Shorty star Mike bares all 'WHY I HAD TO QUIT ACTING'

As he strips off for a new stage show, the screen hunk reveals why this is his last hoorah

- Dionne Christian

Ask some entertainers their age and they visibly bristle, but former Shortland Street actor Mike Edward is only too happy to share.

“I don’t mind at all – I’m proud of my age,” says Mike, who turns 49 at the end of the year. “Th ere’s some really cool things which come with living long enough. I hope I’m a bit wiser. I’ve certainly made a lot of mistakes and learnt from them. Now I really treasure the relationships and the time I have.”

And the father-of-two believes the wisdom of age will do wonders for his next role – his first in three years – as an average Kiwi guy turned stripper in New Zealand’s most successful play, the global hit Ladies Night, which is rumoured to have inspired The Full Monty.

“I remember that in my twenties, I would’ve had anxiety about what this means for my acting career, but now I’m like, ‘What a great opportunity! I’ll never get to do this again.’ It’s joyous to be this age and still be asked to do this show!

“It’s flattering, but it’s also a big challenge now because when I was younger and I did the show, it was all easy. Now that I’m older and my body is more broken, it’s more of a fight to get there, but that’s actually what the play is about. It works because we’re watching men overcome obstacles.”