From apartheid rebel to pageant judge: 5 things to know about William Smith

For many of us William Smith will always be the face we saw every morning we stayed home too sick to go to school. For some, he was the lifeline that earned them their matric. For many, he will be remembered for his trailblazing work in education and on television.

The former science and mathematics teacher died from cancer at his home in Perth, Australia, his daughter confirmed in a statement.

“He faced his final moments with grace, expressing contentment in his accomplishments and the impact he made in the fields of education and conservation. His legacy will endure through the lives he touched and the difference he made. William will be profoundly missed by his family, friends, and all who knew him,” his family said.

1. IT'S IN HIS BLOOD

Smith's parents laid the foundation for his pursuit of education. His mother, Margaret Mary Smith, was a famed ichthyologist who, along with her lecturer and eventual husband JLB Smith, found and identified a coelacanth, a fish thought at the time to be extinct. The initial discovery was made by museum official Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer.

2. NOT SO GOOD AT MATHS

While generations of South Africans were glued to their screens at midday for Smith's lessons, he admitted he was not the best maths scholar in his youth.

“I wasn’t smart in maths. I gave the subject my all, but it just wasn’t working, while on the other hand I had friends who barely put in the work but got distinctions,” he told TimesLIVE.

“Had I done matric in this era, I don't think I would have even made it to university. I got what we called a second-class matric and only began to excel in maths in my third year as a student at Rhodes University.”

3. TEACHING IN APARTHEID

Smith never intended to be a teacher but was inspired while tutoring his then-girlfriend in chemistry. He focused on teaching as a career in his second year of studies which led to his business of tutoring first-year university students. 

Knysna Museums shares that Smith would eventually start multiracial schools in the 70s due to the political unrest and poor access to schools suffered by black youth. The schools were something he pushed alongside then editor-in-chief of the Sowetan newspaper Aggrey Klaaste.

4. BEAUTY AND GRACE

Garnering popularity in the 90s, Smith acted as a judge at the 1998 and 1999 Miss SA pageant crowning Sonia Raciti Oshry and Heather Joy Hamilton respectively.

Oshry, who landed a fourth runner up spot at that year's Miss Universe pageant also went on to place second runner up at Miss World, taking home the Beauty prize. 

5. RECORD-BREAKING LEARNING

Smith will mostly be remembered for his time on the Learning Channel that even earned a cheeky spoof in a TV licence advert. While the SABC was reluctant about the concept which was pushed by Smith, their initial success pushed the broadcaster to screen the programme in several African countries. This would rake in 100-million viewers per day, making it arguably the most-watched programme in the history of South Africa.