Tim Bowden

Timothy Gibson Bowden AM (2 August 1937 – 1 September 2024) was an Australian author, radio and television broadcaster and producer, and oral historian. He was born in Hobart, Tasmania, and studied at the University of Tasmania, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.

Bowden's work included hosting the Australian Broadcasting Corporation program Backchat (1986–1994), producing This Day Tonight during the 1970s, and founding the ABC's Social History Unit. His other productions include Prisoners of War – Australians Under Nippon^[1] and the 24-part series Taim Bilong Masta – The Australian Involvement with Papua New Guinea.^[2]

During the 1990s he produced several notable documentaries on Australian research in the Antarctic.

Bowden died on 1 September 2024, at the age of 87.^[3][4]

• Appointed Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the 1994 Birthday Honours for services to broadcasting.^[5]
• Centenary Medal, 2001^[6]
• Honorary Doctorate of Letters, University of Tasmania, 1997

• Bowden, Tim (1987). One Crowded Hour: Neil Davis - Combat Cameraman (1934 - 1985). Sydney: Collins. ISBN 978-0-00-217496-1.
• Bowden, Tim (1990). The Backchat Cook. ABC Enterprises. ISBN 978-0-7333-0000-4.
• Bowden, Tim (1991). Antarctica and Back in Sixty Days. ABC Enterprises. ISBN 978-0-733-30113-1.
• Bowden, Tim (1992). The Way My Father Tells It: The Story of an Australian Life. ABC Books. ISBN 978-0-733-30010-3.
• Bolden, Tim (1993). Changi Photographer George Aspinall's Record of Captivity. Sydney: ABC. ISBN 978-0-7333-0287-9.^[7]
• Bowden, Tim (1997). The Silence Calling: Australians in Antarctica 1947–97. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-86448-311-6.
• Bowden, Tim (1999). Penelope Goes West: On the Road from Sydney to Margaret River and Back. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-86508-066-6.
• Bowden, Tim (2002). Penelope Bungles to Broome. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74343-221-1.
• Bowden, Tim (2003). Spooling Through: An Irreverent Memoir. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-741-14026-2.
• Bowden, Tim (2004). No Tern Unstoned: Musings at Breakfast. ABC Books. ISBN 978-0-733-31444-5.
• Bowden, Tim (2004). This Can’t Happen to Me! Tackling Type 2 Diabetes. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74115-163-3.^[8]
• Bowden, Tim (2006). Aunty’s Jubilee! Celebrating 50 Years of ABC-TV. ABC Books. ISBN 978-0-733-31840-5.
• Bowden, Tim (2008). The Devil in Tim: Travels in Tasmania. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74176-268-6.
• Bowden, Tim (2008). Down Under in the Top End: Penelope Heads North. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74176-225-9.
• Bowden, Tim (2012). The Changi Camera: A AniqueRrecord of Changi and Thai-Burma Railway. Hachette Australia. ISBN 978-0-733-62962-4.
• Bowden, Tim (2014). Stubborn Buggers: Survivors of the Infamous POW Gaol That Made Changi Look Like Heaven. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-743-31442-5.
• Bowden, Tim (2019). Larrikins in Khaki: Tales of Irreverence and Courage From World War II Diggers. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-760-52854-6.
• Bowden, Tim (2023). Ros Bowden: Trailblazer. ETT. ISBN 978-1-922-69882-7.

• Tim Bowden (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)