Margaret Pomeranz

Early life

Pomeranz was born Margeret Anne Jones-Owen on 15 July 1944 in Waverley, a suburb of Sydney.

She was educated at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney in Croydon, the then newly opened Macquarie University, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in German and social psychology, and the Playwright's Studio at the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA).

In between her studies, she spent two-and-a-half years in Vienna, where she worked as a stringer for The Bulletin and ABC Rural Radio. She wrote stories about such things as Australian sales to Hungarian farmers, and the effects of the Russian wheat crop failing.

Career

Pomeranz joined the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) in 1980 as writer and producer, working on TV programs such Front Up, Subsonics and the AFI and IF Awards.

With David Stratton

Pomeranz was appointed producer for David Stratton's film presentations. Together with Stratton, she hosted the long-running SBS TV program The Movie Show from 30 October 1986 until 2004. From 1 July 2004 she appeared on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) version of the program, At the Movies, again with Stratton, concluding on 9 December 2014.

Two articles which analysed their reviews at SBS and ABC showed that Stratton was generally a slightly harsher critic than Pomeranz. At SBS, they both gave five stars to only four films: Evil Angels (1988), Return Home (1990), The Piano (1993), and Lantana (2001). At the ABC, they both gave five stars to only six films: Brokeback Mountain (2005), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), No Country for Old Men (2007), Samson and Delilah (2009), A Separation (2011), and Amour (2012). They disagreed particularly on Romper Stomper (David refusing to rate it because of the racist violence in the film), The Castle (1997), Last Train to Freo (2006), Human Touch (2004), and Kenny (2006), with Stratton awarding fewer stars than Pomeranz on all but Human Touch.

She has been described as "a great Ginger Rogers to David’s Fred Astaire (he gave her class, she gave him sex appeal, etc etc)."

Other activities

In addition to being a critic, Pomeranz is also an anti-censorship campaigner. She was a prominent attendee and was briefly detained by police at an attempted 2003 protest screening of the controversial film Ken Park, banned in Australia. She has been critical of the Australian Office of Film and Literature Classification (now the Australian Classification Board), the Australian censorship body, on a number of occasions. She has also spoken out against production companies refusing to give preview screenings for critics.

On 29 January 2015, it was announced that Pomeranz had signed with Foxtel to present film and television programs on Foxtel Arts, along with Graeme Blundell, in a new series called Screen.

Screen stopped production in 2020, and past episodes are available on YouTube.

Pomeranz has appeared regularly on The Weekly with Charlie Pickering as a guest reviewer giving humorous reviews of TV shows, such as Married at First Sight Below Deck, and Love in the Jungle.

Recognition and honours

Pomeranz was made a Member of the Order of Australia in the 2005 Australia Day Honours.

In 2015, Pomeranz and Stratton were named patrons of the French Film Festival in Australia.

On 13 April 2016, Pomeranz and Stratton were both awarded honorary doctorates (Doctor of Letters) at Macquarie University, for their contribution to the film industry

In 2017, Pomeranz became the first woman to be honoured with a star on Winton's Walk of Fame during The Vision Splendid Outback Film Festival in Winton, Queensland.

Pomeranz and Stratton received the Don Dunstan Award in 2018 and are both Patrons of the Adelaide Film Festival.

In May 2023, Pomeranz was awarded an honorary doctorate (Letters) from the University of Sydney "for her impact on popular culture, film and performing arts".

Cameos

Pomeranz had an uncredited role in the 1994 film The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert as Adam's mother.

She has also appeared as herself in several Australian comedy programs and promotions, including:

• 1993 Australian comedy film Hercules Returns.
• Australian sketch comedy show Full Frontal in a 1995 episode.
• A 2000 episode of Australian comedy show Pizza, a show known for celebrity cameos.
• Lawrence Leung's Choose Your Own Adventure (2009), where she and David Stratton review Lawrence Leung's attempt to set a world record for solving the Rubik's Cube whilst sky diving, as they sit on the landing site in their trademark armchairs.
• A 2010 video promoting the new Triple J breakfast team of Tom Ballard and Alex Dyson, where she joined the two men to "satisfy the female demographic".

Personal life

She was married to Hans Pomeranz Together they had two sons, Josh and Felix.

References

References

1. Lake, Gayle. "Pomeranz, Margaret". The University of Melbourne.
2. Duthie, Amanda. (2017). "Margaret and David: 5 stars". Wakefield Press (Adelaide).
3. [https://web.archive.org/web/20040703112616/http://www.abc.net.au/atthemovies/txt/s1138598.htm ''At the Movies'' biography], 2004
4. Thurling, Jan. (2011). "Celebrating 25 years in 2011".
5. (13 September 2016). "What Margaret and David say about 500 Oz Movies".
6. Hennessy, Kate. (22 December 2023). "David Stratton's closing credits: 'I've done the best I could'".
7. (13 September 2016). "What Margaret and David say about 500 Oz Movies".
8. Evershed, Nick. (16 September 2014). "At the Movies: Margaret and David's most divisive films revealed".
9. Vagg, Stephen. (15 August 2025). "David Stratton: A Personal Tribute".
10. George, Sandy. (4 July 2003). "Sydney screening of Ken Park raided by police".
11. Koziol, Michael. (29 January 2015). "Margaret Pomeranz to join Foxtel".
12. (28 January 2015). "Foxtel signs Margaret Pomeranz".
13. (15 February 2018). "Screen returns to Foxtel Arts in March".
14. "Screen on Foxtel Arts".
15. (2021-08-05). "Foxtel Arts channel to close {{!}} TV Tonight".
16. Estera, Christine. (13 April 2023). "TV critic Margaret Pomeranz blasts MAFS 'halfwits' in blistering review".
17. {{youTube. nWnIBXKZ2YY. Below Deck
18. {{youTube. l2q4J758I5A. Love in the Jungle
19. "Name Ms Margaret Anne POMERANZ". Australian Government. [[Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (Australia).
20. Curtin, Jennie. (26 January 2015). "David Stratton's 50-year service to film honoured".
21. Deare, Steven. (13 April 2016). "Five stars! Highest honour for movie critics".
22. (10 June 2022). "Autumn graduation season commences: Honorary Doctorates for alumna Margaret Pomeranz AM and more". [[Macquarie University]].
23. Wykeham, Ollie. (29 June 2017). "Margaret Pomeranz honoured with star on Winton Walk of Fame at outback film festival". [[Australian Broadcasting Corporation]].
24. "Patrons and Board".
25. (24 May 2023). "Margaret Pomeranz awarded Doctor of Letters".
26. "Hans Pomeranz OAM, 1938 – 2007". [[Australian Screen Editors]].
27. Trenoweth, Samantha. (2025-08-14). "First lady of film: Margaret Pomeranz on film, family, and a lifetime of stories". [[The Australian Women's Weekly]].