As Tony Armstrong accepted the Graham Kennedy Award for Most Popular New Talent at the 2022 TV WEEK Logie Awards, the first person he thanked was his “superstar” mum, Margaret Anne Armstrong.
“She’s done everything for me… I wouldn’t be up here without her. And please give her a clap; she’ll love it back home.”
Having never met his Aboriginal father, Tony was raised by his white mother in Cabramatta, in south-western Sydney, NSW.
Tony won the TV WEEK Logie for Most Popular New Talent.
(Image: Getty)Growing up, the AFL player and ABC presenter was one of just three Indigenous kids attending his boarding school – the same one his mother taught at.
“I used to get pretty nervous, because kids are ruthless,” he told Mamamia’s No Filter podcast.
“They’ll just come out and ask questions. And when I was younger, I didn’t know s–t about (culture), really… So I got bloody good at ripping yarns, because when you’re a kid, you want to come across as knowing who you are.”
WATCH: Tony Armstrong on winning the Graham Kennedy Award at the 2022 TV WEEK Logie Awards. Article continues after video
What did help Tony connect to his heritage was an Aboriginal Dance Theatre in Redfern, Sydney NSW, that his mum took him to regularly.
“We used to go there on Saturdays, which was great. So I filled my cup a bit there,” he told Domain.
It’s clear that the former AFL player is exceptionally close with his mum, as he previously confirmed to The Guardian.
“When I was younger, I didn’t know s— about (culture), really,” Tony told No Filter.
(Image: Instagram)“We’ve got a fantastically strong relationship and I love her to bits,” the proud Barranbinva man gushed to the publication.
“And she is hilariously firm but fair. She’s never backwards about coming forwards and giving me some feedback, that’s for sure. She’ll say, ‘Tony, get a bloody haircut’.”
“She’s so chuffed and so proud, which is great. And, without getting too cheesy, if feels like we’re both kind of enjoying the wins as they come.”
“She is hilariously firm but fair,” Tony told The Guardian about his mum, Margaret.
(Image: Instagram)As for his father, while Tony isn’t interested in pursuing a relationship, he is keen to visit his old man’s country in Bourke, NSW.
The Graham Kennedy award winner’s travel plans were put on hold due to the pandemic, but they remain “at the forefront of (his) mind”.
“For me, it’s probably less about meeting my father but about getting back to country and meeting my mob and my family,” he said to Domain. “If the old man is there, he’s there, but if not, so be it.”
