A much-loved former breakfast show host and ABC news presenter is remembered as one of radio’s ‘greats’.
Jan Deane, who hosted a morning show on Victorian regional radio station 3SR before moving to the ABC, where she worked for 20 years as a journalist and news presenter in Shepparton, Bendigo, Ballarat and Melbourne, has died aged 70.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allen tweeted the sad news on Thursday and paid a generous tribute.
“You may not know her name, but many of us in regional Victoria would instantly recognise Jan Deane’s voice,” Allan said.
‘Jan was an amazing journalist, a girl from Shepparton who I met when I was reading the news for 3BO in Bendigo.
“My condolences to his family, friends and colleagues. Thank you, Jan, for being such a strong voice for rural communities.”
His former colleague and Victorian Country Hour presenter Warwick Long also paid tribute.
“My heart hurts today,” she wrote Thursday.
Jan Deane, a former breakfast radio presenter who worked for ABC news agencies in Victoria for 20 years, has died aged 70.
‘We have lost a great who sat next to me at ABC Shepparton for years.
‘A beautiful singing voice, a clever sense of humour and an eye for detail.
‘I presented a television show in Shepparton, read the ABC state news bulletin and loved amateur drama.’
When Ms Deane left the ABC in 2018, listeners flocked to express their gratitude on social media.
“The end of an era,” wrote one.
“ABC Goulburn Valley will never be the same,” said another.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan led tributes on social media for the much-loved radio presenter
“Jan’s dedication and expertise cannot be easily replaced. He has enriched the lives of an immeasurable number of people over the years.”
Ms Deane, who came from a well-known Goulburn Valley family, began working in radio after starring in amateur theatre and presenting a daily morning show on local television station GMV 6.
While working in sales, then-3SR manager Steve Woods saw Ms Deane’s potential on air because she was “so well connected in the city” but also because of her remarkable singing voice.
“We used to have a live band in the studio on Friday mornings and Jan would sing live on air,” Woods told Radio Today.
“She had an incredible Barbra Streisand voice.”
Ms Deane has been remembered for her passion for the community in her hometown of Shepparton.
Ms Deane moved to Bendigo’s 3BO station to become a journalist and then to Melbourne’s ABC radio 774 where she became a newsreader.
He eventually returned to Shepparton, where he continued to work for the ABC and became a regular newspaper columnist, writing book reviews for the Shepparton News.
“What I will remember most about Jan is her passion for Shepparton and her deep love of words,” NCPherson Media Group director of content and audience Christine Anderson said on Thursday.
‘On behalf of Shepparton News, I would like to extend our sincere condolences to Jan’s family and friends.’
Ms. Deane remained true to her theatrical and musical calling and starred in local productions, playing the lead roles of Maria in The Sound of Music and Maria in Jesus Christ Superstar.
The cause of his death has not been made public.
