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Dropping the Mask

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One of the most iconic Australians - one who has graced our screen and theatres for over forty years - Noni Hazlehurst is finally telling her story.
Noni Hazlehurst is an icon. A household name, our best-loved actor, she's graced our screens and theatres with her presence for over forty years - and won our hearts and our respect in the process. From hosting Playschool for more than two decades to acting in films such as Ladies in Black, June Again, Monkey Grip, Candy and Little Fish; serving as host on Better Homes and Gardens, a starring role in fan favourite A Place to Call Home; most recently hosting the SBS miniseries Every Family Has a Secret; all that of course in addition to her theatre work.

In some ways, she is an ordinary woman - a single mother to two boys, she knows about sacrifice, stretching thin and juggling. Yet she is clearly also an extraordinary woman - only the second woman to be inducted into the Logies Hall of Fame in 32 years.

She is ordinary, she is extraordinary. She is all class.

And like Noni herself, this will be no ordinary memoir. A natural-born storyteller, Noni Hazlehurst is funny, fierce, truthful. She's thoughtful and clear-eyed about the world. This memoir will be full, rich, funny, lively, opinionated - and a testament to the power of storytelling.

384 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 1, 2024

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Noni Hazlehurst

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5 stars
104 (28%)
4 stars
176 (47%)
3 stars
70 (19%)
2 stars
15 (4%)
1 star
2 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
160 reviews
October 15, 2024
It's practically impossible to be critical of Noni and to also remain fair-minded. At once a deservedly acclaimed actor (and one of the greatest actors working in Australia), a National Treasure, a sympathetic figure and an advocate for children, women and the Arts, she's managed to be all this -- including appearances on long-running 7 Network TV shows -- and maintain her integrity. Indeed the most she has ever compromised was when her bosses at 7 censored her Better Homes and Gardens scripts to remove her tips for saving water and getting kids off screens; as she explains in the book, the show provided her with security for the first time in her career while she was raising her children and while her marriage to John Jarrett was collapsing.

Her long-awaited memoir is written with integrity: eschewing celebrity, she doesn't discuss her children or any more of her relationship with Jarrett than is already public knowledge. What the book does provide is an engaging account of the life of a successful actor while she juggled life much as the rest of us do.

If there is a criticism, it's perhaps that the first decade and a half of Hazlehurst's stage and screen career gets not much more than perfunctory treatment. Maybe she didn't keep a detailed diary, or maybe her publishers wanted a greater focus on more recent events. Anyone hoping for a detailed personal account of Australia's cinema renaissance should look elsewhere. Nor does she add much to what we already know about Play School, despite her more than two decades' involvement and her status as one of its Big 4 stars (along with Benita Collings, Don Spencer and the late John Hamblin, who did provide some enjoyable "behind the scenes" detail in his own book).

But these are minor quibbles. The book runs to 370+ pages as it is; more detail would have surely sent the page count northward of 600 pages, given the extraordinary body of work it covers. It's a wonderful read, life-affirming in the way that the best memoirs are, and contains not an ounce of bullshit. I'm biased, of course, but most Australians under about 45 (and their parents!) are bound to be. I've only met Noni once (I'm the interviewer she mentions on page 323), but it was enough to get a privileged sense of the woman she portrays in these pages. This is a wonderful person's remarkable story.
Profile Image for Lynne.
365 reviews2 followers
November 29, 2024
Listening to the author narrate her memoir has been pure joy. It radiates warmth, kindness, humility, generosity and wisdom, from her reflections on the importance of the arts in enhancing lives, to the importance of Play School and its inclusive attitudes in the entertainment and education of small children. I loved the way in which she discussed the dramatic process, as actor, writer and director, which was quite a departure from other celebrity actor memoirs I've read. This would have to have been one of my favourite non-fiction reads this year.
302 reviews9 followers
October 3, 2024
As a 4th generation performer, Noni Hazlehurst has storytelling in her blood. Having graced Australia with her talent for 50 years, she has had a remarkably diverse career. In this book, Noni provides a deep insight into Australian arts, creativity, truth and connection.
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Having grown up watching Noni as a host on Play School, I was interested in learning more about her incredible career in the arts. Her storytelling ability is amazing, and learning more about this talented Australian has been memorable. Definitely a great read for anyone who has grown up watching Noni on the screen.
13 reviews
December 21, 2024
It was a special privilege to listen to Nono reading her book
Profile Image for Hayley.
1,199 reviews22 followers
October 21, 2024
3.5 stars.

I like biographies/memoirs narrated by the author. The strengths for me in this one were the social/economic changes that have occurred over Noni’s life. Listening to how she grew up and what life was like. How kids played, behaved and were expected to act a certain way. As a listener we see the progression for women and their ever changing role.

The least interesting aspect was the various roles Noni has played over the years. Undoubtedly she has contributed a lot to stage and television and is a terrific actor but I didn’t find this the most interesting aspects of her life. Noni has been select in what she has revealed. It is not a tell all about everything which I think is far classier and respectful for those that her biography might implicate.

Profile Image for Trish.
1 review1 follower
September 11, 2025
This is a really really lovely read. Well I listened to the audiobook which was I think a fantastic way to absorb it as Noni has an extremely comforting voice.

This book is lovely and a great blend of playful storytelling as well as a critical account of recent political history. Noni’s social justice/feminist lens screams out at you in just the best way.

I smiled so much listening to this and also nodded along with references to the treatment of First Nations people (particularly that reference to the way the extras were treated!!!)

It’s not a spoiler but one of my favourite quotes in the book was about part time dads I won’t say much else.

What I will say is this book will make you love Noni even more than you already do!
Profile Image for Susan.
523 reviews
February 20, 2025
I found out I didn’t know Noni as well as I thought! I unexpectedly learned as much about her vast body of work through her career as I did about her as a person.
Profile Image for Ron Brown.
419 reviews27 followers
January 20, 2025
I listened to this book with Noni herself doing the narrating. I guess with all her extensive media experience a book reading would be a sinch. It is great to have the author reading her story, her memoir. Her clear writing includes personal reflections, emotions and insights. It is set out chronologically from her early childhood, as the child of recently arrived ten pound pom migrants. Her story then traces her years at school, Adelaide University. Small part acting role through to the main character if major films. I was astounded at the number and amount of artistic events she was involved in.
She spends time throughout the book recalling her time on Play School on the ABC and then Better Homes and Gardens on Channel 7. Before and after there were countless, films, mini-series, televisions dramas, (The Sullivans, City Homicide, A Place to Call Home and One Night being the most successful) radio presenter and drama teacher, plus a number of government and charity appointments. I am disappointed that I missed many of her appearances.
Throughout her memoir Noni mentions her mother and father, the fine people they were and the influence they had on her life. George and Eileen Hazlehurst were loving parents and their deaths in the book are sad interludes. Noni was brought up in a strict Christian home. She has kept the high morals and ethics that she gained from her parents, but the religious spirit seemed to have dimmed.
An aspect that I appreciate of Noni was her willingness to dish out criticism of conservatives in this country who have wilfully cut funding and support to all forms of the arts. A love of this country is best expressed through stories, fiction and non-fiction, being told through the mediums of books, plays, films, art, music, dance yet the hyper-nationalists in the coalition joyfully hinder that expression. She also is forthright in her support of women, especially women in the arts. She names Abbott, Barnaby, and Howard among others as the villans.
Aspiring thespians would gain much from this publication. She said that the time when she was teaching drama was most rewarding. Hazelhurst has some serious advice about acting and about life.
Hazlehurst has certainly worked with some (if not all) the best and brightest in theatre and cinema in Australia. Any criticisms and gossip she has she has kept to herself. Her two marriages are dealt with briefly in the book.
A woman of prodigious talent, she has written an engaging and charming account of her life. I only wish I had paid greater attention to her performances over the last four decades.
Profile Image for Marles Henry.
916 reviews57 followers
June 9, 2025
“This is what the arts do - they make experience and history survive, they make life itself survivable, and beautiful. The arts are not a lifestyle - they are life.”
Noni is an artist as she described them to us in this memoir: the power in her craft to remind her audiences how being alive truly felt like. This memoir is not only an account of the life of noni Hazlehurst, renowned Australian actor, writer and presenter, but is also a very detailed account of the history of the arts and TV industry in Australia. It's through her words that you get an understanding of her passion to perform and her love of drama, and the origins of this stretching back to her parents. And many aspiring actors and actresses would be best to read this to get a glimpse of the advice and the ways in which she has approached every job undertaken, as a way to prepare their future life under lights.
Her work was primarily in Australia, and her love for the arts took her as far away as London and back again where she lived in suburbs of Melbourne, Inner Sydney, the Blue Mountains and at Mt Tamborine. She also reminisced many of the struggles she faced in her working career, and in her own personal life, which were genuine, sincere and authentic. Her passion and belief for social justice, and just being kind sang out through her words, and when she was able to delve deeper into her family history, many of the answers she sought were waiting for her.
Her memories were a trigger for my memories Noni in The Sullivans, in the movie Candy with Heath Ledger and Little Fist with Cate Blanchett, and of course, her role on Play School. It is in this very show that connected me to the value of kids entertainment and education in my younger years, with its intergenerational appeal working its way into the lives of my own children – the 1996 version of Ning Nang Nong lives in my brain, with Noni in saucepan! What I saw I her role on Play School was a woman who was unafraid to be herself, and dropped the masks to have such a warm and heartfelt engagement with children through.
In her book, Noni referenced the function and power of the arts was “to remind us that we are not alone.” It is through her connection with all of us over decades, through the stories she had told through her many roles, that we have come to love this this talented Australian actor, and lover her all over again through her words in this book.
17 reviews
October 23, 2024
I picked up this book with great interest. As someone who is both the same age as Noni, and also fortunate enough to have followed her work since the early 1970s (seeing her memorable Flinders Uni student performance in the Fantasticks) I have long been captivated by both her talent and her approach to her acting craft.
This lively and thoughtful memoir reminded me of the many facets of Australian life she has brought to our screens and to stages over the decades, from Monkey Grip to Playschool to historic women’s stories and many more still evolving. She has always made great choices in the characters she plays, and her book paints authentic background to these choices, as we get insight into her life and her sense of purpose as a storyteller and advocate for the tales of ordinary people.
Noni documents this life and work with candor, intelligence and a quiet fierceness of political belief in social justice and kindness, which make for great reading.
Really worth a read!
Profile Image for Suellen Milham.
52 reviews
July 8, 2025
My rating is for the book - Noni is definitely a 5.
I almost put it down at the beginning but I’m pleased I kept reading. I particularly liked the chapter headings and discovered, like some others, a greater breadth of Noni’s career and some challenges she has wrestled with.
I have a son who studied film to write and produce. He has spent time working backstage in live theatre and continues to pursue a career in the arts. I learnt a lot that helps me understand a little bit more of his passion for this.
I mourned some of the stories and references to the way female actors have been portrayed and treated and the demise of Noni’s intimate relationships.
It was good to read that she has realised that the war is not against men but human hearts.
Thank you, Noni, for letting us share in your adventurous life!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Laura.
243 reviews19 followers
March 10, 2025
I feel like you can't call yourself Australian, if you don't know who Noni Hazelhurst is. I know she helped raise my generation through TV via play school.

For those that don't know, my story "Uncomfortable" ,the character, June Hazelhurst was inspired by Noni Hazelhurst. I had watched the movie "June Again" and took her character name, June and Noni's last name to create my character June Hazelhurst.

Born in 1953, Noni tells the story of how she grew up and how Australia has shifted during her life time, not just from her personal experience amongst loved ones, but also in Australia in general. Her family was part of the "ten pound pom" generation, which again, the shift from her parents during the war, and how her & her order brother has a huge difference in their upbringing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Carolyn.
357 reviews5 followers
November 22, 2024
Dropping the Mask by Noni Hazlehurst is a great new autobiography.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book ~ although it's only part of Noni's life, it's fulfilling and a very interesting cropped version of it.

Noni Hazlehurst has had a huge and big life; so much so she couldn't possibly fit it all in but did a great job of giving us a good, overall 'outline' of her acting, television and theatre life.

I loved hearing about the Blue Mountains, Mt Tamborine and also her adventures and life in France.

I highly recommend this book for all fans of Noni Hazelhurst.

I was so 'lucky' to get to meet her in person recently.

She's the best!

A natural born actress and celebrity.
Profile Image for Gaye.
23 reviews
February 3, 2025
Dropping the Mask by Noni Hazlehurst is a compelling and deeply personal read from one of Australia’s most beloved actors. Noni takes us on a journey through time, beginning with her parents’ meeting and immigration to Australia, then through her childhood and teenage years in the 1950s and 1960s—a nostalgic trip down memory lane for me.

From her university days to her burgeoning career, Noni shares her life with delightful yet sometimes painful honesty. She doesn’t shy away from the challenges, revealing both the triumphs and struggles of her personal and professional life. Her raw and heartfelt storytelling particularly highlights the fight for women's equality, making this an inspiring and thought-provoking read.

I thoroughly enjoyed this insight into one of Australia’s most treasured icons.
Profile Image for Emma Balkin.
628 reviews5 followers
July 10, 2025
It was delightful to listen to Noni narrating her own life story in this audiobook. Like many of my peers, I grew up with Noni Hazlehurst as a household name, especially due to her constant presence on Play School. She recounts events from her sheltered childhood with conservative religious parents in Melbourne, her drama and literature education at university in Adelaide, her extensive and varied career as well as relationship dramas. Honestly told, Noni’s story conveys someone of integrity and warmth.
Profile Image for Cathy.
284 reviews4 followers
October 26, 2024
What an amazingly talented woman Noni is. I was oblivious to her incredibly large catalogue of work in the acting industry. I am also impressed with all of the boards and committees that she has been on. The Australian Children's Laureate being the one closest to my heart.
I heard Noni speak at a luncheon and was fortunate to meet her after. She was beautiful and ever so kind.
Thank you for sharing about your life with all of us.
69 reviews
March 4, 2025
*Dropping the Mask* is a candid and captivating memoir by beloved Australian actor Noni Hazlehurst. With five decades in film, TV, and theatre, she shares her journey as a performer, advocate, and trailblazer. Honest, witty, and deeply personal, this book is a testament to resilience, storytelling, and staying true to oneself.
Profile Image for Jenny.
244 reviews
March 17, 2025
Listened to Noni Hazelhurst read her autobiography - a fascinating life from her childhood in Brighton, Victoria to travelling all over Australia for study and acting roles. Particularly enjoyed her years on Playschool and Better Homes & Gardens. She worked with many well known and amazing international and Australian stars of stage and screen.
Profile Image for Saturday's Child.
1,478 reviews
December 28, 2024
Over the years I have watched Noni Hazlehurst in movies and television series so of course I was interested to read her own story. I really enjoyed what she shared in this autobiography as it felt like having a chat with a friend.
2 reviews
February 8, 2025
A great insight into the unpredictable life of an actor. Noni is very likeable. I have to say it sometimes gets bogged down with a lot of detail relating to the production process.
Easy, relaxing read.
Profile Image for Ellen.
459 reviews2 followers
March 8, 2025
I identified very strongly with Noni’s childhood. She was born less than two months before me and we both grew up in Melbourne. Some of her reminiscences, such as getting all dressed up to go into ‘the City’, rang loud bells for me.
781 reviews3 followers
April 8, 2025
This is an interesting autobiography of a much-loved actor, promoter of the arts and entertainer.
It particularly held interest for me as I am of similar age to the author.
Noni Hazlehurst has had a busy and varied life, making an enjoyable read.
Profile Image for Chris Kelly.
97 reviews1 follower
November 11, 2024
Listening to this is like being told a story by Mum at bedtime, but a story about being an adult and how to live your best live.

What an amazing woman!
Profile Image for Rachael Goncalves.
70 reviews
December 31, 2024
Really enjoyed listening to this on audio. Great memoir with some fascinating tales. Grew up with play school and also watched when my girls were little. Still a fan ❤️
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