the power he had on current affairs show Gallery
How the show famously helped to settle the Post Office strike
The laziness of the print media in New Zealand in the 1970s
Being kept waiting by David Frost while making Frost Over New Zealand
How legendary fighter pilot Sir Keith Park created a poignant moment on the show
Raising the ire of rugby league fans after taking over sports coverage on TV
New Zealand needing true public service television
Being grateful for the varied opportunities his career has offered

This video was first uploaded on 4 May 2015, and is available under this Creative Commons licence. This licence is limited to use of ScreenTalk interview footage only and does not apply to any video content and photographs from films, television, music videos, web series and commercials used in the interview.

Interview, Camera and Editing – Andrew Whiteside

Luckily we were young enough and green enough not to fully understand the extraordinary power we had. Because we were the only current affairs show on the only television network, in a country that didn’t have a national press. So we could literally change government policy overnight, and luckily we didn't have any political agenda and we didn't have any real grasp of how unique our position was...
– Des Monaghan on 60s current affairs show Gallery

Des's Full Profile