Bec Hewitt taking her tentative first steps back into the media spotlight
Bec Hewitt admits she has been ‘out of the loop’ so long she’s lost confidence, but is taking her first tentative steps back into the media spotlight, writes JACKIE EPSTEIN
BEC Hewitt grew up in the spotlight, but has largely shunned it over the past decade. The child star who was destined for a showbiz career has often been seen and spoken about, but rarely heard.
As Rebecca Cartwright, she was a starlet on Home and Away from the age of 15.
She then embarked on a short-lived pop music career and won Dancing with the Stars in 2004.
At the height of her popularity, in 2005, she married tennis champion Lleyton Hewitt, which kept her in the public eye.
But she hasn’t chased the intense interest that has followed her since starting a family and supporting Lleyton and his career.
Their three young children, Mia, Cruz and Ava, keep Hewitt modest and busy, especially this year as the family settles into Melbourne life.
Lleyton retired after the Australian Open in January and took up the post as Australia’s Davis Cup captain.
Now Hewitt is taking her first tentative steps back into the media spotlight with a new role as racing ambassador for coffee house Lavazza during the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
She admits accepting the title is about regaining confidence. At her sister’s wedding last year she realised how raw she had become.
“I feel like I’ve been out of the loop for so long,” Hewitt, 33, says. “I haven’t been in the right head space this year to really go out there and explore (opportunities) because I really wanted to make sure the kids were settled. That was my priority.
“And then I feel as though I can duck off and do jobs from time to time once their routine is going.
“I don’t know what it will be that I dive into but I’m glad that the Lavazza gig is the first step. Just to get confidence back as well. As you get older you definitely lose confidence and especially not working, you’re just not used to it.
“My sister got married and I gave a speech at her wedding and I was so nervous. I was a bit frustrated with myself. I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ I would go and do appearances and hosting things all the time.
“I don’t know what it was, when I got up there and all these eyes were on me, butterflies started going and I got tongue-tied. I think it’s a matter of easing myself back into it as well.”
As Hewitt explains, it was tough giving up a career and becoming entrenched in motherhood, but with Mia, 10, and Cruz, 7, at school and Ava, 5, in prep, she’s ready for the next stage of her career.
“I think for any woman who’s been away from whatever her job is for a number of years, getting back into the workforce or back into the groove of things is really hard,” she says. “Even doing a few things from home as well. You have to really be dedicated. You start pottering around doing jobs so you need to remove yourself from the house.
“I even wonder with Home and Away and all the early mornings, (I was on) autopilot, got up no problem, I was able to fall asleep straight away.
“If we have a flight now and we’ve got to be up early, I can’t sleep, I check the alarm 1000 times.
“I have a horrible sleep if I’ve got to get an early flight because I’m so paranoid about sleeping in. I think, ‘Oh, my gosh, how did I ever do it?’ ”
For Hewitt, taking on this racing role is a strong statement of her intentions. It’s the first time Lavazza has had an ambassador and the down-to-earth blonde will attend Derby, Cup and Oaks days, plus a media launch event before Derby Day.
Melbourne’s Kirsty McBeath, who styled Nicole Kidman for her commitments with Swisse and her Derby Day appearance in 2012, will dress Hewitt for the week. Many might remember Hewitt wearing shorts to Flemington’s exclusive Birdcage, but that 2006 fashion faux pas is water off a duck’s back now.
“I’ve always loved spring racing and I wear what I’m comfortable in,” she says. “I’m so unorganised it’s always been the week before when I’ve had to pull something together. It’ll be so easy to have a fairy godmother turn up with a dress and shoes.
“I don’t really do much (publicly). Two things I usually attend is Cup Day and the Newcombe Medal, that’s about all I do these days.
“When the opportunity came up I thought it’s great to be aligned with a big company like Lavazza and their marquee is always hip and happening. I’m really excited.
“To see all the fashion, to be there for a few days is something fabulous. My life other than that
is just jeans, sneakers and a cap. It’ll be exciting to get dressed up.”
NEITHER Hewitt nor Lleyton drink, but the pair have always made Cup Day a priority when possible. Depending on Davis Cup commitments, she expects Lleyton to accompany her to the track.
“Lleyton loves the races, too,” she says. “Sadly he’s allergic to horses so he’s never been able to ride a horse or go near one. His uncle trains a couple of smaller race horses so he’s always had that interest.
“If you asked me about the races and who is going to win I couldn’t give you any tips. But I love that everyone feels amazing. It’s a special day to get dressed up. It just brings people together.
“I’m going to be doing a lot of mingling and socialising but haven’t thought that far ahead.
“I have some special items in my wardrobe and they never get used. Even going out for dinner I’m in sneakers and a jacket. I don’t really wear make-up and I like to let my skin breathe. Then when you do get dressed up it’s a special occasion. I don’t have too much time anyway. I know Mia can’t wait till she’s old enough to come as my buddy.”
Having set up home here it will be easier for Hewitt to be trackside. After several years living Stateside in a gated community in the Bahamas, where they bought a house in 2009, the Hewitts are now settling in as inner-city residents of Melbourne.
They moved into the multimillion-dollar penthouse of the Yve apartment building on St Kilda Rd that Lleyton bought in 2004 and has unsuccessfully listed for sale a number of times since. The Hewitts sold their Adelaide and Sydney houses two years ago.
“We don’t know what the plan is but for now it’s working (being in Melbourne) for the kids’ activities,’’ Hewitt says. “The Bahamas was amazing, such a beautiful outdoor lifestyle, but living in Melbourne, ust everywhere is so close.
“I love Sydney as well but it’s a lot more spread out. We’d have to drop an activity to be able to fit it all in because of all the driving, whereas in Melbourne
we literally go five minutes here, five minutes there. That’s how I grew up. I was always dancing and singing after school.
“It just helps expose them to other things they might be interested in. I’m sure eventually something will give but they’re sampling a bit of everything at the moment, but one particular sport or hobby will take over.
“For now I want them to try as much as they can. I don’t know how they’re going to choose because they’re loving everything at the moment.”
Hewitt is glad her children enjoy being active. Cruz has naturally taken a shine to tennis and hangs around his dad and the Davis Cup team as much as he can.
“My son, he’s tennis mad,” she says. “He loves it and still feels really much a part of it. The (Australian) boys will hit with him on the court.
“He’s really quite good. If he gets a bit bored, he plays tennis against a wall on a hoverboard now and he does not miss. Just the core strength and precision. I’m like, ‘You’re kidding’. He’s got some talent to burn.”
Daughters Mia and Ava are interested in fashion and photography and modelling like their mum.
The children have featured in a commercial for Wonder White bread and recently became ambassadors for kids’ clothing brand Pavement.
“When Mia did the Pavement photo shoot she got a real taste of it. She said, ‘That’s what I want to do,’ ’’ Hewitt says. “She watches the hair and make-up girls at work. She loves it. She’s an amazing photographer, better than me. She’s such a patient kid.
“Living in the Bahamas, Ava started school at three. She’s used to it so she’s, like, reading novels. She’s a bright little button.”
Since Lleyton’s retirement in January, Hewitt says the family has adjusted well.
“It’s been a pretty easy transition,” she says. “The Australian Open was this year so it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago and I’ve been so busy getting
the kids settled at school and even finding the local place where I’m going to get my legs waxed.
“You’ve got to sort all that out again when you move somewhere new.”
Hewitt says they’re happy being a party of five, plus their cavoodle dog Bux. She wanted the children to have a pet because it “teaches love and to care for something else”.
She’s aware that she is often the subject of talk about her marriage, a new baby, or unrest over her career.
“It’s funny, I don’t even pay attention to it. Like I said, I’m not even out there trying to get publicity. I’m at the Cup and Newcombe Medal and that’s it.
“Apart from that, I’m doing the school drop-off and cleaning. I’m pretty OCD.
“You’re never going to control (what the women’s magazines write) so I’ve just made peace with it and just let it go. Unfortunately, some people will believe it but if they look carefully enough they will see the inconsistencies of the stories.
“I often joke and say I’d love to line up all the magazine covers saying I’m going to have a baby. According to this, I should have 26 children by now.”
Hewitt is at peace with the scrutiny and is focused on being inspired by her children and wanting to set a good example for them. She is looking forward to regaining confidence and forging a new path.
“I might come across bubbly and chatty but really there’s always a bit of insecurity there,’’ she says.
“I think all women are the same and will feel that way at some point of their life. I want to be a good example to my girls as well, to show them if you are committed you can come back and do something.
“They’re my inspiration, the girls. Even when they’re trying new dance classes and new places all the time to work out which one they want to go to.
“It’s quite daunting to walk into a room with all these people and they do it with such ease and I think, ‘You know what, if they can do it, I can do it.’ ”
Originally published as Bec Hewitt taking her tentative first steps back into the media spotlight
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