SHE'S been in the business for decades, but it took John Stamos's bizarre appearance on her show to launch Kerri-Anne Kennerley in Hollywood. Celebrating the 1000th episode of Mornings with Kerri-Anne last week, Kennerley suddenly found herself the centre of international media attention for playing a starring role in Stamos's very public meltdown. The timing couldn't have been better for Channel 9 because Channel 7 has invested a huge amount of time and money promoting The Morning Show with Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies as competition for Kennerley.
So far it has paid off for Seven. The Morning Show has dominated the timeslot since it was launched, but Kennerley feels the real proof will be in two months when viewer curiosity settles down. Meanwhile, the Stamos incident -- in which he stammered, ranted and insulted Kennerley's outfit -- has her riding high in the publicity stakes.
Stamos's people have blamed his erratic behaviour on jetlag rather than the number of Sydney bars he was seen at until the wee hours of the morning. They whisked him back to America before he could do any further damage and issued an apology on his behalf. But it was perhaps too little too late.
The footage with Kennerley is doing the rounds on the internet, Fox News and American gossip show ET. I have always wanted to be on ET, Kennerley laughs. Now that I have made it in America, I am complete.
You have to be careful with these things. On the one hand you realise it's good TV, but you also don't want to offend your audience. Kennerley is no stranger to difficult guests.
As host of Midday she told Ron Casey to get on his bike after he insulted the production team. And dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov put her through her paces by demanding the audience leave the studio for his interview. He was a real jerk, she says.
Some, like John Stamos, are unintentional. Others come because we like to have a bit of fun. I try to think of questions that are a bit different and that can lead to some great TV moments.
She has persuaded Federal Industrial Relations Minister Joe Hockey to impersonate Shrek and Labor leader Kevin Rudd to dance the tango. And, of course, there was that macarena with Peter Costello when she was hosting Midday. If I only have people on who I like, it would be a very short show, she says.
She says she would have Stamos back -- if he promised to behave. Then again, it makes for better television if he doesn't. What is this?
Post to del.icio.us Post to Newsvine SHE'S been in the business for decades, but it took John Stamos's bizarre appearance on her show to launch Kerri-Anne Kennerley in Hollywood.
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