8 Turn the page

As she poses for what will be her 50th magazine cover, it’s clear Paula Duncan was born to entertain. The star, who first

found fame with roles in Cop Shop and Prisoner, and later to a whole new generation as the face of the hilarious Spray n’ Wipe ads, is still unashamedly candid. In between shots, Paula has the team in fits of laughter revealing blush- worthy anecdotes from her illustrious career. At one point she recalls the time Playboy asked her to pose nude. “Back then they offered me $50,000 to take my clothes off. These days they offer me $150,000 to keep them on,” she laughs, a cheeky glint in her eye.

While we’re told this is actually a quiet day in the Duncan household, to most it would look like a circus. Alongside our five-person crew, there’s Paula’s daughter Jessica, a couple of friends visiting from Melbourne, her dogs Rocky (pictured with Paula, right) and Tinker and their walker bustling around the house. In between make-up

touch ups and posing for the camera, Paula is trying to organise a Special Olympics event – to date she’s raised more than $9 million for charities and received an Order of Australia medal for her contributions to entertainment and the community. She’s checking off a to-do list with Jess while fielding phone calls about a missing champagne order. The result is pure chaos but Paula loves it. “This is my roller-coaster life,” she says with a smile.

When we manage to grab a moment of peace with the seven-time Logie award winner she reveals that behind the laughter and industry accolades, life hasn’t always been perfect. But her drive to support those less fortunate, along with the support of her daughter, has helped her bounce back.

y: You recently revealed that you’ve had a long struggle with depression. What triggered such low points? Paula: I had a sequence of emotional losses in my life, in particular

‘Hardships in life teach you more than the good times, and

I’ve had my fair share of both’

COVER STORY

Heart to heart

‘I’ve learned to count my blessings’Beloved soapie star PAULA DUNCAN, 62, and her daughter JESSICA ORCSIK, 31, share with Morgan Reardon the high and lows of being in the spotlight

HOUSEHOLD NAMEPaula shot to fame as Detective Danni Francis in Cop Shop

10 11

COVER STORY

relationships, and each one proved to be harder to cope with. After my marriage to John Orcsik sadly ended we transformed our relationship into a true friendship. I then took the brave, enormous step to do it again [Paula married Steve Mason in 1999]. It felt safe but it wasn’t. While filming [Strange Bedfellows with Michael Caton and Paul Hogan] I had to read in the paper that he had finally found his true love – whilst still married to me! That was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

y: What did you do to get through that dark time?Paula: I turned to my closest friends, among them Judy Nunn and her husband Bruce Venables. They helped me find faith in myself again and allowed me to grieve. I also had professional help, medical support and was on medication for some months.

y: What advice would you give to other women who are suffering?Paula: Do something for someone else so you wake up every morning with a sense of purpose. My charity work gives me so much joy. Find comfort in the things you love and surround yourself with people who give you hope. Seek professional help and always remember to look at the good things in your life.

y: What are some of those good things in your life?Paula: Loving Jess, my baby, all over again and watching her grow into a remarkable woman. Every night before bed I acknowledge what I’ve learned that day and I’m thankful for it.

y: Jess, your first photo shoot was when you were three hours old – you have truly grown up in the spotlight.Jess: One of my first jobs was on the show Richmond Hill. They needed a little boy for the show and Mum said, “Oh, Jessica’s got really short hair. We could just chop it.” And so I became Jesse. At school I would hand in notes saying, Jessica won’t be in school for two weeks because she’s doing Home

and Away or She’s shooting a film or She’s filming a miniseries.

y: Paula, do you wish you could have given Jess a more “normal” upbringing?Paula: I do feel a lot of guilt because I don’t think I was the best mother. She was brought up by nannies, swapped schools and was bullied for having famous parents. In a lot of ways Jess became an adult long before her time.

y: But you’re making up for that lost time now though?Paula: I’m trying desperately to. But

there are still scars there, even though I know she loves me. I just hope I leave this world finally being the best mother I can be.

y: Jess, you’ve just returned home after living in LA for the last nine months. What’s it like moving back in with Mum?Jess: It’s so nice, I really missed her. People were like, “You’re living with your mum?” but we don’t have that kind of relationship where she’ll freak out about me coming home late or bringing a new man over. We’re so open with each other, we talk about everything.

y: Everything?Jess: Everything! I’d really rather not hear about her sex life but she tells me anyway. She says it’s payback because I talk to her about mine. Our relationship shifts between mother-daughter, sisters, and friends constantly.

y: What’s the best advice your mum has given you?Jess: To stand up for myself. I went through a really tough time in 2013, when I lost someone very close to me. There was a lot of backlash in the media and I pretty much had a nervous breakdown. The scrutiny was horrendous but Mum stood by my side and taught me to be brave.

y: Paula, you didn’t want Jess to follow in your acting footsteps did you?Paula: No, definitely not. It’s a very insecure industry because you never know if you’re up or down and I was worried she wouldn’t cope but I underestimated her. Jess: It was in my blood, my DNA. I was determined to make this my career.

y: Jess, you also inherited Paula’s charitable streak?Jess: Definitely. I’ve been working with Mum closely on the Nova Employment Focus On Ability Short Film Festival (focusonability.com.au), which is aimed at raising awareness about the abilities of disabled people. I’m also working with the Special Olympic Dancers. Their dream is to go to New York and dance at the Broadway Dance Center. They’re incredible. Paula: I might have seven Logies but seeing the Special Olympics Dancers perform on stage, that’s just irreplaceable. These are beautiful people who have been isolated from society

but they don’t give up. They just need someone to believe in them.

y: Does that mean you’re done with acting, Paula?Paula: My charity work is my marriage but acting is my affair. I returned to TV with ABC’s Hiding recently and I loved it. People kept saying “You’re back!” – I didn’t know I’d left.

y: If you could have any role you wanted, what would it be?Paula: I have a concept I’d like to see turned into a miniseries where I’m the interfering agent of a bunch of young girls. I’d also love to do a show again with Judy Nunn [they worked together

on Home and Away].

y: Would you like to see more

roles for mature actresses on TV? Paula: Absolutely, but we need someone to write them first. These days the

focus is more about the look

of someone than the talent. In Cop Shop

and Prisoner there wasn’t one member who wasn’t a trained actor, who hadn’t been to NIDA [National Institute of Dramatic Art] or WAAPA [Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts]. But that doesn’t seem to matter anymore.

y: Does that mean you wear your age and experience like a badge of honour? Paula: Look, I’m not mad about being in my sixties, but what else can you do? People criticise me for talking about my age but I couldn’t care less, it’s easy enough to find out so you might as well embrace it. Hardships in life teach you more than the good times and I’ve had my fair share of both – those are the invaluable experiences that come with age. •

‘Find comfort in t he things you love

REAL-LIFE ROMANCE

In 1982, Paula weds her Cop Shop co-star John Orcsik.

Now divorced, they remain close friends

BABY LOVEPaula and John defy

the odds to welcome daughter

Jessica on Valentine’s Day, 1984

PARTY GIRL Kicking up

her heels for a good cause at a charity event with actor and

author Bruce Venables

MEDAL OF HONOUR

Former NSW Governor

Marie Bashir awards Paula

an Order of Australia

in 1997

TRUE CALLING

Paula’s love of acting is still strong

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and surround yo urself with people who give you hope’