Kerri-Anne Kennerley gets first Logie in 50 years as she’s inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame
KERRIE-Anne Kennerley has finally got herself a Logie — and she didn’t hold back, dedicating it to her husband with a sting in the tail.
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IT TOOK her 50 years but Kerri-Anne Kennerley has finally got herself a Logie.
And she’s dedicated her Logie Award Hall of Fame induction to husband John, who broke his neck when he fell last March, and says she’d happily give everything up for him to be able to walk again.
“My first Logie and I never knew it was gold,” she said. “I seriously am so very honoured to receive this and I am even more excited not to get it posthumously, not that there haven’t been a few people that tried to bury me before this.”
Kennerley, 63, received a standing ovation when she took to the stage as just the third female to be bestowed the honour since it was first handed out in 1984.
The other two women were Ruth Cracknell in 2001 and Noni Hazlehurst last year.
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“You will be very glad that I am not going to use this beautiful salubrious occasion to celeb or to lampoon or roast anyone because I have a book out at the end of the year for that,” she said. “I think one of the most important reasons for my longevity is the fact that for a large chunk of my career there were no camera phones or social media. We got away with murder.”
Kennerley’s husband John sat in a wheelchair side of stage as his wife accepted the gold statuette. The couple have been married for 33 years.
“I can honestly say I would give away 50 years of this career and all of the incredible experiences and anything else I could think of just to have you (John) standing right here by my side holding my hand. I promise you one thing my darling, we haven’t finished yet.”
She added: “He’s been there to push me out of bed at 4am with a cup of coffee. He’s been there when I didn’t think I could do it. He was there to party, to celebrate and to commiserate.”
Kennerley got her first television job at the age of 13 and went on to host shows including Good Morning Australia, Midday with Kerri-Anne and Mornings with Kerri-Anne, as well as appearing on Celebrity Apprentice and Dancing With The Stars. She has been nominated for
several Logies over the years including three Gold gongs but this is her first.
Several high profile television identities paid their respects to Kennerley, including former Liberal Treasurer Peter Costello, Ray Martin, Julia Morris and Sir Michael Parkinson.
“I’ve always felt very grateful to her and I’ve never told her that,” Parkinson said.
Channel Ten news reader Sandra Sully described Kennerley as someone “not afraid to ask the hard questions” who is “also not afraid to have fun”.
“She has an innate sense of knowing when to switch gears,” Sully said. “Her element of surprise has always been her key.”
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