As a sad little girl deserted by her mother, Tottie Goldsmith always had somebody to lean on – her superstar aunt, Olivia Newton-John.
Despite her global fame, Olivia was never too busy to listen or advise as her niece grew up and followed her into the entertainment business.
Now that’s a blessing Tottie hopes to return, comforting Olivia’s grief-stricken daughter Chloe Lattanzi after the music and movie legend’s untimely death.
“Olivia was more than an aunt to me,” Tottie recalls, in an exclusive interview with Woman’s Day. “My mother, her sister Rona, went to live in England when I was about two and pretty much started a new life there.
“Olivia was more than an aunt to me,” Tottie says.
(Image: Phillip Castleton)
“I got to know her when I was older, but Olivia was always more of a mother to me. She was the one who wanted us to feel loved and important. She was just beautiful, very maternal. I don’t think a week ever went by when she didn’t check in. It was so heartfelt.
“As time went by, it turned into more of a friendship. When I needed relationship advice, I would always ask Olivia because she was only 14 years older than me. It was like we belonged to the same tribe – the same sense of humour and working in the same industry.
“Since Olivia died, Chloe and I have been in touch a lot. If anything, it’s drawn us closer. We mean so much to each other. I care for her deeply, it’s really strong. She gets me and I get her.
“Olivia stepped up for me in the maternal role and I guess I’m doing the same for Chloe. It feels very natural between the two of us She’s 36 and I’m 60, so I could be her mother!”
“I got to know her when I was older, but Olivia was always more of a mother to me.”
(Image: Phillip Castleton)Together, they are continuing the much-mourned star’s holistic health crusade. In October, Tottie led Olivia’s Walk for Wellness – the first without its namesake – raising almost $2.7 million to help cancer patients survive and thrive.
Taking centre stage to honour Olivia’s legacy was a confronting prospect. With heartbroken Chloe shunning the spotlight, Tottie admits she felt “very intimidated” stepping into her aunt’s shoes by herself.
So it was a “goosebumps moment” when she saw a giant heart-shaped cloud in the rain-washed sky above Melbourne at the end of the walk. Suddenly she knew Olivia was still backing her, just as she always had.
“It was like magic, and then the sun broke through the cloud,” says the multi-talented actor, TV personality, wedding celebrant, writer and former Chantoozies singer. “Love and light, as Olivia always said. She was undeniably there, giving all of us a big ‘thank you’ thumbs up.
WATCH: Chloe Lattanzi pays tribute to her mother Olivia Newton-John. Article continues after video
“The (Olivia Newton-John) Cancer Wellness and Research Centre was her absolute passion, she put her heart and soul into it, and there’s so much support out there for her belief. It’s beautiful.”
For Tottie, who celebrated turning 60 earlier this year, life “feels very full and rich,” although that hasn’t always been the case. Divorce, single motherhood and a debilitating five-year battle with chronic fatigue syndrome have taken their toll – not to mention being hospitalised with Covid last November.
But today, Tottie is glowing at home in bayside Melbourne. “You’re talking to a woman who’s mid-cleanse at the moment. I do cleanses with an 80/20 rule – 80 per cent good stuff, 20 per cent indulgence. A martini or a cheeseboard with red wine, that’s about as naughty as I get nowadays, and I do have an absolute weakness for chips…
“It’s so important to clean out your body. Honestly, it’s the best.” But it’s more than macrobiotics putting a smile on her dial. She is beyond proud of her “selfless, sassy, soulful” daughter Layla, 29, who is caring for her father – Tottie’s ex, former Olympic skier Steven Lee – following a devastating stroke in 2020.
For Tottie, who celebrated turning 60 earlier this year, life “feels very full and rich,” although that hasn’t always been the case.
(Image: Supplied)“She’s extraordinary. What she does for him is amazing, but I know she’d do the same for me,” says Tottie, who was awarded an OAM for services to the community and performing arts in 2020. “She works her bum off and she’s so kind.”
That seems to run in the family from ONJ down. Seven months ago, Tottie adopted brutalised rescue dog Billiegoat from Broome. “I went to pick her up from the airport and I had butterflies like I was meeting the love of my life. And I was.
“I’ve never had a dog of my own before and she’s heaven, my shadow. It’s like I needed her soul and she needed mine. When I first got her she was traumatised, but she’s come such a long way. “It just shows what love does, you know. It brings peace.”
The former Prisoner, Fire, Neighbours and Sex/Life star felt her world was complete. Until her cute canine played Cupid, introducing Tottie to her now partner.
As a sad little girl deserted by her mother, Tottie Goldsmith always had somebody to lean on – her superstar aunt, Olivia Newton-John.
(Image: Supplied)It’s a far cry from the 2022 I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! contestant’s lowest points. Rejected by her mother Rona in the UK – “I was 19 when I tried to get to know her. If friends came over she pretended I was the nanny. Then she asked me to leave after three weeks” – she returned to Melbourne and was promptly held up at gunpoint.
Later, she lost five years struggling with chronic fatigue. “That was really rugged, because I was the sole breadwinner. Every time I thought I was well enough to work again, I’d end up exhausted, just sitting in my car crying.
“But you grow so much through those awful experiences. They give you compassion and understanding,” says the tireless Big Umbrella charity advocate. “I know how it feels to be sick and have nothing.”
Despite her global fame, Olivia was never too busy to listen or advise as her niece grew up and followed her into the entertainment business.
(Image: Supplied)Tottie laughs. “It’s been a rollercoaster of a life for sure, that’s why I’m kind to myself now. I have been so incredibly busy and fulfilled building my personal life to the place it is now, that at 60 I’m in better form to take on future projects than I have ever been. Watch this space!
“I really love acting, but also radio and hosting. It’s all great. I feel like the luckiest person in the world because I’ve had so many opportunities to try so many different things.
“I know how to groove with it all. I’m really blessed.”
