You either have it or you don’t. And Natalie Barr, by her own admission, does not. We’re talking about rhythm.
The Sunrise host can effortlessly glide from interviewing Hollywood stars to grilling politicians but, when it comes to dancing, her agility is… less developed.
“I can’t dance,” Nat, 58, admits to TV WEEK.
“Even my husband says: ‘Never go on Dancing with the Stars.’ I’ve turned them down so many times!”
This will make things interesting when Nat steps out from behind the Sunrise desk and takes to the stage at this year’s Channel Seven Perth Telethon. Last year Nat and fellow Seven stars Kylie Gillies and Sally Bowrey donned frocks and wigs for a hip-swivelling take on Nancy Sinatra’s ‘These Boots are Made for Walkin’’ as part of a tense lip-synch battle.
Sure, there’s some rehearsing involved, but Nat admits the moment she’s on stage, she forgets the words, not to mention the dance moves.
Even Nat’s Sunrise co-host Matt Shirvington unleashed his inner rock god at Telethon last year, lip-synching to The Killers’ hit ‘Mr. Brightside’.
“It’s hilarious and fun and humiliating, but we do it for the kids,” Nat says. “It’s one of the best things you could ever do… have some sort of impact on the lives of sick children and their families.”
The 26-hour Telethon raises millions of dollars every year for sick, vulnerable and disadvantaged children. Back in 1968 the first Telethon generated $104,829 for Perth’s Princess Margaret Hospital for Children. Last year, a mind-blowing $90.2 million was raised for the Perth Children’s Hospital and other children’s charities.
And Telethon has attracted A-list international talent over the years, with everyone from Stevie Wonder, Whitney Houston, Hugh Jackman and Celine Dion taking part.
Of course, for Nat, who was born and raised in Bunbury, Western Australia, Telethon is a homecoming of sorts and brings back fond memories of her childhood.
“My earliest memories are of dragging my doona into the lounge room, having a bag of mixed lollies and being allowed to stay up well into the night watching Telethon,” Nat recalls. “You’d be hard pressed to find a West Australian who doesn’t have those memories. It’s just such a unique and heart-warming event we are so proud of. It’s part of the fabric of WA.”
Putting in long hours on camera at Telethon are just part and parcel of a presenting gig that gets Natalie out of bed in the wee hours. Not to mention the fact that her job is one of the most scrutinised in media.
Nat, however, who started as the Sunrise newsreader back in 2002, takes it all in her stride.
“People always say, ‘Oh, you have to get up at 2.30 in the morning’ and ‘They write lots of articles about you,’ but I maintain it’s the best job in television, hands down,” she tells us.
This year Sunrise producer Jake Lyle introduced a piece of relatively simple tech to their broadcast – an iPhone on the desk that enables the on-air team to connect with readers in real time. Viewers can – and often do – text to tell Nat and Shirvo what they’re loving and hating.
“They’ll say, ‘I’m sick of this person’ or ‘Ask a politician this question,’” she says. “We really feel like we’re trying to represent Australia every day.”
For many years, Sunrise has been a brekkie television ratings juggernaut, regularly thumping rival Nine Network’s Today.
Nat says it’s important to keep “a healthy eye on the competition”.
“We’re not naïve enough to ignore our opposition,” she says.
However, she adds that the Sunrise team is more focused on how they can improve their own segments than worrying about their rivals.
Recently, the gap has widened further, following on-air upheaval that saw Today lose long-standing host Karl Stefanovic over backlash related to a controversial podcast and his co-host and desk buddy, Sarah Abo, who went on maternity leave and then quit the network.
Nine has since brought in Sylvia Jeffreys and Tom Steinfort to steady the ship at Today, after speculation that Nat’s former Sunrise colleague, Samantha Armytage, could take Sarah’s spot. Nat says she hasn’t seen Sam “for a while”.
“She was at the Logies, but we didn’t cross paths. The room was so huge.”
She did, however, catch up with Sarah at this year’s Logies after-party, where she was surprised to see her, given Sarah had not long since given birth to baby boy Sonny.
“She said, ‘I’ve just given him a second feed’,” Nat laughs.
“She had him in the room upstairs with her husband and was enjoying a rare night out as a new mum. And she was so happy talking about her journey having that gorgeous little man.
“I just wish her well. It’s such an exciting time in your life and it reminded me of having my own boys all those years ago.”
Both of Nat’s boys – she shares Lachlan, 25, and Hunter, 21, with husband Andrew Thompson – have flown the coop. Now an ‘empty nester’, she admits it was tough when her younger son left.
“You don’t really take too much time to consider what that moment will be like when they leave – and then suddenly they’re gone,” she says. “It’s a pretty confronting feeling.”
Now, she’s free to spend her afternoons as she pleases – perhaps having a nap, going to the gym… but probably not taking dancing lessons.
