Spencer Howson
Spencer Howson (born 9 March 1972 in England) is the "Breakfast" radio presenter on 612 ABC Brisbane, an ABC Local Radio station in Brisbane, Australia. Columnist with the fortnightly free lifestyle magazine bmag from 2011-2013.
2016 is Spencer's twenty-sixth year in radio, twentieth consecutive year on 612 ABC Brisbane and fifteenth (eleventh consecutive) as the breakfast host.
His family migrated to Australia in 1981, settling in Brisbane. Spencer's first radio experience was at Brisbane community station 4RPH,[1] part of the Australia-wide Radio Print Handicapped Network, from 1990 to 1993. In 1991, at the age of 19, Spencer was elected Vice President of the 4RPH board of directors.
Spencer Howson joined ABC Local Radio in the Queensland city of Rockhampton in 1993. He co-produced programmes presented by Andrew Lofthouse and David Anderson as well as presenting the Friday breakfast shift on 4RK (now re-branded as ABC Capricornia). In 1994, when Andrew Lofthouse moved to Brisbane, Spencer took over 4RK's 8.30 am – 11 am shift. The first 15 minutes was a current affairs round-up, networked across regional Queensland.
In 1995 and 1996, Spencer fronted the regional statewide 2–4 pm shift. The programme emanated from Rockhampton until the end of June 1995. Spencer then moved back to Brisbane, whence he continued to present the statewide regional 2–4 pm shift. From 1997 to 2000, Spencer Howson presented the 4QR (now re-branded 612 ABC Brisbane) Breakfast Show. In 2001, he returned to his afternoon slot, this time broadcasting into Brisbane as well as regional Queensland.
In 2004 and 2005, Spencer hosted the 612 ABC Brisbane 4–6 pm "Late Afternoon Show". He was named ABC Local Radio "Broadcaster of the Year" in 2005[2] and returned to the 5 am – 7.45 am Breakfast shift from January 2006. By the end of the year, the programme was No. 1 in Brisbane. It was the first time since 1984 that 612 ABC Brisbane (formerly 612 4QR) had topped the coveted Breakfast ratings.
In May 2007, Spencer was listed in the inaugural Queensland edition of "Who's Who". The book "recognises and reveres" the 4,000 Queenslanders from the arts, community, business, sports, entertainment, rural, environment, medicine, science, media and politics "who have helped make Queensland what it is today".
In July 2007, Spencer Howson joined a "roster" of fill-in presenters back-filling the maternity leave of Jillian Whiting on the Channel Nine television show Extra.[3]