On the night of 16 September 1956, Molly Brownless was working in TCN9’s central control room and was responsible for ensuring the ‘first’ broadcast was transmitted without a hitch.

In this excerpt from her oral history interview conducted by Jeannine Baker in 2019, Molly explains her role in central control.

Highly qualified in technical aspects of television, Molly had previously worked in BBC Engineering, initially at radio transmitter stations during the Second World War, and from 1946 as a camera operator and vision switcher in the post-war television service at Alexandra Palace in London.

After migrating to Australia, Molly began working at TCN9 while the station was still in the testing phase and was one of the only staff members with practical experience in television engineering.

Image: Molly Brownless, 2019. Photographer: Jeannine Baker. NFSA title: 1654057.