Charlie King OAM

About Charlie

Charlie King OAM is a Gurindji man whose mother was born in Limbunya Station and who carries the legacy of the stolen generation into every room he enters. Since 1990 he has been a sports commentator on the ABC, hosting Grandstand and commentating on Australian Rules football and cricket — and in 2008 he became the first Indigenous Australian to commentate at an Olympic Games, covering Beijing. He was Chair of the Bonner Committee for six years, advising the ABC on Indigenous matters, and was inducted into the AFL Northern Territory Hall of Fame in 2019.

What sets Charlie apart is the depth of his community work alongside his broadcasting career. Since 2006 he has partnered with CatholicCare NT on men's programs and the No More Campaign, targeting sporting codes to address violence in their clubs and among supporters. Decades spent working in community development, juvenile justice, child protection, and family violence across the Northern Territory give him a perspective that few speakers can match — grounded in lived experience rather than theory.

He is as comfortable on a corporate stage as he is in a community hall. Events that need a warm, humorous, and culturally grounded MC will find Charlie ideally suited — his awards include the 2009 White Ribbon Ambassador of the Year, NAIDOC Person of the Year, Elder of the Year, Darwin City Council Citizen of the Year, the Fitzgerald Social Change Award, NT Senior Australian of the Year 2019, an Order of Australia Medal in 2015, and appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia in 2021 for significant service to the Indigenous community of the NT. Organisations working in Indigenous affairs, health, community services, and sport will find his keynote on upbringing, family, and the fight against family violence both honest and lasting.