Musician, former administrator, man of the people: Meet Ted Egan

Fear is the quickest path to power. It takes a far bigger person, with a far stronger spirit, brighter mind and larger heart to make a name for themselves by bringing people together. Ted Egan is that person. READ HIS STORY.

Former administrator Ted Egan. Picture: Supplied

TED Egan is the great unifier.

Many people throughout history have made a name for themselves by pushing people a part- ‘Divide and conquer’, as they say.

Fear is the quickest path to power.

It takes a far bigger person, with a far stronger spirit, brighter mind and larger heart to make a name for themselves by bringing people together.

Ted Egan is that person.

A champion of Aboriginal people, who has fought all his adult life for the empowerment, liberty and pride of our First Australians.

And fought to bring all Australians together as one, unified with love and respect for one another.

Ted is a legend of Australian music – a Golden Guitar winner, and member of Australian Country Music’s Roll of Renown.

Officially a ‘National Living Treasure’, he has also been recognised as an Officer of the Order of Australia, for his activism for Aboriginal people, and his contribution to Australian culture as a singer and writer.

Born in 1932, Ted came to the Territory in 1949 with an open mind and an open heart, and actively embraced Aboriginal people and their culture.

The heart and mind were forged in his loving childhood home in Coburg, Melbourne.

“I was born into the standard Irish Catholic working class family. My parents, Joe and Grace, both came off farms from the Western District, and were married in Camperdown in 1922,” he said.

“They came to Melbourne and had a few very enjoyable years, and my three eldest sisters, Pat, Margaret and Shirley, were born (younger brother Tim came later).

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“Then the Great Depression came. My father was suddenly out of work. For the first five years of my life, he didn’t have a job. Every day, he would ride six miles there and back in to the Labour Office to seek work- some days he would get work, others he wouldn’t.”

Ted idolised both his parents.

Dad, Joe, left school in Grade 4, but actively educated himself.

“He was a prodigious reader. He was a highly educated man, through avid listening to the radio, and reading newspapers and books,” he said.

“Then he would have discussions with his mates about the world economy.

“My mother and I had a strong relationship. Looking back now, we had very intimate chats. She was also a disciplinarian.”

In 1939, the Second World War broke out and Ted’s father got work- “Everyone got work then!”

“We were never rich, but always warm and well fed. It was a joyful childhood. I don’t remember an unkind word ever being said,” he said.

It was also a home filled with music.

“Each of my sisters could play the piano, and my father could play the accordion fairly well. My mother had a good knowledge of music. They introduced us to a lot of good songs,” he said.

Ted and his three sisters would all sing as they did the dishes together of a night. And one of Australia’s greatest music talents was born- over hot soapy water, and a tea towel!

Ted says he “very vividly” remembers being a young boy, growing up during the war.

The earlier First World War had touched his family, with one poor uncle, Martin, left ravaged by shell shock.

“My mother was the most anti-war person you’d ever know. She said, ‘Will they ever learn?’,” he said.

“But this war needed to be fought. We had many relations involved in the war. Melbourne was where they all departed from to go overseas and fight, so we had parties at our house for them, with all the boys uniform. Life was pretty exciting.”

Ted became a paperboy- selling newspapers on the streets- to pay off a debt incurred during a throwing competition!

A “very accurate” throw had hit the intended target of a lamp post, before finding a second, unintended target, ricocheting off in to a butcher’s window.

Former administrator Ted Egan. Picture: Katrina Bridgeford.

Generous American soldiers – “Keep the change, son” – soon had Ted back in the black.

Ted stood on one of Melbourne’s most famous corners- Sydney Road and Bell Street – and sold The Herald, as soldiers were whirling to and from the pub behind him.

“I would shout out the headlines, ‘Germans Approaching Stalingrad’, ‘Darwin Bombed’. Then at night I wrote up little war books. My father was always writing something, so I wrote with him. I called them Ted Egan’s War Books,” he said.

As an adult, he later wrote a book based on those experiences, The Paperboy’s War.

Ted went to school at Sisters of Mercy, then Christian Brothers in North Melbourne, before doing his final year at Victoria Parade.

Ted’s mum started him at school at age 3, so he matriculated (finished Year 12) aged just 15.

Ted was offered a University Scholarship, but thought he was “too young, and thought it was boring stuff, anyway.”

Instead, Ted went on a whirlwind 18 months that saw him become a Bank Johnny (teller), work on a dairy farm at Nar Nar Goon, before digging potatoes at Koo Wee Rup and Packenham, and travelling to Queensland.

Then back in Melbourne, Ted met up with an old school mate Ron Smith.

“Ron said, ‘I’m going to Brazil.’ I said, ‘I’ll go with you.’,” he said.

“He said, ‘We’ll save a few quid in Darwin, and then we’ll get a boat to Brazil.’

Ted and Ron arrived in Darwin, Easter 1949.

“I don’t know if we were ever going to be able to get a boat to Brazil. I still haven’t been!”

Ted had his first ever beer at the Vic Hotel, before heading to the Department of Works.

“The Admin Officer said, ‘Can you play cricket?’”

Ted had the right answer, he was a leg spin bowler, so he got a job, and a spot on the team.

“I lived for sport. You’d work during the week so that you could participate in sport on the weekend,” he said.

“We started a footy team at the Department of Works, or ‘Works and Jerks’. The three of us who started it were all Richmond supporters, so we wore yellow and black. They are now Nightcliff, and they are still the Tigers, wearing yellow and black.

“I played two seasons with them, then the Bishop of Darwin, John O’Loughlin, called me in and said, ‘I’ve watched you, I know you’re Catholic, I want you to start a new team, so that Aboriginal men are allowed to play.’

“Up to that point, Aboriginals weren’t banned from playing, but they weren’t encouraged. They were brilliant footballers.

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“We chose the colours green and gold for Australia, and that’s Saint Mary’s to this day.

“That was the most important thing that happened to me. My life changed drastically as a consequence. I was 20 years old, and there were only a couple of white blokes, and the rest were full blood Tiwi Aboriginals.

“A very wise old Tiwi man said to me, ‘It’s a good idea this football. But these men don’t think in English. I’ll have to teach you my language. I’ll teach you songs. In songs are the real stories and the real language.’”

Ted became proficient in Tiwi language, and was overheard one day by the Northern Territory’s Minister, Paul Hasluck, giving the halftime address in the local tongue.

“He said, ‘I’m interested in you, come and see me Monday morning.’,” Ted said.

“I became a Cadet Patrol Officer with Native Affairs- what was to become the Department of Aboriginal Affairs. I worked there for the next 25 years- it was a fascinating career.”

Ted worked across many, many remote communities as a ‘Protector of Aborigines’, then a Superintendent, before becoming a teacher.

“What I have to reflect upon in my latter years of life is that what was done under the guise of ‘protection’, was actually exploitation – keeping Aboriginals on these settlements in quite often undesirable circumstances.”

Ted became a believer in the cause for Aboriginal land rights after a profound experience in 1966.

“I went to Arnhem Land, and the ceremonial life there was stronger than any I’d seen in Australia. They had an affinity with the land. The court case found that they didn’t own the land, but the land owned them. I believe that is the case to this day,” he said.

“As a consequence of that position, I believe sovereignty should be given to the First Nations to whatever extent is possible, without anyone coming to blows.

“Only a compassionate Federal Government can do that.

“Then each First Nation would be a partner to the Commonwealth of Australia, and share with the Government the benefits of ownership of the land.”

Ted is also in favour of a First Nations’ ‘Voice’ to Parliament.

“I propose the election by First Australian people of a First Australian Academy,” he said.

“In the same way as the Académie Française in France- where it gives very strong advice, that is highly likely to be taken.”

Ted would also like to see the Pitjantjara language declared as the Australian language, and taught to every child from day one in school.

Also in 1966, Vincent Lingiari led the Wave Hill Cattle Station ‘walk-off’, as he and 200 of his fellow Gurindji people went on strike.

They would stand no more of being ‘treated like dogs’ on their own country, and demanded better pay and conditions. They were on strike for nine years.

At the end of the 60s, Ted took up a position with the Council for Aboriginal Affairs in Canberra.

“By 1969, I was now working for Dr. Nugget Coombs, and he wanted to be informed on everything happening at Wave Hill,” he said.

Ted worked as a key link between the power in Canberra, and the brave strikers on the ground at Wave Hill.

Ted’s soul went in to battle for the Gurindji people, when he wrote one of Australia’s most powerful protest songs, ‘Gurindji Blues’.

Ted Egan entertaining the crowds with his annual songs at the Old Timers Fete.

“I wrote the song on the 7th of September 1969. I’d been listening to the Parliament Debate on the radio. The Minister of the Crown said, ‘If these Gurindji want some land, they can save up for it, and buy it, like any other Australian’,” he said.

“I first met Vincent Lingiari at the Wave Hill Races in 1953, and I witnessed all the Gurindji stockmen. Each one of them was given a 5 pound note. They, their fathers and grand fathers had all been working cattle for 80 years. But that was the first time any of them had touched money. How could they save money?”

Egan recorded ‘Gurindji Blues’ with Galarrwuy Yunupingu, and Vincent Lingiari gave the introduction to the track.

In 1974, Ted delivered one of the most pivotal messages in Australian history, when he took the news to Lingiari at Wave Hill that they would be given lease of their land.

Later, Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam poured red dirt in to Lingiari’s hands, to symbolise the legal transfer.

Lingiari said, “Now we can all be mates.”

Ted trained up a wonderful group of Aboriginal people to do his job, and then thought it was “time for the whitefella to go”, and resigned.

Next stop was Alice Springs, and a full-time career in entertainment.

For the past 50 years, Ted Egan has been one of Australia’s greatest entertainers.

He is a Golden Guitar winner, holder of the Lifetime Achievement Award for Country Music, a member of the Roll of Renown, and long-time icon of the Tamworth Country Music Festival.

Ted is also a prolific writer and historian, and one of the most authentic TV presenters you’ll ever see.

Through music, spoken word and written word, Ted has energised us here at home about our country, and promoted us to the world.

In 2003, Ted became Administrator of the Northern Territory. Fifty-four years after that young teenage lad came to Darwin, trying to get a boat to Brazil, he took up the highest office in the land.

For the past 40 years, right by Ted’s side, has been his wonderful wife Nerys.

“We met at the WA Folk Festival. I was introduced to this lovely lady. She said, ‘Can I buy you a drink’. I said, ‘I think I better buy you one!’.”

Ted says Nerys’ love and support has been so special to him.

“I have four children from a previous marriage, Greg, Margaret, Mark and Jacki.

“They’re all achievers in their own right.

“We have seven grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren. They are all just lovely.”

Ted is currently writing a new book, Kulilkatima, which means ‘Seeking to Understand’.

Ted Egan’s contribution to our Territory and our country has been to help give us all a better understanding of ourselves and each other. What a force for good this man is!

PS: Ted turned 89 on Tuesday, July 6. Happy Birthday Ted!