Johnny Young, the Australian singer-songwriter, died at 79 on August 14, 2026, after a brief battle with pancreatic cancer, his family said in a statement reported by ABC News.
Young’s 1966 single, which paired Step Back with Cara-Lyn, reached No. 1 in Australia and established him as a leading young pop singer. In 1967, he hosted The Go!! Show and won a Logie, a TV Week television award, for Best Teenage Personality. In 1968–69, he wrote The Real Thing for Russell Morris, who recorded it. The song reached No. 1 for four weeks and became a landmark Australian rock recording.
In 1971, Young created, hosted and produced Young Talent Time, a television variety show that ran for 18 years. The program gave national exposure to young performers including Tina Arena and Dannii Minogue.
After the show’s original run ended in 1988, Young was inducted into the TV Week Logies Hall of Fame in 1990. He entered the Australian Recording Industry Association’s Hall of Fame in 2010, in recognition of his work across music and television. In 2012, he returned as a judge when Young Talent Time was revived.
