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‘I was unwell’: Grant Denyer’s candid Gold Logies speech

GRANT Denyer opened up about the problems that nearly ended his career in an emotional acceptance speech at the Logies.

Nick BondNick Bond
@bondnickbond
9 min read
July 2, 2018 - 9:15AM
Logies 2018: what did you miss?

GRANT Denyer! Yep, Tracy Grimshaw might’ve been the hot favourite to win the Gold Logie — and his show might’ve been cancelled — but Denyer took home the big prize last night and even he couldn’t believe it:

“Oh my god I won! Jesus,” he exclaimed as he collected the award.

Denyer gave special thanks to Hard Chat comedian Tom Gleeson, who (semi-ironically) mounted a one-man campaign to get votes for the Family Feud host.

“Tom Gleeson, thanks. Sometimes in this country you need an angry redhead to get things done, and Pauline Hanson wasn’t available.”

In an emotional speech, Denyer said that Family Feud had come along at a time in his life when he wasn’t sure if he would ever work again, referencing unspecified health problems that had derailed his career.

“I wasn’t very well.... I was pretty sad and a bit lost and was in a bit of a hole. I was very unwell and it gave me a ladder out of that hole that particular time. It gave me my mojo back, it gave me my courage and confidence,” he said.

Denyer’s wife Cheryl watches on.
Denyer’s wife Cheryl watches on.

He also tearfully paid tribute to his wife Cheryl, watching from the audience, saying the pair had been through the “best and worst” times together.

“We bloody did it. My beautiful wife Chezzi ... I owe this to you. You have been there and held me up when I wasn’t great. You believed in me even when I stopped believing in myself.”

Grant gets emotional.
Grant gets emotional.
Everyone was shocked — including the winner himself.
Everyone was shocked — including the winner himself.

Speaking after his win, Denyer said he didn’t think it would mean a return of Family Feud.

“I think Family Feud might have run its course. TV shows end and that’s a natural part of the game. I’ve got not problem with it at all,” he said.

But if it did make a return he wasn’t keen on the idea of someone else hosting.

“I think watching someone else host Family Feud is like watching someone else kiss your wife, it’s just not quite right. If they bring it back without me, watch out!

TV’S NIGHT OF NIGHTS

Earlier in the evening, comedian Dave Hughes kicked off the 60th annual Logie Awards — held at the Gold Coast for the first time — with a hilarious opening monologue tackling the biggest TV scandals and foibles of the past 12 months.

Hughesy had one mishap of his own though, squirming after a slip of the tongue about embattled former Nine star Don Burke had the audience groaning and the host himself admitting he’d “gone to the weird zone.”

Moment that shut down news.com.au’s red carpet interview

“No, I didn’t f**king mean to do that,” Hughes told news.com.au backstage after the gaffe.

It was a bumpy night, with more misses than hits among the speeches and performances on offer...

Logies 2018: The winners list

HUGHESY’S BEST BITS... AND ONE BIG CLANGER

Hughesy at the Logies.
Hughesy at the Logies.

DON BURKE

“Give it up for Tracy Grimshaw, guys. 30 years, nominated for gold. And also her Don Burke interview has been nominated as well. That was amazing. We have a lot of revelations from that. We got the revelation that Don apparently has Asperger's. No-one knew about that. Including his doctor. No, I love Don Burke. I love Don.”

At this point, with the audience groaning, Hughesy backtracked about his “love” for Don Burke, who faced a slew of allegations about sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour throughout his career last year.

“I don’t love everything about him. Alright? Now I’ve taken myself to weird zone. Sorry.”

Later on, Hamish and Andy discussed the gaffe on stage while presenting an award.

“We did just have a chat to Hughesy out the back. He would like us to clear up one detail: He does not love Don Burke. In fact, I don’t know if we have got any of the cricket instant replay, but I think he said it four times. The old, ‘I’m Hughesy and I will say I love the person I’m having a go at’, it has never backfired before and it did in that instance.”

News.com.au entertainment reporter Andrew Bucklow was backstage at the Logies, and got the story straight from Hughesy in a news.com.au exclusive...

Andrew Bucklow: What happened with the Don Burke stuff?

Dave Hughes: “I don’t know what happened, I don’t know what happened with Don Burke. As I was saying I loved Don Burke for about the fourth time, I thought ‘Why am I saying I love Don Burke? That’s not going to read well. That’s not going to play well. That’s not the case.’ People remember when you lose your mind and I lost my mind.”

AB: Did you know Hamish and Andy were going to reference it?

DH: When I got off stage they [Hamish and Andy] said, ‘do you really love Don Burke?’ And I went, ‘what the f**k happened out there?’ We had a chat about it and they said, ‘do you mind if we go out there and say that?’ And I said, ‘please go out there and say that.’

My sister texted me and said, ‘did you mean to do that?’ I said, ‘no I didn’t f**king mean to do that.’”

HUGHESY’S OTHER JOKES:

KARL STEFANOVIC’S UBERGATE

“Karl, whether it’s an cab or Uber mate, leave a tip. They don’t have to make any extra money. Selling the story to New idea. Leave a tip. If you don’t know the story, Karl was on loud speaker in an Uber, and his brother … anyway. You shouldn’t have been bitching about your work colleagues. Still on the fence, Georgie [Gardner], or did you take a pale off it and hit him in the head with it? Imagine Karl and his brother, the bunk beds at home as

kids, talking smack about mum. She’s outside the bedroom: ‘I can hear you dick heads!’”

Karl played along with the joke, showing he was already booking a cab. Picture: Channel 9
Karl played along with the joke, showing he was already booking a cab. Picture: Channel 9

LISA WILKINSON SWAPPING NETWORKS

“Lisa, you left for pay parity, I know. You weren’t getting that were you? No. You are not getting at the The Project either … You’re earning double. Don’t blame me for that joke … Blame Carrie and Waleed.”

THE CHANNEL SEVEN LOGIES BOYCOTT

“It is not easy [getting to the Gold Coast], is it. No it’s expensive, apparently. Channel Seven thinks so. They said it was too expensive. Too expensive to get to the Gold Coast? I used to bloody holiday here when I was on the dole. Too expensive? Kochie. Borrow money off the Cash Cow, mate. It’s because they gave all their money to Barnaby Joyce’s baby! He gets $150,000 for his private education, Sam Armytage can’t come to the Logies.”

BARNABY JOYCE

“The Barnaby Joyce interview on Sunday,it was a great one. My favourite moment was when he was changing the nappy and Vikki his partner said, ‘He is surprisingly good at it.’ Is he Vikki? He’s got four other kids. He’s done it before!”

ANDREW WINTER

The most surprising nominee for the Gold Logie, Winter was the host of Foxtel’s Selling Houses Australia. Hughesy sledged him perfectly succinctly:

“Where is Andrew Winter? Give it up for Andrew. There he is. Great to put a face to the name.”

WHERE WAS THE WIND-UP MUSIC?

Jacqueline McKenzie picked up the award for Most Outstanding Supporting Actress and delivered a speech that went for several minutes and included a lengthy preamble about what her nine-year-old daughter Roxy had advised her to say on stage. Then she played a voice memo from her young daughter into the microphone — a memo that was interrupted by a text from her dad.

As McKenzie went on and on, and the ceremony ticked over into its third hour on air, frustrated viewers asked: Can’t someone play her off?

A NOT-SO-MUSICAL MASH-UP

The Voice coach Kelly Rowland performed a medley of Destiny’s Child’s Survivor and her own When Love Takes Over, as a duet with her winning Voice artist, loop performer Sam Perry.

We LOVE Kelly and Sam’s the most interesting artist to come out of The Voice in a few seasons, so there’s no easy way to say this: It was a big ‘ol mess.

Perry’s voice was like gravel in mud and strangely, Rowland seemed to struggle too: She aimed high with the big final note in Survivor but her voice faltered like a limp balloon. By the end of the performance, she was relying on pre-recorded backing vocals and passing the mic to audience members and to help pick up the slack. Audience members like Safe Harbour actor Hazem Shammus who... didn’t seem to know the words:

Look, he was no Beyonce. Picture: Channel 9
Look, he was no Beyonce. Picture: Channel 9

DID BERT HIT A BUM NOTE?

Bert Newton gets a standing ovation. Picture: Channel 9
Bert Newton gets a standing ovation. Picture: Channel 9

TV legend Bert Newton, 79, earned a standing ovation before launching into a lengthy and at times very funny monologue — but a few of his comments raised eyebrows from viewers at home.

Newton suggested that younger viewers might see him on screen and ask “Where has this old poof come from?”

Later on during his speech, Newton spoke about his late, great friend Graham Kennedy, offering up innuendo-laden anecdote about the TV legend, who was famously guarded about his sexuality.

“He enjoyed giving young people a chance on television. He was a great mentor, he mentored a lot of young people. You knew if you went to his dressing room and it was locked, he would be inside doing some mentoring,” he said, an eyebrow raised as the audience gasped.

Bert’s jokes drew a mixed reaction on social media, some taking offence while others welcomed his un-PC sense of humour — and others suggesting Kennedy himself probably would’ve enjoyed the jokes:


When asked about the comment backstage in the media room, Newton said he “meant nothing untoward.”

JMO’S SONG AND DANCE

Julia Morris never half-asses it at the Logies, and she certainly brought the energy this year in a song and dance number before she presented the award for Most Popular Drama to Foxtel’s Wentworth — who seemed quite surprised with the win, dropping a shocked “bulls**t” live on camera:

Morris took to the stage in a giant light-up dress emblazoned with the Gold Coast skyline — then busted out a high energy medley complete with rap interlude, costume changes and back-up dancer.

Julia Morris and her light up dress. Picture: Channel 9
Julia Morris and her light up dress. Picture: Channel 9

One part of the medley saw her tackle the ‘Me Too’ movement to the tune of novelty rap hit Can’t Touch This. It was not the night’s most subtle moment.

“Right guys, the ‘Me Too’ movement has been huge. Everyone is talking about it — let me give you the basics,” Morris announced.

“Here is drill: Can’t touch this, can’t touch this. Really want to touch this, really want to touch this. Don’t touch this, don’t touch this,” she sang, as half-naked male dancers gyrated around her.

Julia Morris mid-song. Picture: Channel 9
Julia Morris mid-song. Picture: Channel 9

A TOUCHING WIN

Cast of Ten Network's The Living Room (L to R) Barry Du Bois, Amanda Keller, Chris Brown and Miguel Maestre. Picture: AAP
Cast of Ten Network's The Living Room (L to R) Barry Du Bois, Amanda Keller, Chris Brown and Miguel Maestre. Picture: AAP

There were emotional scenes as the team from Ten’s The Living Room took home the award for Most Popular Lifestyle Program, after presenter Barry DuBois’ very public cancer battle over the past 12 months.

“In television sometimes we focus on too much on key demographics, timeslots and ratings when all that really matters is your health and your happiness. That’s why while this award is truly special, the biggest reward for us is having Barry DuBois with us tonight,” said Chris Brown.

“To have the four of us up here holding hands... we didn’t know this time last year whether we would have this. This is extraordinary for us,” said Amanda Keller.

GRANT’S CHEEKY SPEECH

Earlier in the night Denyer won the Most Popular Presenter award for his work hosting Ten’s Family Feud — which was recently cancelled. The irony was not lost on Denyer, who seemed... a little salty.

“Wow. Family Feud is not even on television anymore. How awkward? You should see the faces on the Ten executives table at the moment right now. Close your mouths or your chicken might fall out,” he told his former bosses.

“Really, incredible to be honoured with most popular presenter when your television show is not popular enough to stay on television.”

In another funny segment, presenters Hamish and Andy showed mocked up photos of regrettable tattoos they claimed celebs had gotten during their Gold Coast visits. Gold Logie nominee Denyer, they said, had backed himself with this bad tatt:

Spoiler: Not a real tatt.
Spoiler: Not a real tatt.

IT’S CALLED FASHION, LOOK IT UP

Visiting British singer Jess Glynne busted out a hearty rendition of her latest single I’ll Be There — but all eyes were on her unusual denim / leather chaps.

Jess Glynne, maybe it’s time to chuck out those jeans. Picture: Channel 9
Jess Glynne, maybe it’s time to chuck out those jeans. Picture: Channel 9

“How embarrassing, I’m wearing those same pants,” quipped announcer Tony Martin after her performance.

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Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/awards/logies/hughesys-huge-logies-gaffe-ive-gone-to-the-weird-zone/news-story/c3f4693d4b67c1949b8ee53c14f20c7a