Helen McCabe joins Nine to head lifestyle

Helen McCabe has put an end to months of speculation about her next job.

Helen McCabe, Nine’s new head of lifestyle. Picture: Dylan Robinson

Helen McCabe has put an end to months of speculation about her next job by joining Nine Entertainment Co. to spearhead a fresh assault on the fast-growing lifestyle category.

The former editor-in-chief of The Australian Women’s Weekly has been named head of lifestyle at Nine’s relaunched digital platform, nine.com.au.

Amid a battle among rival publishers to secure McCabe’s services after leaving Bauer Media in January, McCabe said last night she was taking a “dream role”, marking something of a ­return to a former employer.

McCabe joined The Weekly in 2009 when it was published by Nine’s ACP Magazines, before its acquisition by Germany publisher Bauer.

The former Sunday Telegraph deputy editor reports to Nine’s chief digital and marketing ­officer Alex Parsons, who said McCabe will front a digital offering “vastly different to anything in the Australian market today”.

It’s understood Nine will leverage McCabe’s brand after she built a high profile in the hot seat at the The Weekly, making regular TV appearances.

“Nine, under Hugh Marks (CEO) and Alex Parsons, has an ambitious vision for its lifestyle sites,” McCabe said. “It means I get to continue my passion for creating exciting and relevant content for Australian women.”

Marks said McCabe’s appointment represented a “strong statement on our focus on ­delivering great Australian content to our audiences across all platforms”.