Sam Pang confirmed as host of the 2023 Logies Awards

Stellar can exclusively reveal comedian Sam Pang will host this year’s Logie Awards, but the question everyone is asking is, can he save Australian TV’s ‘Night of Nights’?

His first experience of the Logies almost 14 years ago left comedian and TV presenter Sam Pang with no misconceptions about his place in the pecking order of the entertainment industry. As television’s glitterati gathered at the Crown Palladium ballroom in Melbourne, Pang almost needed binoculars from his table to see Rebecca Gibney claim her Gold Logie onstage. “Our seats were basically at Flinders Street station because we were a long, long way away,” he tells Stellar in his trademark deadpan manner.

But there was a reason for Pang – now the popular co-host of the Seven Network AFL panel show The Front Bar and a regular panellist on Network 10 comedy quiz-show Have You Been Paying Attention? – to join the festivities that night back in 2009: the then radio presenter had just made his TV debut on the short-lived SBS history quiz show ADbc, and the seeds of his hallmark cheekiness had been planted. “I don’t know why, but I asked for a plus one,” he says of his first Logies, easing back into his chair with the knowing smile of someone who is a natural storyteller, even though the elusive Pang doesn’t usually give interviews.

Sam Pang has been named as the host of this year’s Logie awards. Picture: Rebecca Bana.

“I was single at the time, and I wanted to bring a mate,” he recalls. “And [the bosses at SBS] looked at me like I was insane and said, ‘Not only can you not bring a plus one, but you’re lucky to be invited yourself!’ And then I got there on the night and Molly Meldrum had brought his dog, Ziggy. So, I couldn’t bring a mate and Molly could bring his dog. It was a reminder of where I sat in the entertainment scale.”

A lot has changed since that ceremony, and Pang – who has risen through the ranks to become one of the most in-demand media talents in Australia – will this year have the best view in the house: as the host of the 2023 Logie Awards. When he steps up to the podium, it will be the first time in more than a decade that TV’s night of nights will have an official standalone emcee, the last being Shane Bourne back in 2011.

Perhaps that’s because whether it’s at the Logies, the Golden Globes or the Oscars, presiding over televised awards ceremonies has become increasingly tough in an age where anything from a host’s appearance to their punchlines can be scrutinised on social media in seconds.

Sam Pang accepts Kitty Flanagan award for most popular actress, one of the funniest moments in years at the Logies.

After being lampooned for her Logies hosting stint in 2009, media personality Gretel Killeen later told the ABC that the experience had “absolutely killed that person who existed up until then”, while journalist and comedian Wendy Harmer likened her 2002 experience to cutting off your arm with a blunt chainsaw.

With reviews like that, it’s little wonder that hosting the Logies is often described as a poisoned chalice. “That idea of a poisoned chalice is interesting, and I associate that term with the Logies as well, and I guess that’s why the last host was Bournie in 2011,” Pang says. “Obviously, I wouldn’t have taken it if I genuinely felt it would be a poisoned chalice. So why did I say yes to the job? I think it’s because I grew up with the Logies and I’m thrilled to be part of a night that celebrates an industry that I feel lucky to be a part of.”

The appointment of Pang, 49, to master of ceremonies marks a return to the Logies

of old, when the likes of Graham Kennedy, Bert Newton and Daryl Somers shepherded proceedings with an arsenal of zingers. It’s also significant because it will be the first time in the entire history of the event that a non-white person – specifically, in Pang’s case, of Chinese heritage – has hosted.

Sam Pang is the first Logies host in 12 years. Picture: Tina Smigielski

“I’m not Rosa Parks,” Pang quips, “but it is nice to hear that [I’m making some sort of difference for people]. Growing up, I didn’t see many Asians on TV. I always joke that

the only time I saw an Asian character on Neighbours was when some money went missing from the till at Lassiters. But I think things have changed for the better.”

While representation has never been the driving force in Pang’s career, it has been a welcome by-product of his success. “Really, I’m just trying to be funny,” he insists. And before that, the passionate Carlton supporter dreamt of playing footy. “I had a brief run with Collingwood’s under-19s, which is their thirds. But in saying that, I’ve still got [The Front Bar co-stars] Andy [Maher] and Mick [Molloy] covered in terms of the standard of the group.”

Fellow comedian Kitty Flanagan, who is a regular panellist on Have You Been Paying Attention?, says it was a testament to footy-mad Pang’s loyalty that he hosted her first book launch at the Beaumaris Motor Yacht Squadron clubhouse on the same day as Carlton’s home opener in 2018 – and didn’t get paid, either. “He did it anyway,” she tells Stellar. “But he hasn’t stopped giving me stick about it ever since. He maintains that the highlight was getting to park in the space ‘Reserved for the Commodore’. To this day, he insists that I address him as Commodore.”

Sam Pang and Ed Kavalee are regulars on Have You Been Paying Attention, hosted by Ed Kavalee.

Flanagan and Pang became good friends after first meeting on the set of the comedy quiz show in 2013. Asked whether she thinks he’s brave to agree to host the Logies, she laughingly replies: “Au contraire! I think the Logies is brave to take on Sam Pang. I cannot wait to see this.”

She, along with friends Molloy, Santo Cilauro, Tom Gleisner and Rob Sitch could help Pang craft a killer opening monologue. “And if I had Daryl’s number, I would call him,” Pang adds with a sly grin of seeking the guidance of five-time host Somers. “I’m canvassing opinions and running things past all these very funny and talented friends of mine to see if they think it’s funny. And then, if there’s a consensus, I’ll be good to go.”

As someone who grew up admiring the talents of US comedy kings Dean Martin and Don Rickles, Pang is also well schooled on the art of roasting. To that point, he says a host can get away with the odd jab, even if it’s directed at a friend, “if it’s done with a smile and with love”.

Sam Pang says if he has a crack at someone at the Logies it will be done with a smile. Picture: Rebecca Bana

“I have no agenda with that,” Pang continues. “If I have a crack at someone, it’s to have a laugh. It’s only because you either respect them or you’re friends or you like them. I come from a position where I’m punching up. It’s a room of Logie nominees, so they’re all successful and talented in their own right. I think that everyone wants to have fun and have a laugh and they don’t mind. They’re all in a world where it doesn’t happen to them that often, so when someone does make fun of them, they like it.”

However, that’s not always the case. At the 2007 Logies, Kyle Sandilands was so miffed by the jokes directed at him by that year’s presenter Dave Hughes, the radio personality threatened to punch Hughes in the throat. “I will stay away from Kyle then, that’s a good tip,” Pang says wryly. “Look, none of [the jokes] are mean-spirited. I’m just trying not to be boring.”

That seems unlikely. In the eyes of many, Pang’s acceptance speeches last year on behalf of Have You Been Paying Attention? for the Most Popular Comedy Program and Flanagan’s Silver Logie for Most Popular Actress were among the highlights of the 2022 telecast. Pang jokes that he only agreed to speak on behalf of Flanagan because they both thought she had no chance of winning in a category that was “filled with heavy hitters like Deb Mailman”.

Sam Pang, pictured in a charity match from 2016, is mad Carlton fan. Picture: Michael Dodge/Getty Images

His performances on the Logies stage so impressed Andy Lee that The Hundred host turned to the Nine Network bigwigs at his table and said, “You need to get this guy to host the Logies next year.”

Now, as Pang prepares to do just that, Lee is confident his recommendation will prove canny. “He is so genuine about whatever he says even though he’s taking the piss out of everyone,” Lee tells Stellar. “And he’s got that cheeky delivery that allows him to take no prisoners and get away with it. I think they’re a hell of a good [set of] attributes for hosting an awards show.”

Pang isn’t sure exactly when Seven’s chief executive officer James Warburton began courting him for the gig; if conversations were had at the 2022 after-parties, he doesn’t remember.

“I went to a few of them, so I might have signed something on a napkin at one of them,” he jokes of inking a deal to host. But there’s no doubt that getting to this point of his career has been a mixture of luck and carefully calculated decisions – and it’s all the more remarkable when you consider that he was still working in a suburban bottle shop at the age of 28.

Sam Pang – Australia’s new Logies host. Picture: Rebecca Bana

Fortunately, his neighbour at the time was Triple J’s Vicki Kerrigan, now the Drive presenter for ABC Local Radio Darwin. “She told me that if you want to get into radio, you just go down there and volunteer,” he explains. “So, I went to 3CR [Community Radio in Melbourne] and from there I ended up at Triple R. I was a late starter.”

Cilauro, a fellow veteran of Triple R, bonded with Pang over their shared love of old-style comedy and their childhoods spent as inner-city Melbourne kids, albeit years apart. “We grew up in the same part of Collingwood, and he grew up in a place that was ironically called Easy Street, because it was anything but easy,” recalls Cilauro, who eventually invited Pang to be on his soccer panel show in 2010. “And to survive in that neighbourhood and make people laugh isn’t easy. He did things the hard way and never complains about it.”

Thanks to his prolific production across all media formats, Pang has earnt his fame while also keeping the press at bay. “The radio was just in Melbourne,” Pang explains of his fame. “The Front Bar is more just [popular] in the footy states. Have You Been Paying Attention? has a national audience and Eurovision, when I was doing it, was once a year, so I’ve been calculated [in what I do] so that I’m not doing too much.

“And so, when I was doing all these things, the idea of also doing a profile or an interview felt unnecessary because if people wanted to see me or hear me, there were already plenty of options,” he adds of his low press profile. “The idea that I was doing more felt a bit narcissistic.”

Sam Pang on the over of Stellar.

Search for Pang online and, apart from a Wikipedia page that functions as an extended resumé, details about his life are scant. There’s no back catalogue of deep Pang interviews, he’s never sat down to discuss his road to stardom, nor opened up his home to pose with his family, and, for this feature, he politely requested that we refrain from talking about his partner and child. While he has a Twitter account, he only posts a handful of times a year, and it’s usually to promote his work.

Despite all this, Pang is uncomfortable with being described as a “private person” while granting an interview with Stellar because, he points out, it’s surely an oxymoron then to be on the cover of one of the most widely read magazines in the country. “The idea that I’m very private, when I was on radio and doing two television shows [seems absurd],” he explains. “I would have thought if you’re private, you wouldn’t be in the public eye at all.”

He will concede that, in a world where people seem to Instagram everything from what they bought at the shops to whom they’re dating, he is a rare beast.

“To me that sort of stuff just isn’t interesting,” he admits. “Even if you like me, do you really want to know what I’m having for breakfast?”

He pauses, before adding – with a perfectly timed feigned sigh, “A short black … and a bottle of whisky. But you won’t be seeing any pictures.”

The TV Week Logie Awards will air on Sunday, July 30, on Channel 7 and 7Plus.

Read the full interview with Sam Pang inside Stellar, out on Sunday in The Sunday Telegraph (NSW), Sunday Herald Sun (Victoria), Sunday Mail (SA), and The Sunday Mail Queensland).

Originally published as Sam Pang confirmed as host of the 2023 Logies Awards