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Peter FitzSimons AM
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Testimonials for Peter FitzSimons AM
“We find Peter to be an excellent speaker who knows how to perfectly combine his sporting and political achievements in a very engaging and interesting manor.
His professionalism also extends to other facets of event, which further ensures it will always be a success- he arrives on time, is easy to deal with, tailors his presentations to the audience and will happily join tables and mingle with guests/clients. We will definitely be using Peter again.”
Davies Collison Cave
“Excellent. Very enjoyable evening was had with Peter. Very professional.”
Australian Institute of Project Management
“Excellent. Would liven up any function. A true Aussie larrikin with intelligence to match the personality.”
Retravision
“Excellent. Very entertaining - Great rapport with group and was able to link his experiences with the objectives of our Planning Session. Encouraged interaction during his address - Thoroughly enjoyed by all!”
Energy Australia
“Excellent. Great speaker, picked up on our company's value quickly and accurately.”
ACCO Australia
“Excellent. Very engaging. Entertaining. Made the audience feel special, treated them like a friend who Peter had known for a long time.”
Tower Australia Limited
“Excellent - Peter FitzSimons was great. He finished a success client golf day, with some interesting and very funny stories. We were all extremely happy that he was our guest speaker on the night.”
Aon Risk Services
“Peter and Lisa were a truly great pairing for the Legends MC / commentary role, and worked off each other brilliantly. They had also clearly put a lot of work into the research, and delivered on all the messaging points we briefed them on, and more. Lisa also showed more of the same as the 'media personality' compering our fashion show later in the week on the steps of the Sydney Opera House.”
Momentum Worldwide
“I really can’t express enough that having Peter FitzSimons as the MC was the element that most contributed to the event’s success. We could not have had a more suited MC for our event. We would have no hesitation in recommending Peter.”
LOUD Events
“Peter FitzSimons, well what can I say he almost stole the limelight...luckily the champagnes could compete with him. He was brilliant, funny, engaging, easy to work with, a true professional!”
Prideaux Entertainment Solutions
Fee Range: $5001 to $10000
Peter FitzSimons AM's Biography
He is the biographer not only of World Cup winning Wallaby captains, Nick Farr-Jones and John Eales, but also former Opposition Leader Kim Beazley, boxer Les Darcy, aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, war heroine Nancy Wake and Antarctic explorer Sir Douglas Mawson. In 2001 he was Australia’s biggest selling non-fiction author, and duplicated that feat in 2004, with his book on Kokoda. He has been Australia’s best-selling non-fiction author in the last decade and in November 2013 released his current best-seller on Ned Kelly.
The most popular after-dinner speaker in Australia, he is married to Today Show co-host Lisa Wilkinson and they have three children.
Born on a farm in Peat’s Ridge, Peter went to Knox Grammar School, before accepting an American Field Service Scholarship to go to Ohio for a year. He returned to complete an Arts degree at Sydney University majoring in government and political science. In 1984 he broke into the Wallabies under the coaching of Alan Jones, then lived in France and Italy playing rugby for the next five years whilst learning both languages as well as Spanish. Upon his return to Australia he again played for the Wallabies, under Bob Dwyer, going on to play seven Tests.
In 1989 he joined The Sydney Morning Herald full-time, and has been one of their most popular columnists since. Andrew Denton has called him “Australia’s finest sports journalist.”
Peter boasts an
impressive list of interview credits including ex-president George Bush, Sir
Edmund Hillary, Jodie Foster, Nicki Lauda, Joe Montana and Carl Lewis as well
as all the major Australian sporting figures from Shane Gould to Lionel Rose to
Herb Elliot. He has interviewed every Australian Prime Minister from Gough
Whitlam through to Julia Gillard.
He has the distinction of being the only Wallaby sent from the field in a match against the All Blacks – unjustly, he swears. He was co-host of the Today Show 15 years before his wife, Lisa Wilkinson – even if it did last for only a day. He has fought a Sumo wrestler at the Opera House, danced on ice with Torville and Dean, told Alan Jones to his face that he is dead freaking wrong and opened a door for the redoubtable Germaine Greer and lived to tell the tale!
He has also written the biographies of former Australian Labor Party leader Kim Beazley, Wallaby captains, Nick Farr-Jones and John Eales, WWII resistance fighter Nancy Wake and sportsmen Steve Waugh and Les Darcy.
FitzSimons' published works include:
Kokoda, which recounts the numerous battles between Australian and Japanese Troops on the Kokoda Track during World War II.
Tobruk, which
tells the story of The Rats of Tobruk as they fought during World War II
against Italian troops, then later the Afrika Korps, as they were led by
then-General Erwin Rommel.
Charles Kingsford
Smith and those Magnificent Men, a biography of aviator Sir Charles Kingsford
Smith.
A Simpler Time a
childhood memoir which relates his family history and honours the memory of his
father and mother.
Batavia - on the
fate of the ship Batavia.
Peter FitzSimons was named a Member of the Order of Australia for service to literature as a biographer, sports journalist and commentator, and to the community through contributions to conservation, disability care, social welfare and sporting organisations.