I Am … Roxy!: Radio star is the brains behind Roxy Jacenko’s new reality show

One of Australia’s most well-known radio hosts is the brains behind Roxy Jacenko’s reality TV show that will air this week.

One of Australia’s biggest radio stars is the man responsible for Roxy Jacenko’s fly-on-the-wall reality show.

I Am … Roxy! is arguably the most anticipated show from Channel 10’s Pilot Week line-up and will give viewers an insight into the hectic, ruthless and profanity-laden life of the controversial PR guru.

News.com.au has had a sneak peek before it airs on Wednesday night and regardless of how you feel about Roxy, the episode is compelling and a strong contender to be commissioned for a full series by Channel 10.

So how did I Am … Roxy! come about? Well, that’s all thanks to Nova’s Michael “Wippa” Wipfli, who has known the controversial PR boss for eight years.

“Once I got to know her I just couldn’t believe how much she always has going on,” Wippa told news.com.au.

Lisa Wipfli, Roxy Jacenko, Wippa and Roxy's mum, Doreen.

“I knew her more from afar because you’re just bombarded with headlines about this woman, what she does and how she handles herself. The success is jarring and everybody you talk to about Roxy, they say, ‘How much money is there and where is the money coming from? How is this lifestyle sustained and what really goes on?’

“That’s where I got the idea for the show because I think everybody wants to know the answers, so I thought, maybe there’s a TV show in this.”

Wippa put together a document of what he thought the show should be and pitched it to Roxy, who initially turned him down.

“At the time, Oliver (Roxy’s husband) was in jail, she had breast cancer, I think she’d been hooking up with an ex and she’s a parent at the same time,” Wippa recalled. “She said, ‘I just can’t at the moment. But do me a favour, call me back every month until I say yes’.

“Month by month I called and finally she said, ‘OK, I’m in!’”

Roxy Jacenko and her husband, Oliver Curtis. Picture: Tim Hunter

Wippa (who has a production company called Two Basic Scoops Media) assumed the role of co-executive producer and teamed up with Matchbox Pictures to film every aspect of Roxy’s life for more than three months.

“I didn’t want it just to be, ‘Follow this woman and just see what you capture’,” Wippa told news.com.au. “It had to be all the things that answered a few of the questions people have about the lifestyle, the money, what she does, her inspiration.”

I Am … Roxy! shows the 39-year-old berating her Sweaty Betty PR staff during a team meeting and bickering with her husband Oliver over the renovation of their $6.5 million mansion.

But according to Wippa, the most revealing footage is from Roxy’s home life.

“To see her and Oli at home with the kids is fascinating,” Wippa told news.com.au.

“Things can be a little loose, like it’s 10 o’clock at night and Pixie (eight years old) is still up eating doughnuts. People might also be surprised by the language and Roxy giving her kids coffee. It’s not your average household but it functions.”

A sneak peek at Roxy’s glam room inside her Vaucluse mansion. Picture: Britta Campion / The Australian

Roxy Jacenko and her kids Hunter and Pixie. Picture by Damian Shaw

Channel 10’s Pilot Week kicked off last night with Sydney’s Crazy Rich Asians. Tonight viewers will get a taste of Part-time Private Eyes, a comedy about two school mums who become private investigators. Roxy’s show will air on Wednesday and the last Pilot Week show is Friday night’s My 80-Year-Old Flatmate, a reality show about two older Aussies who will meet a group of Millennials and choose two to trial living with.

After all the Pilot Week shows have aired, Channel 10 will use a variety of measures including social media reaction and timeslot and demographic performance to help decide which shows will be commissioned for a full series.

I am … Roxy airs on Wednesday night at 8.30pm on Channel 10