Latest news with #RebeccaGibney
Courier-Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Courier-Mail
Who is the biggest Aussie TV personality of the 21st century?
Don't miss out on the headlines from TV. Followed categories will be added to My News. Choosing the best Aussie TV stars from the past 25 years isn't an easy task — mostly because there aren't many. The days when the television landscape was dominated by household names who TV viewers genuinely loved have almost gone, replaced by a catalogue of reality drama queens, game show jesters and the odd newshound. And to make things more difficult, hardly anyone is watching. Anything. You only have to look at this year's Gold Logie nominations to get a view of how bleak things have become. To celebrate the launch of the new app, we're celebrating the people, places and events we'll never forget from the first quarter of the 21st century by asking for Australia's view. Our 25@25 series will finally put to bed the debates you've been having at the pub and around dinner tables for years – and some that are just too much fun not to include. The inclusion of the genuinely glittering Hamish Blake, Julia Morris and Sonia Kruger is countered by the eye-raising additions of P-plater A Current Affair host Ally Langdon and the ABC's Lisa Millar, who clearly got a guernsey because everyone loves the real stars in her fly-on-the-wall bush drama Muster Dogs. Surely there isn't enough people watching the ABC breakfast show to warrant a nod in the category of Australia's most popular TV personality, especially when the more established morning talent Karl Stefanovic and Nat Barr didn't get a look in. Who is the best Aussie TV personality of the 21st century? Eddie McGuire Karl Stefanovic Carrie Bickmore Rebecca Gibney Georgie Parker John Wood Rove McManus Hamish Blake Sonia Kruger Kate Ritchie Cast your vote Then you throw in reality chef Poh Ling Yew (albeit undoubtedly a great cook) and Home and Away darling Lynne McGranger and you start to see what we mean. The evolution of Australian free-to-air TV is the root cause of the demise of the personalities. Talk shows are dead, expensive dramas are now almost the sole domain of the streamers and the audience in the mornings is now so small the Logies would struggle to raise a quorum. And when was the last time a free-to-air Aussie comedy got made, let alone found an audience? All that being said, the early 2000s did give rise to some genuine hitmakers, beloved characters and loungeroom favourites that deserve their place at the top of this list. Take your pick in the poll above. The inclusion of A Current Affair's Ally Langdon as Gold Logie nominee was eye-raising. Rebecca Gibney When it comes to TV stars, Rebecca Gibney is a sure bet. Even in the fickle world of small screen drama, the model turned actor doesn't do duds. And when you consider television is an industry that generally courts youth, Gibney keeps getting work – and getting better. She may be a Kiwi by birth, but she is also an Aussie citizen and thanks to a raft of hit shows (did you see what we did there?) she is one of most bankable and popular stars. She was Australia's favourite TV mum as Julie Rafter on Packed to the Rafters, the smartest shrink on the planet in Halifax f.p. and a woman with a dark secret in the crime thriller Wanted. All quality, all hits and all added up to one Gold Logie and umpteen nominations. Rove McManus The last of the talk show kings whose career declined as Australian audiences fell out of love with the TV format. But at his peak he was a TV juggernaut. Rove Live was well watched and much-loved. His boyish charm and ability to get his guests to spill made him lots of money and won him three Gold Logies during a period when the competition was hot. So popular was he, he tried to transplant his Aussie-ified talk show into the tough US market, and although it ultimately failed, the brave attempt won the former stand-up guy much respect. He was also one half of one of Australia's much-loved romances, that with his late wife, Home and Away star Belinda Emmett, which only made audiences admire him more. Rove McManus at the 2003 Logies. Georgie Parker Before she rebooted the role of Alf's daughter Roo in the soap Home and Away, Georgie Parker was the most loved star on TV. Early on she built fans for her work on prime time drama A Country Practice but it was her spin as Sister Terri on the popular medical drama All Saints that carved her name into the Aussie TV record books. She won two Gold Logies, and many other Logie categories as well, and appeared as herself on dozens of other programs, including on stage at Carols by Candlelight and as a regular on Play School. She went quiet for a bit in the middle 2000s but returned to the screen in the Summer Bay soap in 2010, where she remains. Hamish Blake There is something irresistible about Hamish Blake. His easy charm and laconic sense of humour has made him a favourite among TV viewers of all ages. Whether he is appearing with his lanky sidekick Andy, or going it alone on his latest megahit Lego Masters, Blake can't help scoring a ratings bullseye. Like Rebecca Gibney, Blake is a TV hitmaker and he has earned two Gold Logies along the way (and it probably should have been more). He was also honoured with the Bert Newton Logie for TV presenter, which perfectly sums up his likability and his strike rate for making people laugh. A genuine star. X Learn More SUBSCRIBER ONLY Sonia Kruger One of the highest paid hosts on television, Sonia Kruger earned her stripe by working really hard. With her easy wit and megawatt smile, Kruger was so reliable she became the TV host of choice. Kruger had early success and then she built her following on the Mornings couch with David Campbell. She realised one way to attract attention was to ride the wave of reality television, taking on roles in Dancing With The Stars, Strictly Come Dancing, Big Brother Australia, The Voice Australia and she even survived the short-lived but truly horrible reality golf show, Holey Moley. Kruger made headlines for her misunderstood Gold Logie winning speech in 2023 (which you can watch in the player at the top of the page) but it didn't do her too much harm because she is back on the nominees list this year. John Wood Probably the most unlikely genuine star of Australian television through the 2000s, John Wood started getting noticed when he played the magistrate with a sharp mind and a heart of gold in the hit drama Rafferty's Rules. It won him awards and a loyal — and rather large — audience. It's an audience he brought with him when he signed for the blockbuster cop show Blue Heelers and, with co-star Lisa McCune, rode a wave of success that would last a decade. He was nominated for the Gold Logie every year for 10 years, before finally scoring the gong in 2006, the year the show was cancelled. We would have included McCune on this list but she left the show in 2000. Eddie McGuire Nicknamed Eddie Everywhere for his seemingly endless list of TV credits, sports-mad McGuire was once considered the most powerful face on television. Not content with ruling the world of AFL as a commentator and president of the polarising footy club Collingwood, McGuire was literally everywhere. He has been host of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Millionaire Hot Seat, 1 vs 100, The Footy Show, Footy Classified, the Million Dollar Drop, Between The Lines and This Is Your Life. At one stage he was even CEO of the Nine Network and temporarily hosted A Current Affair, which was a bit of a disaster. If there was a telethon or natural disaster fundraiser, McGuire was on the mic, and although he never won a Gold Logie, he hosted the awards twice! Dannii Minogue, Eddie McGuire, Bec Cartwright and Sophie Monk at the Logie awards. Kate Ritchie Although now almost exclusively spending her time on radio, Ritchie is responsible for nurturing one of the most-loved characters on Australian TV – Home and Away's Sally Fletcher. For 20 years fans watched Sally grow up, surviving way too many scandals and traumas that could conceivably occur in one small town, especially one with the particularly sunny name of Summer Bay. She was rewarded with two Gold Logies and a loyal base that followed her to other TV projects, including crime hit Underbelly, and eventually onto radio. So popular is she, that media organisations reporting on her recent personal traumas cop bag-loads of hate mail from TV viewers warning to leave their Sally alone. Now that's superstardom. Carrie Bickmore Carrie Bickmore may have made her name as the foundation host of the now-defunct The Project, but she was never better than as the quick-witted journo sidekick to Rove McManus on the talk show Rove Live. The segment, Carrie @ The Newsdesk, was the precursor to the Project slogan, news done differently, and won the young West Australian a huge following, especially among young female viewers. She won a newcomer Logie for her work, as a warm up for the gold statue, which she won in 2015. It was during her acceptance speech that her stardom exploded when she accepted the award wearing a beanie to launch her now successful brain cancer charity. The beanie idea was a tribute to her late husband's own cancer struggles. Karl Stefanovic Alternately described as a TV buffoon and an undeniable chat show talent, it's hard to ignore the man affectionately known as Karlos. One of the highest paid stars on the small screen throughout the 2000s, Stefanovic had minor gigs before landing the seat on the Today Show, Nine's flagship brekkie offering. Famously starting the job on less money than his more famous co-host Lisa Wilkinson, Karl leveraged his talent and his blokey charms to eclipse Wilkinson in salary, and ultimately outlast her on the Today couch. Although the show struggles in the ratings, and breakfast audiences aren't as lucrative as they once were, Stefanovic remains one of the biggest names on the box. More than just a TV buff? Take part in our other 25@25 polls Originally published as Who is the biggest Aussie TV personality of the 21st century?
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Dancing With The Stars delivers elimination shock as audience-voted twist sees Aussie icon sent home
The curtains have closed for yet another beloved, big-named Aussie celebrity on Dancing With The Stars. After a special episode celebrating the kings and queens of song and dance, TV royalty was sent packing with a paso doble that lacked enough punch for the audience. Rebecca Gibney danced for the last time on the Channel 7 show on Sunday, earning 28 points as she took to the floor to Whitney Houston 's Queen of the Night. Judge Mark Wilson was pleasantly surprised by the Gold Logie winner's improvement since her last performance, however, pointed out that she lacked paso body shapes, which ultimately put her at peril on the leaderboard. The Bachelor 's Brittany Hockley had temperatures rising in a steamy tango to Kylie Minogue 's Padam Padam, scoring herself 33 points and a big hoorah from the judges. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. Mark was so impressed by Brittany's quick adaptation to the ballroom style that he gave her his royal wand of approval. However, it was boxing star Harry Garside that floored Judge Sharna Burgess as he performed a sexy rumba to John Farnham's A Touch of Paradise in a half-buttoned silk shirt. His hard work, dedication and sensuality on the dance floor earned him kudos with Sharna and 25 points on the board, but Craig Revel Horwood wasn't as impressed, adding that he felt his dancing was disconnected. 7NEWS presenter Michael Usher was the picture of grace as he suited up and took on the Viennese waltz to Adele's One and Only. Earning a solid score of 29, Craig praised Michael for bringing class to a known-to-be-tricky dance format. Helen Richey had audience members blushing as she flirted with AFL icon Trent Cotchin, who was Elvis for the night in a rocking and rolling Jive. Donning his own blue suede shoes and a sparkly blazer to match, Trent topped the leaderboard with 35 points after all four judges were left in awe over his performance. Even hard-to-please Craig gushed that he 'loved it', which no doubt elicited a nation-wide gasp. Boxing star Harry Garside (pictured) floored Judge Sharna Burgess as he performed a sensual rumba to John Farnham's A Touch of Paradise in a half-buttoned silk shirt After our beloved celebrities had left their all on the dance floor, the studio audience's votes were combined with the judges' scores to reveal a new ranking. Much to his relief - as well as judge Sharna's - Harry was lifted from rock bottom of the leaderboard, and we instead said goodbye to Rebecca. The Flying Doctors alum thanked her dance partner Ian Waite for an unforgettable experience on the show, while raving about the magic behind the scenes of the series. 'The amount of work that goes into this show. The costumes are amazing and the makeup is amazing,' she gushed. 'Everyone from the judges, the production crew and everyone behind the scenes – it's mindboggling how extraordinary everyone is and I'm going to miss it,' she admitted. Last week, another celebrity twirled off the Dancing With The Stars dance floor for good. In a surprise twist, TV presenter Karina Carvalho was sent home, becoming the second contestant to be eliminated from the hit Channel Seven competition. Dancing With The Stars continues on Seven on Monday at 7.30pm
Sydney Morning Herald
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘I don't give a rat's arse': Rebecca Gibney's year of living dangerously
This is Rebecca Gibney's year of living dangerously. She is stepping on stage for the Sydney Theatre Company ('Me on stage, in general, terrifies me') and she's been waltzing her away through the TV show Dancing with the Stars ('It's really hard, and you hurt'). But, most importantly, she recently turned 60 and discovered something profound. 'I don't give a rat's arse about things that aren't important any more,' she says. 'I don't obsess over criticism. I don't obsess over much really because I've worked out that the most important things are your family, your friends, the people that love you, and finding your passion, finding what gives you joy. 'I was such a people pleaser for so long, so much imposter syndrome, but I've now gotten to an age where I think, 'How do I feel about that?' I was so hard on myself for such a long time. I was so vindictive towards myself. I had such self loathing in my late 20s and early 30s, just for choices that I'd made that hurt people. 'I really was in a bit of a bad state about myself. The great thing about being older is you actually start caring about yourself more and your self-worth and your self-care. Because if I can't look after myself, I can't look after anyone else.' Gibney – New Zealand born and bred, an All Blacks supporter, but Australian TV royalty – is at STC in the throes of rehearsal for Circle Mirror Transformation, her return to the stage after 20 years and only her third time treading the boards. Gibney is utterly delightful in person, chatty ('My mum says I can talk the leg off a tin pot') and sparky with ridiculously bright blue eyes (I normally wouldn't mention it, but when you spend a lifetime watching someone on screen, it's funny the things you don't notice). She is wearing a traditional Maori greenstone necklace and her Kiwi accent pops in and out of the conversation. She throws her head back when she laughs. 'I turned 60 last year, and for some reason, it dawned on me,' she says. 'And I think there's a lot of women when they get older, or people in general, when they get older, it's that realisation that, OK, I've got 20, 30, 40 years left, and knowing how quickly the last 20 went, I don't want to waste time being scared of things, or frightened of things or not doing things because I'm scared. And I know that if I don't keep changing and growing and challenging myself, I could just curl up in a ball. And I don't want that. I want to be around a lot longer.' She's tackling an American accent for Circle Mirror Transformation, which is set in a small-town community centre in Vermont, and written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker. Gibney plays Marty, a hippie dippy drama teacher – 'she teaches pottery classes and she teaches jewellery classes, and she's probably got tattoos' – who is tackling an adult drama class for the first time. 'She's really giving it 150 per cent,' Gibney says. 'But layered underneath that, though, is a troubled marriage, which comes out over the course of the play. You start to realise that she may not be as happy and shiny as she appears.' Her husband is played by 'possibly the nicest man on the planet', Cameron Daddo, who Gibney worked with on the TV travel show Luxury Escapes. 'When we're travelling, I always have the, 'What's next? What's next? When do we have to be here? [mindset]',' she says. 'I'm like, 'We have to be here at this time. We've got to do this.' I'm always thinking ahead, whereas Cameron's like, 'But wow, look at that table, isn't it great, man?'' Gibney never formally studied acting. She fell into it after an early modelling career – a fantastic snap on her Instagram page shows her wearing a sash that reads 'Ms Resilient Flooring' in the 1980s – and built a career that reads as the greatest hits of Australian TV: The Flying Doctors, All Together Now, Halifax f.p., Stingers, Packed to the Rafters and Halifax: Retribution. Last year, she was inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame, with her son Zac Bell doing the honours. But it was this long history on the small screen that gave Gibney her biggest doubt: could she crack it on the stage? Especially a stage that has regularly featured some of the titans of Australian acting: Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Heather Mitchell, Pamela Rabe. 'There is that imposter syndrome thing that sort of has come flooding back a little bit,' Gibney says. 'Certainly, last week, in the first week of rehearsals, I was like, 'Oh, geez, what have I done? I'm not going to be good at this.' You know the little voice on the shoulder that just goes, 'You're out of your depth. You don't know what you're doing.' Loading 'But to have such an incredible, supportive cast around me and the director [Dean Bryant] who just went, 'Yes, you can.' And I think something clicked in me yesterday. My son said to me once, 'Mum, fear and excitement are the same feeling. You've just got to flip it.' And so I got home last night and I went, 'I'm going to turn this into excitement.' 'So I actually went, 'Today I'm going to smash it. I'm going to know my lines. I'm going to project [my voice], I'm going to really do incredibly well', and I'm just going to have to keep telling myself that until opening night.' Gibney's 40-year TV career has given her an eagle-eyed view of a local industry that has undergone tremendous upheaval in the past couple of decades. Those cosy weekly family sitcoms, such as All Together Now and Packed to the Rafters, are gone, while police and crime dramas are more likely to be a limited series instead of a prime-time staple that runs for years. 'I think people want that [local dramas] now,' Gibney says. 'If you look at the demographics and the people that are watching regular [free-to-air] television, they're actually much older. And the younger generation, it's the streaming services and stuff. But people love a good drama. 'Look at The Survivors [on Netflix]. That's, like, No.2 globally at the moment or something, and made in Tasmania by the beautiful Tony Ayres and Cherie Nowlan and Andy Walker … It's just so fantastic that shows like that are being made [by Netflix], but it's like, 'OK, wait a second, that's Australian, you know? Why are we not investing more in our own product? Why are we waiting for someone else to make it?' 'And shows like Packed to the Rafters, there is a home for that. We don't have another show like that at the moment. I think there's a comfort to that, seeing a show about a family that's just like any other regular Australian family. That's why people loved it so much. It was a show that they could all watch with the whole family.' Loading As for what Gibney has planned next, she can't say – well, she tells me, it's just that I can't tell you – but there is one thing she is certain of. 'I want to start being more raw and more real and not caring so much,' she says. 'I'm happy to play dress-ups, but the reality is, [today] I'm in a jean jacket and my hair's a bit all over the shop, and I don't have my wefts [hair extensions] in, and I don't really care. 'I would love to bring that to the screen as well, because I think women, particularly, want to see themselves reflected on screen, ageing normally, with crow's feet … I'm not opposed to [cosmetic procedures]. Go get your facelift, have your Botox – I've had Botox before, I've had all that stuff. I tried filler once, and it just looked really bad, so I went, 'I'm never doing that again' – but I just want to look like I'm ageing. 'I look like a 60-year-old that's looking after herself. I have no qualms about saying I'm 60. It's fine. It's great. Actually, it's better than being 55. Sixty is awesome, and I think 70 is going to be even better.'
Sydney Morning Herald
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Rebecca Gibney to return to stage for the first time in 20 years during her year of living dangerously
, register or subscribe to save articles for later. Add articles to your saved list and come back to them any time. This is Rebecca Gibney's year of living dangerously. She is stepping on stage for the Sydney Theatre Company ('Me on stage, in general, terrifies me') and she's been waltzing her away through the TV show Dancing with the Stars ('It's really hard, and you hurt'). But, most importantly, she recently turned 60 and discovered something profound. 'I don't give a rat's arse about things that aren't important any more,' she says. 'I don't obsess over criticism. I don't obsess over much really because I've worked out that the most important things are your family, your friends, the people that love you, and finding your passion, finding what gives you joy. 'I was such a people pleaser for so long, so much imposter syndrome, but I've now gotten to an age where I think, 'How do I feel about that?' I was so hard on myself for such a long time. I was so vindictive towards myself. I had such self loathing in my late 20s and early 30s, just for choices that I'd made that hurt people. Rebecca Gibney during rehearsals for Circle Mirror Transformation with Jessie Lawrence (left) and Nicholas Brown. Credit: Daniel Boud 'I really was in a bit of a bad state about myself. The great thing about being older is you actually start caring about yourself more and your self-worth and your self-care. Because if I can't look after myself, I can't look after anyone else.' Gibney – New Zealand born and bred, an All Blacks supporter, but Australian TV royalty – is at STC in the throes of rehearsal for Circle Mirror Transformation , her return to the stage after 20 years and only her third time treading the boards. Gibney is utterly delightful in person, chatty ('My mum says I can talk the leg off a tin pot') and sparky with ridiculously bright blue eyes (I normally wouldn't mention it, but when you spend a lifetime watching someone on screen, it's funny the things you don't notice). She is wearing a traditional Maori greenstone necklace and her Kiwi accent pops in and out of the conversation. She throws her head back when she laughs. 'I turned 60 last year, and for some reason, it dawned on me,' she says. 'And I think there's a lot of women when they get older, or people in general, when they get older, it's that realisation that, OK, I've got 20, 30, 40 years left, and knowing how quickly the last 20 went, I don't want to waste time being scared of things, or frightened of things or not doing things because I'm scared. And I know that if I don't keep changing and growing and challenging myself, I could just curl up in a ball. And I don't want that. I want to be around a lot longer.' Rebecca Gibney and dance partner Ian Waite on Dancing With the Stars. She's tackling an American accent for Circle Mirror Transformation , which is set in a small-town community centre in Vermont, and written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker. Gibney plays Marty, a hippie dippy drama teacher – 'she teaches pottery classes and she teaches jewellery classes, and she's probably got tattoos' – who is tackling an adult drama class for the first time. 'She's really giving it 150 per cent,' Gibney says. 'But layered underneath that, though, is a troubled marriage, which comes out over the course of the play. You start to realise that she may not be as happy and shiny as she appears.' Her husband is played by 'possibly the nicest man on the planet', Cameron Daddo, who Gibney worked with on the TV travel show Luxury Escapes . 'When we're travelling, I always have the, 'What's next? What's next? When do we have to be here? [mindset]',' she says. 'I'm like, 'We have to be here at this time. We've got to do this.' I'm always thinking ahead, whereas Cameron's like, 'But wow, look at that table, isn't it great, man?'' Rebecca Gibney poses with the Hall of Fame Award at last year's 64th Logie Awards. Credit: Getty Images Gibney never formally studied acting. She fell into it after an early modelling career – a fantastic snap on her Instagram page shows her wearing a sash that reads 'Ms Resilient Flooring' in the 1980s – and built a career that reads as the greatest hits of Australian TV: The Flying Doctors , All Together Now , Halifax f.p. , Stingers , Packed to the Rafters and Halifax: Retribution . Last year, she was inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame, with her son Zac Bell doing the honours. But it was this long history on the small screen that gave Gibney her biggest doubt: could she crack it on the stage? Especially a stage that has regularly featured some of the titans of Australian acting: Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Heather Mitchell, Pamela Rabe. Rebecca Gibney watches Cameron Daddo during rehearsals for Circle Mirror Transformation. 'There is that imposter syndrome thing that sort of has come flooding back a little bit,' Gibney says. 'Certainly, last week, in the first week of rehearsals, I was like, 'Oh, geez, what have I done? I'm not going to be good at this.' You know the little voice on the shoulder that just goes, 'You're out of your depth. You don't know what you're doing.' Loading 'But to have such an incredible, supportive cast around me and the director [Dean Bryant] who just went, 'Yes, you can.' And I think something clicked in me yesterday. My son said to me once, 'Mum, fear and excitement are the same feeling. You've just got to flip it.' And so I got home last night and I went, 'I'm going to turn this into excitement.' 'So I actually went, 'Today I'm going to smash it. I'm going to know my lines. I'm going to project [my voice], I'm going to really do incredibly well', and I'm just going to have to keep telling myself that until opening night.' Gibney's 40-year TV career has given her an eagle-eyed view of a local industry that has undergone tremendous upheaval in the past couple of decades. Those cosy weekly family sitcoms, such as All Together Now and Packed to the Rafters , are gone, while police and crime dramas are more likely to be a limited series instead of a prime-time staple that runs for years. 'I think people want that [local dramas] now,' Gibney says. 'If you look at the demographics and the people that are watching regular [free-to-air] television, they're actually much older. And the younger generation, it's the streaming services and stuff. But people love a good drama. 'Look at The Survivors [on Netflix]. That's, like, No.2 globally at the moment or something, and made in Tasmania by the beautiful Tony Ayres and Cherie Nowlan and Andy Walker … It's just so fantastic that shows like that are being made [by Netflix], but it's like, 'OK, wait a second, that's Australian, you know? Why are we not investing more in our own product? Why are we waiting for someone else to make it?' Gibney and Cameron Daddo on Packed to the Rafters. The friends are to star in Circle Mirror Transformation. 'And shows like Packed to the Rafters , there is a home for that. We don't have another show like that at the moment. I think there's a comfort to that, seeing a show about a family that's just like any other regular Australian family. That's why people loved it so much. It was a show that they could all watch with the whole family.' Loading As for what Gibney has planned next, she can't say – well, she tells me, it's just that I can't tell you – but there is one thing she is certain of. 'I want to start being more raw and more real and not caring so much,' she says. 'I'm happy to play dress-ups, but the reality is, [today] I'm in a jean jacket and my hair's a bit all over the shop, and I don't have my wefts [hair extensions] in, and I don't really care.
The Age
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
‘I don't give a rat's arse': Rebecca Gibney's year of living dangerously
This is Rebecca Gibney's year of living dangerously. She is stepping on stage for the Sydney Theatre Company ('Me on stage, in general, terrifies me') and she's been waltzing her away through the TV show Dancing with the Stars ('It's really hard, and you hurt'). But, most importantly, she recently turned 60 and discovered something profound. 'I don't give a rat's arse about things that aren't important any more,' she says. 'I don't obsess over criticism. I don't obsess over much really because I've worked out that the most important things are your family, your friends, the people that love you, and finding your passion, finding what gives you joy. 'I was such a people pleaser for so long, so much imposter syndrome, but I've now gotten to an age where I think, 'How do I feel about that?' I was so hard on myself for such a long time. I was so vindictive towards myself. I had such self loathing in my late 20s and early 30s, just for choices that I'd made that hurt people. 'I really was in a bit of a bad state about myself. The great thing about being older is you actually start caring about yourself more and your self-worth and your self-care. Because if I can't look after myself, I can't look after anyone else.' Gibney – New Zealand born and bred, an All Blacks supporter, but Australian TV royalty – is at STC in the throes of rehearsal for Circle Mirror Transformation, her return to the stage after 20 years and only her third time treading the boards. Gibney is utterly delightful in person, chatty ('My mum says I can talk the leg off a tin pot') and sparky with ridiculously bright blue eyes (I normally wouldn't mention it, but when you spend a lifetime watching someone on screen, it's funny the things you don't notice). She is wearing a traditional Maori greenstone necklace and her Kiwi accent pops in and out of the conversation. She throws her head back when she laughs. 'I turned 60 last year, and for some reason, it dawned on me,' she says. 'And I think there's a lot of women when they get older, or people in general, when they get older, it's that realisation that, OK, I've got 20, 30, 40 years left, and knowing how quickly the last 20 went, I don't want to waste time being scared of things, or frightened of things or not doing things because I'm scared. And I know that if I don't keep changing and growing and challenging myself, I could just curl up in a ball. And I don't want that. I want to be around a lot longer.' She's tackling an American accent for Circle Mirror Transformation, which is set in a small-town community centre in Vermont, and written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker. Gibney plays Marty, a hippie dippy drama teacher – 'she teaches pottery classes and she teaches jewellery classes, and she's probably got tattoos' – who is tackling an adult drama class for the first time. 'She's really giving it 150 per cent,' Gibney says. 'But layered underneath that, though, is a troubled marriage, which comes out over the course of the play. You start to realise that she may not be as happy and shiny as she appears.' Her husband is played by 'possibly the nicest man on the planet', Cameron Daddo, who Gibney worked with on the TV travel show Luxury Escapes. 'When we're travelling, I always have the, 'What's next? What's next? When do we have to be here? [mindset]',' she says. 'I'm like, 'We have to be here at this time. We've got to do this.' I'm always thinking ahead, whereas Cameron's like, 'But wow, look at that table, isn't it great, man?'' Gibney never formally studied acting. She fell into it after an early modelling career – a fantastic snap on her Instagram page shows her wearing a sash that reads 'Ms Resilient Flooring' in the 1980s – and built a career that reads as the greatest hits of Australian TV: The Flying Doctors, All Together Now, Halifax f.p., Stingers, Packed to the Rafters and Halifax: Retribution. Last year, she was inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame, with her son Zac Bell doing the honours. But it was this long history on the small screen that gave Gibney her biggest doubt: could she crack it on the stage? Especially a stage that has regularly featured some of the titans of Australian acting: Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, Heather Mitchell, Pamela Rabe. 'There is that imposter syndrome thing that sort of has come flooding back a little bit,' Gibney says. 'Certainly, last week, in the first week of rehearsals, I was like, 'Oh, geez, what have I done? I'm not going to be good at this.' You know the little voice on the shoulder that just goes, 'You're out of your depth. You don't know what you're doing.' Loading 'But to have such an incredible, supportive cast around me and the director [Dean Bryant] who just went, 'Yes, you can.' And I think something clicked in me yesterday. My son said to me once, 'Mum, fear and excitement are the same feeling. You've just got to flip it.' And so I got home last night and I went, 'I'm going to turn this into excitement.' 'So I actually went, 'Today I'm going to smash it. I'm going to know my lines. I'm going to project [my voice], I'm going to really do incredibly well', and I'm just going to have to keep telling myself that until opening night.' Gibney's 40-year TV career has given her an eagle-eyed view of a local industry that has undergone tremendous upheaval in the past couple of decades. Those cosy weekly family sitcoms, such as All Together Now and Packed to the Rafters, are gone, while police and crime dramas are more likely to be a limited series instead of a prime-time staple that runs for years. 'I think people want that [local dramas] now,' Gibney says. 'If you look at the demographics and the people that are watching regular [free-to-air] television, they're actually much older. And the younger generation, it's the streaming services and stuff. But people love a good drama. 'Look at The Survivors [on Netflix]. That's, like, No.2 globally at the moment or something, and made in Tasmania by the beautiful Tony Ayres and Cherie Nowlan and Andy Walker … It's just so fantastic that shows like that are being made [by Netflix], but it's like, 'OK, wait a second, that's Australian, you know? Why are we not investing more in our own product? Why are we waiting for someone else to make it?' 'And shows like Packed to the Rafters, there is a home for that. We don't have another show like that at the moment. I think there's a comfort to that, seeing a show about a family that's just like any other regular Australian family. That's why people loved it so much. It was a show that they could all watch with the whole family.' Loading As for what Gibney has planned next, she can't say – well, she tells me, it's just that I can't tell you – but there is one thing she is certain of. 'I want to start being more raw and more real and not caring so much,' she says. 'I'm happy to play dress-ups, but the reality is, [today] I'm in a jean jacket and my hair's a bit all over the shop, and I don't have my wefts [hair extensions] in, and I don't really care. 'I would love to bring that to the screen as well, because I think women, particularly, want to see themselves reflected on screen, ageing normally, with crow's feet … I'm not opposed to [cosmetic procedures]. Go get your facelift, have your Botox – I've had Botox before, I've had all that stuff. I tried filler once, and it just looked really bad, so I went, 'I'm never doing that again' – but I just want to look like I'm ageing. 'I look like a 60-year-old that's looking after herself. I have no qualms about saying I'm 60. It's fine. It's great. Actually, it's better than being 55. Sixty is awesome, and I think 70 is going to be even better.'
