Justin du Fresne’s retirement

NZPA report:

Wellington personality Justin du Fresne has announced that he will step down as host of the morning show on .

He has hosted the show since 1987, and this year marked 50 years since he began his radio career.

“This is my decision, I've had an amazing time but feel I need to enjoy life without the pressure of a daily radio show. I would like to thank my listeners for the sustained support I've had,” he said.

Wellington general manager of The Radio Network Rhys Nimmo said: “Justin has been a fixture on Wellington's airwaves for well over two decades and has been a key reason behind NewstalkZB's status as a market in talk radio”.

Du Fresne was in discussions about an ongoing role with NewstalkZB.

Christmas Eve will be his last day in his current role.

1987 is around when I started listening to talk radio, so I can't recall a time when Justin has not been the morning voice on Newstalk ZB, or 2ZB as it was then.

The trend in broadcasting has been to centralise the broadcasts. Once upon a time 1ZB, 2ZB and 3ZB all have very different shows and presenters. It makes economic sense to have one presenter nation-wide if you will keep much the same .

The exception to this trend has been Justin, in Wellington. He has such a dedicated following, that he has maintained his Wellington only mornings show.

In the last couple of years, I've gone from a listener to a regular panellist on his Friday face off panel. This was my favourite part of his show, as a listener, so it has been a real treat to be on Face Off, and hand out bouquets and brickbats.

Hopefully NewstalkZB will continue with a Wellington only show in the mornings, after Justin retires – but they may find his boots are too big to fill.

The next time I am on the show, I must ask Justin the question I keep forgetting – is he related to Karl du Fresne?

Comments (13)

Login to comment or vote

Add a Comment