Sarah Harris has opened up about a rather unglamorous side effect of working in television, and why she’s glad to be off screens for the time being.
Harris swapped TV for radio when Network Ten infamously decided to end its flagship evening showThe Project in June last year.
In a new video posted to Instagram, Harris shared her relief to be away from the cameras and gave followers an insight into a gritty bit she’s feeling blessed to be missing.
“So nobody warned me this would happen after I left TV,” said the star. “And look, right from the start, I just want to be very clear. I really miss the glam. I miss the girls. I miss the false lashes, the daily blow dries. And it really annoys me when people complain about sitting in the makeup chair for an hour. It’s like, hello, you’re not digging a ditch. You’re getting paid to sit in a chair so people can make you look hot!”
But Harris then revealed an issue that arose for her after years in front of the camera trying to look perfect for viewers.
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“But as good as my hair looked on tele, it was actually falling out in clumps. It was being tortured. But after a year (off screens), can you see all that extra growth? That is all new hair coming through.”
Showing off her hair, she added: “Look at that. How crazy. So it turns out having a head for radio is really good for your hair.”
Harris has been very happy working in radio, at least for the time being.
The mum-of-two announced earlier this year that she was joining Tim Blackwell and Ricki-Lee Coulter’s new Nova Sydney breakfast show in February.
“This is a massive pinch me moment!” Harris said in a statement at the time.
“There’s something hugely intimate and authentic about radio and I’m so pumped to be waking up with Ricki-Lee and Tim.
“I’ve been in the TV news game my whole career and I love that I’m getting the chance to deliver it on Nova 96.9, without spending an hour in the hair and makeup chair!”
Earlier this year, Harris was quizzed about rumours of a possible co-hosting role on Nine’s Today Show – and asked if she’d do it for a Karl Stefanovic-sized salary – the mum-of-two made it very clear she’s quite happy right now not returning to TV.
“I reckon, 10 years ago, my answer would have been different, but I can honestly, hand on heart, say that I’ve never been happier,” she told Herald Sun.
“I have just hit the perfect balance with my life.”
Harris has kept a relatively low profile since The Project was culled by Channel 10 in June last year.
Before the final episode aired, she revealed in an interview with Joe Hildebrand that she felt guilty over the show’s axing, and even apologised to original host Carrie Bickmore.
“Beautiful Carrie sent me a text when it (The Project’s cancellation) was first announced,” Harris said.
“I said to her, ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t keep your show running.’
“She was like, ‘no, don’t be silly, that’s just the industry,’ but I did feel like that.”
Harris added that she was disappointed to see some people celebrating the show’s demise.
“I understand that The Project was a big headline grabber and it made a lot of people happy, but also pissed a lot of people off,” Harris said.
“It was controversial which had been part of its success for such a long time.
“But there’s more than 50 people who have lost their jobs now and it is a bit hard to take when you see … people dancing on the grave.”