Vale Ted McGrath
| Station | Year | Season |
| Mawson | 1963 | Winter |
We have received the sad news from family of the passing of Ted ‘Magoo’ McGrath on 15 May 2025.
Ted was a wintering Diesel Mechanic at Mawson 1963.
Ted’s family has invited members of the ANARE and Antarctic family to join them for the celebration of his life.
The service will be held on Friday 30 May at 11.00am at St Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Lara.
This will be followed by burial at Flinders Memorial Park and a gathering at the Lara Sporting Club.
The livestream link can be found here:
https://cpconceptevents.com.au/the-late-edward-ted-cunningham-mcgrath/
The link will become active 5 mins before the start of the service at 11:00AM on Friday 30th May 2025
(Notified by Timothy McGrath 21 May 2025)
Ted McGrath
Assistant Diesel Mechanic, Mawson 1963
27/2/1937 – 15/5/2025
Edward Cunningham McGrath, known as Ted, joined the 1963 Mawson expedition straight from the Australian Army. He served with the army for nine years, during which he trained as a motor mechanic. He was discharged on 3rd January 1963, just six days before Nella Dan set sail for Mawson. Ted spent his first day at Mawson base exactly a month after leaving the army. His close workmates were Bill Edward (Senior Diesel Mechanic) and Ken (Scruffy) Shennan, Assistant Diesel Mechanic as well as the electrician, Bill Taylor. Less than a month after arriving Ted was on his first field trip.
In good ANARE tradition, Ted soon had a new name. ‘Magoo’ threw himself into everything – work and play. His diary records his expeditions in the VW, on the skidoo, motorcycling on the sea ice. He was a stern movie critic, an enthusiastic party-goer, a night-owl and a slow starter in the morning. He was dedicated to his job and part of a team that was constantly busy repairing and servicing the all-important vehicles. He loathed ‘bashing dixies’ (washing the dishes), but wasn’t adverse to cooking, producing a well-received sponge cake one evening, made with 20 eggs. He didn’t relish his turn on night-watch, but he did everything he was asked to do – and more – with enthusiasm and good nature.
Most of Ted’s working life after Mawson was with William Adams Tractors, the local Caterpillar dealers. He was with them at Clayton, Colac and ended his career in Geelong, working well past normal retirement age.
Shortly before leaving for Mawson, Ted had become engaged to Madeleine McCormack of Seymour, Victoria. They had agreed that Ted’s year in the Antarctic might give them a good financial start to their marriage. They were together until Madeleine’s death in 2022. Together they had five sons and two daughters and 16 grandchildren. They were committed to their faith and were community-minded. Ted always enjoyed meeting up with old mates from Mawson, most recently at the 60th anniversary dinner in 2023. Ted died on 15th May 2025. He will be sadly missed.
Ros and Ken Shennan
Ted McGrath was a member of the ANARE Club for over 60 years, from 1964 to 2025
