Norman Swan’s wedding joy: ABC doctor known as the ‘King of Covid’, 70, weds stunning bride, 46, at island paradise – as radio host lets slip the secret nuptials and friends fly in from around the world

EXCLUSIVE

ABC health expert Dr Norman Swan has married for the third time, to a glamorous colleague at the public broadcaster who is 24 years his junior.

Dr Swan, 70, who was known as the ‘King of Covid’ for his sometimes controversial public health interventions during the pandemic, married Radio National producer Katie Hamann, 46, on the Greek island of Hydra last weekend.

Their marriage was revealed by recently retired Late Night Live host Phillip Adams, who shared a photo of the happily married couple on social media.

Mrs. Hamann, who is pictured holding a bouquet of roses, opted for a simple, sleeveless white dress with a high neckline and a single bracelet around her left forearm.

Her new husband, wearing a relaxed cream linen suit and an open shirt, kept his arm around her waist as they both grinned for the cameras in an indoor venue.

“The good Dr. Swan – aka the King of Covid – convinced me to join LNL (Late Night Live) 33 years ago,” Adams wrote on X on Wednesday night.

“Congratulations on your wedding Norman.”

Mr Adams’ tweet was flooded with messages from well-wishers for the happy couple,

Family and friends reportedly flew in from around the world to attend the ceremony on the picturesque, car-free island in the Aegean Sea, south of Greece.

It is unclear when the two met, but it appears they first encountered each other professionally.

During the Australian summer of 2019-2020, Dr Swan was a presenter on Radio National (RN) Breakfast.

On January 7, 2020, he allegedly emailed Ms. Hamann, who produced the show, about a mysterious illness emerging in Wuhan, China.

“Worth keeping an eye on,” was the subject line.

Dr Swan’s early intuition would see him become one of the most recognisable faces on Australian television screens within months as the Covid-19 pandemic spread across the globe.

But his newfound star status was not without controversy.

He was often accused of fear-mongering because of his strong support for mandatory face masks and lockdowns.

Dr Swan has not treated patients since joining the ABC in 1982, but he remains licensed because his work is considered medical practice in the media.

Ms Hamann, who is originally from Taree on the New South Wales north coast, is believed to be the mother of two children from a previous relationship.

Since 2011, she has worked on and off for ABC, eventually rising to executive producer for RN, where she brought her future husband in for several appearances.

Ms Hamann was credited with producing an RN Drive show in September 2023, in which Dr Swan discussed how 14 per cent of people in Australia had persistent symptoms after contracting Covid-19.

It is believed that Mrs. Hamann’s mother is younger than Dr. Swan.

And unlike her new husband, Mrs Hamann’s father is a practising physician, working as a dermatologist in Port Macquarie on the New South Wales North Coast.

Ms Hamann’s father has posted a series of photos on Instagram from his travels in the Mediterranean over the past few days, including a stunning shot of a rainbow on Hydra from six days ago.

In the acknowledgements for Dr. Swan’s 2021 book, So You Think You Know What’s Good For You?, he paid tribute to his future wife.

“Katie Hamann has been a tough year, including reading the draft, which is always a risky business, but Katie’s skills as a producer and editor have helped me,” he wrote.

Dr Swan previously admitted he was “somewhat ashamed” of being divorced twice.

“It’s a bit embarrassing having been married (and divorced) twice,” he told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2022.

“I’ve heard men complain that the women in their lives are the reason they’ve been married more than once, when in fact 50 percent or more of the reason is us men.”

The Scottish-born doctor originally wanted to be an actor before pursuing a career in medicine.

At the age of 25 he moved to Australia to continue his training as a paediatrician. In 1982 he became a health reporter for the ABC and later general manager of Radio National.

There he hired Geraldine Doogue, who became one of Australia’s best-known journalists and broadcasters. They remain very good friends.

Dr Swan won a Gold Walkley in 1988 for an investigation that exposed fraudulent research by gynaecologist William McBride, which led to the discredited doctor being banned from practicing law.

When he met his first wife, Lee Sutton, a fellow pediatrician, he said he quickly “saw that she would be an incredible mother, which she has been to our children Anna, Georgia and Jonathan.”

Jonathan is a world-traveling journalist whose viral interview with then-President Donald Trump in 2020 earned him an Emmy Award.

Jonathan now works as a political reporter for the New York Times.

In 2016, Dr. Swan’s daughter Anna suffered a traumatic brain injury in a horrific bicycle accident while on a family vacation in Italy.

It was reported that the trauma of the accident contributed to the failure of Dr Swan’s second marriage to Perth’s Karen Carey.

The ABC used Dr Swan as their regular analyst throughout the pandemic and he subsequently hosted a weekly Coronacast podcast for three years, dedicated to Covid matters.

However, he was caught making blunders.

He was forced to apologise after claiming in 2022 that the death of Labor Senator Kimberley Kitching, believed to be from a heart attack, was likely linked to Covid.

The senator, who was 52 when she died, never had Covid-19, according to her furious family.

The ABC admitted Dr Swan’s comments breached its editorial standards and warned him during discussions with the broadcaster’s management.

Dr Swan was controversially appointed a Member of the Order of Australia last year for ‘his significant contribution to the broadcast media as a commentator on science and health’.

Dr Swan and Ms Hamann have been contacted for comment.