She’s met many Mr Wrongs, but media personality Sami Lukis takes it in her stride

IN her first book, Romantically Challenged, media personality Sami Lukis writes about looking for love as a 40-something.

Sami Lukis with her Bichon cross toy poodle Lolli. Pictures: Toby Zerna

• WHO: Media personality and author Smai Lukis

• WHERE: Inner-city apartment

• FAVOURITE THING: Lolli is 11, and I have had her since she was eight weeks old. I love her to death and she is my constant companion. She just saunters through the Cross like she owns the place — “Get out of my way, I am the queen”.

• INSPIRATION: I don’t like clutter, I’m very much into minimalist design

• HOME IS: Home is where my fur baby is

YOU know you’re in for a laugh when Sami Lukis talks about dating an armed robber; a sleazy TV executive, and that one time she went on a date with Kevin Costner’s bodyguard. Yes, that’s right, The Bodyguard’s bodyguard.

A familiar face to Australian television viewers through her stints on programs ranging from the Today show to Big Brother, Sami jokes she’s been on more blind dates than she cares to remember and has dated men on every continent. Currently happily single, she has the last laugh on her varied courtships in her first book, Romantically Challenged, which details her many mishaps in dating, and the occasional heartbreak.

AT HOME WITH NATALIE AROYAN

“I have turned 47, which means I have been dating solidly for 30 years, and this book is a collection of lighthearted anecdotes from my dating life. I have been single for longer than I have been in relationships, and whether you think I am funny or tragic, everyone asks about my dating life,” she says.

“We’ve all been on a bad date and we love hearing about other people’s bad dates. You kind of wear it like a badge of honour, ‘I survived that lunatic’.”

Sami previously lived in Bondi, but says living in the inner city suits her better.

“I don’t like to spend a lot of time in traffic,” she says.

Her apartment is modern and minimalist, making it the perfect place to lock up and go.

“On a clear day, I see the Qantas A380 coming over (Sydney) heads and I want to be on it. Travel is not just a passion for me, but an urge I feel and I want to try to see somewhere new every year.”

Pictures Toby Zerna

More: samilukis.com; Romantically Challenged, $32.99, penguin.com.au

Sami Lukis with Lolli, her Bichon cross toy poodle.

Gin collection: My love of gin is actually in my genes. My mother was born in the town Schiedam in Holland, where gin was invented. The gin factory was next door to her house.

Passport: I created my own travel business in 2011, hosting ladies-only getaways to New York. It’s for women who don’t want to be sitting in rooftop bars on their own. It’s been a huge success.

Hats: do love a Panama, or six. I have to be careful, I have had skin pigmentation issues my whole life having grown up in Queensland playing sport. I have to be very careful of my skin.

Grandmother’s ring: This is the most special piece of jewellery I own. It has been handed down from my grandmother’s grandmother to my grandmother, then to me.

Scented candles: My at-home must have. As Samantha said in Sex And The City “Candles have replaced cats as the new sad thing for single women”.

Art: I enjoy collecting beautiful pieces on my travels. One of my favourites
is the Aboriginal art I picked up in The Tiwi Islands when I was there on location for the Today show.

Skis: Skiing is my favourite thing to do with my clothes on. I love being on a mountain looking out on the awe-inspiring beauty of mother nature. It blows my mind.

Winter coats: I love winter. I just returned from a holiday in Finland where I slept in an igloo. I must have more winter coats than anyone in Sydney, and I’ve not worn any of them here.