WILLIAM P MARSDEN - An autobiography This is an autobiography of William (Bill) Marsden. Bill never intended to have this work published, but rather he wrote it so that his heirs would learn about himself and the times in which he lived. Bill was a self-starter, a caring family man, who had a wonderful sense of humour and an interesting career in the burgeoning days of radio and television in rural Australia. Bill writes about the times in which he lived from 1924-2015 and the events and people who impacted his life. People he met along the way included most Australian Prime Ministers of that time, pop stars and others he both revered and criticised. Bill Marsden was not only a much loved family man, who supported Rotary and the local Methodist church, but also he was responsible for bringing television to the country areas around the Riverina and south-west slopes of New South Wales. It was Bill Marsden who stood up in Federal Parliament and promised to make a profit in one year if they would grant him a television licence for country broadcasting. This was at a time when the government thought country television could not be profitable.
Soon after, they were proven wrong and the ABC towers progressed into the country too. Both commercial television stations, RVN channel 2 (Wagga) and AMV channel 4 (Albury) eventually amalgamated under the RVN2 umbrella. As General Manager, Bill's reflections on the development of country television in NSW are revealed together with the characters he met during this period. However, the book is also a reflection of his childhood, his family, his roots. His memories of war service and being part of bands playing his trumpet. His marriage to Dorothy (Dot) Marsden and of his two daughters, Jill and Judy. He delights in his four grandchildren. This book was written in colloquial language by Bill Marsden, compiled with his permission and edited in 2017 by his daughters following his death in 2015.