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Sunrise's Natalie Barr on landing the biggest job of her life at 53
Natalie Barr has opened up about landing the biggest job of her life at the age of 53, saying it’s proof age doesn’t matter when it comes to chasing your dreams.
The same week Nat took over from Samantha Armytage and started hosting Sunrise alongside Kochie, she celebrated her 53rd birthday, with the show surprising the host with a cake.
“People have mentioned to me in previous years, that [as a woman in television] you’re put out to pasture. You have an expiry date. But I’ve just got the biggest job of my life the week I’ve turned 53. So I guess that’s not true, is it?” Natalie said in an interview with Stellar magazine.
She went on to say Seven has always had her back and even though she put on 20kg while having her two children and "got fatter and fatter, no one cared”.
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Natalie revealed on KIIS FM how shocked she was when she was offered the hosting role on Sunrise.
“There was a call from the big boss who said, ‘How about it?’” she revealed.
“I said, ‘Oh, OK, yeah right’.
“I was actually really nervous. I was so nervous that one of the bosses who called actually said, ‘Are you sure you want this?’
Natalie said she thought: “I’m just not that person. IIf Sam had wanted to stay there for another ten years, that was fine with me.”
After chatting with her husband about the role at home, Natalie said she realised she would regret it if she turned down such a big opportunity.
Nat is no stranger to the Sunrise family, having been with the show for the past 18 years.
“Sunrise has been my work family for 18 years and while I’ve absolutely loved my role as newsreader, I’ve now been given the chance to move half a metre along the desk closer to Kochie and give something new a try,” she said when the role was announced.
“I like to think of it as, same same but different. I can’t wait!”
Samantha Armytage announced at the beginning of March that she was stepping away from her hosting role after being with the show for 18 years.
“This is genuinely me taking a break for the first time in 22 years since I left uni,” she said.
“We’re doing a lot of gardening, it’s not very glamorous," she laughed, referencing her life with her new husband, Richard Lavender.
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