Richard Morecroft’s death has prompted tributes from colleagues and friends who remembered the veteran broadcaster as a gentle, generous presence both on and off screen.
Morecroft, who died last week after being diagnosed with a rare and aggressive cancer, was best known for his long career in Australian television and as a host of SBS’s Letters and Numbers.
David Astle, who co-hosted the programme with Morecroft and mathematician Lily Serna in 2010, recalled him as the calm centre of the show, which combined mathematical problems with word games and anagrams.
“We’ve lost someone the world needs right now,” Serna told Astle in a phone conversation after news of Morecroft’s death.
Astle said Morecroft brought warmth and humility to the set, despite his considerably longer career. He described the broadcaster as someone who encouraged his younger colleagues, joined in with meetings and made them feel secure.
Morecroft’s surname also produced an anagram that Astle considered fitting: “comforter”.
The pair’s friendship continued away from the programme, with conversations ranging from animals and photography to Nick Cave’s music, Mad Men and the books of China Miéville.
Astle recalled that Morecroft once joined his poker group under the name Rifleman and won all the money. He also came to know Morecroft’s partner, Alison, whose loss he described as profound.
Their working relationship followed an earlier, fleeting encounter. Astle first saw Morecroft at the Crows Nest Hotel near the ABC’s Gore Hill studios in 1986, when he was working behind the bar. Morecroft was already a familiar television presence, but the two did not speak.
Astle later remembered Morecroft as a reassuring figure during the Space Shuttle disaster, and as the owner of an orphaned grey-headed flying fox named Archie.
Leigh Sales, a long-time ABC colleague, described Morecroft as both “a gentleman, and a gentle man” following his death.
Astle said Morecroft had spent much of his career reading stories from an autocue, but possessed many of his own. He added that the broadcaster was usually more interested in listening than speaking.
