Scott McGregor (television presenter)
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| Born: | October 22, 1957 Orange, NSW, Australia |
|---|---|
| Occupation: | Actor, television presenter |
| Spouse: | Wendy Gray |
| Website: | Off The Rails |
Scott McGregor (born October 22, 1957) is an Australian actor, television presenter and railway enthusiast.
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[edit] Early life
Scott McGregor was born in Orange, New South Wales where his parents had a farm. His father, Doug, was also editor of the The Central Western Daily newspaper. In 1969 the family moved to Mudgee where Doug McGregor became editor of the Mudgee Guardian.
Scott was educated at The Scots College in Sydney. He commenced studying communications at the then Mitchell College of Advanced Education, now part of Charles Sturt University, before being accepted into the National Institute of Dramatic Art where he graduated in 1979.
[edit] Acting career
In the 1980s McGregor had leading stage acting roles in productions of the Perth Playhouse, Queensland Theatre Company, Marion St Theatre and Nimrod Company. From 1980 to early 2000s he had acting roles in many Australian television series including The Young Doctors, Skyways, The Sullivans, Cop Shop, A Country Practice, Sons and Daughters, Police Rescue, Home & Away, Water Rats and All Saints.
From the 1997 he started turning to presenting lifestyle television as a travel and collectables presenter on The Lifestyle Channel programs Out and About, Australian Living and Australian Collections. From 2000 to 2002 he was a DIY presenter on Better Homes and Gardens and from 2002 to 2004 hosted the home renovation series Room for Improvement on the Seven Network.
In 1999 he combined television presenting with his interest in railways by hosting the travel series Railway Adventures Across Australia. In 2004 he followed up with the series Down The Line with Scott McGregor covering railway journeys in Australia, New Zealand and Vietnam.
In 2005 McGregor presented Australian Icon Towns made for The History Channel. A second series was broadcast from January 2007.
[edit] Interest in railways
McGregor had a keen interest in railways since childhood. From the 1980s he started collecting railway memorabilia, including several vintage railway carriages. By 1989 he had collected so much he decided to sell some and opened a stall called Off The Rails at the now closed Chelsea House antiques emporium in Camperdown, New South Wales. Branches were later opened at Sydney's Central Railway Station and in Balmain. In 1992 a new Off The Rails shop was opened in Newtown. It moved again to a larger shop and restoration workshop at Camperdown in 1995. The shop closed in 1999 and Off The Rails Collectables now operates as a mail order business.
In 2006 McGregor opened a country retreat, Ruwenzori, at his Mudgee property with accommodation in three historic railway carriages. As of 2006 the property nine railway carriages (one dating back to 1890), two railway station buildings, track, signals and associated memorabilia.
[edit] Personal life
McGregor is married to television producer Wendy Gray. They have two daughters, Sophie and Hayley.
