How Matt Shirvington hit the ground running

It’s been a year since Shirvo took the Sunrise reins from longrunning host Kochie – and the former Aussie sprinter has hit his stride.

It’s been 12 months since Matt Shirvington took over from David “Kochie” Koch at the helm of Channel 7’s Sunrise. It’s time that’s passed in the blink of an eye, if you ask the former Aussie sprinter and father of three. But getting up in the dark five days a week will do that to you, but still he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“There has not been a day where I’ve been driving into work in the middle of the night with no one else around, even in the winter time when it’s pouring rain, where I’ve thought, ‘do I have to do this again?’,” he tells Insider.

“It’s just been amazing.

“When you’re on air for almost four hours every day, five days a week – and it’s so jam-packed – it’s the most fast-paced show.

“You don’t get any downtime; it’s been a wild ride, the last 12 months.

The last year has passed in the blink of an eye for Matt Shirvington.

“I mean, 12 months ago, because I’d been filling in for Kochie and I knew Nat and ‘Beretts’ (Mark Beretta), and I knew Eddie (Edwina Batholomew), and there was rapport there – there were a lot of things that I was comfortable with.

“But that’s just grown, and it’s just gotten stronger.

“I think that’s the biggest change really – that great camaraderie and rapport that we all have. We’ve just got such a great unit now.”

Sunrise hosts Matt Shirvington and Natalie Barr at the Sydney Children's Hospital Foundation Gold Dinner last month. Picture: James Gourley/Getty Images

Whatever the recipe, it’s working. Sunrise is still the top breakfast TV show in the country, and has been for 20 years in a row.

Every week the Seven staple reaches more than 2.27 million viewers. For 21 years, they tuned in for Kochie – and Shirvo says they were some big shoes to fill. But he never set out to be Kochie. He had to be authentically him – or else the transition wouldn’t have worked.

Even so, Shirvo admits there are similarities between them.

“Especially in terms of our moral compass,” the 45-year-old says. “We’re family men, we’re passionate about certain elements of things in our life – sport, footy, our kids, whatever it is. There are definitely synergies there.

“And Nat and I are very similar too, in many ways, and I think the No.1 thing is respect for the story, and taking the time to research and give it that level of attention that we know it deserves.

“It’s quite a remarkable thing,” he says of the connection. “And I don’t think it just happens. I don’t think we can manufacture it – there has to be a natural connection there.”

Shirvington has been married to wife Jess, an author, since he was 22.

Jessica and Matt Shirvington. Picture: John Appleyard

They were high school sweethearts. Daughter Sienna is about to turn 18 and is in HSC prep mode. She’s creative and artistic and studying everything from extension French and English to fine arts.

Winter, 15, – or Winnie, as they call her – is sporty, and on the day we spoke has flown to the US with mum Jess for a month-long elite training camp with a rowing club in Pennsylvania before competing in the US Nationals. She also has a passion for drama and music. And son Lincoln is only six, but a joy.

“He’s the sunshine of our lives, really – he’s just so positive and just a great kid,” Shirvo says.

“In terms of reaction, from particularly the girls … there are some things where they’re like, ‘Oh, don’t do that again’, or, ‘Oh, my God, did you do that?’,” he says with a laugh. “But I do read a little bit of pride in there as well, in the way that I conduct myself.

“Well, I hope so.”
He says all the family are incredibly supportive, especially Jess, who he says had to make the biggest adjustments.

“Because I’m not there in the morning for school drop-off, for getting lunches ready, getting kids ready for school – and to do that solo, as anyone knows, can be a real mission,” Shirvo says.

“She’s been so good at it – and she’s got her own work, and she does her own thing and she’s busy, so we’ve got a nice balance at home too – and that’s two big boxes ticked.”

Matt Shirvington says all of his family are incredibly supportive.

Speaking of boxes, they’ve recently moved house too. Still in Mosman, just a different house. And while the beast that is breakfast TV has prompted more media attention for the proudly private Shirvingtons, the paparazzi gaze has been an adjustment too.

“Look, we all understand it, we all get it, we all know that with the job comes a certain level of interest and profile,” he says.

“And over the years to even in my athletics career, there were times where I had been followed or papped, but certainly, this role has brought about a lot more of that.

“One thing with us is we do really appreciate our private time and we do really like to be together, by ourselves … we’re very authentic people. I remember actually there was one paparazzi about six months into the job and he came up and noticed I was heading down to a beach – and he was hoping I was going go for a swim, to get a shot.”

In actual fact, he was bringing garbage bags to his wife’s restaurant after a party. Real life is so unglamorous, he adds with a laugh.

“I’m sure there are paps out there that have followed me and gone ‘oh, my God, he’s going to Westfield again?!’,” he says. “At the end of the day, that’s life.”

Being down to earth, being himself, is something he learned from his parents – Jenny, 72, and Phil, 73. Both teachers, they left their mark on students and parents over their four decades of service. Being compared to them, which he is, makes him emotional.

Matt Shirvington with his parents, Phil and Jenny. Picture: Sam Ruttyn

“Hearing that from someone out on the street that doesn’t know me, and says nice things about me like they do my parents, it makes me emotional,” he says. “And my authenticity, and just being ‘normal’, a lot of that comes from them.”

Shirvo says the first four months in Kochie’s chair was about playing catch-up, because it was in the middle of the year. This year he hit his stride though, and life fell into place – on air, and off.

“We had a break over Christmas and I had a month off, which was fantastic to spend some time with (the family),” he says.

“And then we all recalibrated.

“I think understanding the requirements of the job, understanding the slightly different timing of me going to bed, getting up, all of that – and it worked so much better.

“The start of this year, we just hit the ground running as a family.”

One thing he does – for that elusive thing some call balance – is put his phone away on a Saturday afternoon.

“I’ll just put it away, because or else you’re constantly checking headlines or emails, and it just feels like a never ends,” he says.

“I think the mechanics of the show, the ins and out of the breaks and the speed of it all, that was a steep learning curve,” he admits.

“Aside from that, I feel really proud of the way that things have gone this year.

“We’re still the No.1 brekkie show. That in itself, after 12 months, is huge.

“Being able to replace someone but then also still carrying on the success of the show, that’s massive, and really heartening.

“The other thing too, is on a daily basis, we get together and have a debrief every day, and we look at how we can do better what needs to be unravelled and maybe put together better the next time we do it, so we’re still striving to be better and better and better.

“So that’s the exciting thing.”

And what does Kochie think?

“We’ve seen him numerous times now, and one thing I have noticed is he’s looking very fresh after having nice sleep-ins in the morning,” he says with a laugh. “So good on him doing that, and he’s kicking goals too.

“He just got announced as the chair of Tourism South Australia and that’s another great passion of his, his home town and his footy club (Port Adelaide as chairman) – so I think it couldn’t be better for us, and it couldn’t be better for him.”

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