The actor had been admitted to a Melbourne hospice early last week with inoperable cancer.
Born in Ballarat, Hunter went on to a career spanning 50 years with more than 100 roles in various film, stage and television productions.
Early television roles included appearances in Hunter, Skippy The Bush Kangaroo, The Long Arm, Riptide, Dynasty, Catwalk, The Spoiler, Spyforce and King’s Men as well as appearing on multiple occasions in Division 4, Homicide and Matlock Police.
He later appeared in series including Prisoner, Golden Soak, Young Ramsay, 1915, Scales Of Justice, The Dismissal, Eureka Stockade, The Flying Doctors, A Fortunate Life, Stark, Seachange, All Saints, Pizza, Stingers and Two Twisted.
Hunter had an extensive film resume, including iconic Australian titles Stone, Newsfront, Gallipoli, Strictly Ballroom, Muriel’s Wedding, The Adventures Of Priscilla: Queen Of The Desert, Australia and Finding Nemo. He also starred in films The Shiralee, Ned Kelly, Far East, Street Hero, Crackerjack and Bad Eggs. He had recently played the role of racing legend Bart Cummings in the to-be-released film The Cup, recreating the 2002 Melbourne Cup.
He also featured in a number of commercial roles, including recent campaigns for ‘Grain Wave’ chips and the AFL.
Source: The Age, ABC, IMDB, Mark Morrissey
The Nine Network next week launches a modern reinvention of the classic This Is Your Life format.
This Is Your Life had been a success in the United States and United Kingdom for many years before an Australian version was first launched on the Seven Network in September 1975. Mike Willesee (pictured) was the show’s first host, later replaced by Digby Wolfe twelve months later. Sydney newsreader Roger Climpson continued to front the show from 1977 until the early 1980s.
