David Hasselhoff's surprise Aussie friendship

Baywatch star David Hasselhoff has revealed his unlikely friendship with two Aussie celebrities, during a chat with Yahoo Lifestyle.

Speaking from his home in LA, the iconic actor recalls having a casual game of cricket with none other than ‘70s-pop-star-turned-Australian-Idol judge Mark Holden, who he met in LA back in the early ‘90s, and fast bowler Shane Warne.

Batter up

It was 2011 and the Hoff and his long-time pal Mark were attending day two of the fifth Ashes Test match between Australia and England at the SCG.

“I went to the Ashes with Mark Holden,” the multi-talented entertainer tells us before admitting he made a major faux pas when he went up to bat against Warnie during the tea break.

“He [Mark] said, ‘mate, you’re holding the bat wrong,’” the dad-of-two continues in his best Aussie accent.

“I was holding it backwards,” he chuckles, but he didn’t let him put him off his game - despite his mate Mark’s misgivings.

“‘Jesus Christ you’re up against one of the greatest bowlers of all time,’” the 67-year-old former life guard quotes Mark as saying, to which he responded, “Ah, pitch me the ball!”

“I hit like ten of them out of the park,” he laughs, adding that he and Shane then “became friends” and have met up since.

From Sydney, with love

The ‘most watched man on TV’ returned to Australia earlier this year to shoot, in his words, a “funny, stupid and creative” ad campaign for ANZ which saw him ham it up in front of the camera.

“All I had to do was make up all kinds of creative takes for leaving the stage,” he says, adding that the “quirky and funny” director gave him free reign to do his own thing.

“It was all me,” he says of the humorous ads that see him being led off set by a stage hand.

“It could’ve been terribly corny or stupid but they hired the right guy.”

The tight turn-around - he was only in the country for a day - prevented him from saying g’day to his friend Mark, but he did manage to make time for a romantic boat ride on Sydney Harbour with his new wife, Hayley Roberts.

The city holds a special place in the couple’s romance as the Knight Rider star proposed to the Welsh beauty on the Sydney Harbour Bridge back in January 2012.

“She said no,” he says, adding that “it took [Hayley] a while to come around”.

The pair, who have been together since 2011, eventually tied the knot in 2018 and recently celebrated their one year anniversary with an “amazing, magical day” at their favourite local beach in Malibu.

“We saw dolphins and whales and she was screaming,” he recalls fondly.

What’s next

The Hoff has a full plate for the next while - he admits he “cherishes work” - with an audiobook, a music tour of Germany in October and a West End show, creatively titled Hoff Broadway, currently ‘in development’.

He also tells Yahoo Lifestyle he’s “developing a beach club in Bali” which could mean more catch ups with Holden and Warne.

The most important date in his calendar, however, is Hayley’s 40th birthday on September 19.

“We’re planning on having a huge party,” he says, adding that his wife is “already picking out songs” for the event.

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