Harvey Lister, Angela Bishop, Leah Purcell on Queen’s Birthday Honours List

ASM Global Asia Pacific chairman and chief executive Harvey Lister, Ten’s entertainment reporter Angela Bishop and First Nations singer/actor Leah Purcell were among 1,190 Australians recognised in yesterday’s Queen’s Birthday Honours List.

Queensland-based Lister, a major player since the early ‘70s, received the AM (Member of the Order of Australia) for service to the arts, tourism, sport, and venue management and events industries.

ASM Global’s venues include Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena, Brisbane’s Suncorp Stadium and Perth’s RAC Arena. His current project is the $2 billion Brisbane Live precinct which includes the 15,000 capacity Brisbane Arena.

Bishop received an OAM (Medal of the Order of Australia) for using her TV profile to focus on the issues of the music industry and to raise millions of dollars for charities such as the Sydney Breast Cancer Foundation and The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.

Purcell’s AM honour came for a track record as a musician, actor, director and First Nations and women’s activist. In 1996 she was presenter on cable TV’s RED Music Channel.

Angela Bishop

Others made Member of the Order of Australia (AM) were:

Tony Cochrane, co-founder & director of the Gold Coast-based Cochrane Entertainment whose 400 entertainment and sporting events sold 25 million tickets and grossed $2 billion, a couple of ARIAs, and three Platinum cast albums.

Marcus Canning who as long-serving CEO of Perth’s Artrage, was responsible for Fringe World, the Bakery music venue and Girls School Creative Precinct. He’s now focussed on four level entertainment venue Rechabite.

John Kotzas who is chief executive of the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) and vice president of Live Performance Australia.

WA First Nations singer songwriter Gina Williams who released five studio albums which pioneered singing in Noongar language, and won seven WAMi awards.

Those receiving the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) were:

Matthew Hickey, barrister and founder, director and producer of the Ten Tenors, which he formed in 1998 with fellow law students, until 2010.

Tamworth’s Judith Loffel for services to country music as a long-time volunteer for its events.

Queensland musician, composer and instrument maker Linsey Pollak.

Fine Music radio presenter Brendan Walsh who retired in 2019 after 40 years behind the mic.

Colin Cornish, the CEO of the Australian Youth Orchestra.