Welcoming Woman’s Day into his stylish inner-city Auckland apartment with a broad smile and an aura of confidence, Matty McLean seems like a very different person to the one we chatted to in Fiji just before he began filming Treasure Island: Fans V Faves.
For a start, the Breakfast presenter, 36, is now a married man, having shared his wedding with realtor Ryan Teece, 31, in these very pages early in the new year. “There’s something really beautiful with the peace that comes from knowing you’ve found someone who loves you unconditionally and wants to spend the rest of their lives with you,” he grins.
Matty and Ryan are doting dads to pup Otis.
But the main reason for his self-assured new vibe, says Matty, is the fact he’s finally won Treasure Island, a series he’s fantasised about competing in since it first aired in 1997, when he was 11.
“I fell in love with the show then and have watched every season since,” he recalls. “I saw Josh Kronfeld, Hayley Holt, Chris Parker and Jesse Tuke win. I desperately wanted that moment for myself. It still feels like a dream it’s actually happened.”
Of course, this wasn’t his first stint on the TVNZ 2 series – something Matty referenced after digging up the $50,000 prize for his charity Zeal Education Trust, laughing, “Take that, Barbara Kendall!”
He and the Olympic gold medal-winning windsurfer butted heads in the 2019 season of Celebrity Treasure Island after she questioned his strength.
For the record, Matty insists, “I honestly don’t hold anything against her. She’s an amazing woman. She was just the physical embodiment of the demons I was fighting within. Growing up, I couldn’t see my own worth and struggled with my sexuality. That first time opened up those old wounds that I clearly had from when I was younger.
“This season, it’s been amazing to show people who I am and what I’m made of – to play the game as I wanted to play it and fight as hard as I wanted to fight. That guy who struggled to believe in himself? That’s not my story any more. I’m a different person since I came back from Fiji. It feels silly because it’s just a reality show, but I feel a renewed sense of energy and confidence.”
And that’s translated into his professional life too. Matty adds, “I took on a massive challenge going from being the weather presenter on Breakfast to being one of the main hosts, interviewing politicians and businesspeople. I had moments when I was like, ‘What the hell am I doing here? I’m not Hilary Barry, John Campbell or Jack Tame.’ But now I believe in myself. This win has reminded me I’m strong and I should never doubt myself.”
Watching himself on Treasure Island has mostly been “amazing”, but Matty admits, “I didn’t love seeing myself cry so much. I was like, ‘Chill out! Why are you so emotional?!’ But I was starving, sleep-deprived and had no connection to the outside world. Meanwhile, Ryan laughed – there was no concern for my wellbeing! But even though he knew I won, he’d still get really anxious about the challenges, which was really cute. He’s super-proud because he knows how much this means to me.”
It only took 26 years! A jubilant Matty beat Lana Cochrane-Searle (left) and Dame Susan Devoy.
The pair are still deep in honeymoon phase, though Matty confides, “It still feels strange to say ‘husband’. That said, it took me a long time to say ‘boyfriend’ with Ryan because I’d never really had one before, so we’ll get there.”
The pair are still planning their actual honeymoon, a month-long trip to Europe centred around a friend’s wedding in the South of France. “We’ve never actually travelled together properly – we could
be divorced before the year is out!” Matty quips.
In the meantime, they’re just enjoying domestic bliss in the apartment they moved into in late 2020, where they enjoy all-day sun, views out over the city, the Waitematā Harbour and the Waitākere Ranges, and cuddling on the couch with their six-year-old miniature schnauzer Otis, who was born a week after Matty and Ryan’s first date.
“I’m a pushover dad and Ryan’s the disciplinarian, so he loves me the most, but he actually respects Ryan,” says Matty. Asked if that might also be the case if the pair become parents, the star laughs, “Yep, I’ll be the doormat and Ryan will be the firm dad, but there’s no news to share there yet. We love kids, but there are no plans in the pipeline. Trust me, we’ll let you know!”
