Robyn Williams is handing over the ABC's Saturday science hour after half a century at the mic

The story

Robyn Williams, one of the most familiar voices in Australian radio, is leaving The Science Show after 51 years. He is 82, and the program has been his for almost its entire life. The ABC has not named anyone to take over. Its announcement only mentioned handing things on to the next generation as it looks to refresh its science lineup. This year Williams started sharing the Saturday hour with science reporter Belinda Smith, the first time the show ever had a co presenter, so many listeners will see that as a hint of where things are heading. Williams has a pretty wild résumé. Before radio he did guest spots on Monty Python's Flying Circus and Doctor Who, and he once filled in for Tom Jones on his TV show for four months. He was named a National Living Treasure in 1987 and later became the first journalist made a fellow of the Australian Academy of Science. His exit comes only two weeks after another longtime ABC name, finance journalist Alan Kohler, said he was retiring after three decades. That is two big chapters closing at the broadcaster in a short stretch.