Fresh-faced at 49, Melodie Robinson slides into shot with her hair in a tumble of curls and the family's German shepherd Basil Brush darting around.
"Woo, I thought it was a phone call, not Zoom," she laughs, although she needn't have worried. The Black Ferns legend is effortlessly gorgeous without the help of make-up - quite possibly like her late mother Patricia Long, who Mel gleefully tells me was known as "Trish the Dish".
Mel is bursting with energy during our interview and clearly not one to let the grass grow under her feet. She sports an impressive CV- as well as having been a fiercely competitive flanker for our national women's rugby team, she's scored a Bachelor of Physical Education, majoring in Sociology of Sport, and later went on to complete her MBA.
She is also a journalist and worked the Parliamentary Press Gallery for Mana News, before becoming rugby's first female commentator - perhaps the thing she's most proud of. Right now, as well as serving on numerous boards, she is the General Manager of Sports and Events at TVNZ.
A self-confessed workaholic, Mel finds it hard to say no, although she's trying to rein herself in with the help of her mates. "My friends tell me off," she confesses.
However, they didn't succeed in stopping her from throwing her hat in the ring for the new season of Celebrity Treasure Island. In the press kit, Mel's quoted as saying, "I hate camping, so that's going to suck." Yeah, good luck with that!
She's joining, among others, Dame Susan Devoy, comedian Mike King, former Shortland Street star Lynette Forday and All Blacks legend Ron Cribb. "But why?" I ask.
Denne historien er fra October 2022-utgaven av Australian Women’s Weekly NZ.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra October 2022-utgaven av Australian Women’s Weekly NZ.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
PRETTY WOMAN
Dial up the joy with a mood-boosting self-care session done in the privacy of your own home. It’s a blissful way to banish the winter blues.
Hitting a nerve
Regulating the vagus nerve with its links to depression, anxiety, arthritis and diabetes could aid physical and mental wellbeing.
The unseen Rovals
Candid, behind the scenes and neverbefore-seen images of the royal family have been released for a new exhibition.
Great read
In novels and life - there's power in the words left unsaid.
Winter dinner winners
Looking for some thrifty inspiration for weeknight dinners? Try our tasty line-up of budget-concious recipes that are bound to please everyone at the table.
Winter baking with apples and pears
Celebrate the season of apples and pears with these sweet bakes that will keep the cold weather blues away.
The wines and lines mums
Once only associated with glamorous A-listers, cocaine is now prevalent with the soccer-mum set - as likely to be imbibed at a school fundraiser as a nightclub. The Weekly looks inside this illegal, addictive, rising trend.
Former ballerina'sBATTLE with BODY IMAGE
Auckland author Sacha Jones reveals how dancing led her to develop an eating disorder and why she's now on a mission to educate other women.
MEET RUSSIA'S BRAVEST WOMEN
When Alexei Navalny died in a brutal Arctic prison, Vladimir Putin thought he had triumphed over his most formidable opponent. Until three courageous women - Alexei's mother, wife and daughter - took up his fight for freedom.
IT'S NEVER TOO LATE TO START
Responsible for keeping the likes of Jane Fonda and Jamie Lee Curtis in shape, Malin Svensson is on a mission to motivate those in midlife to move more.
