Dawn Kenyon Oral History interview, 2000

Dawn Kenyon was one of the very first employees of ATN Channel 7 in Sydney, hired as the first Coordinating Producer of children's programs. She was interviewed by Brendan Horgan on 19 December 2000.

In this excerpt from her oral history interview, Dawn talks about achieving the right balance of education and entertainment in her programs, the importance of viewer participation and embracing spontaneity.

As a creative producer of the nautical-themed Captain Fortune, Kenyon sourced contributions from government departments and organisations including Surf Life Saving and the police service.

She also brought in the Mission to Seamen (now Mission to Seafarers) senior chaplain Colin Craven-Sands, who through his regular character ‘Sandy’ fostered interest in the sea and the work of sailors.

Dawn was also the first presenter of Romper Room, which began as a 15-minute segment within Captain Fortune and was later expanded to a standalone program.