Deborah Mailman will make Logies history on Sunday night, becoming the first Indigenous person inducted into the awards’ Hall of Fame.
The actor will also become the sixth woman to receive the honour since the Hall of Fame was established more than 40 years ago.
Deborah Mailman will become the first Indigenous person inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame. Getty
For Mailman, 54, the news initially left her stunned, with the star telling The Sydney Morning Herald she had to read the email again before it began to sink in.
“I had a moment of almost bursting into tears,” the Offspring actor said.
“I couldn’t quite understand it all, to be honest. It took some time for it to land because I was like, ‘Are you sure?’ I had to re-read the email and go, ‘Hang on, what?’ And then when I started thinking [about it], I got really quite emotional about it.”
The award, which was introduced in 1984, recognises “outstanding and continued contribution and enrichment to Australian television culture by an individual, a group of individuals, or a program”.
Mailman, who is of Bidjara and Māori descent, said the historic first was “a long time coming”.
“And I don’t mean that for just for me, but in terms of us as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in this country, and in this industry,” she said.
The actor credited the generation who came before her and created opportunities for those who followed, saying, “I acknowledge that I’m only here because of the hard work that’s gone before.”
Deborah Mailman in Bite Club. Nine
Mailman has spent decades breaking ground on Australian screens; her first film role in 1998’s Radiance saw her become the first Indigenous woman to win an Australian Film Institute Award for best actress in a leading role.
Her television success continued with The Secret Life of Us, where her portrayal of Kelly Lewis earned her Logies in 2002 and 2004.
Since then, she has appeared in some of Australia’s best-known productions, including Rabbit-Proof Fence, The Sapphires, Offspring, Redfern Now, Mystery Road and Total Control.
She has six Logies to her name, most recently winning best lead actress in a drama for Total Control in 2024.
Deborah Mailman with her The Secret Life of Us co-stars (from left) Samuel Johnson, Joel Edgerton, Spencer McLaren and Abi Tucker at the 2002 Logie Awards, at which Mailman won most outstanding actress in a drama series. Getty Images
Mailman will now join only five other women in the Hall of Fame: Magda Szubanski, Rebecca Gibney, Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Noni Hazlehurst and Ruth Cracknell.
The actor said the small number was difficult to ignore, telling the outlet: “I don’t know if there’s any sort of sugarcoating that.”
Despite Mailman’s illustrious career, the prospect of taking to the stage at the award ceremony is still daunting.
“I’m really, really, really nervous, but I’m also trying to just enjoy what this is about as well,” she said.