Jeremy Mansfield passes away aged 59

Legendary South African radio and television personality Jeremy Mansfield passed away at the age of 59.

Mansfield lost his battle with liver cancer early on Monday morning.

Cancer returns

He revealed in January that his cancer has returned. Early last month, he shared the heartbreaking news that his cancer had progressed to stage 4 and that it was terminal, and only subject to palliative care.

“[I] have had it confirmed by the specialist surgeon leading everyone in the team looking after me that my cancer is confirmed stage 4, terminal and is now only subject to palliative care.

“This dream team (as I now refer to them) will now guide me through how to have as much fun in the time I have left and fulfil as many dreams, big and small, [as] I have in my bucket list. A new journey for Kari and the rest of our families starts today,” he shared with his more than 84 000 Facebook followers in August.

Long-time friend and co-host of the morning show Breakfast Express Weekdays on Johannesburg radio station 947, Sam Cowen, had kept people updated on Mansfield’s condition, saying he was resting comfortably and was surrounded by people who loved him.

The duo dominated the air waves for 13 years.

In 2009, Mansfield announced that he had been diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. A year later he left the station.

In 2018, Mansfield returned to the air waves as the host of Hot 91.9 FM’s new morning show, Mansfield in the Morning, with his long-time colleague Sam Cowen as his co-host.

Mansfield was born in Grahamstown, where he attended school at the prestigious Kingswood College. He studied Speech and Drama and Journalism at Rhodes University.

Jeremy Mansfield broadcasting career

He started his broadcasting career in 1985, and while still a student, worked for radio station Capitol 604 in Durban.

In 1990, Mansfield was recruited to work for SuperSport on M-Net, and also presented the Sport on the John Berks show on 702.

In 1993, he was appointed as a regular presenter for 702’s Saturday Afternoon magazine programme, taking over as the host of the afternoon show two years later, in 1995.

Mansfield moved to 947 in 1997, where he created and hosted the weekday breakfast show, The Rude Awakening. He hosted his last show on 12 July 2010.

He returned to radio in November 2018, as the host of the breakfast show Mansfield In the Morning on Hot 91.9fm.

In July 2021, he started a YouTube channel Mansfield2day, which released daily vodcasts hosted by himself, featuring co-presenters who are experts in the fields of business, law, medicine and fun.

Television and film career

• Mid-1990’s: Features contributor and guest presenter on M-Net for Front Row and SuperSport.
• 1998: A Word or 2 on SABC 2.
• 2005: Co-presenter M-Net comedy show Laugh Out Loud.
• 2010: Disney’s Toy Story 3 as the voice of Lifer.
• 2010: Mansfield’s Moneysense on CNBC Africa.

Mansfield also authored a number of joke books, including co-authoring the multi-award-winning contemporary cookbook Zhoozsh!

During his successful career, he received numerous awards and accolades, the most recent in 2020 when he won both Breakfast Show Presenter and Best Breakfast Show.

*Compiled by Xanet Scheepers.