Ray Martin Present’s Who Killed Harold Holt?…

Tuesday November 20, 2007 Ray Martin presented a one off special investigating the disappearance of the 17th Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt, titled Who Killed Harold Holt?, the program aired at 9:35pm.

Harold Holt was Australia’s 17th Prime Minister who was in office for almost two years, after succeeding Sir Robert Menzies. Harold Holt is best remembered for the strange circumstances that lead to his death on December 17, 1966, which lead to a number of conspiracy theories. Holt was a keen swimmer and had gone with a couple of aquatints to Cheviot Beach at Point Nepean near Portsea in Victoria, and this is where he went missing on a swim in rough surf, it was assumed that Holt was seeped out to sea.

Ray Martin went around interviewing key people associated with the Harold Holt story, from eye witnesses to journalists to his biographer.

Evan Whitton points our that back in those days everything was much more nicer and simpler, and it was possible for the Prime Minister to get out and go for a swim.

Tom Frame is Harold Holt’s biographer who believes that the many great things that shaped Australia today that Holt introduced have been over shadowed by his mysterious disappearance and his commitment to the Vietnam War. Holt was responsible for getting rid of the White Australia policy by introducing many migrants from African and Asian nations, and increased relations between Australia and Asian countries.

John Hamilton describes this as one of the biggest stories he has ever had to cover, saying that it was unbelievable that the Australian Prime Minister could go missing. He put the situation into perspective to today’s standards by saying it would be the same as John Howard going on one of his morning walks and suddenly disappearing.

Alan Steward was there on the day and describes the surf as wild and could see that it was potentially dangerous. He says that Holt just jumped in and that he could feel an enormous undertow, and when Alan asked if Harold Holt stayed in the water normally this long, the answer was no, that is when the alarm was raised.

Martin Simpson was also on the beach that day, at the time he was a 19 year old medical student, and remembers clearly being told when the Prime Minister was missing.

Sam and Nick are the son’s of Harold Holt and were also present the day their dad went missing.

Other key people interviewed were the police officer in charge of the search, Harold Holt’s press sectary, former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser and many more…

All up this was an excellent presentation from Ray Martin and if things go well, this could be a genre for a series on Nine in 2008.

Technorati tags: Ray Martin, Channel Nine, Nine Network, Harold Holt

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