Worked on the Radio For 71 Years
John Laws died yesterday at his house in Woolloomooloo in Sydney at the age of 90. He was hospitalised for a fortnight last month and then discharged to his home. That is where he passed away peacefully yesterday. Laws talked on the radio his whole life, 71 years total. Everyone in Australia knew his voice.
Special names were given to him. Because his voice was so smooth, people called him “Lawsie” and “the Golden Tonsils.” Other radio personalities like Kyle Sandilands said that Laws was one of a kind, and it was so obvious that it was him the moment he started talking. Ray Hadley stated that Laws was the one who guided the whole industry in the correct use of the talk radio format.
Began With Making Tea
Laws was born in New Guinea on August 8, 1935. His parents were Australians, and they ran shops there. When the Second World War broke out, his family relocated to Sydney. At the age of 18 in 1953, Laws decided to hitchhike to Bendigo in Victoria. Upon arriving at Bendigo he got a job at a minor radio station called 3BO doing odd jobs.
What he initially did was make tea for everybody and put records in their proper places. Just one day, they allowed him to read an on-air advertisement for a shop that sold clothes. That day was his first time speaking on the radio. He came back to Sydney in 1956 after three years and started working at a larger station, 2UE. He made records and was one of the first guys to put together the top 40 songs. As a result, he got to meet some of the most famous singers like Roy Orbison and Tom Jones. Besides that, he also started doing talkback, where people call in and chat. This is what ultimately made him very well-known.
Even Prime Ministers Wanted Him
Law’s people love him so much that the 1983 election was named after him. It was called “Law’s Election”. Because every politician was eager to have their ads aired on his program. Ten years later, Paul Keating, the prime minister, went to a party celebrating Laws’ 40 years in broadcasting. Keating made an impromptu speech and declared Laws “the broadcaster of the century”.
However, Laws was not without faults. An anonymous source exposed a practice in which corporations were paying lawyers for positive comments about their products on his show. He never disclosed to anyone that they were sponsoring him. The newspapers went on a rampage. For seven days in a row, they put his face on their front pages.
Laws complained that the situation was so bad that he couldn’t even go out without reporters harassing him. But he didn’t stop. After 55 years, Laws left the radio in 2007. Then he came back in 2011 and stayed until 2024. When he finally stopped for good, he was 89 years old. He said that he really enjoyed it, but 71 years was more than enough. Every single show Laws did, he ended the same way. He’d say “be kind to each other” before signing off.
FAQs
Q: How many years did John Laws work on the radio?
A: John Laws worked for 71 years from 1953 to 2024.
Q: Why did people call him the Golden Tonsils?
A: The reason why John Laws was given that name was because his voice sounded incredibly smooth and nice.
Q: Where did John Laws die?
A: He passed away at his residence in Woolloomooloo, Sydney, yesterday.
Q: What did he always say at the end?
A: The thing he always did before signing off was to tell everyone listening, “Be kind to each other”.
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