When Sharyn Ghidella was dumped by Seven News last week her colleagues praised her as “A true professional, an accomplished journalist and for all of us here, a friend and mentor.”
Indeed when Michael Pell departed as Sunrise Executive Producer in 2022, he too said he owed his TV start to Sharyn Ghidella.
Published 11 April 2022
Michael Pell, who wrapped over 11 years as Executive Producer on Sunrise last week, still remembers who replied to his 1990s letter when, as a 12 year old, he wrote to network executives and on air talent hoping for a chance to learn about Television.
“Back then there was no internet. So it was typed out and faxed from my dad’s office,” he tells TV Tonight.
“A couple replied with ‘Thanks, but no thanks because we don’t give work experience to 12 year olds.’ But I remember, one person replied and her name was Sharyn Ghidella. She was actually presenting the early news on Nine at the time in Sydney.
“I wrote to her saying that I loved her presenting style, which I did and still do, and that I’d love to come and watch and learn. She wrote back saying, ‘What a lovely letter, give me a call, and we’ll make it happen.’
“I went into work experience every year from the age of 12 until the age of 18. I remember her walking me through Channel Nine Willoughby and there was a corridor that used to look down on the Today show studio. I used gaze into it and think ‘Wow, that’s the big league!’ It was Steve (Liebmann) and Tracy (Grimshaw) hosting and I thought I could only dream of one day working on a breakfast TV show.”
Many years later after studying journalism at UTS, reporting for Prime7 Tamworth and SKY News and producing for Seven, he would ask her to read Weekend Sunrise news.
“I remember her saying to me at the time, ‘I always thought you’d be my boss one day, I just didn’t think it would happen so quickly!’ he recalls.
“But we’ve kept in touch. She’s a great friend. I always remember that my start in television literally came from Sharyn Ghidella.”
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