Bill Woods
Encyclopedia
William "Bill" Woods is an Australia
n television broadcaster.
Woods is currently the presenter of Network Ten
's Ten News at Five
in Sydney, alongside Sandra Sully
.
In early 1984 Woods was offered a journalism cadetship with Radio 2WS in Sydney. He filled all kinds of news reporting and presenting roles, as well as major sporting event coverage. This included a trip to Wimbledon in 1987 to cover Pat Cash's historic win. The following year he accepted the role of 2WS Sports Director. In late 1988 he was offered a part time job at Network Ten which soon resulted in an offer of full-time work as a sports reporter for the evening news.
After stints on Good Morning Australia with Tim Webster and Kerri-Anne Kennerley as a sports commentator Woods was asked to fill in for Webster on a few occasions. This led to his appointment in a series of sport broadcasts outside the news department.
He was the presenter for Ten's National Basketball League
coverage from 1992 to the mid-1990s, as well as acting as play-by-play commentator for Sydney Kings
home games. Woods continued in the news room as regular weekend presenter on Ten's Sports Tonight
from 1996 to 2005, as well as acting as a back-up presenter to Tim Webster on weeknights.
Woods was also the face of Ten's motorsport coverage from 1997 to 2005. He hosted the magazine programme RPM, six of those years with former World Champion Barry Sheene. Sheene and Woods also anchored and commentated on the World Motorcycle Championship (Motogp). The pair became firm friends, and Woods broke down during the episode dedicated to Sheene after his death from cancer in 2003. In 2004 Woods also filled the role of commentator in the V8 Supercar Championship Series alongside regular Commentator Neil Crompton.
The ill-fated 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
was a particularly difficult role in the national spotlight. With Ten being the official TV broadcaster of the race, he delivered regular news updates from Hobart (along with yachting commentator Rob Mundle) on the unfolding tragedy brought about by severe gale-force winds and sea swells reaching several metres in height. Five competing boats were sunk and six people died.
He has also hosted the 2007 Rugby World Cup from France, the David Beckham interview and match telecast, as well as numerous Australian F1 Grand Prix, Australian Motogp, Gold Coast Indy and Bathurst 1000 telecasts.
He has anchored five Logie award-winning telecasts: 4 for the Bathurst 1000 coverage one for the 1994 Commonwealth Games. He has also anchored and commentated on a variety of other events and series such as the 2007 and 2010 Federal Election Telecasts, Triathlon Grand Prix and Australian Ladies Masters Golf.
In 2009 and 2010 Woods hosted a two hour sports variety show called Thursday Night Live on the ONE HD channel.
. In 2007, Woods permanently took over Ten's Weekend News
replacing Tracey Spicer
.
In January 2009, Woods replaced Ron Wilson
as presenter of Ten News at Five
in Sydney.
In June 2010, Woods took long service leave, Ron Wilson
filled in for him. Woods returned on 2 August 2010.
sports program, Sports Today. In 2009-10 he and Deborah Knight also filled in on "Weekends with George and Paul".
player Hazem El Masri
, was released in 2007.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n television broadcaster.
Woods is currently the presenter of Network Ten
Network Ten
Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...
's Ten News at Five
Ten News
Ten News is the national news service of Network Ten in Australia. The majority of its news bulletins are presented from the TEN-10 studios in Pyrmont...
in Sydney, alongside Sandra Sully
Sandra Sully
Sandra Sully may refer to:*Sandra Sully , Australian television presenter*Sandra Sully...
.
Early Career
In 1982 Woods graduated with a Bachelor Of Arts degree in Professional Writing at Canberra College of Advanced Education (now University Of Canberra) and in early 1983 began another 3 month course in Commercial Radio Broadcasting at the Australian Film and Television School. After that course he was employed, along with classmate Mike Hammond, by 2BS Bathurst owner Ron Camplin who then used the young DJs as morning and afternoon hosts for one of his other regional stations, 2LF Young.In early 1984 Woods was offered a journalism cadetship with Radio 2WS in Sydney. He filled all kinds of news reporting and presenting roles, as well as major sporting event coverage. This included a trip to Wimbledon in 1987 to cover Pat Cash's historic win. The following year he accepted the role of 2WS Sports Director. In late 1988 he was offered a part time job at Network Ten which soon resulted in an offer of full-time work as a sports reporter for the evening news.
Television career
Woods has been with Ten since 1989. He began as a reporter, progressing to fill-in presenting on weekends and by the end of the year became the main sports anchor alongside Ian Leslie in Ten's half-hour evening news. Soon after Eric Walters replaced Leslie, Woods was replaced by Graham Hughes.After stints on Good Morning Australia with Tim Webster and Kerri-Anne Kennerley as a sports commentator Woods was asked to fill in for Webster on a few occasions. This led to his appointment in a series of sport broadcasts outside the news department.
He was the presenter for Ten's National Basketball League
National Basketball League (Australia)
The National Basketball League, also known as the iiNet NBL Championship for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Australasia....
coverage from 1992 to the mid-1990s, as well as acting as play-by-play commentator for Sydney Kings
Sydney Kings
The Sydney Kings are a professional basketball team competing in the Australasian National Basketball League. They are the only team to date to win three consecutive championships in the NBL and currently sit third behind the Adelaide 36ers and Melbourne Tigers two away from the record five wins...
home games. Woods continued in the news room as regular weekend presenter on Ten's Sports Tonight
Sports Tonight
Sports Tonight was an Australian sports information program broadcast on Network Ten . The program was broadcast on Weeknights at 10.30 pm; at 11.00pm , Fridays at 12.00am , and on Sunday from 7:30pm AEDT Sports Tonight was an Australian sports information program broadcast on Network Ten (and on...
from 1996 to 2005, as well as acting as a back-up presenter to Tim Webster on weeknights.
Woods was also the face of Ten's motorsport coverage from 1997 to 2005. He hosted the magazine programme RPM, six of those years with former World Champion Barry Sheene. Sheene and Woods also anchored and commentated on the World Motorcycle Championship (Motogp). The pair became firm friends, and Woods broke down during the episode dedicated to Sheene after his death from cancer in 2003. In 2004 Woods also filled the role of commentator in the V8 Supercar Championship Series alongside regular Commentator Neil Crompton.
Highlights
Woods first major sports anchoring role was at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada. He fronted TEN's national news coverage of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games and 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and was prime-time anchor of the 2011 Delhi Commonwealth Games telecast.The ill-fated 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race
The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race is hosted by the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia, starting in Sydney, Australia on Boxing Day and finishing in Hobart. The race distance is approximately...
was a particularly difficult role in the national spotlight. With Ten being the official TV broadcaster of the race, he delivered regular news updates from Hobart (along with yachting commentator Rob Mundle) on the unfolding tragedy brought about by severe gale-force winds and sea swells reaching several metres in height. Five competing boats were sunk and six people died.
He has also hosted the 2007 Rugby World Cup from France, the David Beckham interview and match telecast, as well as numerous Australian F1 Grand Prix, Australian Motogp, Gold Coast Indy and Bathurst 1000 telecasts.
He has anchored five Logie award-winning telecasts: 4 for the Bathurst 1000 coverage one for the 1994 Commonwealth Games. He has also anchored and commentated on a variety of other events and series such as the 2007 and 2010 Federal Election Telecasts, Triathlon Grand Prix and Australian Ladies Masters Golf.
In 2009 and 2010 Woods hosted a two hour sports variety show called Thursday Night Live on the ONE HD channel.
Back to News
In January 2006, Woods began presentingTen's Early NewsTen News
Ten News is the national news service of Network Ten in Australia. The majority of its news bulletins are presented from the TEN-10 studios in Pyrmont...
. In 2007, Woods permanently took over Ten's Weekend News
Ten News
Ten News is the national news service of Network Ten in Australia. The majority of its news bulletins are presented from the TEN-10 studios in Pyrmont...
replacing Tracey Spicer
Tracey Spicer
Tracey Spicer is an Australian journalist, who worked as a national presenter for Network Ten's news bulletins Ten Weekend News, Ten Morning News and Ten Late News - Weekend Edition in the 1990's and 2000's....
.
In January 2009, Woods replaced Ron Wilson
Ron Wilson (newsreader)
Ron Wilson is a news presenter with Network Ten. an Australian television network.WIlson is currently the presenter of Ten Early News and also Ten Morning News on Monday & Tuesday...
as presenter of Ten News at Five
Ten News
Ten News is the national news service of Network Ten in Australia. The majority of its news bulletins are presented from the TEN-10 studios in Pyrmont...
in Sydney.
In June 2010, Woods took long service leave, Ron Wilson
Ron Wilson (newsreader)
Ron Wilson is a news presenter with Network Ten. an Australian television network.WIlson is currently the presenter of Ten Early News and also Ten Morning News on Monday & Tuesday...
filled in for him. Woods returned on 2 August 2010.
Radio
During the summer of 2007-2008, Bill Woods occasionally filled in as a stand-in on the nightly 2UE2UE
2UE is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia owned by Fairfax Media. It is Sydney's and Australia's oldest commercial radio station, first broadcasting on 26 January 1925 on 1025 kHz AM before moving to 950 kHz in 1935 when virtually all Australian radio stations were assigned new...
sports program, Sports Today. In 2009-10 he and Deborah Knight also filled in on "Weekends with George and Paul".
Author
In his time away from television commitments, he has written a book, Legends of Speed. This book is about Australia's great race drivers. His second book, El Magic: The Life of Hazem El Masri, a biography of rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player Hazem El Masri
Hazem El Masri
Hazem El Masri is a Lebanese-Australian retired professional rugby league footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. An Australia and Lebanon international, and New South Wales State of Origin representative winger, he played his entire club football career with the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs with...
, was released in 2007.
External links
- Bill Woods presenter profile
- Bill Woods currently writes Bill's Blog for the Ten News website.