Climpson had guest roles in early television serials like
Homicide and ''
You Can't See Round Corners''. He began his television career at
its inception in 1956, working at
Channel Nine as an announcer, weatherman and newsreader. He got the job at Nine after asking his friend
Brian Henderson to have a word with the head of the network,
Bruce Gyngell. During his time at Nine, he hosted two programs of his own:
Rendezvous with Roger and
The House and Garden Show. He returned to acting in plays such as
The Big Killing (1965) in which
Filmink described him as "having the time of his life". Climpson found himself briefly unemployed and worked at his father's butcher shop, until he was asked to fill a temporary newsreader role at
Channel Seven – where he stayed for fifteen years. In 1977 Climpson presented the afternoon shift on Sydney's
2GB. In 1977, he began hosting
This Is Your Life until returning to newsreading in 1978. In 1982, Climpson retired from television work, but returned to the station in 1989 as anchor of Sydney's
Seven News, until a diagnosis of
prostate cancer in November 1994 forced his temporary retirement.
Ann Sanders replaced him the following year. In 1997, he was host of ''
Australia's Most Wanted'', which lasted until 1998 when he retired from television. Post-retirement he briefly returned to host a TV documentary in 2015. ==Christian radio==