When broadcaster Rawdon Christie lost his dream job as host of Breakfast, many of those around him expected him to be crestfallen. After all, he’d been in the role for five years and firmly believed he had one of the very best gigs on television.
But in his first interview since leaving TVNZ in September, Rawdon tells us the shock axing has turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Gone are the 4am starts, enforced early nights and stressful afternoons preparing for the next day’s show – and he can’t hide his delight.
“It’s been great,” he says about life in the slow lane. “It’s been exactly what I needed, which was a bit of a rest and time to re-gauge who I am and what I want to do. There’s no doubt in my mind that I was coming to the end of my time on Breakfast and I was already making plans for the next step. So in a way, this has just been an opportunity.”
It’s a relaxed Rawdon, 49, who welcomes us into the Auckland home he shares with wife Jo, 44, and their children Oliver, 13, Georgie, 12, and Charlie, nine. On the day we meet, Prime Minister John Key has just announced his shock resignation, but Rawdon insists he doesn’t feel an ounce of regret that he’s not still there at the forefront of current affairs.
“It was a fantastic job and I loved it, but I haven’t found myself missing it at all,” he asserts. “The only time I felt any pang for wanting to be there was the day of the Kaikoura quakes because
I was so personally associated with the Christchurch ones. And in my broadcasting career, undoubtedly that would be the biggest story I was lucky enough to be involved in. Apart from that, no. I’m quite happy.”
Despite reports English-born Rawdon was left bitter and angry at the way the shake-up was handled, he insists he harbours no ill feeling. It may be surprising to some, given his co-host Nadine Chalmers-Ross told Woman’s Day recently that the pair learned the news they were to be replaced by Hilary Barry and Jack Tame via the media before being told directly.
“You have to be thick-skinned in this industry,” says Rawdon emphatically. “I made the decision very early on to accept it for what it was – a business decision. There was no point being resentful. I just decided to get on with it.
“It was handled the way it was handled. The outcome was what mattered to me, that I could walk away with my head held high, which is why I made the decision to stay on air, smile, enjoy the job for as long as I had it and start planning for the next stage.”
Secret plans
Rawdon admits that in the months prior, he had been doing a lot of soul-searching. With his 50th birthday on the horizon, he had decided that he didn’t want to still be in the job when he reached the milestone. He’d had long discussions with Jo about what their future might look like if he stepped away from TVNZ.
“I was tired. And I think five years in that sort of a job is plenty for anyone. I was looking at it, thinking, ‘By the time I’m 50, I want to have my next career set up and booming.’
“I had decided to pull the pin on my terms in the next six months. So although the timing came as a surprise to me, it wasn’t a case of, ‘Woe is me – my life is over.’ Yes, TVNZ made its decision, but I’m quite happy with it.”
As Rawdon and Jo, who are approaching their 18-year wedding anniversary, relax poolside at home, it’s clear to see that the break from work has done him good. He’s sporting a deep tan, thanks
to hours in the garden and long walks with their pooch Wilber, and he’s fitter than ever after taking up cycling. Doing away with an alarm clock has been liberating, he admits.
“I’m happier and healthier, but I still can’t understand why I need so much sleep. I think I’m catching up from years of not enough,” he laughs.
“When I got the job, I knew the biggest challenge would be making sure I got out of bed when the alarm went off. Twice in five years, I got a phone call from the producers, saying, ‘Um, where are you?’ I made it on air both times, though.”
All is calm!
Meanwhile, Jo loves her husband’s new laidback look and lifestyle. While she and the children have been used to having Dad around after school, it’s his lack of stress that has made the big difference.
“Quite a lot of stress came with that job and as a family, you do feel it,” says Jo. “Funnily enough, you really notice the difference when it’s gone.
“I’d say he’s definitely happier and probably more patient. We are all breathing a bit more easily when that stress isn’t there. So for Rawdy and our family, it really has been a massively positive thing. Normal balance is being restored.”
Jo jokes that Rawdon has even been able to cope with the constant squawking from Oliver’s pet cockatiel Mo.
“He used to get a bit uptight about the bird,” she laughs. And they love being able to accept social invitations now that Rawdon doesn’t have to prepare for 15 hours of live TV a week!
“The hardest part of the job was undoubtedly all the homework,” tells Rawdon.
“It used to feel like having an exam the next day, every single day. I used to get terrible Sunday-itis. Now we’ll have friends over for a drink on Sunday just because we can!”
And stay-at-home mum Jo, a former lawyer, tells us she’s never been so proud of her husband than in the aftermath of his axing. “It showed an enormous strength of character to be able to be gracious and hold his head up high. I am so, so proud of him for managing that and he went away a better person for it.”
Equally, says Rawdon, he couldn’t imagine achieving any of what he has without Jo by his side. “Jo has been amazing. She is by far and away the most important part of the whole equation. I couldn’t have done any of this without her support,” he says, adding, “and she’s an amazing mum.”
The first thing Rawdon did after his last day on the Breakfast sofa was take the kids on a skiing holiday. Next up was a trip to the UK to visit his family before he and Jo jetted off for a romantic week in Hawaii.
“It was only the second time in 13 years that we’ve left the kids and it was a dream holiday,” he tells. “It was very, very special.”
Jo puts their successful marriage down to the fact they’re always communicating. “I’ve seen friends whose marriages start to crack and it’s usually because they’ve stopped talking about things when they come up,” she says.
As for the future, Rawdon’s still working things out. He has ideas in the pipeline for his own consultancy business, some PR work and maybe a leadership role. But the most important thing for now is enjoying summer with Jo and their beautiful family. They’re hosting Christmas Day at home before heading south for two blissful weeks at their family bach at Lake Tarawera.
Smiles Rawdon, “It’s quite fun at the moment. It’s the first time in my life I can take the opportunity to think, ‘What am I good at? What do I love? What do I need?’ I’ve got room to breathe, relax and enjoy the family. I’m happier than I’ve been in a long time and really excited about the future.”
