Norman Coburn

Norman Coburn (born 6 March 1937) is an Australian former actor best known for his television serial and soap opera roles, he started his early career in theatre, film and television in the United Kingdom in the late 1950s, although he also worked in theatre in Australia, after quitting acting for some years, he a vineyard in Cornwall and working as a restaurateur in London.

He returned to Australia in the late seventies and became a staple of theatre and the small screen starting from the early 1980s.

He became famous as High School headmaster Donald Fisher in the early years of soap opera Home and Away, as one of 16 original cast members, he appeared from the pilot episode in 1988 until 2003, and reprised the character making brief sporadic returns between 2004 and 2007. Norman retired in 2008 (except for a rare TV series appearance in 2019 (see below entry in filmography) with H&A co-star Debra Lawrence),and he lives a quiet life on Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia.

Coburn has had numerous roles in theatre, including in Shakespeare, with tour's of Twelfth Night and Hamlet, as well as Death of a Salesman and The Diary of Anne Frank as well as worked as a playwright with production Married Together.^[2]

Biography[]

Coburn was born in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia ^[3] and trained with the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in North Sydney, Australia, before travelling to Britain in the 1950s to pursue an acting career. He appeared briefly in iconic British TV shows such as Dixon of Dock Green and Coronation Street.^[4] He quit acting for a time and worked as a restaurateur in London and owned a vineyard in Cornwall in the 1970s.^[5] However, he returned to acting and to Australia in the early 1980s

Coburn is best known for his portrayal of Donald Fisher, the principal of Summer Bay High School, in the Australian soap opera Home and Away. He appeared from the show's pilot episode in 1988 until 2003.^[6] Coburn was featured in the Guinness World Records as the longest serving actor in an Australian serial, along with co-stars Ray Meagher and Kate Ritchie.^[7] Since his departure from Home and Away, he has returned in consecutive guest appearances, the last being in 2007.^[4]

He has also appeared briefly in guest roles in soap opera including The Young Doctors, A Country Practice, Sons and Daughters, Special Squad, The Hollowmen and Rosehaven

Coburn originally resided in Perth, and later Brisbane, Queensland. He currently resides on Bruny Island, located off the south-eastern coast of Tasmania, Australia.

In 2014, 11 years after leaving Home and Away, he was featured in a photo shoot for New Idea, in a reunion with former cast members Nicolle Dickson who played his daughter Bobby, Ross Newton (Greg) and Ryan Clark who played his grandson.

Filmography[]

References[]

External links[]

• Norman Coburn at IMDb