Colin Scrimgeour

Rev. Colin Graham Scrimgeour, known as Uncle Scrim or Scrim (30 January 1903 – 16 January 1987) was a New Zealand Methodist Minister and Broadcaster.

Born in Wairoa, Hawkes Bay he entered the Methodist Ministry in 1923 and concentrated on social work. He was Auckland Methodist City Missioner for six years. After broadcasting from Radio Station 1ZR run by the firm of Lewis Eady, he established the Friendly Road Broadcasting Station 1ZB in 1933, associated with the Friendly Road church. Aunt Daisy broadcast on these stations, and they supported the Labour Party. Shortly before the 1935 election, on Sunday 24 November an address by Uncle Scrim which was expected to urge listeners to vote Labour was jammed by the Post Office. The minister in charge of the P&T Department, Adam Hamilton, was blamed, although he denied responsibility.

Scrim was a close friend of Michael Joseph Savage and John A. Lee of the First Labour Government which came to power in 1935, and was made Controller of the government-run National Commercial Broadcasting Service.

Peter Fraser - an enemy of Scrimgeour - succeeded Savage as Prime Minister after his death in 1940. In the 1943 elections, Scrimgeour stood against Peter Fraser in Wellington Central as an Independent candidate; he did so well that Fraser, hitherto expected to win his seat comfortably, "only sneaked back on a minority vote" (Erik Olssen, John A. Lee, University of Otago Press, Dunedin, 1977, p. 189).

Scrimgeour was suspended and then sacked in 1943. He moved to Australia, and worked in radio and television there, helping establish the Mercury Theatre with Peter Finch. He also worked for a time in (Communist) China before he retired to New Zealand in 1968.

Colin Scrimgeour was awarded the 1937 Coronation Medal and the Chinese Star of Friendship (NZ Roll of Honour, p. 949).

Mervyn Thompson wrote a 1976 songplay about the Depression, Songs to Uncle Scrim.

References

• Davidson, Allan K.. "Scrimgeour, Colin Graham". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/4S16. Retrieved 29 June 2011. 
• Renwick, William (2011). Scrim: The Man with a Mike. Wellington: Victoria University Press. ISBN 078-0-86473-695-6. 
• Gustafson, Barry (1986). From the Cradle to the Grave: a biography of Michael Joseph Savage (with Biographical Appendix). Auckland: Reed Methuen. ISBN 0474001385. 

Persondata
Name	Scrimgeour, Colin
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Date of birth	30 January 1903
Place of birth
Date of death	16 January 1987
Place of death