VICTORIA NICOLLS ‘I'M READY FOR MY BIG TV COMEBACK!'

SALE OF THE CENTURY’S ORIGINAL HOSTESS TELLS ALL ON HER INCREDIBLE CAREER

- Jenny Brown

Sale of the Century producers didn’t quite get what they wanted when they asked Victoria Nicolls to audition for the game show in a swimsuit.

At first the actress thought, “No way, you’ve got to be joking!” But then she found a fetchingly old-fashioned, neck-to-knee cossie with frilly cap in matching gingham!

“I just came out in that and sent the whole thing up gutless,” laughs the live-wire star, who became a household name co-hosting Sale with Tony Barber from 1980 to 1982. “But I decided to have fun with it because I didn’t think I’d be a contender.”

How wrong she was! Victoria’s zany style and kooky antics – like towering over Tony in back-to-front shoes – quickly made her one of Australia’s most popular personalities.

Featured on scores of magazine covers and in demand for fashion shoots, she even recorded an album of songs for children – Frizzle, Frazzle, Frozzle – which came with a free colouring-in book.

Yet, behind the scenes, Victoria’s heart was breaking. Her adored father, a decorated Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) veteran, was dying of cancer aged just 58.

“I had to put on this big act for the show while I got sadder and sadder,” she recalls.