Hilary's new chapter 'MY BOOK IS IN THE BAG!'

The beloved presenter reminisces about her time on our screens - and discusses her latest project

- Donna Fleming 

When Hilary Timmins pops over to New Zealand for a visit from her home in the United Kingdom, she’ll often spot people looking at her as if to say, “You’re familiar… How do I know you?”

It usually dawns on them pretty quickly that Hilary, who has lived on the other side of the world for the past 12 years, was one of our best-known TV personalities for more than two decades.

And despite the fact she was the “Lotto Lady”, presenting the lottery draw on television for 15 years, often it’s as the co-host on It’s in the Bag that they remember her best.

“I still find it funny that people recognise me more for It’s in the Bag than Lotto,” muses Hilary on a Zoom call from her home near London. “It was the same when I first moved here and the ex-pat community would say they used to watch me on It’s in the Bag. New Zealanders have a real fondness for that show, even many years later.”

The iconic Kiwi programme began in 1954 as a radio show, hosted by Selwyn Toogood, before shifting to TV in 1973. After Selwyn retired, John Hawkesby took over as host in 1986 and Hilary got her big break as his sidekick.

Reflecting on the television show that changed her life, Hilary, 57, recalls how it felt surreal to be the newest host. Her predecessors, Heather Eggleton and Tineke Stephenson (née Bouchier), had become household names.

“I’d grown up watching it of course – I think everyone in New Zealand did – and stepping into their shoes was really quite something. I couldn’t believe it.”