Popular TV personality Osher Gunsberg reveals surprise new TV gig: ‘A chance to test myself’
Beloved Bachelor and Australian Idol host Osher Gunsberg has scored himself a hot new TV gig – and it’s his most challenging one yet.
Reality
Don't miss out on the headlines from Reality. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Osher Günsberg hyped up audiences on Australian Idol and charmed viewers on The Bachelor when he hosted the popular programs.
But now the much-loved Aussie TV personality has the unenviable task of roping in the feisty and fabulous cast of The Real Housewives of Sydney.
Günsberg has been announced as the host of the upcoming Season 3 reunion episode of the hit BINGE series, which airs next Tuesday, May 6. And while he says his new gig sounded daunting, he was up for the challenge.
“You don’t get many opportunities in your career to test your skill set at the highest level,” he tells news.com.au ahead of next week’s reunion.
“I’ve built some pretty strong muscles holding space for difficult conversations through hosting The Bachelor shows over the years – but hosting a Real Housewives of Sydney reunion? That’s Olympic-level TV work for me. What a chance to test myself!”
Stream The Real Housewives of Sydney on BINGE, available on Hubbl.
With the drama that has unfolded this season between housewives Terry Biviano, Caroline Gaultier, Dr Kate Adams, Krissy Marsh, Nicole O’Neil, Sally Obermeder, Victoria Montano and newcomer Martine Chippendale, Günsberg absolutely has his work cut out for him.
But as a fan on the genre, he was hellbent on making sure all “unanswered questions” were resolved and no stone was left unturned.
“I wanted each cast member to walk away feeling they’d had the chance to say what needed to be said. That they had clarity, closure, and nothing left unsaid,” he says.
“Being on a reunion show is a big deal, and I wanted them to walk away knowing they were heard. And let me tell you – they came out firing.
“It was like [rugby league player] Dane Gagai in Game 1 of the 2017 State of Origin: try within five minutes. My bum barely hit the couch before things took off.”
The seasoned host said he was already familiar with what transpired as his wife, Audrey Griffen, is a make-up artist on the show and gives him a debrief. But still, he made sure to do his research before taking the hot seat.
“Thank goodness I did my homework – there were so many tangents and callbacks to moments that weren’t clearly set up. I had to provide context on the fly and bring in others to make sense of it all,” he says.
“At one point, a surprise guest shows up – and it is chef’s kiss magnificent. There’s some delicious, juicy reality TV to feast on in this reunion.”
Drama aside, Günsberg says he has nothing but the utmost respect for the Housewives because of the lives they’ve built.
“There are people in this cast I find incredibly inspirational. They’ve built businesses and made entrepreneurial moves that are absolutely gobsmacking,” he says. “They’ve created unbelievable lives for themselves.”
“They’re also powerful. You don’t get to that level of success without serious drive. And it’s hard to switch off that energy … There was a lot of energy on that set.”
Despite his own fame, Günsberg says he in no way runs in the same social circles at the RHOS cast.
“These women are upper echelon – I’m middle-class celebrity at best,” he says. “They live completely different lives to me. I hang out with my family, sit in the sauna, go to bed early, wake up to train, write books, make podcasts. I don’t go on the kinds of holidays these ladies do.”
“But I’m absolutely familiar with them – they’re high-profile, successful women who’ve worked hard to build their careers.”
As for potentially making a cameo on the show in the future? Günsberg doesn’t rule it out, but there are some conditions.
“Only if they wanted to join me for a 5am kettlebell session,” he jokes. “But I don’t talk much during those – just a lot of Viking metal and heavy lifting. They’d have to wake up at 2am to get ready. So I doubt that’s ever going to happen.”
One person he would like to see join the cast is fellow TV and media personality Abbie Chatfield, who he met when she placed runner-up on The Bachelor in 2019.
“She’s the biggest fan of the [Real Housewives] franchise. She’d be perfect,” he says. “That would be wild. I’d come back just to host that reunion.”
Before Günsberg came on as the Season 3 reunion host, designer Alex Perry and radio star Joel Creasey steered the ships in Seasons 1 and 2, respectively. Pretty big shoes to fill so Günsberg called in the reinforcements.
“When you talk about big shoes to fill – Alex Perry and Joel Creasey’s shoes couldn’t be bigger or more fabulous. So, I called up Melissa Byrne, who’s styled me for years, and said, ‘I need the most magnificent boots possible.’ I think they were Alexander McQueens,” he says of his footwear in the reunion.
“What I’ve learned from watching those guys is that you have to meet the ladies where they are, especially when it comes to fashion,” he says. “You can’t just show up in any old suit. You don’t wear a regular outfit to a bedazzler fight.”
But looking the part was only half of the job, he says.
“When it comes to handling the actual hosting duties, anyone who’s seen Joel or Alex do it knows it’s no easy feat,” he concludes. “They took some heavy artillery, and I learned a lot from watching them. Hopefully, I was able to honour the incredible work they did.”
The Real Housewives of Sydney reunion premieres Tuesday, May 6 at 1:30pm AEST on BINGE
More Coverage
Originally published as Popular TV personality Osher Gunsberg reveals surprise new TV gig: ‘A chance to test myself’
MAFS Ryan settles back into life at suburban home
Controversial MAFS groom Ryan Donnelly has been spotted back in his local area after his on-screen bride Jacqui Burfoot called his suburb – and the people who lived there – ‘boganic’.
Reality star’s astonishing 220kg weight loss
“She is loving and living life!” A star of the reality series 1000lb Sisters looks like a whole new person, having shed an extraordinary 220kg.