Bert Newton dies: Campaign to have the Gold Logie renamed in his honour

Eddie McGuire and Molly Meldrum are leading a campaign to have the Gold Logie renamed in Bert Newton’s honour following his death on Saturday.

Eddie, 57, told the Herald Sun that Bert was one of the people who ‘drove the Logies’ and so deserves to have the top awarded named after him.

‘There’s the Graham Kennedy Award for Best New Talent, and the overall excellence award should be named after someone who personifies that and it’s Bert Newton,’ Eddie said on Monday.

Molly, 78, said ‘Bert Newton was the Logies’ and ‘held that show together’ for years.

‘The Logies should definitely honour Bert in that way, by naming the Gold Logie after him,’ added the renowned music critic.

Bert died on Saturday evening while in palliative care in Melbourne aged 83 after a series of health problems in recent years. 

Deserving honour: Eddie McGuire (left, at a Myer reopening with Molly Meldrum in Melbourne in March 2011) said Bert was one of the people who ‘drove the Logies’

He won four Gold Logies throughout his stellar TV career, and hosted the awards show 20 times.

With a career spanning seven decades, he was also a Logie Hall of Fame inductee. 

Eddie described Bert as a ‘hero to me’, and added that he was also ‘a legend to me’.

‘There’s the Graham Kennedy Award for Best New Talent, and the overall excellence award should be named after someone who personifies that and it’s Bert Newton,’ insisted Eddie. Pictured with Bert at a launch in Melbourne in February 2006 

‘The Logies should definitely honour Bert in that way, by naming the Gold Logie after him,’ said Molly. Pictured with Bert at an industry funeral in Melbourne in May 2003

‘I knew I’d made it when Bert, one, knew my name and, two, named a toupee after me. He said I was on everything, I may as well be on his head,’ laughed Eddie.  

Bert’s death was announced on Twitter by entertainment journalist Peter Ford on Saturday night.  

‘I have very sad news. Showbiz icon Bert Newton has died at age 83. It was remarkable career on TV, stage & radio,’ he wrote. 

RIP: Bert’s death was announced on Twitter by entertainment journalist Peter Ford on Saturday night. Pictured with his wife Patti Newton

‘Sadly he didn’t get the last chapter he deserved. He was a great mentor & friend to me. Condolences to Patti, Lauren, Matthew & extended family.’

The prolific star will be honoured at a state funeral, with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews making an announcement on Sunday. 

‘We will all have an opportunity to honour his memory, his talent and his achievements at a state funeral. Details will be shared in the coming days,’ announced the 49-year-old politician.

Recognition: The prolific star will be honoured at a state funeral, with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews making an announcement on Sunday. Pictured at the Logie Awards on the Gold Coast in July 2018