Alister Smart, original Play School presenter, dies aged 90

Mixed · 2Australian actor and presenter Alister Smart, an original presenter of the children's programme Play School, has died aged 90 at home in East Gippsland, Victoria. 1 2 Mixed · 2Smart died on 9 September, but news of the death only recently became public. 1 2 Right · 1The Daily Mail reported that the death was confirmed in a social media statement by the ABC Kids Community group, which said Smart appeared in the very first episode and was also an actor and director. 2

Left · 1Smart was born in Adelaide on 30 November 1935 and raised partly around Nowra. After leaving school Smart joined the family piano restoration business, then studied at Sydney's Conservatorium of Music. 1 Left · 1Smart began in theatre in the early 1950s and appeared in television productions in Australia and the UK from the 1950s until the mid-1990s. 1 Mixed · 2Smart featured in the first episode of ABC's Play School, which aired in 1966. ABC News says Smart presented for the next 27 years, while the Daily Mail gives the span as 1966 to 1989, described as over 20 years. 1 2

Mixed · 2Acting credits included Number 96, Skippy, The Sullivans, Sons and Daughters, A Country Practice and Neighbours (ABC News), with Cop Shop also named by the Daily Mail. 1 2 Right · 1The Daily Mail added that Smart directed episodes of Neighbours, Blue Heelers and A Country Practice, shared the screen with presenters including Noni Hazlehurst, Don Spencer, John Hamblin and Lorraine Bayly, and is survived by wife Margery. 2 Right · 1Fans posted tributes on social media, calling Smart a favourite presenter who helped shape a generation of children. 2