Matt Klitscher
When Mike King spectacularly eliminated himself from Celebrity Treasure Island last year, he accidentally threw his daughter and fellow contestant Alex under the bus, exposing her alliances and reducing her to tears.
“I was furious,” the 25-year-old former Mai FM radio presenter recalls. “In his mind, it was a throwaway line, but it was the downfall of my game and him leaving really brought up so many inner traumas
for me.
“As a kid, growing up, I was privileged to have everything I needed, but it came at a cost – my dad was always working to put bread and butter on the table. I’m so grateful for that, but I never really got to spend time with dad. He was too busy for my birthdays and netball games.”
Alex was eliminated hot on her father’s heels and, soon after, the pair enjoyed a couple of days together on a daddy-daughter trip to Tauranga. But remarkably, they didn’t have a proper conversation about what happened on Treasure Island for another six months, when the TVNZ 2 reality series screened.
“It’s really hard to talk to Dad when I’m hurt because, a lot of the time, he just thinks I’m criticising his parenting,” explains Alex. “And we’re very good at tiptoeing around each other because I’m sensitive as well.”
But when the CTI drama exploded on scenes, she remembers, “I just called him and was like, ‘I need to talk to you now. This has been weighing really heavily on my mind and I’m stressed out.’ So many trolls had come out of the woodwork to criticise both of us when I didn’t do anything wrong.
“One person was saying, ‘Mike needs to go help suicidal people and it’s not like she’s ever going to end her life. Her life is great and even if she did, it really wouldn’t matter.’ It was just awful. That was when I hit boiling point.”
Mental health advocate Mike, 60, was initially defensive, but Alex told him, “I need to talk to you as my dad. Listen to me as my dad.” She says, “There were a lot of tears, but he finally heard me. He learnt more about me. He hadn’t thought about the repercussions of his actions. He was just there to make television, but I said to him, ‘I’m not TV – I’m your kid!’ It was a wake-up call to him.”
Making up for lost time. “He hates that I’m hurting.”
Two days later, Mike released a public apology to his daughter, writing, “I am devastated she got hurt. Sorry again, honey. To all the people making the vile comments about my baby, please stop. She has done nothing except worn her heart on her sleeve and doesn’t deserve your bitterness… Ali, we all love you for what you have done for us and I am so proud to be your dad.”
“That definitely meant a lot,” says Alex. “Whenever my dad speaks out publicly, it gets a lot of media attention and it was lovely. He cleared my name.” Regardless, the trolling was so bad that Alex almost dropped out of new series Treasure Island: Fans V Faves, which was filming in Fiji while the previous season was airing.
Having “battled anxiety most of my life”, the singer/actress explains, “I didn’t relapse, but I fell into a hole and needed some guidance from my dad. He’s the best person for the job. It’s really hard for him because he hates that I’m hurting, but it’s made me more resilient.
“I eventually came round to the idea that there will be trolls wherever I go, so if I can’t do a reality TV show, what does that say for my future in acting or music, which are the only things I really want to do with my life? This is a great learning step for me.”
The returning fave has a new game plan.
So how will this season of Treasure Island be different for her? “It’s the energy,” says Alex. “All of us faves have done the show before, so we know what’s expected and we’re at ease. This time around feels more comfortable and I’m going to stay more in the moment. Last time, I fell into the trap of planning too far ahead and it caught up with me. This time, I’m taking it as it comes and standing on my own two feet, without my dad.”
Asked whether she’d ever appear on telly with Mike again, Alex pulls a face and takes a long pause. “It depends,” she eventually says, smiling. “I don’t think I’d do reality TV with him again. I’d love to work with Dad on something calmer, like a comedy sketch. Something less intense and more chilled than Celebrity Treasure island!”
