Norman Coburn

Norman Coburn (born 6 March 1937 in Sydney) is an Australian actor best known for his television serial and soap opera roles, he started his early career in theatre, film and television in the United Kingdom in the late 1950s, after quitting acting for some years and working as a restaurateur, he returned to Australia and became a staple of the small screen starting from the early 1980s. He became famous as High School headmaster Donald Fisher in the early years of soap opera Home and Away, as one of 16 original cast members, he appeared from the pilot episode in 1988 until 2003, and reprised the character making brief sporadic returns between 2005 and 2008. Norman retired in 2008 (except for a rare TV series appearance in 2019 (see below entry in filmography) with H&A co-star Debra Lawrence),and he lives a quiet life on Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia. Coburn has had numerous roles in theatre, including in Shakespeare, with tour's of Twelfth Night and Hamlet, as well as Death of a Salesman and The Diary of Anne Frank as well as worked as a playwright with production Married Together.[1]

Norman Coburn
Born (1937-03-06) 6 March 1937
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
OccupationActor
Years active1955–2008, 2019

Biography

Career in the United Kingdom

Coburn trained with the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in North Sydney, Australia, with co-star Sheila Kennelly, before travelling to Britain in the 1950s to pursue an acting career. He appeared briefly in iconic British TV shows such as Dixon of Dock Green and Coronation Street.[2] He quit acting for a time and worked as a restaurateur in London and owned a vineyard in Cornwall in the 1970s.[3] However, he returned to acting and to Australia in the early 1980s.

Home and Away

Coburn is best known for his portrayal of Donald Fisher, the principal of Summer Bay High School, in the Australian soap opera Home and Away. He appeared from the show's pilot episode in 1988 until 2003.[4] Coburn was featured in the Guinness World Records as the longest serving actor in an Australian serial, along with co-stars Ray Meagher and Kate Ritchie.[5] Since his departure from Home and Away, he has returned in consecutive guest appearances, the last being in 2007.[2]

Television in Australia

He has also appeared briefly in guest roles in soap opera including The Young Doctors, A Country Practice, Sons and Daughters, Special Squad, The Hollowmen and Rosehaven

Personal life

Coburn originally resided in Perth, and later Brisbane, Queensland. He currently resides on Bruny Island, located off the south-eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia.

In 2014, 11 years after leaving Home and Away, he was featured in a photo shoot for New Idea, in a reunion with former cast members Nicolle Dickson who played his daughter Bobby, Ross Newton (Greg) and Ryan Clark who played his grandson Sam Marshall.

Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes
1960Circle of DeceptionCarter
1961On the FiddleUncredited
1965Tomorrow at TenDesk Man
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1958Dixon of Dock GreenJimmy1 episode: A Whiff of Garlic
1962The Ghost of SonataCoffin BearerTelevision film
SuspenseAmbulenceman1 episode: The Man in My Shoes
The Andromeda BreakthroughCrowd ExtraUncredited; 1 episode: Gale Warning
1981A Step in the Right DirectionTelevision film
1982A Country PracticeNeville Roebuck2 episodes: Golden Fleece: Parts 1 & 2
Sons and DaughtersFred Sykes
1915English P.O.W.Mini-series
1983Five Mile CreekStage Coach Passenger1 episode: Making Tracks
1984Special Squad1 episode: Counterfeit Lady
1988–2007Home and AwayDonald FisherMain role (1988–2003), guest star (2004, 2005 & 2007)
2008The HollowmenJeff1 episode: A Quiet January
2019 Rosehaven Gareth 1 episode : S3 episode 2
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gollark: Allegedly.
gollark: For example, reading on my "phone" is hard with a PDF.
gollark: I can do that, it's just bad.
gollark: Do NOT PDF. PDF bad, as it doesn't let you reformat stuff. Use EPUB.

References
  1. "Norman Coburn".
  2. O'Leary, Abigail (4 May 2016). "What happened to the stars of Home and Away? From major Hollywood success to devastating tragedy". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  3. "Wine hopes for UK". The Canberra Times. 21 July 1970. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  4. Bellman, Annmaree (27 February 2003). "Preview". The Age. Retrieved 2 August 2017.
  5. Barnier, Linda (17 January 2003). "Channel surfing – The TV week". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 2 August 2017.

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