Mal Walden facts for kids

Mal Walden (born 20 May 1943) is a well-known Australian journalist and television news presenter. He worked in TV news for a very long time, becoming one of the longest-serving faces on Australian television. His career in media lasted for six decades!

Mal Walden's Amazing Career

Mal Walden was a main news presenter for two big TV channels in Melbourne, Australia. He worked for the Seven Network on Seven National News from 1978 to 1987. After that, he joined the Ten Network for their Ten Eyewitness News program, staying there until 2013.

When he retired, Mal Walden was honored at the State Parliament. The Premier, Denis Napthine, hosted a special farewell for him. He also received a lifetime achievement award from the Melbourne Press Club.

Starting in Radio

Mal Walden began his media journey in 1961 at a radio station called 3YB-FM in Warrnambool, Victoria. He started as a cadet journalist, learning the ropes of reporting. Later, he moved to another radio station, 3DB.

Moving to Television

In early 1970, Mal Walden switched from radio to television. He joined HSV-7, which was a sister station to 3DB. One of his first big assignments was to report on the terrible damage caused by Cyclone Tracy. This powerful cyclone hit Darwin on Christmas Day in 1974.

In 1978, Mal Walden became the chief news presenter at the Seven Network studio. He was the first working journalist to get this important job. He took over from Brian Naylor, who had moved to a different TV station.

Joining the Ten Network

On 27 March 1987, Mal Walden left HSV-7. He joined the Ten Network's Eyewitness News team at ATV-10 just one month later. There, he worked as a reporter and presenter for a segment called "Mal's Melbourne." This part of the show featured interesting human interest stories.

Mal Walden continued to work as a fill-in news presenter and reporter at ATV-10. He also presented special programs, like the Young Australian of the Year awards.

In 1996, he became the main news presenter for Ten News at Five. He presented the news alongside Jennifer Hansen and later Helen Kapalos.

Longest-Serving Presenter

In 2006, Mal Walden became known as the longest 'continually serving' face on Australian television. He had been presenting news for 36 years by then!

In June 2013, Mal Walden started to reduce his work hours at Network Ten. He planned to retire completely at the end of 2013, after more than 40 years as a news presenter and reporter. He presented the news from Monday to Wednesday, with Stephen Quartermain presenting on Thursday and Friday nights.

On Wednesday, 4 December 2013, Mal Walden presented his very last Ten Eyewitness News Melbourne bulletin. He thanked his family, his colleagues, the station management, and all the viewers.

Mal Walden's Books

Since retiring, Mal Walden has written and published five books. One of them is his memoir, The Newsman, which tells his life story. He also wrote Good News, a collection of stories about the city of Melbourne. Another book is called "... in my Pocket", and he also wrote "Crazy Aussie Crims" and "Aussie Icons and Legends".

Mal Walden's Family Life

Mal Walden is married to Pauline Durham. Pauline used to work in the programming department at the Seven Network's HSV-7 studio. They have two adult children together.