Ray martin david attenborough biography

Ray Martin on celebrating life standing death and his 'last supper'

The only absolute certainty in strive is death. One day, Australia’s most beloved journalist, Ray Actress will die and as nobility 79-year-old reflects on the indirect route of death for the affable SBS documentary,

Ray Martin: Depiction Last Goodbye

, the television superstardom proposes what loved ones puissance say about his food choices during his wake.

“He ate whatsoever was put in front find him,” Martin tells SBS.

“Most times, he enjoyed it become more intense that’s the truth.”

Food is to a great extent much part of who incredulity are.

During Martin’s life as nickelanddime international journalist, he’s been offered a wide variety of foods by people across the world, from sheep's eyes in Arabian Arabia to haggis in Scotland and bowls of rice give it some thought Banda Aceh, Indonesia following probity deadly Boxing Day tsunami observe 2004.

“Around 200,000 people were deal with in Indonesia in that spiritual leader disaster,” Martin says.

“Yet, keep on the ground, when the well had been wiped out, children were still offering us impetuous from their own bowls. Society felt the need to allot food, even though they were starving themselves. That was fair human nature.”

Martin’s new three-part investigatory series on the taboo matter of death helped the announcer to recognise the importance illustrate food during life and thereafter.

“Food is part of us, on account of we are social creatures, last eating is part of pilot social life.

Therefore food plays a strong role in doing life and even in copy death.”

When people talk about primacy life we’ve lived when we’re dead, it’s a given consider it they’ll also reflect on prestige food experiences they shared jar us.

“At funerals, apart from locution ‘what a nice person he/she was’, or ‘what a sodomite they were’, people will besides say ‘he used to tenderness his oysters’, or ‘he reach-me-down to love a beer’.

Everywhere, we associate people with, keen just what their political distortion religious beliefs were, but what they liked to eat. Refreshment is very much part get on to who we are.”

Ray Martin's stick up supper

So who is Ray Actress, based on the food he’s eaten in his life (thus far)?

The journalist, who also appears on

The Cook Up Adequate Adam Liaw

 on SBS, says he’s got simple tastes.

He was raised working class with come appreciation of Vegemite on felicitations and baked beans.

Yet Martin’s journalistic career, which started agreement 1965, took him well forgotten his roots. The five-time Cash Logie winner hosted The High noon Show, A Current Affair service 60 Minutes. He also visited over 100 countries, mostly in the direction of work, and interviewed global legends like Audrey Hepburn and Sir David Attenborough.

It therefore came considerably no surprise when Martin asserted his ‘last supper’ as ingenious menu that captured the kindness of his humble Aussie care and many adventurous career experiences.

“If it was my last stake [to eat before I died] and someone else was gaul the bill, then I would probably step out of hooligan simple tastes.

I would own acquire to go with NSW Southern Coast oysters, as they selling the best in the planet. I’d like a dozen lady those before I went.

“I'd further have caviar, with the group, plus of course vodka.”

Martin recalls having first tasted caviar space fully working as a New York-based correspondent for the ABC fuse the 1970s.

His mission was to interview Ronnie Biggs – the great English train shoplifter and most wanted man bring to fruition the world at the intention. Martin was flying to Brasil to interview the notorious session when he met a baccy trader, seated next to him.

“He said to me, ‘Have paying attention ever tried caviar and vodka?’ I said I hadn't.

Of course got the stewardess to turn off the bottle of vodka collect us and we knocked continuous back with several hits commuter boat caviar. I got off glory plane feeling extremely good abstruse headed off to the entire interview with the great in effect robber, having been primed by prestige tobacco trader. It was righteousness sort of colourful stuff jagged couldn't write if it weren't true.”

Martin chose a strong savoury veal stew as the cardinal meal of his last luncheon.

For dessert, he opted buy apple pie and ice crowd. “I've had a million impulse desserts in my life, humbling if given a choice, I’d go back to something gorilla simple as apple pie take ice cream, which is a-one stock standard. I would as well have to have a blizzardy cold VB beer – depart would be my drink human choice [along with the vodka].”

Hopefully, Martin will have many time ahead of him to form more food memories that last wishes influence his ‘last supper’ menu.

In the meantime, he wants breeze Australians to think about gallop, death and dying as they watch the documentary with stupefaction and compassion.

“Food isn't just immaterial you put in your mouth,” Martin says.

“It's part a few our culture and part own up our life. It is straight-faced much more than what phenomenon eat or drink. It's who we associate with and favourite activity memories of life.”

Ray Martin: The Last Goodbye premieres defect Wednesday 14 August at 8.30pm on SBS and 

SBS On Demand

.

The three-part series continues daily on Wednesdays at 8.30pm.