Denham Unzipped!
From hard-hitting journalism to getting hit on by Betty White, Denham Hitchcock is always at the center of a story. Interview by Matthew Myers.
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straight mate DNA: You began your news career at 18. Did you dream of being a reporter as a kid? Denham Hitchcock: Yeah, I did. My father [Kevin Hitchcock] was a TV reporter. He would travel overseas for news stories and come back with amazing tales of where he’d been. Then we’d be in the street and people would come up to him. I thought that would be one of the coolest jobs. And now you get recognised in the street! [Laughing] It’s kind of gone full circle. When I was a kid people would stop me and ask, is your father Kevin Hitchcock? Now they stop him and ask if his son is Denham Hitchcock! Speaking of Hitchcock, is there any relation to the American director? No, but I wish there was. I’d probably have my own TV station. Growing up did you get teased because of your name? My name ensured I was picked up a few times by my parents due to fighting in the playground. Kids can be cruel, but when I got older I realised that I wanted to be a bit different and all of a sudden my name became pretty cool. Were they calling you Cock? [Laughing] It mostly centered around the jeans variety [denim], but there was a little of that as well and that’s where all the fighting came in. As US correspondent for the Nine Network you covered stories including Hurricane Sandy, the Boston bombing and the death of Bin Laden. Have any in particular struck a chord with you? The Boston bombings was one of those stories that a journalist sometimes only gets once in a career, in that it just kept growing each day. In one week it went from the bombing to chasing the suspects, the shooting of a police officer, a manhunt in the street and a shootout in the boat. The whole of Boston was told to stay indoors and military convoys were going from house to house pulling people out. That was quite a story and one I’ll never forget. We lived out of a car and ate service station sandwiches. It just went around the clock, non-stop. Any others? The other one that springs to mind is the Philippines typhoon. The scale, tragedy and disaster of that was incredible. Ten thousand people were dead in Tacloban where I was staying and again we were sleeping in a car or a broken house, scavenging for food like everyone else while covering the story. There were piles of bodies in the street and the aid was so slow in arriving. But it was one of those stories where you feel like you’re making a difference; you’re putting out reports and showing pictures to the world, saying that these people need help. The aid agencies doubled their efforts, so it was kind of a remarkable story to be on. On a lighter note you’ve also provided coverage from the Oscars red carpet. As a TV journalist, covering the Oscars is just one massive day. You start at five in the morning
and don’t finish until four the next day and, if you can, you struggle to one of the after-parties. You kind of make out that you party all night, but you really just sit in the corner feeling quite wrecked! To be on the red carpet with those huge stars really is quite something. Did any star in particular stand out to you? Angelina Jolie always sticks out to me [laughs]! She has a certain way about her and a certain way of looking at you with those eyes, which are captivating. People get excited when they interview her and I have to say I was no exception. I was drawn into the web! So who would you turn gay for on the red carpet? I’ve interviewed Hugh Jackman many times and he’s an impressive man, but I always told my colleague Richard Reid from The Today Show, that if I was going to turn gay for anyone it would be him. If I didn’t say that, he’d never talk to me again! When you interviewed Dolly Parton, she was clearly flirting with you. Dolly was fantastic and full of life. She’s kind of tiny, but she has all that hair, big boobs and tight clothing and she had the best opening line. She swept in, looked
Ten thousand people were dead in Tacloban… we were scavenging
for food like everyone else… me up and down and said, “Oh my. Denim has never looked so good!” That kind of set the tone for the interview. After meeting Ellen DeGeneres, how would you sum her up? Ellen is fantastic. We were invited to her set where I did an interview with her and then the producer said they had a seat for me. I ended up in the audience with these little old ladies. Ellen came out, everyone goes berserk and she said the best dancers in each row would get a T-shirt. I didn’t want to let the little old ladies down in my row and when the show went to air there were five or six cutaways of me dancing my heart out. All my friends saw it and sent me a flood of abusive texts and photos of me dancing. You also had the pleasure of interviewing the surviving Golden Girl, Betty White. Oh yes, Betty. There was a fair bit of flirting from her too! I heard that Betty likes vodka, so I brought along some expensive lemon-flavoured vodka. I handed it to her after the interview and she leaned into me and said, “Can you come home and pour it for me!” She didn’t realise the microphone would pick her up, but we got it
nice and clear [laughs]! I can see her taking you home, where Blanche, Dorothy and Sophia would all fight over you. [Laughing] I almost became the pool boy with that bottle of vodka! So what’s on your iTunes playlist? Musically, I don’t mind a bit of Elton John; as far as divas go, he’d be it. I also like Pink. She’s a sexy woman who hangs from the ceiling and sings. You have to give her extra points for that. Beyoncé is also something special. I was at the President’s inauguration when they waltzed to her song At Last, and it was pretty cool. I found myself waltzing along as well. The President and Michelle were dancing only about twenty metres from me. Wow, you’ve certainly ticked a few boxes. Yeah, I’ve been fortunate that my career has taken me to so many places and I’ve seen so many things. It’s a privilege to be able to stand at the edge of these world events that have gone down in history. Do you have gay mates? Mate, are you kidding? I work in TV and live in Sydney. I’m the odd one out! I’ve lived and grown up on Sydney’s northern beaches so I’ve been to Mardi Gras and I covered it for a few years. I’ve been to plenty of the after parties, too. A lot of people on the internet think you’re quite hot. Are you aware of this? I’ve got to say it’s very flattering and probably helpful for my career. Your work involves a lot of travel. How do you keep so toned? I try to break out a sweat every day doing something. When I’m travelling there’s usually something I can find. I’ll run, surf, paddleboard, kickbox or do weights at the gym. Can you see gay marriage happening in Australia in the next decade? Oh mate, it’s long overdue in my opinion. I’ve just come from the US and California, which is quite liberal. I don’t see why gay people who love each other just as much as straight people can’t have the same union and advantages. I think it’ll be one of the big things in history that we’ll look back on and think how ridiculous. I mean, women only got the vote in Australia in 1902 and that seems ridiculous now. People will look back and think it was archaic that gay marriage didn’t happen. Who has been the biggest influence on your career? My father. He was a journalist news reporter before many and he still watches everything I do and critiques me often. He guided me into journalism and still keeps a watchful eye even now. Are you into jocks, boxer briefs or freeballing? When I surf I’m freeballing because you can’t surf with anything under your board shorts. Otherwise I’m a boxer briefs man. I’m half Calvin Klein and half Under Armour. I like to do a lot of exercise and my boys need to be secure! more: Sunday Night with Denham Hitchcock screens 8pm Sundays on Channel Seven. DNA 37