{"id":220282,"date":"2025-10-17T13:13:19","date_gmt":"2025-10-17T13:13:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/220282\/"},"modified":"2025-10-17T13:13:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-17T13:13:19","slug":"telethon-2025-aussie-stars-touch-down-at-perth-airport-as-they-get-ready-to-raise-roof-at-fundraising-weekend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/220282\/","title":{"rendered":"Telethon 2025: Aussie stars touch down at Perth Airport as they get ready to raise roof at fundraising weekend"},"content":{"rendered":"

A convoy of Australia\u2019s most familiar screen and stage talent touched down at Perth<\/a> Airport on Friday afternoon, greeted by Fat Cat and a welcome party of school students as they geared up for a spectacular weekend of fundraising at Telethon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Featuring a host of returning stars in Nat Barr, Larry Emdur, and Dami Im, and emerging national talents in singer Marshall Hamburger, and Perth-born Home and Away cast member Tristan Gorey, the weekend of giving promises to pull out all the stops.<\/p>\n

Eurovision runner-up and recording artist Im, now a mother of two, was buoyed by the prospect of having family by her side at Telethon for the first time.<\/p>\n

However, she admitted it \u201cwas not easy bringing small kids\u201d on the flight from Brisbane.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve done this in the past, and I\u2019ve always enjoyed that enthusiasm and people coming together to support one another,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow be to be here again, with little kids this time, which I didn\u2019t have kids last time, it\u2019s even more meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DamiCamera IconDami Im with husband Noah and children Rory (4 months) and Harrison (3) as they are greeted by Fat Cat at Perth Airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Sonia Kruger will be joining Im in making the weekend a family<\/a> affair, accompanied by her daughter who is yet to experience the magic.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m so happy because I got to bring Maggie with me. This is her first Telethon. She\u2019s 10 now, and I really want her to see the incredible work that goes on here,\u201d Kruger beamed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe first thing I said was, \u2018Fat Cat will be there\u2019, and he was literally right there as we got off the plane. So that was amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sunrise host Nat Barr \u2014 a proud West Aussie \u2014 always feels a sense of home when she lands in Perth, and while she\u2019s lost count of her number of Telethon appearances, the Bunbury product has never lost sight of the difference the weekend makes to the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis just means so much, all these years and all this money, but it\u2019s the feeling that you get through this whole weekend, from the arrival at the airport and every one of these hours until Sunday night,\u201d Barr said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s so special. People in the Eastern States are in awe of what we\u2019re about to do this weekend, and I\u2019m so excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her right-hand man, Matt \u2018Shirvo\u2019 Shirvington, believes the most special element of Telethon is \u201ckids helping kids\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cMore than anything, the thing that I love the most is when young kids come along with their sandwich bags full of cash that they\u2019ve saved up throughout the year, or forgone birthday presents or whatever it is, and say, Can you hand this over?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Promising another lip-sync battle, equipped with a wardrobe change, Shirvo suggested nothing is off limits and will be telling his colleagues: \u201cIf a conga line goes by, jump on board.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"NatCamera IconNat Barr arriving at Perth airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

The Morning Show hosts Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies spend hours together most days, but the pair admitted the same rules don\u2019t apply in the air.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always great flying with Kylie, we\u2019re usually like the royal family. We like to travel separately\u2026 just in case,\u201d Emdur joked.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I couldn\u2019t fall asleep this time because I knew she\u2019d be lurking to try and get a photo for Instagram with me slobbering all over myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gillies suggested the weekend was full of surprises, and it was impossible to predict what would happen next.<\/p>\n

\"LarryCamera IconLarry Emdur and Kylie Gillies arriving at Perth airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

\u201cI bumped into a guy who runs some McDonald\u2019s restaurants who said, \u2018You\u2019ll probably be eating some of my cheeseburgers over the weekend, because I\u2019ve donated a whole stack of them\u2019,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s started already.\u201d<\/p>\n

Within earshot was My Kitchen Rules co-host Manu Feildel, who believed he wouldn\u2019t be cooking too much, \u201cbut hopefully I\u2019ll be eating a lot\u201d.<\/p>\n

Admitting it\u2019s \u201calways a pleasure coming to Perth\u201d, the Frenchman said Telethon provided a great opportunity to run amok with colleagues he doesn\u2019t see so often in the name of fundraising.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll the Channel Seven crew, we know each other, but we never spend too much time together, and we\u2019re gonna have a lot of fun this weekend and hopefully get a lot of cash,\u201d Feildel added.<\/p>\n

Returning for his second year, AFL Brownlow Medallist and larrikin Shane Crawford had a ball in 2024 and will be close to the action once more.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did get cream-pied in the face a few times, so it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if that happens again. But that\u2019s easy for me \u2014 I\u2019m a big kid at heart, so I just join in all the fun,\u201d he teased.<\/p>\n

\"TristanCamera IconTristan Gorey, Fat Cat and Rob Palmer at Perth Airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

Footy pundit and funnyman Mick Molloy \u2014 host of The Front Bar \u2014 joked he\u2019d been recruited out west \u201cto raise money for the West Coast Eagles, so they could afford Harley Reid\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m a soft touch when it comes to the kids,\u201d Molloy added. \u201cWhat I know is there\u2019s lots of singing and dancing, and people carrying on, raising money for a very good cause. It\u2019s quite famous, even over in the east.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"ChannelCamera IconChannel 7 Stars have arrived in Perth ahead of the Telethon weekend. Pictured is Mick Malloy arriving at Perth airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

For actor Tristan Gorey, his first call-up to the big show doubled as a trip home.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a good feeling stepping off the plane, everything slows down \u2014 the weather, the vibe, the people. It\u2019s going to be a nice couple of days,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

As a product of WA, the former John XXIII College student has not forgotten the profound impact the weekend has on the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always a really big deal, a really important cause. I\u2019m looking forward to being a part of it, it\u2019s my first time, so I\u2019m excited and nervous,\u201d Gorey added.<\/p>\n

With a goal of topping 2024\u2019s donation tally of $83 million, Rob Palmer suggested it would be foolish to underestimate WA\u2019s willingness to rise to the challenge.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe expectation may be high, but history shows you that WA won\u2019t be told what they can and can\u2019t do,\u201d Palmer said.<\/p>\n

The gregarious TV personality \u2014 who needs no excuse to smile \u2014 said it\u2019s impossible not to embrace the occasion.<\/p>\n

\"ShannonCamera IconShannon Noll as he is greeted by Fat Cat at Perth Airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never seen someone as positive as a child in hospital with something they have no control over. They have a positivity that\u2019s contagious, and it spreads throughout the entire community,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Returning after \u201cfive or six\u201d previous appearances, performer Rob Mills \u2014 a proud ambassador for the Australian Children\u2019s Music Foundation \u2014 has personally felt the impact of children\u2019s charities and can empathise with the families doing it tough.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving had a nephew who was in the Royal Children\u2019s Hospital in Melbourne, that feeling of how families, what family\u2019s going through, especially when it\u2019s their babies, you know how it can decimate a family, or how can bring a community together,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"DrCamera IconDr Harry Cooper as he is greeted by Fat Cat at Perth Airport. Credit: Justin Benson-Cooper\/The West Australian<\/p>\n

\u201cSo I think it\u2019s one of the greatest charity weekends that exists in this country. And it\u2019s just my pleasure to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forever linked with his Australian Idol mate Guy Sebastian \u2014 who performed at Telethon last year \u2014 Shannon Noll said he\u2019ll be out to put on a show on Sunday and recalled meeting \u201csome crazy bands over here\u201d in his earliest appearances.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always just a great time, such a great vibe around the whole thing. Everyone gets right into the mood, it\u2019s terrific,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Following his own Australian Idol victory in April, Marshall Hamburger\u2019s trip west marks both his debut at Telethon and his first experience in Perth as a Queenslander. But he\u2019s not sought too much advice from his experienced travelling party.<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard that it\u2019s the biggest charity event in the world,\u201d Hamburger beamed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis will be a full surprise, I\u2019m going in blind.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A convoy of Australia\u2019s most familiar screen and stage talent touched down at Perth Airport on Friday afternoon,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":220283,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[64,63,447,134,44,501,45],"class_list":["post-220282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-news","tag-telethon","tag-wa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220282","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=220282"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/220282\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/220283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=220282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=220282"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=220282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}