‘Probably harder than anything I’ve done before’: Rebecca Gibney’s surprise TV turn at 60
As she heads into her third act, Rebecca Gibney is challenging herself – and her body – with an unexpected new project.
Stellar
Don't miss out on the headlines from Stellar. Followed categories will be added to My News.
As she heads into her third act, Rebecca Gibney is challenging herself – and her body – with a surprising new project.
Stellar: So, you have some news: you’re going to be on Dancing With The Stars later this year. What made you decide to do that?
Rebecca Gibney: I’ve been asked a few times, and never been able to do it. And I’ve always gone, “But I wouldn’t anyway, because it’s too hard and it’s not my field.” Then I found myself saying yes; the voice in my head said yes, even though the rest of me was going no. I was having this inner dialogue with myself, going, “What are you doing?” I realised that – particularly with turning 60, it’s apparently the third act – I want to say yes more than no. I want to do things that frighten and challenge me, and hopefully that will give me a little bit extra longevity.
Listen to Rebecca Gibney on the Stellar podcast Something To Talk About below:
Stellar: It’s not your first reality TV cameo; you were on Celebrity MasterChef in 2021. What’s more in your comfort zone: dancing or cooking?
Rebecca Gibney: Neither [laughs]. Not very good at either. What’s Option C? Because I’d never do I’m A Celebrity … Get Me Out Of Here!
Speaking of the jungle, last month Stellar revealed your friend and fellow actor Sigrid Thornton was joining that very show. Given the cloak-and-dagger nature of these announcements, I’m guessing you didn’t get a chance to swap notes?
No, I had no idea she was doing that. I’m sure she doesn’t know I’m doing Dancing With The Stars, either. She’s braver than I would be. There’s no way you’d have got me into that pit with those vipers, eating the things they have to eat. Just … no.
How are the dance rehearsals going? I’ve got bursitis in my shoulder. I’ve got shin splints. I’ve got a lagging foot. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. But I was warned. Virginia Gay [who appeared on DWTS in 2023] messaged me not so long ago and said, “Darling, just be prepared that from day three everything is going to hurt and it will be like that for the next seven weeks.”
You’ve taken on a few physically taxing acting roles over the years. How does DWTS rate on the risk-of-injury scale?
This one is way up there. In fact, this is probably harder than anything I’ve done before. As an actor, you know what you’re doing to a certain extent and you’re learning lines. I’m very comfortable in that environment, whereas I’m so far out of my comfort zone [on this show]. I’m moving my body in ways I’d never thought I could – and my body is resisting, trust me. I’m learning things I didn’t think I’d be able to do. They make it look so easy. Then you get in there and you try to do it, and it’s a challenge.
You turned 60 in December. Milestone birthdays can prompt both celebration and angst, but you rightfully focus on how it’s a privilege to grow older.
I do feel privileged. I think it started in my early 20s. I travelled a lot with World Vision, to countries where I saw children dying from malnutrition or diseases that are preventable. That gave me a huge appreciation of my life. And coming from the background I’ve had – growing up with an alcoholic father who was very violent; and there was sexual abuse in the family – that’s given me huge appreciation, and also a need to talk about things. We’re all on the same journey, really. If whatever I say can help someone struggling, if I can be honest enough to say: yeah, this is what happened to me, but I’m getting through it – like I talked about my nervous breakdown, I’m very happy to talk about that – I think it helps. Every year is a privilege. My mum is about to turn 90, and I went, “Mum, when does it slow down?” And she said, “Darling, it just gets quicker.”
Despite a common assumption that life only gets more complicated and difficult later in life, you seem to be an example of how things can get lighter and easier with age, especially for people who experienced hard times or trauma during their childhood.
I had impostor syndrome through my 20s, into my 30s; I still occasionally get it … But one good thing about ageing is you start to realise your opinion of yourself is more important than other people’s opinion of you. And if you can start dealing with your issues and forgiving yourself for past mistakes, it’s such a relief when you stop competing with your younger self. I don’t compete with my younger self anymore – I look after her. I’m trying to take care of her in a much better way than I did when I was young. I constantly criticised myself. I constantly told myself I was too fat, too this, too whatever. I’m determined to go back and right those wrongs and look after her a lot better now.
Last year, you became the fourth woman to be inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame. Speaking of impostor syndrome …
When I was approached about it, my first reaction was surely there are many people who deserve it way more. It’s incredibly humbling and I was utterly overwhelmed. Then to get to the night – to sit there and watch all the work I’ve done over the last 40-plus years, and all those wonderful people saying incredible things, I finally went: “Gosh, I have actually been around a long time.”
Listen to Rebecca Gibney on Something To Talk About below:
To have so many famous faces and former colleagues from across the years pay tribute to you on the night must have been very special.
I felt very blessed and humbled. You don’t ever assume things like that, particularly in this industry. You work hard, but you don’t do it for awards. You do it because you want to keep working, and you want to make the environment as comfortable and as happy for as many people. I sit back now and feel so lucky to have all these amazing friendships. I was out with Georgie Parker on the weekend. Kerry Armstrong. Jane Hall. I can rattle off names and names …
Deborra-lee Furness is another of your long-time friends. You’ve all worked in an industry that traditionally pits women against each other, but presumably your experience puts lie to that trope.
I’ve never competed with other women. Maybe it’s because I’m the youngest of four sisters. We never competed; I’ve always admired and looked up to them. I’ve always had compassion and love for women. Women have been my touchstone. It does sadden me when you look at social media and see some of the comments women make on other women’s feeds about their appearance or what they’re doing to their bodies. I’m like: please, can we stop judging each other? Can we please just be supportive? There’s enough sh*t going on in the world without tearing each other down. Life is hard enough.
Listen to Rebecca Gibney on the Stellar podcast Something To Talk About below:
Your son Zac, 20, had a starring role when you were inducted into the Hall of Fame, introducing you to the Logies stage.
It was incredibly special. He’s my proudest achievement – I mean, he’s done it himself, but he is the kindest, most sensitive, thoughtful, brilliant young man. We have a strong relationship. When things are going bad, he’ll pick up the phone and call me, whether it’s two in the morning or four. If he’s having a bad day, he’ll ring me. And we talk it through. I feel so privileged to have that relationship with him.
You and your husband Richard Bell (a production designer, writer and producer) planned to renew your vows for your 20th wedding anniversary but that got put on hold due to the Covid lockdowns. Will you do something big for your 25th instead?
Potentially. We were talking yesterday. He’s come to visit me [in Australia; the family home is in New Zealand] because I’ve really missed him. We’re such a unit; I adore his company. We were talking about our goals, our dreams. We’d love to have a little boat somewhere, be on a river with a glass of wine, together in the bush. We don’t even have to renew our vows. I mean, that would be lovely, but I just want to keep hanging out with him as long as I can.
Your 60th year is shaping up to be an eventful one. What’s steering your course in this “third act”?
It’s going back to treating myself better. I want to honour the body I’ve been given, the soul I’ve been given. There are a lot of people out there that put so much pressure on themselves to live up to certain expectations. At the end of the day, it’s your own expectations of yourself. For me, it’s about looking after the little girl in the blue dress with the headless doll, the 15-year-old with panic attacks, the woman who was in a hole at 32 and wanted to kill herself. All those iterations of myself. If I can do that and spread that message: look after yourself, be kinder to yourself, love yourself.
Dancing With The Stars airs later this year on the Seven Network.
Read, listen and watch the full interview with Rebecca Gibney in Stellar today, inside The Sunday Telegraph (NSW), Sunday Herald Sun (VIC), The Sunday Mail (QLD) and Sunday Mail (SA) and on Something To Talk About, wherever you get your podcasts.
Originally published as ‘Probably harder than anything I’ve done before’: Rebecca Gibney’s surprise TV turn at 60
Bridget Jones’ star defends ‘age gap’ romance
As Renée Zellweger returns to play Bridget Jones, her new on-screen love interest Leo Woodall addresses the controversy over their characters’ 27 year age difference.
Read more
Inside scoop on RHOS new season
Reality star Sally Obermeder reveals her tricks to surviving cocktail showdowns and avoiding pity parties as she returns to the Real Housewives of Sydney.
Read more