LIZ HAYES - A country girl at heart

Liz Hayes was a novelty when she first hit TV screens and more than 40 years later she’s still blazing a trail. In a revealing interview she talks to Juliet Rieden about her dairy-farm childhood, the painful hospital blunder that killed her dad and her surprising fitness secret.

- Juliet Rieden

In the cut-throat world of TV news, it’s heartening to see that still at the top celebrating more than 40 years in our living rooms is Liz Hayes.

On screen she can switch from ice queen interrogator to compassionate reporter, while her globe-trotting has ranged from war zones in Afghanistan to Hollywood. Certainly Liz’s talent, graft and versatility are in no doubt, but as she approaches the big 6-5, the frustrating truth is that she’s one of very few women whose career longevity matches her male peers.

“I never thought I would still be a woman in television at my age. It’s a fickle business and when I started it was a novelty to have a woman,” Liz admits. “I always used to think by the time I’m 40 I’ll be out of a job, and then maybe I’ll make it to 50 and then if I’m still here at 60 that’s extraordinary and I made that. So I’m tootling along, wondering.”

Liz makes it sound accidental, but as she kicks off her shoes, pleased that The Weekly’s photo shoot is over – she confesses she’s uncomfortable when she’s the one in the spotlight – I realise this powerhouse of Nine’s 60 Minutes doesn’t see glass ceilings at all. Rather, she follows her nose and holds on to opportunities with the quiet prowl of a benign pussycat.

Liz hasn’t built a brand around her career, you won’t see her on a red carpet and there are none of the ball-breaker stereotypes to her politesse, which in person I can affirm is utterly genuine. She doesn’t even have a manager and negotiates contracts woman to man – yes, to date her CEOs have all been men!