HSIE teacher Kerry Doyle developed a close friendship with Patrick as she is the main-stay of the debating teams at SHHS. She nicknamed him “P-Bell” on first meeting him as his Year Advisor in Year 7, an appellation he was not fond of but in Doyley’s inimitable way, stuck with him throughout his high school days. As well as his successful debating career, Patrick studied Society & Culture with Mrs. Doyle and came first in the class. They remain friends to this day which is testament to the respect they have for each other – a common occurrence with many alumnae from SHHS.
Kerry recalls, “Always a grown man in a boy’s body, P-Bell was always very formal and correct, and because of our close friendship due to debating and public speaking, he became my Jiminy Cricket ... always there to point out reason when things appeared unreasonable (especially in debating).
While the serious intellectual, Patrick knew how to have fun… as Kerry relates…
“I have many fond memories of debating camps and winning state finals, however, the most prominent memory comes from our Year 10 'Coming of Age' Celebration held at the school. We organised a “dance off” between the girls and the boys. If you can imagine 120 students divided in half, straight down the middle of the Citadel Hall, girls on one side and boys on the other... the girls have just finished an amazing rendition of 'All the Single Ladies'. .. then out of the darkness, P-Bell out in front, leads 60 boys in the most jaw dropping performance of Irish dancing! It was phenomenal!”
“I'm not surprised that he is a successful journalist as he was an extremely talented speaker at school. My favourite P-Bell speech was the one he presented in Year 12 where he compared different politicians to different types of chairs ... the reclining politician, the stool, the swivel ... it was clever and hilarious.”
When I asked Patrick ‘Which high school subjects helped you most towards your career choice? He responded…
“The range of extracurricular activities [at SHHS] was a huge asset, while subjects such as French Extension and Italian provided insight into sociopolitical aspects as well as the spoken languages. Learning another language reminds you of the importance of communicating in a simple manner, because your stories need to be accessible to the average reasonable person. Society and Culture also helped develop strong research instincts.”
Patrick’s reminiscence of SHHS is coloured by the great fun he had in some of the smaller classes of his senior years. “English Extension, or ‘Stench’ as it became known, was a very special group of people”.
You may have seen Patrick on the telly, reporting for the ABC. He may well have his hands full again as Tamworth records increasing Covid case numbers. The first time that happened Patrick did four live TV crosses and a story for the 7PM bulletin. “It wasn’t a ‘nice’ story to have to do, but it was great to have the same pressure as the metro reporters and meet the competing priorities.”
His busy routine still allows for regular games of tennis but… “If I’m on the early shift I start work at 5am and read our morning radio bulletins. I might then write an online story if there’s any significant news of the day in the region. If I’m on a day shift, I might be working on some longer-term projects such as a TV story. Of course, when news breaks, the schedule gets thrown out and we go where we have to. I’ve done more than one 14-hour day in the last few months! The big days are the best days; some of my favourite stories have been those I couldn’t plan for, because you have one chance to get it right.”
Some of his professional challenges include…”complex legal issues around some stories; not just crime and courts but also in some political stories where there can be a risk of defamation. It’s difficult to walk the tightrope of figuring out what you can comfortably say and what might be going too far. Fortunately, you don’t have to make those decisions alone.”
“It’s been difficult living so far away from home this year. I haven’t seen my family in five months. Fortunately, I’ve got a great network of friends in Tamworth and we’ve bonded a fair bit over the lockdown period.”
Patrick is happy in his current position but has an eye on the future. “I’d like to move to a bigger region before I consider settling down, if that’s what life has in store. A longer-term goal would be to work in the ABC’s Parliament House bureau if I’m good enough. But I’d also like to take a more prominent presenting role in radio or perhaps join the Specialist Reporting Team.”
His advice for himself at the age of 17 is close to his advice to those still navigating the final years of school.
“Don’t sweat the small stuff. Take a bit more time to enjoy the here and now. Whatever path you think you’re going to take is probably not the path you’ll end up on.
I wouldn’t want to be a teenager now. There’s so much uncertainty about how the world is going to look, but I’d encourage young people to lean into that as much as possible. And perhaps most importantly – nobody cares about your ATAR once you leave high school.” (Sorry Mr. Deitz)
Patrick echoes the sentiments of his peers, to be the change you want to see in the world. Smith’s Hill High School is a great environment to develop both intellectually but also in leadership and socially. These recollections of Patrick’s are testament to the value of engaging whole-heartedly in school life.
Sharon Mearing
Visual Arts teacher (retired)
