Peter Muir McFarline (27 March 1945 – 7 April 2002)[1] was an Australian journalist best known for his work as a cricket writer. He has been called one of Australia's greatest cricket writers.
He began his career working for The Courier Mail and later became a writer for The Age. His achievements included breaking the story of World Series Cricket in 1977.[2]
During his final years he was afflicted by the debilitating spinal illness, syringomyelia. This first affected him in 1982 and eventually rendered him a quadriplegic. During his last few years he dictated his copy to his wife, Dell.[2]
He was played by actor Adam Zwar in the 2012 TV mini-series Howzat! Kerry Packer's War.
In 2000, McFarline was presented with the Australian Sports Medal in recognition of his media coverage, 1968 to the date of award.[3] Posthumously, in the 2002 Queen's Birthday Honours, he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for "service to journalism, particularly sports journalism".[4]