Shortland Street

In 1992 Galvin, a theatre actor at the time, auditioned for a role as Chris Warner in the upcoming Television New Zealand soap opera, Shortland Street alongside his flatmate Marton Csokas.^[3] Galvin won the role, with Csokas later going on to play Leonard Dodds. Galvin predicted the show would only last 12 months.^[4] Galvin portrayed Chris for four years, with the character picking up the nickname "Dr. Love" for the numerous love affairs he participated in. Galvin soon grew sick of portraying Chris, being quoted as saying "after four years on Shortland Street there was so much of me in Dr Warner I wasn't sure where he ended and I began."^[5] He quit and went travelling to seek further job opportunities.

Overseas and return to Shortland Street

During this time, he had roles in the television productions Highwater and Coverstory, and feature film The Climb, which starred John Hurt. Galvin was asked to return to Shortland Street in 2000 following a revamp of the show. He returned in the season final much to the delight of his fans. Since returning, Galvin has written many plays including the successful "Station to Station" and in 2007 Galvin was recognised as an outstanding emerging playwright, winning New Zealand's most significant national theatre award, the Bruce Mason Playwriting Award.^[6]

In October 2019 he was presented with a Scroll of Honour from the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand for his contribution to New Zealand entertainment.