Kerri-Anne Kennerley’s shock TV allegation: ‘Being unzipped’

I’m A Celeb campmate Kerri-Anne Kennerley has detailed a horrifying incident from the past involving a former network boss.

Kerri-Anne Kennerley has opened up about a network boss’ horrifying act toward her during her time as a television presenter.

The Aussie screen veteran, 66, revealed during Tuesday’s episode of I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here! that the unnamed male had “unzipped” her dress during a staff gathering.

“It was a Christmas party for our show, and as I was standing there, the back of my dress, the zip, was being unzipped,” she said in a piece to camera.

“So as I swung around to basically say stop it and deck said person, I realised it was the station owner. And I did say, ‘Zip it up or I will deck you.’”

Kennerley did not specify the name of the person or the network at which the incident occurred.

KAK shared the story on I’m A Celebrity.

Earlier in the episode, Kennerley had been speaking candidly to former Project host Peter Helliar about the “boys’ club” mentality in the TV industry.

“Chauvinism, harassment, hideous behaviour,” she said, describing some of the men she’d encountered throughout her career.

“Executives and producers hitting on the younger girls in there. You know, somebody hits on you and you just draw the line in the sand and everybody gets back to work, that was just the way it was.”

Kennerley added that, in her experience, female employees had often been left to pick up the slack.

“The women were all researchers, producers and the guys would sort of tick off yes, yes and then go to lunch for four hours,” she said.

“And the show would all get together because most of the women did all of the work. At the end of the day, you just want to make good TV.

“It has always been just about get a job, hang on to it as long as you can, do as well as you can, and when it is over, you get another one. You just keep doing it, keep turning up.”

Kennerley was a household name as host of Good Morning Australia on Network Ten between 1981 and 1991, before going on to helm Midday with Kerri-Anne on Nine from 1996 until 1998.

In 2002, she moved to Nine’s Kerri-Anne, where she stayed for nine years.

Kerri-Anne hosted a number of daytime programs throughout her career.

More recently, Kennerley was a regular co-host on Ten’s Studio 10, but left the show in 2020.

Speaking to The Project on Sunday night ahead of her entry into the South African jungle, Kennerley admitted she was looking forward to “a few weeks of boot camp”.

“I just need to do a week’s bit of bootcamp, bit of a spa, Have a good time. And then I could go, if that’s all right,” she said.

“I don’t need to be queen of the jungle.”

She also revealed to news.com.au ahead of her camp debut that she’d managed to negotiate a major clause in her contract.

“I get to take make-up,” Kennerley revealed. “Natural is very overrated.”

I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here!continues 7.30pm tonight on Ten