Magda Szubanski shouldn't have any trouble picking up work this year.
For the second year in a row, the actor has emerged as the nation's most recognised and best-liked television personality, ahead of Ernie Dingo, Rove McManus, Andrew Denton and John Wood.
The survey was conducted by research organisation Audience Development Australia as part of its regular Q-scores report (Q stands for the quality of viewers' reaction).
Every six months the organisation shows 600 photos of public figures to 750 adults in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, and asks two questions: "Do you recognise this person?" and "How much do you like them on a scale from 0 to 4?"
The combined scores can influence pay rates and job prospects for the personalities on the list. Last year, Szubanski was best-known to Australians as the indomitable Sharon Strzelecki in the hit series Kath & Kim.
After the Q-scores report, Szubanski was offered the job as the public face of Jetstar, which boosted her recognition this year.
Her latest score, combining familiarity and popularity, is 41, up from 36 last year, while Dingo scores 31, McManus 27, Denton 26 and Wood 25.
Denton has replaced Bert Newton from last year's list. Two years ago, the top five included television vet Harry Cooper and the swimmer Ian Thorpe (who still rates well with women).
Audience Development Australia's managing director, David Castran, said Australians were reacting against what they saw as contrived television, and people rising on the list were seen as down-to-earth, natural presenters with an everyday quality.
That's why Andrew Denton had come into the top five, and why David Koch and Melissa Doyle from Seven's Sunrise show had a jump in their scores, he said. Viewers saw them as honest and real, even if they sometimes made mistakes on air.
Mr Castran said two names to watch, growing rapidly in both recognition and popularity from a low base, were Grant Denyer, the weather presenter on Sunrise, and Angela Pippos, an ABC sports reporter.
Mr Castran would not identify the personalities who had declined most in popularity, but said they tended to be individuals who were perceived as supercilious, glossy, "glammed up".
When asked how Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin had scored since publicity over holding his infant son while feeding crocodiles, Mr Castran revealed that Irwin's recognition factor had soared, but his popularity had plummeted by 25 per cent.