Media veteran Peter Tiffany bows out after a career of almost 50 years

Waikato Herald editor Peter Tiffany talking to a group of people at the opening of the K'aute Pasifika Village in Hamilton this year. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

Hamilton journalist Peter Tiffany has held many roles in the media industry: He has been a cadet reporter, reporter, sub-editor, chief reporter, and editor.

Now, after almost 50 years in the news business, he is turning another page and retiring.

Originally from the UK, Peter says he always wanted to become a journalist. Partly because “at school, the only thing I was interested in was words and writing”, but also because of a childhood experience.

“When I was 6 or 7, a reporter and photographer from the local paper came to our house to interview my dad. I still remember the headline of the story: Blank cheque for a nil bill,” Peter says.

“Our house had a gas connection, but we didn’t use it, because we had electricity. The gas company, still sent us a bill, for £0 with a warning, that if it wasn’t paid by a certain date, we would face a surcharge.

“So my dad wrote them a cheque for £0. Somehow the local paper heard about it and decided to do a story. I remember thinking: ‘What a fascinating job’.”

Peter Tiffany at the Fiji Times, circa 1976, writing a story on a typewriter.

The family moved to Fiji in 1969 where after finishing high school Peter started as a cadet reporter at the country’s only daily newspaper at the time, the Fiji Times, in 1974.

“When I became a fully-fledged reporter I got to cover a whole range of interesting topics in a very interesting place; everything from police and court to Parliament and royal visits,” Peter says.

“One of the stand-out court cases I worked on included the last death sentences handed down in Fiji. A father and son were convicted of the murder of their neighbour over a land dispute. The sentence was later commuted to life in prison.”

Waikato Herald editor Peter Tiffany at the Rotokauri Transport Hub blessing in 2021 interviewing then Hamilton City Council general manager Chris Allan. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

Another Fiji story he will always remember is also a court case he covered in which a teenage girl, about 13 years old, was convicted of the murder of her baby sister.

“Their mother had been jailed for life for the murder of the teenager’s stepfather, leaving the girl and the baby with no money, no support, not even any milk for the baby,” Peter says.

“The teenager had jumped into a river holding the baby. The baby drowned and she survived. She received the mandatory life sentence but after the newspaper and its readers became involved, she was released from jail to be cared for in a local girls’ home.”

Later, after working as a senior reporter and then sub-editor at the Fiji Times, Peter left to become editor of the Fiji Beach Press and managing editor of the Pacific Islands Business News magazine. He even had a stint in public relations.

In 1988, Peter and his wife Evon moved to New Zealand, where they settled in Waiuku.

Peter Tiffany (right) on a job in Fiji in 1975 interviewing a French priest (left) at a mission station in the Rewa delta. The priest had built a wood-fired oven for baking bread which can be seen in the picture on the right.

“I was offered a job at a community paper, the Manukau Courier in south Auckland, first as a sub-editor, then chief reporter and later editor.”

While looking after the Manukau Courier, Peter also became editor of the Papakura Courier, then editor of the Franklin County News in Pukekohe and later group editor of the Fairfax community papers across the Waikato.

“Evon and I moved from Waiuku to Hamilton in 2015 to be nearer to our grandchildren and with thoughts of retirement.”

After working from home as a sub-editor for the Fairfax Australia metropolitan newspapers for a while, Peter joined NZME, first as editor of the weekly community paper Hamilton News and then the monthly Waikato News as well.

During the Covid-19 lockdowns, the two papers were combined and published weekly under the name Waikato News.

Waikato Herald editor Peter Tiffany on a cargo bike covering the annual Hamilton Love Your Bike Day a few years ago.

This paper further evolved to become the Waikato Herald that you are reading now, with a growing regional readership, as well as a strong online and social media presence.

NZME community publications group editor Kim Gillespie says it has been a pleasure working with Peter.

“When we needed the right editor, a trusted hand, to come along and take the helm of our flagship community paper, Peter was there,” he says.

“No challenge was too great for him as the paper has transformed and evolved over the years.”

Kim says one of Peter’s greatest strengths has been his ability to develop and mould young reporters into “highly capable journalists”.

“On top of that, he’s a genuinely nice bloke, and he’ll be missed.”

Waikato Herald editor Peter Tiffany with his wife Evon.

Asked what advice he would give to anyone wanting to become a journalist, Peter says (with tongue firmly in cheek): “Get a dog. Because so many great stories started with a person walking their dog.

“You know ... a man walking his dog has found a body on the beach, or a woman walking her dog noticed a house on fire. Or, my personal favourite, a man walking his dog found the stolen Football World Cup trophy in a street in London in 1966, wrapped up in a tabloid newspaper. The dog - Pickles - later received a medal!”

Asked what he is most looking forward to in retirement, Peter says: “Spending time with my family.”

He and Evon have three children, Elliot, Paul, and Alice, plus four grandsons - Xavier, Kristian, Phoenyx, and Enzo.

Retirement is also set to give him more time to follow another passion of his - cooking.

“I originally wanted to train as a chef, but got a place in journalism before I could get into catering school,” Peter says.

“I do most of the cooking at home, and family do ask me for recipes sometimes. I am thinking that I may combine my two passions - and write a recipe book.”