A Dolphin Called Jock

About the Author

Melody Horrill is an award-winning journalist, presenter and documentary producer, with more than 20 years' experience in broadcast media both in Australia and overseas.

A familiar face on commercial TV in South Australia, she is well-known for her passionate writing and filming about the endangered wild dolphins in the Port River. Her documentary Dance with a Dolphin was broadcast across the world on CNN, with Melody presenting it from the US.

As a broadcast journalist, Melody specialised in writing and presenting environment and science feature stories for Central Television News, ABC News, Channel 9 News, Channel 10 News and Channel 7 News. While at Channel 10 she wrote, produced and presented three one-hour documentaries, which aired across the country and across the globe. She was the SA Correspondent for CNN's International World Report. She is an honorary member of CNN's International Professional Program.

Melody also presented the weather, first at Channel 10 followed by a long stint at Channel 7 as its senior science and environment journalist, weekday weather presenter and news update presenter.

She won the Better Hearing Australia Award for Best Presenter and the Archbishop's Award for Outstanding Journalism.

After 10 years at Channel 7, Melody decided it was time for a change and relocated to Melbourne where she freelanced, working for the state's highest-rating radio network, 3AW, reporting and reading the news. She followed this with several years working as a Media and Communications Manager for the Federal Government, where she won an Australia Day Merit Award for her work during the 2019-2020 Victorian Bushfires.

In June 2021 she wrote a story about the plight of the Port River dolphins and their impact on her life for the Weekend Australian Magazine. For the past few months, she has dedicated her time to writing A Dolphin Called Jock, her account of a childhood of extreme domestic violence - and her healing experiences with the dolphins.