Latest news with #AsherKeddie
Daily Mail
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Inside Asher Keddie's home renovation from hell - as the Logie-winning actress and her artist husband are forced to cough up more than 100k after ugly legal battle
Asher Keddie and her husband Vincent Fantauzzo are embroiled in a battle with a builder who was tasked with renovating their Melbourne home. The multiple Logie winning actress and the acclaimed artist hired the builder to work on their the Black Rock property but refused 'to pay the bulk of their final invoice' the Herald Sun reported on Sunday, after the $650,000 home makeover spiralled into an ugly legal war. The high profile pair this month agreed to pay out the $108,000 they owe to Brighton builder First Ave Homes as part of a settlement between the parties. The settlement was agreed upon during a compulsory conference overseen by a tribunal member and closed to the public. The couple 'took the bizarre step of breaking into the home before handover, moving in, and changing the locks, effectively locking the builder out' according to documents filed with the tribunal, the Herald Sun reported. Keddie and Fantauzzo claimed they were left with no choice due to their rental lease at a second property ending. The couple had additionally claimed the builder was only entitled to part of the invoice, alleging that they had been overcharged and double billed for certain items, left out of pocket over delays and charged for changes to the project made without approval. First Ave Homes has denied those claims. They also accused First Ave Homes of deliberately delaying the project to 'extract payments' - a claim the builder strongly denied. A $56,000 counterclaim from First Ave Homes has been dropped as part of the terms of the settlement. The three bedroom, two bathroom and two garage 'mid-century showpiece' home was sold for $2.46 million in February. A real estate listing for the property described it as 'meticulously enhanced and respectfully renovated to create a sanctuary of indulgent luxury and sophistication.' It adds that the house is, 'exceptionally curated throughout with a rare commitment to excellence'. Daily Mail Australia have reached out to Asher Keddie for comment. Keddie and Fantauzzo have since relocated to another home in Melbourne's St Kilda, where they were the victims of a break-in late last year. The high profile pair this month agreed to pay out the $108,000 they owe to Brighton builder First Ave Homes as part of a settlement between the parties A real estate listing for the property described it as 'meticulously enhanced and respectfully renovated to create a sanctuary of indulgent luxury and sophistication' In March, a man admitted breaking into the home of the television star before being tackled by her husband while attempting to steal a motorbike. James Powell, 44, had already spent 234 days behind bars on remand awaiting his hearing over the shocking incident. He pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court to a swag of dishonesty offences, including his raid on the Keddie property just days after Christmas last year. Appearing in court via videolink from prison, the court heard Powell was spotted by Keddie as he removed her husband Fantauzzo's Ducati. Her screams caused Fantauzzo, 48, to spring into action, sparking a scuffle outside the front of their house. The court heard Powell hit Fantauzzo in the head as he tried to break free. A passer-by helped Fantauzzo subdue the drug-addled thief, who then lapsed into unconsciousness from a suspected drug overdose. Powell was taken by ambulance to The Alfred hospital before being charged over the home invasion. Neither Keddie or Fantauzzo were in court to watch the intruder face justice, nor was a victim impact statement read to the court on their behalf. Powell also pleaded guilty to attacking his former partner, whom he attempted to force into the boot of his car during a domestic incident. 'We've got a kid together,' she was heard pleading as Powell insisted she get into the boot. Powell also admitted to stealing bike accessories from another inner-city apartment complex during an earlier raid in September. The court heard Powell had a lengthy criminal history. Powell was bailed in April. He appeared before Melbourne Magistrates Court via video link from Ravenhall Corrections Centre where he was bailed by Magistrate Vincenzo Caltabiano. The magistrate imposed strict bail conditions, including living at his mother's Altona address and not leaving the state or contacting any prosecution witnesses. The robbery at the Keddie home made national headlines at the time. Keddie met her husband in 2012 when Fantauzzo asked to paint a portrait of her and they wed in a beachside ceremony on Fiji's Turtle Island in April 2014. The couple share Valentino, nine, and Mr Fantauzzo's 14-year-old son, Luca, from a previous marriage. Fantauzzo is a world-renowned artist who has won the Archibald Prize's People's Choice Award four times and painted former prime minister Julia Gillard's official portrait on display in parliament house. Keddie, 50, is best known for her role in Australian drama Offspring where she won the Gold Logie and has won the Most Popular Actress Logie five times in a row. Asher, meanwhile, is a multiple Logie-winning actress, nabbing a Gold Logie in 2013 for her breakout role as Dr Nina Proudman in Offspring. She was also awarded a Most Popular Actress Logie five times in a row from 2011 to 2015. Most recently Asker was nominated or a Gold Logie in 2024 for her portrayal of Evelyn Jones in the BINGE series Strife.
Perth Now
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Asher Keddie in her producing era but isn't quitting acting
When watching a comedy movie or TV show, you may wonder if the actors struggle with trying not to crack up when reciting their lines on set. For one of Australia's most adored actors Asher Keddie, becoming hysterical mid-line is something she is very good at. These latest crack-ups came when playing Evelyn Jones, the lead character in Strife, which follows the modern imperfect woman and publisher on her journey from a blogger to a force in digital media with her startup Eve Life. After the first season in 2023 became Binge's biggest original series premiere of all time, the second season premiered on May 8 and sees Keddie's character exploring the complexities of womanhood, relationships, dealing with the threat of a new rival women's website, and tackling nasty trolls — all the while keeping up just the right level of lighthearted gags. 'This is the sort of show that incites so much mischief and laughter,' Keddie says on a phone call from Sydney. 'The whole ensemble is always engaged in shenanigans and humour and, you know, so much fun behind the scenes. It's about creating a certain level of hysteria when you're doing comedy drama, I think.' It's something the actor, who also serves as executive producer on the show, always encourages 'to the point of being probably the most unprofessional of the lot of them'. 'I'm terrible when it comes to hysterical laughing in the middle of a scene,' she says. 'It's not my strong point, put it that way. if I'm amused by something, I find it difficult not to respond in the moment, and this cast is incredibly amusing, so we've had such fun together.' Asher Keddie as Evelyn Jones. Credit: John Platt In among the comedy, of course, is the importance of telling authentic female stories. After all, the series is a fictionalised adaptation of Mia Freedman's 2017 memoir Work Strife Balance, about her experience of leaving magazines to launch women's lifestyle website Mamamia. 'It was just so incredible listening to the stories at the beginning that Mia had of her experiences throughout, and the challenge of presenting her ideas online and putting them out there and using her voice no matter what the consequences were, and sometimes the consequences in the cost to her were huge,' Keddie says. 'We explore in the second series trolling, which became a really big thing around the time that Mia started up Mamamia, so that's a really interesting storyline.' The Offspring star says viewers need to see women's vulnerabilities on screen. 'What I want to see is not to apologise for getting it wrong and failing sometimes and not being able to achieve that kind of elusive perfection that we put on ourselves all the time,' she says. 'I think those themes that we explore in the show, particularly in the second season, are the things that I really want to lean into as a woman and a viewer, so I'm hoping that other people feel the same way.' Asher Keddie attends the 2025 AACTA Awards. Credit: Dan Peled / Getty Images for AFI The Melburnian reunited with Bruna Papandrea, whom she worked with for roles in Nine Perfect Strangers and The Lost Flowers Of Alice Heart, to produce the show. Keddie found it helpful rather than challenging to be a producer as well as an actor. 'Being able to produce and being in conversation about how we can write it, how we're going to perform it, where it's gonna be, all the different millions of choices that you make on the entirety of a production, it's so involving for me that it's almost easier to be a bigger part of it in that way than it is just to deliver a performance,' she says. Despite loving the production side of things, Keddie isn't stepping away from acting. 'Oh no, I'm not gonna give up my day job,' she says. 'I love acting. I always have. I enjoy it more now actually than ever so no, I still love what I do but I just like combining the two.'
News.com.au
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
One of last year's most acclaimed TV shows is finally free to watch
Sometimes, good things come to those who wait. It's been almost a year since acclaimed Australian series Fake debuted on streaming service Paramount+ – and in today's segmented viewing landscape, chances are a lot of people still haven't seen it. That may change later this month with the announcement that Fake will make its free-to-air debut on Ten on Sunday May 25, after MasterChef. It's well worth a belated watch if you haven't seen it already – here's how we originally reviewed the show in September last year … This eight-part psychological drama stars Asher Keddie doing what Asher Keddie does best: Play a tightly-wound woman on the verge of completely unravelling. There are more than a few shades of Love My Way' s Julia in her portrayal of Birdie, a single, middle-aged journalist who gets swept up in a new romance with mysterious divorced grazier Joe (David Wenham, using his cool blue eyes to menacing effect throughout). Birdie and Joe match on a dating app and meet for a drink, and even from that first meeting there are red flags: I mean, who brings a work colleague to a first date? But he's persistent and open-hearted, willing to be vulnerable in a way that relaxes Birdie's defences. And as her mother (Heather Mitchell) is so fond of telling her, she's not getting any younger and isn't exactly fending off potential suitors. Soon, she's totally swept up in this new love affair. We, the audience, are told very early on in the piece that something's not quite right with Joe, but it takes Birdie a lot longer to figure it out. That can make for a frustrating watch at times, as Birdie reluctantly accepts excuse after excuse for Joe's secretive, at times bizarre behaviour. Why is he always so hard to reach? Why has she never been to his house? Why does he appear casually super-wealthy at times, but barely able to afford a meal at others? As Birdie's doubt mounts, we mull over the possibilities: Is Joe a cheater, a scammer, a sociopath – or all of the above? The tension comes to a head in episode five, an absolutely gripping 40 minutes of television that largely unfolds in the back of a taxi. I won't give it all away, but we watch Birdie in horror as she makes a series of increasingly frenzied phone calls to friends and family, hustling hard to scrape together money Joe needs to close yet another mysterious deal. He's good for it, he'll pay you right back, she insists – even though deep down even she's not sure if that's true. By this point, Birdie's totally lost herself. With three episodes left in the series, the question then becomes: Can she find her way free of this mess, and free of Joe? Fake lives or dies on Keddie's central performance, and she's brilliant as ever. Screenwriter Anya Beyersdorf deftly weaves in Birdie's history with her family and friends so that, even when you can tell she's getting duped, you never feel that she's stupid: There are all-too-clear steps that made her vulnerable to this man's advances. And Wenham is genuinely creepy as Joe, while also being an utterly charming love-bomber who has a perfectly reasonable explanation for every issue Birdie raises. Heather Mitchell, Spencer McLaren and Nicholas Brown are Birdie's loved ones, alternating between swept up in Joe's charms and suspicious of his motives. The show also marks the final on-screen role for former Neighbours actor Janet Andrewartha, who died in July. With such a self-contained story, it's hard to imagine there'll be a second season of Fake. As it stands, it's a stomach-churning modern horror story that's well worth diving into.
Courier-Mail
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Courier-Mail
TV reviews: top shows to watch this week include a Cold Chisel doco, more Strife and Tina Fey's Four Seasons
We've sifted through the latest offerings from TV and streaming platforms to find the best shows you should be watching this week. The veteran rockers in Cold Chisel are going harder than ever at 50. COLD CHISEL: THE BIG 5-0 SUNDAY, 8PM, CHANNEL 7 If you were one of the 250,000 or so people at one of the 23 sold-out Cold Chisel shows to celebrate the revered Australian band's 50th anniversary last year, you'll already know what joyous, adrenalized, quasi-religious experience it was. For anyone else with even a passing interest in one of the greatest bands this country has ever produced, this live show from Melbourne's Sidney Myer Music Bowl is the next best thing. It captures an astonishing band – one that has always been greater than the sum of its parts – in full flight and having an absolute blast in delighting a devoted crowd with high octane hits like Standing on the Outside, Cheap Wine and Goodbye Astrid, to more contemplative moments with Flame Trees, Four Walls and Plaza Hotel. There are also candid interviews with the band, as front man Jimmy Barnes shares his astonishment at reaching the big milestone, guitarist Ian Moss reflects on the band's bumpy journey, chief songwriter Don Walker reveals his favourite creation, bassist Phil Smalls remembers the tough times, and some touching archival footage of the band's late drummer Steve Prestwich. Timothée Chalamet and Monica Barbaro in A Complete Unknown. A COMPLETE UNKNOWN WEDNESDAY, DISNEY+ Timothee Chalamet was well worth his Oscar nomination this year for his uncanny portrayal of the great Bob Dylan in director James Mangold's expertly-crafted biopic. Rather than trying to cram the music great's entire life into a couple of hours, A Complete Unknown focuses on Dylan's early years after arriving in New York City, during which he outgrew his folk roots to become an unlikely heart-throb and music sensation. Dune star Chalamet trained for five years to learn to sing and play guitar and harmonica like Dylan, and is hugely impressive in the live and studio scenes as the singer expanded his creative horizons – and defied backlash – in the lead-up to his now legendary electric performance at the Newport Folk Festival. Asher Keddie is back as Evelyn Jones in Strife. STRIFE THURSDAY, BINGE Six months after the events of the first season and Asher Keddie's new media entrepreneur Evelyn Jones is struggling. Former staffer Christine is about to launch her rival website (amusingly titled Whoman – the H is silent), her business is battling financially after expanding too rapidly and contemplating entering the world of podcasting, and she's desperately trying to hide her rage and self-pity, both of which are fuelled by an online stalker, who is bad for Eve's reputation but excellent for engagement. The always watchable Keddie remains the best thing about this home grown comedy-drama, finding laughs and pathos in Eve's blend of strength and vulnerability as she juggles the responsibilities of family, business, love and modern feminism. Multiple Cynthia Erivos and Natasha Lyonne in Poker Face. POKER FACE THURSDAY, STAN Wicked fans can see a whole lot more Cynthia Erivo – playing five different roles – in the series return of Rian Johnson's (Knives Out) hugely entertaining, star-studded murder-of-the-week comedy drama that tips its hat knowingly to classics of the genre from Columbo to Murder, She Wrote. With Natasha Lyonne's ex-cocktail waitress Charlie Cale still on the run from the mafia and speeding around the country taking odd jobs and avoiding hit men, she pitches up at an apple farm, where she makes friends with a former child star, one of a set of quintuplets. When their nasty mother and former manager dies, Charlie becomes tangled up in the squabble for her fortune, using her uncanny ability to know when someone is lying to unravel an outlandish and hilariously complex plot. Georgie Tunny narrates House Hunters Australia. HOUSE HUNTERS AUSTRALIA SUNDAY, 8.15PM, CHANNEL 10 There's nothing especially new or startling about this real estate reality TV series narrated by the lively Georgie Tunny, but anyone looking to break into the property market – or partners who recall the stress and bickering of finding the perfect pad – will relate to the lighthearted, brisk viewing. In this first episode, new parents Billy and Bronte are exploring Sydney's Shire to find a property that will cater to the needs of their growing child as well as balancing his taste for a vintage, lived-in look with her demands for something clean and low maintenance. The show then shifts to a regular home at 7.30pm on Fridays, with older Central Coast couple Bridget and Paul looking to downsize after growing tired of stairs and cleaning three levels. Sam Pang, Tom Gleisner and Ed Kavalee from Have You Been Paying Attention. HAVE YOU BEEN PAYING ATTENTION MONDAY, 8.40PM, CHANNEL 10 With six Logie Awards in a row and a reputation for celebrating and giving exposure to some of Australia's best stand-up talent, comedy-news quiz show Have You Been Paying Attention has become an absolute powerhouse from its humble beginnings. Now in its 13th season, quiz master Tom Gleeson and his reliable team captains Sam Pang and Ed Kavalee are back to pick apart the events of the previous week for maximum laughs and possibly even some accidental learning. In the wild media world of 2025, there will be no shortage of material. Tina Fey as Kate and Will Forte as Jack in The Four Seasons. Picture: Netflix THE FOUR SEASONS NETFLIX As creator, star and co-writer, the brilliant Tina Fey is the driving force behind this outstanding eight-part remake of Alan Alda's (who also makes a fitting cameo) 1981 movie of the same name. It follows three couples who have been friends for three decades as they catch up for their regular holiday getaways over the course of a year. There's uptight Kate (Fey) and her affable but slightly hopeless husband Jack (Will Forte), suave architect Danny (Colman Domingo) and his flamboyant Italian husband Claude (Marco Calvani), and mega-rich Nick (Steve Carell), who is about to dump his wife Anne (Kerri Kenney-Silver) for the much younger Ginny (Erika Henningson) and throw the tight-knit group into chaos. As it explores the changing nature of love, marriage and friendship it's by turns laugh-out-loud funny and heart-wrenching, but ultimately a deeply satisfying and uplifting experience. More please! Claudia Karvan finds some family surprises in Who Do You Think You Are. WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE TUESDAY, 7.30PM, SBS Logie-winning actor Claudia Karvan is the first celeb delving into the past for the return of this emotional and rewarding genealogy documentary. With her unconventional childhood – her parents split before she was born and she was raised by her bohemian mother and stepfather in Sydney's Kings Cross – she says she knew little about her forebears and wasn't especially interested, but changes her tune as she travels to England, Cyprus and New Zealand to track down records from both sides of the family. There are tears and gasps as she uncovers sad and moving stories of ancestors raised in orphanages, another who was tortured by WWI PTSD with tragic consequences, a trailblazing feminist and the black sheep who was shunned after bringing the family into disrepute. The behind-the-scenes staff for the super rich in Billion Dollar Playground. BILLION DOLLAR PLAYGROUND TUESDAY, BINGE Fans of the Real Housewives and Below Decks franchises – and anyone looking for a weirdly voyeuristic glimpse into the life of the uber-rich and entitled one-percenters – will get a kick out of this new reality show about mega-mansions for rent and the people who service them. These week's first episode serves as an introduction to the crew as they prepare for the arrival of the wealthy guests at a harbour-view pad in Sydney's Rose Bay who expect to have their every whim catered too, no matter how ridiculous. There's fiery lead concierge Salvatore, who's created a rod for his own back by appointing two rival deputies, JB the outrageously French butler, 'good-looking brothers who can cook' George and Matthew, and Jay, the Fabio-esque pool guy who has a side hustle as a model for romance book covers. With caviar bumps, missing Dom Perignon and pampered pooches, these are first-world problems of the highest order – but the views are nice. Mark Coles Smith returns to his childhood home in ABC doco The Kimberley. THE KIMBERLEY TUESDAY, 8PM, ABC Award-winning Mystery Road star and Nyikina man Mark Coles Smith is the perfect guide for this stunning three-part nature doco that spotlights the startlingly varied seasons in some of Australia's most spectacular, inaccessible and unforgiving terrain, the 400,000 sqkm Kimberley Region in northwest Australia. In this week's first episode, he retraces his childhood steps on the Martuwarra/Fitzroy River to uncover the incredible array of wildlife – some of which doesn't live anywhere else – from the dangerous, stealthy and ancient saltwater crocodiles to majestic white bellied sea eagles and how they adapt to the harsh conditions. He also explains the river's deep spiritual connection to the many Indigenous nations along its length, and their ongoing vigilance to protect it from invasive and potentially destructive mining, water extraction and fracking. Seth Rogen get his hero moment in The Green Hornet. IN CASE YOU MISSED IT … THE GREEN HORNET Streaming on Tubi As far as unlikely superheroes go, they don't come more unlikely than Seth Rogen. Known for playing loveable louts in films such as Knocked Up and Superbad, Rogen puts his signature wisecracking and dishevelled spin on the superhero genre in this 2011 film. He plays Britt Reid, a wealthy publisher who dreams of crime fighting and so enlists his mechanic, Kato (Jay Chou), to become his karate-kicking sidekick. Thankfully, none of this requires Rogen to don Lycra because Reid's alter ego, the Green Hornet, is more a fedora and three-piece-suit-wearing sort of good guy. And, in typical Rogen style, he's secured a love interest who would normally be well out of his league, in the shape of Cameron Diaz. Originally published as What to watch on TV this week: Cold Chisel rocking hard at 50; Asher Keddie back in more Strife
Metro
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Spend your May bank holiday weekend bingeing ‘best Australian drama in a decade'
A 'gripping' thriller inspired by the real-life story of a woman who discovered her ex-partner was a fraud is now available to stream in the UK. The Australian series Fake stars Asher Keddie as Birdie Bell, a magazine feature writer who thinks she's found her perfect match when she meets successful rancher Joe (David Wenham). However, she's then torn between his magnetic pull and the instinct that her boyfriend isn't all he seems. It's been teased of the eight-part show: 'Fake is a story of deception, a tense and exhilarating exploration of the illusions life lays out for us, through both the lies we are told and the lies we tell ourselves.' The series was based on journalist Stephanie Wood's memoir, Fake: A Startling True Story of Love in a World of Liars, Cheats, Narcissists, Fantasists and Phonies, which detailed how she uncovered her ex's web of lies. When it was released in Australia last year, Fake was praised by both critics and audiences. 'This does feel like an antipodean version of the Joanne Froggatt-Ioan Gruffudd-starring Liar. But whereas that BBC psychological thriller wasn't exactly subtle in its manipulation and moustache-twirling villainy, this is far more insidious and nuanced,' The Post NZ wrote in its review. 'It's anxiety-ridden and frustrating, but that's only because it's evoking a visceral response,' The Nightly shared. 'One of the best Australian dramas of the decade so far, Fake is an unflinching examination of deception's cruel grip — whether it's wielded by an imposter or delivered through our own flawed self-esteem,' The Age added. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Meanwhile viewers called it 'gripping' and an 'emotional rollercoaster'. In an interview with Metro, Wood explained how her experience with a love scammer came in an era before Dirty John and the Tinder Swindler. 'There had been none of those sorts of stories out there about romantic kind of scams, and I knew there was something not quite right about Joe, but he never asked me for money,' she explained. 'Enough added up that it left me blind to the stuff that didn't add up. Of course, I knew that you could lose money to horrible men, but when he wasn't asking me for that, I just wanted to hope so much that it could be a beautiful relationship.' More Trending Ahead of the show's release creator Anya Beyersdorf said Fake was 'a story of what it feels like to be lied to, to have your instincts broken, to be gaslit not only by your romantic partner but by society at large'. 'The most remarkable thing about this story is that it's not remarkable at all. These stories are frighteningly common, the minute you start telling people this story, someone invariably pipes up – this happened to my friend/my aunt/my sister/me…' 'It is my hope that this show will allow us to recognise a Joe in the wild, and RUN the other way.' View More » Fake is now streaming on ITVX and will also air weekly from Saturday May 3 on ITV1. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: ITV star reveals she 'feared being dropped from This Morning' over pregnancy MORE: Rowan Atkinson fuels fresh hope most iconic character could return after 30 years MORE: Genius Game rules explained as ITV viewers dub David Tennant show 'impossible'
