In a night full of surprises and celebrations, Australian TV presenter Larry Emdur won the 2024 Gold Logie Award for the Most Popular Personality on Australian Television, along with the Bert Newton Award for Most Popular Presenter. Emdur currently hosts Chase Australia and The Morning Show on Channel Seven. He has been a popular figure in Australian TV for 40 years.This year’s Gold Logie is the 59-year-old’s first, and it was the first year Emdur had received a Logie nomination.
During his acceptance speech, Emdur expressed his affection for the television industry: “I love this business so much. I love being in TV, I love being on TV, I’ve never done anything else, and I’ve never wanted to do anything else,” he emphasised.Other TV stars who won a Logie Award included Felix Cameron from the Netflix series Boy Swallows Summer. At just 15 years old, Cameron won the Silver Logie for Best Lead Actor in a Drama and the Most Popular New Talent Award.
“This is quite crazy—the last award I won before this was Student of the Week in Grade Five,” Cameron said when accepting his second Logie of the night. His co-stars Sophie Wilde and Bryan Brown also won in the Best Supporting Actress and Best Supporting Actor categories for their roles in Boy Swallows Summer. The series also won the Best Mini-Series or Telemovie Award.The Best News Coverage or Public Affairs Report was awarded to Channel Nine for Ben Roberts-Smith: The Truth on 60 Minutes. The award was a surprise to 60 Minutes journalist Tom Steinfort. During his acceptance speech, Steinfort said they didn’t expect this win due to Ben Roberts-Smith’s controversial employment history.It was a good night for the ABC as they won three Logies, including one for Best Scripted Comedy for their show Utopia.
Rob Sitch, who stars in Utopia, won an individual Logie for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy, his first-ever individual Logie award.New Zealand actress Rebecca Gibney was inducted into the TV Week Logies Hall of Fame. Gibney received a standing ovation as she became one of only four women to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
In her acceptance speech, Gibney reflected on her journey to television success despite personal struggles. “If someone had told 16-year-old me, who suffered from crippling anxiety and severe body dysmorphia, that one day I would be standing on this stage with this award, she wouldn’t have believed it,” Gibney said. “Thank you firstly to the Australian public. Many have grown up with me, supported me since the early days, and, like me, think 1984 was only 20 years ago.” Gibney also thanked her family and friends for their support and encouragement behind the scenes. “I have been so fortunate to have been guided and supported by some incredible visionary women on this journey—from my mother to my first agent, to the many female producers, directors, fellow actors, and crew who have encouraged me behind the scenes,” she said.When it came to Best Sports Coverage, Channel Seven won for their broadcast of last year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup. Best Children’s Program was awarded to ABC Kids’ Bluey, which has gained global popularity.
Channel Nine’s Travel Guides won the Best Lifestyle Program, and former Today co-host Ally Langdon won the Silver Logie for Best News or Public Affairs Presenter for A Current Affair. Channel Seven’s RFDS won for Best Drama Program, and the ABC’s Australian Story won for Best Current Affairs Program.Other winners from the night included Channel 10, which won Best Comedy Entertainment Program for Have You Been Paying Attention?. MasterChef Australia took home the Best Competition Reality Program award. Channel 10 and Foxtel’s Gogglebox Australia won the Best Structured Reality Program award, and Channel Seven’s John Farnham: Finding the Voice won the Best Factual or Documentary Program award. Actress Deborah Mailman won the Silver Logie for Best Lead Actress in a Drama for her role in Total Control on ABC.Comedian Sam Pang hosted the Logies, delivering laughs with a monologue that took aim at networks and nominees. “I stand before you safe in the knowledge that whatever I say, this network will defend me in court,” Pang quipped, referencing Channel Seven’s recent defamation cases. He also joked about Channel 10’s show Deal or No Deal: “A show where contestants get to open a briefcase and try to guess how much money the network is losing each week,” he said. Pang also poked fun at Dr. Chris Brown, who left Channel 10 for Channel Seven. “The general feedback has been, ‘What have I got against Dr. Chris Brown?’ I’d like to clarify and say, ‘Nothing—I love him. He’s a talented, handsome man. One of a kind, actually.
Chris made history this year on his show Dream Home, where he became the first vet to humanely put down his own television show.’”This year’s Logies also included performances by Australian songwriters Jessica Mauboy, Guy Sebastian, and Missy Higgins.
Featured Image: Gold Logie Award. Photo by WikiCats at English Wikipedia./CC/WikimediaCommons. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported
