Born in Sydney in 1952 to Ronald and Judith, Philip Shine was an Air Force brat.
His early life was peripatetic, living in Northern Ireland, Townsville and Malaysia. In his teens, he returned to Sydney’s Neutral Bay, where his little sister, Jodie, befriended Joanne Walsh at school and the families developed a lifelong connection.
At 19, Philip married Jo’s sister Jackie Walsh.
They opened a shop in Sydney’s Strand Arcade, selling Indian jewellery and artefacts, and lived for a time in Bombay with their children, Sam and Jessica.
Busted for hash
Philip’s importing also included some quality hashish and this business grew. In 1977, he and his two business partners filled a bus with hash in Afghanistan and brought it to Australia, via the ‘hippy trail’.
The Federal Police seized the bus and Philip was later captured in Paris, but extradited to Germany for trial as the bus had left from Stuttgart. Philip’s refusal to cooperate with German authorities and incriminate his friends – who were never caught – earned him seven years in gaol. On the upside, Philip met Marina, a teacher at the prison, and developed lasting friendships with his lawyers, particularly Hansi Euler, who remained a close friend for over 45 years.
He returned to Australia with Marina and they married and had a son, Tobias.
Building a new life
Philip began to build a new life; he took a course in sound engineering and volunteered at Eastside Radio, a community station in Paddington. He rose to become Eastside’s manager and transformed it into a jazz-oriented station, drawing in some of Sydney’s best jazz musicians as presenters.
1992 was a year of tragedy for Philip – his sister Jodie died and a childhood cancer claimed her four-year old daughter, Ophelia, later that year. He lost his mother a year later.
In 1998, Cate Coorey showed up at Eastside to present a drive show. They became friends and later a relationship developed.
In 2002, their first son, Dominic, was born and, two years later, a second son, Gabriel.
In 2000, Philip became manager of Sydney’s 2SER FM and in his ten years there effected significant improvements. He was at the forefront of migrating the community sector to the digital platform and was engaged in that project for several years.
In 2011, Philip, Cate and their boys moved to Byron Bay. He was happy to be close to his dear friend Janthia (Walsh) Powditch and the extended family who had migrated north from Sydney. Cate and Philip’s home in Byron welcomed everyone – many good times and lots of music were had on their back deck. Philip was a father figure to many of the kids’ friends, who treated the house as a second home.
Bay FM manager
In 2020, Philip became the first-ever manager of Bay FM, and made significant and lasting improvements to the station, until he had to withdraw owing to his illness.
He lived with cancer, uncomplainingly, for more than two years. He died at home with Cate and his children around him, supported by the wonderful community palliative care nurses.
In his private and professional lives, Philip attracted immense loyalty. He was thoughtful and fair and unfailingly honest, but with a roguish good humour.
He was a loyal friend and loving and affectionate partner and father.
He was also stylish, elegant and a real gentleman.
Philip’s memorial is on Friday October 4 at 2pm at Ewingsdale Hall. Please advise if you’re coming via the Facebook event.
Obituary supplied by Philip’s family.
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