Years ago, when I was a cub reporter chasing celebrities for Sydney’s Daily Telegraph newspaper, I had an A-list diary clash. Perennial superstar Joan Collins was in town, promoting a book or a perfume or something like that.
Also visiting Sydney on a promotional tour was Andrew Shue (or Andrew Who? as he has now become known) – the then star of the then all-conquering Aaron Spelling drama, Melrose Place (because, yes, I am that old).
With my intrepid newsman’s hat firmly on, I trundled off to interview Andrew Shue. As he bobbed around the harbour on the back of a boat chartered for the purpose of showing him Sydney Harbour while journalists took turns to speak to him, it was all he could do to acknowledge my presence. In response to what I am certain must have been incredibly probing questions, Shue offered up a few guttural grunts and the distinct impression that he would rather be anywhere else in the world. Immediately after the interview, I rushed across town to the Sheraton-On-The-Park for my scheduled audience with Ms. Collins. After decades in the industry, after chalking up more movies and TV series than I had had earth-shattering celebrity scoops, she had, to my mind, earned the right to be a diva.
Stepping into her hotel suite, I worried that I was about to be haughtily dismissed as unworthy of her time. And yet she couldn’t have been more expansive, more generous or more accommodating. She posed happily for my photographer, making sure he had every shot he wanted, she willingly took her cues from my every loaded question and happily served up the quotes she knew I was looking for. Here was a lady who clearly knew how to play the game. After years in showbiz, she understood what was expected of her. She knew that celebrity could be fleeting – that longevity in her chosen profession depended on how well she played the fame game. She was old school.
I was reminded of Joan Collins a couple of weeks ago when I sat down with Dannii Minogue for one of this month’s featured profiles in the Weekly. You can’t help but like Dannii. She’s disarmingly warm and impressively unaffected. For someone who became a household name at the age of seven, she’s done remarkably well to carve out the career she now enjoys. Say what you like about Dannii Minogue (and plenty of people have), you can’t deny that she’s a survivor. In an industry renowned for its fickleness, she’s still standing after more than thirty years in the spotlight. And despite living in a rarefied showbiz realm, she’s still remarkably grounded. When she talks of family – as she did extensively in our interview – it’s with genuine affection.
Over the course of the day we spent together, Dannii spoke about former relationships in her life and how and why they didn’t flourish. She told about how she had all but given up on finding love when English footballer, Kris Smith crashed into her life. Now pushing forty and about to become a mum for the first time, and with her career undergoing a renaissance thanks to the Australia’s Got Talent/X Factor TV franchises, the stars seem to have finally aligned for our Dannii. Which is no small thing for the girl who has been, until now, Australia’s most famous sister. And yes, she talked about sibling rivalry – specifically, what it has been like to live in Kylie’s shadow. The overall impression I took away from my Dannii encounter was that here was a woman who had finally found her mojo.
Watching her pose later for photographer David Gubert’s stunning series of portraits and seeing her absentmindedly stroke her belly as the camera flashed around her, I felt like I was looking at a young woman who is finally comfortable in her (currently expanding) skin. I hope I have managed to capture some of that in the article.
Your say: What do you think of Dannii? Who would you like to see featured in The Weekly? Share with us below.
Read more of Bryce’s exclusive chat with Dannii in the May issue of The Australian Women’s Weekly. Out now with Susan Boyle on the cover. Follow Bryce on Twitter.
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