A broken-hearted Olivia fought back tears at the bedside of Ian Turpie in his final days.
It was the swinging 60s and a teenage Olivia Newton-John was just another wannabe singer with stars in her eyes when she met a clean shaven TV host called Ian Turpie. “He was Olivia’s first big love,” remembers a Turpie family friend, who says a 21-year-old Ian was instantly smitten with the pretty blonde singer, who was just 16 when they met on the set of Time For Terry.
“Olivia was a gorgeous girl with a sweet voice, and as soon as she and Ian sang together there was amazing chemistry – he was bowled over by her and she fell hard for him.”
The young sweethearts captured the attention of the nation, but according to friends, Olivia’s mum Irene was the quintessential “stage mum” who had big plans for her daughter. “As soon as the romance started getting really serious she whisked Olivia off to London, leaving a broken-hearted Ian behind,” explains another family friend.
Olivia was soon on a path to stardom, while Ian, who went on to become an Aussie TV game show legend affectionately known as Turps, met another beautiful blonde, Jan.
Read more about when Ian and Oliva were reunited shortly before he died in this week’s Woman’s Day on sale Monday March 19, 2012.
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