Kay McGrath on love, Ali and cosmetic surgery
Veteran Channel 7 newsreader Kay McGrath has reflected on her incredible career and what her personal life looks like now.
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It’s nearly five years since Kay McGrath walked away from her dream job but she freely admits she is still working out who she is when she is no longer a newsreader.
Make that the polished, poised and much-loved TV personality invited into Queensland lounge rooms for more than four decades.
McGrath is now 68 – “and very proud of it” – but after departing the Channel 7 newsdesk in January 2020 on her own terms, says “I still haven’t mastered the art of transitioning”.
“I always prided myself on believing that I wasn’t what I did, it didn’t define me,” she says as we sit conspicuously among a sea of men in suits in Fatcow on James St.
“But I have to confess, I have struggled with that – if I’m not a 6pm newsreader, who am I? – and I thought I’d done a lot of preparatory work to avoid that, but I think it’s a reality for most people, whether it’s the bank manager, taxi driver or butcher.
“Identity transition is going to be a huge thing as the Baby Boomers come through, and we need something to transition to – so that’s my big light bulb moment, and I’m fortunate I have a lot of interests to keep me busy.”
That she does.
McGrath, awarded an OAM in 2017 for her contribution to child protection and journalism, remains keenly involved in charity work as an ambassador (since 1989) for Act for Kids and patron (since 2005) of the Daniel Morcombe Foundation.
She also is a member of the State Government Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Council, and in 2019 was recognised as a Queensland Great.
“I worked out really quickly when I was gifted the opportunity to get on the newsdesk, and it was a gift, that what made me feel better and sleep better at night was to actually give back,” she says.
“So that’s when I got involved in child safety and 90 per cent of the talks I did were all for free. It’s not hard to be kind to people.”
Kindness is not a word widely associated with the world of television.
Just a few months ago, in July, her long-term colleague Sharyn Ghidella was axed after 17 years – while getting her hair done for a promotional shoot.
It was one of many shake-ups by the network’s news director Anthony De Ceglie and was understood to have shocked Seven chairman Kerry Stokes.
McGrath is measured in her response when asked about the treatment of Ghidella (now reading the 5pm news on Channel 10).
“All I would say is that this was a particularly unfortunate and very unskilled decision and Seven have sought to rebuild their brand and they are very focused on regaining trust,” she says.
“It’s a high pressure industry and often decisions get through that shouldn’t – and it’s not my position to publicly comment on it, except to say that it was an unskilled decision and they happen every day of the week in any industry.
“Sadly, when a poor decision is made in the broadcast industry it is hugely public, which makes it particularly painful for everybody involved.”
While McGrath still does projects for Seven, she is happily settling into what she calls Act Three.
“I stole that from Jane Fonda,” she laughs.
“There is a whole new industry that’s growing around this and a lot of money being made,” says McGrath, a paid ambassador for Reside Communities.
“I’m intrigued by it and really getting invested in this area of midlife, and I call it midlife because there is American research that shows because we’re living longer and midlife by some experts is between 35 and 75.”
McGrath is grateful for her health – and works hard at it.
“So far I haven’t had a bombshell health diagnosis, and I probably shouldn’t be saying this in case I jinx myself, but neither has Richard (Moore, her fiance) or my sons (Nick, 32, who installs art at Mona in Tasmania, and Joey, 28, a landscaper in Brisbane).
“I try to walk every day, Richard gets behind me with a sharp stick, and encourages me up hills and down dales, and I do pilates,” she says.
“I went to a personal trainer for years and I was grateful I could afford that, not everyone can. But I’m now working out with the Apple fitness app that came with my phone.”
McGrath is also nurturing her spiritual side, and has passed her level one mindfulness training with the Australian Mindfulness Institute.
“I try to practice mindfulness daily … being present in the moment. To me, it is a way to self-regulate, to create a sense of calm and spaciousness in life, and it was particularly helpful when I was live on the air,” she says.
“I’ve been doing this since 1979, meditating and taking an interest in personal growth and Buddhist philosophy basically, and I think it brings us into calm, equanimity and perspective.
“Couple that with ageing, and I guess that’s where a degree of wisdom comes, in keeping life in perspective, knowing not to sweat the small stuff, and feeling comfortable in your own skin, particularly when it starts to sag!”
McGrath volunteers that she’s had cosmetic procedures but adds her motto is “forget about trying to stay youthful and instead be useful”.
“I’ve had a few jabs, but would I go under the knife? No, because I’d be terrified and I wouldn’t want to lose this face I’ve grown quite attached to, but also I feel a sense of responsibility to young people and, without putting tickets on myself, I think people do watch and I want to demonstrate how to age gracefully.”
McGrath says there is no harm in “a little tweak” but “you don’t want to look like you’ve had work done”.
“And I worry about these young women, they’re all starting to look the same, and that’s really sad; women are being exploited.”
Like many parents in the third act, McGrath is also conscious of the financial hurdles young people face in getting into the real estate market.
Something few people know is that New Zealand born McGrath lost both of her parents in her 20s.
“I was an orphan at 24. Mum was 40 when she had me and it was a different generation. Health spans were shorter, and she had a stroke when I was 23,” she says.
“Dad died of bowel cancer the next year, but my older sister (Josie) and I were very fortunate my father was a bit of an entrepreneur and his will helped me get into the property market, whereas these days it’s not affordable for young people.
“It’s a dilemma, and this is where this bank of mum and dad has come from, and I feel slightly guilty when I think about spending the kids’ inheritance. I get over that though,” she smiles.
McGrath is funny. She has a wry sense of humour and is frequently self-deprecating.
When asked about her most memorable interviews, she doesn’t hesitate.
“I was very green young cub in New Zealand (in the late 1970s) and Muhammad Ali was in Auckland and for some unknown reason I was dispatched to interview this famous pugilist – I didn’t know what pugilist meant back then – and I found myself outside one of the leading hotels sitting on the stairs waiting for him because he’d agreed to run and talk with me.
“And I tried frantically to think of some intelligent questions. I really can’t remember what I asked him but I do remember how generous and kind he was.
“He was a very big imposing black American boxer, and he deigned to spend some time with this really ignorant young female reporter.
“He was so gracious, as opposed to Bob Geldof, when I was dispatched to interview (Irish band) The Boomtown Rats.”
It was 1980 and McGrath, new to Brisbane, rocked up poolside at the Park Royal Hotel.
“He was just Bob, not a sir at his stage, and a bit curt and prickly,” she recalls.
“Years later I was in the newsroom and Sir Bob was in town doing the breakfast speaking circuit and I overheard someone say we had an offer of an exclusive and I said, ‘I’ll be taking that, thank you very much’.
“So I googled him, found out he liked red wine and bought a local Sirromet red, and when we were all set up (to record) I said, ‘Sir Bob, this is a peace offering’, so I immediately got his attention, and he said, ‘oh, why’s that?’, and I said, ‘for being an absolute imbecile last time I interviewed you’.
“We had a laugh, and he proceeded to say things (on air) like, ‘well Kay, the last time we spoke’ or “yes Kay, you will remember …’ He had learned to suffer fools,” she laughs.
One story that shook McGrath to the core was the 2003 murder of 13-year-old Sunshine Coast boy Daniel Morcombe.
Recounting this most horrific of events, we both end up in tears.
McGrath was a natural to cover the case, given her years of experience in the child protection space, and in 2014, standing outside Brisbane’s Supreme Court, she delivered the verdict all of Australia had been waiting for.
“We had rehearsed it, both guilty and not guilty, but the thought of a not-guilty verdict (for Brett Peter Cowan) was incomprehensible,” she says.
“So when I heard ‘guilty’ and I still feel it now, recounting it to you, I felt it from my belly all the way up, this sense of vindication and relief for Bruce and Denise.
“Losing a son to such an evil, evil predator, then for them to stand up, hunt him down, bury their son and build this legacy in the Daniel Morcombe Foundation is incredible.”
McGrath says reflection is a vital part of growing older.
“We don’t pause enough, and it’s important to look back,” she says.
Equally, it’s important to look forward – and there’s plenty on McGrath’s radar.
She and Moore, a semi-retired businessman, have been engaged since 2016 and share their time between Brisbane and an acreage property in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland.
“Richard is one year older, next year is a big number for him, and he’s offered very generously, in fact I told him (she laughs), and he’s going to tread water for 12 months and let me catch up and we’ll celebrate 70 together.
“I want to have a destination celebration with family, not too far, not Europe,” she says.
McGrath also has a stepdaughter, Leisa, from her first marriage to former police officer Stacey Kirmos, the father of her sons, while Moore has a daughter, Perri, and granddaughter Hunter.
“Richard and I have found a rhythm and I’m so grateful I found him, we found each other,” McGrath says.
“He supports me and understands that I still need to plug into city life.
“We do have one of the longest engagements, but I think it’s a bit sexier to be engaged than married.”
Kay’s verdict
Fatcow on James St
Caesar salad 9/10
I had the 220g Rump MB9+
9/10
Originally published as Kay McGrath on love, Ali and cosmetic surgery
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