‘Why do you look so different?': Wild question Sarah Harris keeps getting asked

News.com.au

31-07-2025

Television personality Sarah Harris has revealed the most frequent question she gets asked after Channel 10 axed The Project back in June after 16 years on-air. And brace yourself, it's depressing.
The 44-year-old TV personality has been a staple on Aussie screens for over a decade now, first on Studio 10 for seven years, where she was marked safe from the rumoured ' Brussels sprouts drama ' between Denise Drysdale and Ita Buttrose.
After emerging as a fan favourite on Studio 10 before it was canned, she then joined The Project in 2022, to plenty of fanfare and excitement.
Part of the Harris's appeal is that, besides being clearly very good at her job, she is relatable and someone you'd like to be mates with.
She makes people feel like she's speaking directly to them, not at them, and she comes across like she would offer a fellow woman a tampon in a crisis.
She's the kind of celebrity people feel comfortable approaching.
If you saw Russell Crowe in the wild, you might just stare and panic. And if you did approach, it would be with extreme caution, because he's a movie star who gets really mad at airlines for not letting hoverboards on planes.
If you saw Harris out and about, you'd probably feel comfortable saying hello, and it might even feel like you were running into a close friend.
People seem to be taking it too far, though, because Harris shared on social media that 'probably' the most asked question she receives is … 'Why do you look so different off television?'
I take issue with the word 'different' because it seems rude and passive aggressive. It's a word someone who doesn't like you would use to describe your outfit, 'wow, your outfit is so different'.
Nobody wants to be accused of looking 'different' as it is essentially one step away from being told you look 'worse' or 'weird' or 'bad' and you just know it isn't a compliment.
I'll concede that Harris looked more polished on The Project, but in the same way we all do when we're going to work.
The 44-year-old star looked slightly more elevated when she had an entire glam team behind her on The Project, but the television personality in activewear, make-up-free, is not entering 'unrecognisable' celebrity territory.
She's a gorgeous blonde either way with a warm, recognisable face.
Harris, because she's classy and relatable and nice, capitalised on the common fan question by giving a shout-out her make-up team at The Project and called them 'magicians', which is very sweet … but why the hell are people feeling emboldened to give Harris this feedback?
I don't think anyone is pulling Pete Overton aside and asking him why he has more of a 'glow' when he reads the news.
It also makes me fume that people can't think of more interesting questions to ask her. Surely it'd be far more interesting to inquire if she ever noticed any sparks between Carrie Bickmore and Tommy Little? Or even better, is she really thinking about appearing on I'm A Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here?
Wouldn't it be more fun to ask if she'd ever consider co-hosting Today with Karl Stefanovic? I feel like they'd have more chemistry that Kochie and the Cash Cow ever did.
Psychologist Carly Dober said the Harris question isn't shocking because it comes down to the fact that culturally 'women's appearances are unfortunately still up for debate and open to criticism' a reality men avoid.
'Socially men are afforded more 'passes; for their appearance in areas like weight and shape, choice of clothing,' she said.
Ms Dober argued that men are also exempt from paying the 'pink tax' of needing to spend hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars to meet ever-changing beauty standards.
The psychologist explained that even though it is more normalised to comment on women's appearances that doesn't mean it is healthy.
'To be clear! No one needs to be making unnecessary comments on anyone's appearance,' she said.
Harris found a way to use a common and frankly rude question she receives from complete strangers to highlight all the talent behind the scenes at The Project, and I applaud her for that. But people really need to stop saying such stupid and insensitive things to women.
It is, as always, the audacity for me. Let Sarah Harris be hot and makeup-free in peace.