42 Facts About Tim Shadbolt

Tim Shadbolt was the Mayor of Invercargill from 1998 to 2022, and previously Mayor of Waitemata City.

Tim Shadbolt's father died in a flying accident in 1952.

Tim Shadbolt was on the school council and appointed prefect.

Tim Shadbolt became a founding student of Rutherford College, Auckland, and attended the University of Auckland from 1966 to 1970, taking a year off in 1967 to work on the Manapouri Power Project in Southland.

Tim Shadbolt was a member of the Auckland University Students Association executive, and editor of Craccum in 1972.

Tim Shadbolt won the election, receiving 1,200 more votes than Covic.

Tim Shadbolt famously celebrated, much to some people's disgust, by towing his concrete mixer behind the mayoral Daimler in the 1983 Henderson Christmas parade.

Tim Shadbolt's election represented the deep cynicism that many voters had felt about the Waitemata City Council, which was known for in-fighting.

In 1986, Shadbolt created Tim's Team, a political ticket of young, liberal councillors.

Tim Shadbolt envisioned a large-scale stadium located on undeveloped coastal land at Te Atatu Peninsula called the Kiwi Dome, as a way to develop the economy of Waitemata City, which was never developed.

Tim Shadbolt stood in the electorate of West Auckland at the 1990 New Zealand general election as an independent.

Tim Shadbolt placed fifth with 3.06 per cent of the vote.

In 1993, Tim Shadbolt ran successfully for the position of Mayor of Invercargill.

In 1998, Tim Shadbolt was re-elected to the mayoralty and remained the mayor until 2022.

In October 2002, Tim Shadbolt told a conference of New Zealand's Disabled Persons Assembly that Invercargill had "an innovative approach to public transport, currently centred on 'Freebie the Bus' travelling the 'Purple Circle'".

Tim Shadbolt said he hoped that in future all buses in Invercargill would be free and accessible.

In 2004 and 2007, Tim Shadbolt won his fourth and fifth mayoral terms by huge margins.

In November 2020 an independent review of the Invercargill City Council commissioned by the Department of Internal Affairs raised concerns about the council's performance, and in particular said Tim Shadbolt was "struggling to fulfil significant aspects of his job", and as a result there is a leadership void at the council.

Tim Shadbolt rubbished the report, saying it is flawed and he has been singled out as a scapegoat.

Tim Shadbolt had drawn criticism from fellow councillors for using Invercargill City Council properties to store his personal belongings.

In mid-July 2022, Tim Shadbolt was involved in a dispute with Deputy Mayor Clark over whether the Council should cover his rental car expenses when attending a Local Government New Zealand conference in Palmerston North.

Clark contended that Tim Shadbolt should pay for the rental car expenses himself as he had previously done in 2021.

In mid-September 2022, Tim Shadbolt attracted media attention when he abstained from participating in the Southland Business Chamber's mayoral debate during the 2022 Invercargill mayoral election.

Tim Shadbolt welcomed the ruling as a victory for freedom of expression.

In March 2020, Tim Shadbolt tried to get the Invercargill City Council to cover $448,000 worth of expenses incurred during his defamation trial under an indemnity clause in the Local Government Act.

On 14 February 2023, Tim Shadbolt settled his claims against the Invercargill City Council and its insurer Riskpool.

Tim Shadbolt welcomed the settlement, stating that it had ended "eight years of hell" and that he had mixed emotions.

Tim Shadbolt has presented several television documentaries, and the series That's Fairly Interesting.

Tim Shadbolt admitted later that the phrase was developed by an advertising agency.

Tim Shadbolt played in the movie The World's Fastest Indian, portraying a good friend of Burt Munro who organised social events for Invercargill's motorcycling community.

Tim Shadbolt participated in the New Zealand version of Dancing with the Stars where he placed 3rd.

In 2006 Tim Shadbolt played the part of the Narrator in The Rocky Horror Show by the Invercargill Musical Theatre.

Tim Shadbolt continued his theatre experiences by appearing in 2007 in the Invercargill Musical Theatres production of Sea Cruise.

In 2010, Tim Shadbolt appeared on the comedy gameshow 7 Days as the guest participant in the round Yes, Minister.

In 2012, Tim Shadbolt set the Guinness World Record for the longest television interview.

Tim Shadbolt was interviewed for 26 consecutive hours by interviewer Tom Conroy.

Tim Shadbolt later said he would have liked to keep going.

Tim Shadbolt met his second wife, Miriam Cameron, in 1970.

Tim Shadbolt was hospitalised for two weeks in April 2006 after rolling the mayoral car near Winton while returning from a work trip to Queenstown.

Tim Shadbolt was charged with careless driving and could have faced a maximum fine of $3000, however he was instead discharged and ordered to pay $300 each to St John New Zealand and the Winton volunteer fire brigade.

Tim Shadbolt was knighted in the 2019 New Year Honours List as a Knight Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

In June 2021, Tim Shadbolt revealed that he had been diagnosed with muscle tension dysphonia.