Shortly after he was appointed governor-general of Australia in 1982, Sir Ninian Stephen had the honour of greeting the Queen at Darwin airport. Unfortunately, at the same moment, his daughter Ann was arrested at a demonstration in Brisbane at which the crowds were chanting for Her Majesty to “go home”. It was a measure of Sir Ninian’s diplomatic skills that he was able to defuse the controversy calmly. “My daughter is an adult, caring, thinking woman, free to express her views on social issues,” he said. “We love her very much and are neither ashamed nor embarrassed.”
He was formal without being distant or pompous, but also mild-mannered, emollient and industrious — it was small wonder that he had been deemed the best man to