'I'm a sit-down, stand-up comedian!'

During the course of her extraordinary life, Liz Hicklin has found great love twice, travelled across the globe and survived unspeakable loss. But with a budding new career in stand-up comedy at the age of 94, this former nurse and now great-grandmother still has a whole lot left to celebrate.

- SUE SMETHURST

Just over a year ago, Liz Hicklin took to the stage at a packed Melbourne theatre and ticked off a bucket-list dream – delivering a stand-up comedy routine. She was 93 years old.

“I was a nurse, and now I’m a comedian, so I’ll have you in stitches,” she quipped, sharing her cheeky and hilarious reflections on life, love and ageing.

“People ask me what the secret is to ageing well,” she continued, “I consulted AI and it says good food and plenty of exercise, but that’s a bit dull isn’t it? I say it’s lots of sex!”

Draped in a kaleidoscopic ‘Harry Styles’ patchwork cardigan that she knitted for the occasion, there’s little doubt that Liz Hicklin’s star was always going to shine bright, even if her moment in the spotlight came later in life.

Far from being a one-off event, Australia’s oldest “sit-down, stand-up” comedian, as she describes herself, was such a hit that she has delivered encore performances at the Flinders Fringe Festival and ABC Melbourne’s The Friday Revue. And at 94 she’s not done yet.

“It was exhilarating,” Liz says of stepping into the theatrical deep end. “I loved being on stage, it was wonderful, and I loved the adrenaline rush!

“The thing that terrifies me most is nothingness. I dread waking up and having nothing on. You must have a passion in life, something to look forward to, because that is the secret to ageing well.”

With her bright pink frames and bold earrings, a touch of her favourite leopard print, and her perfectly paired lips and nails, Liz Hicklin makes an impression wherever she goes. But it was a chance meeting with ABC Melbourne radio host Jacinta Parsons at the Clunes Booktown Festival in 2023 that unwittingly changed her life.