Olivia Newton-John dead at 73: Tributes flow after iconic Australian singer and actor passes away

That’s where we’ll leave the live coverage of the world’s reaction to Dame Olivia Newton-John’s death.

Newton-John’s husband, John Easterling, broke the news of the 73-year-old’s death just before 6.30am this morning.

The star’s family will be offered a state funeral by Victorian premier Daniel Andrews.

This evening, the state’s landmarks will shine pink in honour of Newton-John’s contribution to cancer awareness, research and treatment.

Thank you for joining us to look back at her legacy.

Vale, Olivia Newton-John.

Today’s episode of Please Explain features writer Neil McMahon and culture editor-at-large Michael Idato in conversation with host Bianca Hall to talk about the Newton-John’s death and the women they knew.

Melbourne’s The University High School has joined the thousands of voices farewelling former student Olivia Newton-John.

Newton-John attended the Parkville school for two years, graduating in 1964.

In the statement, the school’s principal looked back fondly at Newton-John’s “dramatic talents,” referencing a review of a school production, and a “charming interview” where the star described The Beatles as “sweet but nothing to go to pieces over”.

The tribute finished with an expression of condolences to Newton-John’s family and loved ones on their loss.

Olivia Newton-John singing ‘When I Grow Up’ on Boomeride, 1965.Credit: National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

Monuments across Victoria will be lit up pink this evening to honour Olivia Newton-John.

Premier Daniel Andrews said the tribute will be made to remember the singers “enormous contribution to cancer awareness, research and treatment.”

Kirsten Pilatti, the chief executive of Breast Cancer Network Australia, said the news of Olivia Newton-John’s death would be very difficult for those diagnosed with breast cancer and their families.

Although most breast cancers will not return, Pilatti said it was estimated about around 20 per cent did.

She said a survey of 13,000 of the network’s members showed almost 85 per cent said their greatest fear was their cancer returning or spreading further.

“Today’s the day to reach out and ask for help. And if there are people in your life who are living after a breast-cancer diagnosis, reach out to them and connect with them.”

The five-year survival rate for those with breast cancer in Australia is now more than 90 per cent.

That’s almost a 20 per cent improvement since Newton-John was first diagnosed in 1992.

But it’s a less optimistic picture for those with metastatic breast cancer, which Newton-John was diagnosed with in 2017.

By then, she was the most famous face of breast cancer research and support advocacy.

Pilatti said the message given by Newton-John in her final years was that she “was really living with metastatic disease not dying from it”, adding there’s been so many advances in treatment and care “that has meant people do live a long time with this uncertainty in their life”.

However she said the death of Newton-John was also a reminder that there was still more important work to do.

More than 3000 Australians die from breast cancer each year.

“Today is a day for us to day, to highlight [breast cancer is] not done, and we need people to continue to invest in research, we need people we need women and men diagnosed to invest their time into clinical trials and we need the community to understand that it’s not just about the disease, but about the person.”

Like every Australian daughter of the 80s, I worshipped Olivia Newton-John. I’d spend hours in my bedroom wearing a Physical-style headband and legwarmers, listening to the cassette of her greatest hits and singing Magic into my hairbrush.

On weekend trips to Video Ezy, I’d make a beeline for the VHS musicals and hire Grease and Xanadu on alternate weekends. I’d watch them until the tape went funny or my brother had a tantrum about being denied access to the VCR to watch Return of the Jedi.

Australian pop singer Olivia Newton-John poses in Los Angeles in 1982.Credit: AP Photo/Reed Saxon

Then during the week at primary school, we’d act out the scenes.

Parents were pretty loose about what their kids watched back then. None of us understood, but still dutifully enacted, Kenickie’s reference to his “25 cent insurance policy” during a steamy back-seat romp with Rizzo. We’d chant the “lousy with virginity” song at the top of our voices.

But Olivia was the only one we cared about.

That voice, which gives me shivers even now. That face. And that accent, which she kept, and which showed girls in suburban Australia – always at least six months behind the rest of the world in everything back then – that one of us could make it over there.

You can read the rest of Jordan Baker’s tribute here.

What is the best ONJ song of all time? (You can’t go past You’re the One That I Want).

Here we take a look back at Olivia Newton-John’s music, films and legacy.

Australian entertainment icon Ian “Molly” Meldrum has released a statement saying the news of Olivia Newton-John’s death has broken his heart.

“Tonight, the stars will shine a little brighter and I am heartbroken,” he said.

Olivia Newton-John and Molly Meldrum on Countdown.Credit: ABC

“Livvy, as I call her, was one of those rare people who had a profound effect on the world and the
people in it. Her purity was real, her passion for life was unwavering.

“A Grammy Award-winning recording artist, an extraordinary wife, mother and humanitarian, Liv’s tireless work has changed millions of lives and her legacy will live on forever.

“To me, Liv is family. My heart is broken. There simply will never be another like her.”

From her birthplace of Cambridge in the United Kingdom to her ranch in Southern California, here is a timeline of the life of Olivia Newton-John: