Hall of Fame honour for Brian Walsh

Industry luminary, the late Brian Walsh, will be inducted into the Hall of Fame at the TV Week Logie Awards next Sunday.

He becomes the first to represent Subscription TV in the 39 year roll-call of inductees and the sixth to be posthumously recognised.

Walsh, who died suddenly on March 16 year and was serving in the role of Executive Director of Drama at Foxtel Group, had decades in the industry including driving an inspired marketing campaign for Neighbours 2.0, saving it from the axe in Sydney, and helping it become a global phenomenon.

He joined Foxtel in 1995, commissioning hit shows including  Love My Way, SLiDE, Satisfaction, Australia’s Next Top Model, Tangle, Selling Houses Australia, Deadline Gallipoli, The Great Australian Bake Off, The Real Housewives of Melbourne, Gogglebox, A Place to Call Home, Secret City, Wentworth, Upright, The Kettering Incident, The End, Love Me, Colin from Accounts and The Twelve – the most nominated drama this year.

Walsh launched countless careers behind, and in front, of the camera across his career, still working to the very end.

As Amanda Laing, Chief Commercial and Content Officer at Foxtel Group, told TV Tonight, “Walshie’s” vision and contributions went above and beyond.

“There were just not enough hours in the day for all the things that he was doing, to connect with people, to keep on top of what was happening in the industry, to make connections from one person to another,” she said

“There were so many facets to what he was doing, not just in his work for Foxtel, but in the industry, with AACTA, writers, talent, musicians, producers, and of course, he loved the theatre. The thing that just keeps shocking me is the volume of things he was involved with, and the number of people he was working with and connecting with on a daily, frequent basis.

“Look at the cast of The Twelve and that fabulous jury. A combination of well-known talent and new talent. That was one of his many gifts: his ability to put these ensembles together and identify new and emerging talent…. it’s part art / part science. It’s not something you can teach.”

Laing says that Walsh’s passion for Australian storytelling meant he always offering insight to multiple departments and disciplines within Foxtel even as restructure saw changes to his company role.

“He never was saying, ‘I’m not responsible for that’, and walk away. That’s why, even as the formal role changed and several reorganisations occurred, people all around the business still reached out to him for guidance and for wise counsel, and he always made time for all of them.”

TV Week Logie Awards 7pm red carpet / 7:30pm ceremony Sunday July 30 on Seven.