As one of the most down-to-earth people in the entertainment industry KATHERINE KELLY LANG has fans all across the world, but Australia and Italy hold a very special place in her heart thanks to new and ongoing projects.
Waiting in a meeting room at the TVSN studios in Frenchs Forrest in Sydney I ponder the friendship I have developed with one of the most recognisable people in American soap operas.
But it’s been a while since I last met up with Katherine Kelly Lang and her partner Dom and a lot has changed since then. All of a sudden my drifting mind is brought back into the room as the silence is broken by a squeal of delight as the woman most people know as Brooke charges towards me with her arms wide open.
Katherine Kelly Lang, or Kelly as she is known to friends, has arrived followed by her partner/manager Dom and her mother. It’s a nice moment as we all say hello and catch up and once again I am reminded of how lovely these people are.
It’s such a nice change from some of the people I have met in this industry, a lot of whom do not have the star power of this lovely lady.
Kelly is in Australia for TVSN to showcase her Kaftan collection. It’s been a five year relationship between the actress and the shopping channel that has benefited both over the years and given Kelly more reasons for coming back to Australia time-and-time again;
“Well, it’s amazing. This is a great atmosphere, a great place for kaftans, you know, you’ve got the beaches, you’ve got the sun, you have the incredible weather all year long. It’s kind of like what we have in Los Angeles and women love kaftans here, and then also for the versatile sizing, which is really amazing. It works really well here, with the weather, the sizing, the style, just always feeling like you’re on holiday, you know? A lot of people do go on holidays, they go on the cruises or they live by the beach or they’re always walking on the beach. So, it just suits that, it suits this atmosphere here.”
But the Kaftan collection isn’t just something Kelly has randomly put her name to, it comes from a natural love of 60s clothing;
“So, the big billowy skirts, the big blouses, that whole kind of kaftan loose fabric style, you know, blowing in the wind. As a kid, I just loved that style and my mum would wear that style too. You know, she was in the 60s, kind of a hippie and so I got to experience all of that.”
Filming Bold and the Beautiful is a well oiled machine, shooting two episodes per day. After shooting four days a week for three weeks cast and crew have one week off, this allows Kelly and Dom to travel around the world;
“That week off, we’re either here for TVSN or we’re in Italy for a movie or other things that we do over there, fashion that we do over there. So Italy and here mostly we travel.”
Italy and Australia have become two of their favourite places for business and pleasure;
“It opened up all these opportunities for other things to do, whether other movies, I do movies in Italy, around the world, I think I’m going to do a TV show possibly in Greece coming up.”
I’m intrigued by the possibility of a new TV show, but Kelly realises she’s said too much and tries to put me off the scent;
“I’m not going to say anything for sure, but that’s a little hint of what’s happening, but still always on Bold and Beautiful, and then do our travel around and do the fashion, which is so exciting. So, it’s opened up other things and opportunities and my life is so full. I couldn’t imagine it any other way.”
As a person who likes to keep herself busy, it makes sense that she would star in another show during her time off from B&B. Kelly knows the other side of fame from when she was trying to get her first break and make ends meet;
“From the time I was 17 when I did my first film, until I got Bold and Beautiful, I always had ups and downs because I would do a TV show and then I’d live off that money and then when I ran out of money I’d have to go work in a restaurant and then a week later I’d get another acting job. So, then I’d quit my restaurant job. I mean, it was hysterical. It was just like, what’s going to happen next? You had no idea, you know, so it’s just kind of, you’re just winging it. So, up until I got the Bold and the Beautiful, I didn’t really know what was happening most of the time just trying to struggle and get by and do as much TV and films as possible.”
Hard work and a ‘can do’ personality is what makes KKL one of the easiest people to work with in the industry. As our relationship grew through working together on Studio 10 I realised she would be up for anything and I really tested her. In an episode she was on we played a game where she ended up getting pancake batter poured on her head. The studio audience and crew couldn’t believe she allowed it, they all thought the game would be rigged so that she would win;
“I’ve never had pancake batter poured on me, so, you know, you got to do that at least once.”
But one of the funniest scenes involved a birthday surprise for Kelly. Her partner, Dom, had provided us with a cake to bring out to her. I charged Craig Bennett with the duty of bringing the cake out. As he came out he fell over and cake ended up everywhere.
It was hilarious… but it was all a con.
I finally felt it was time to let Kelly know I had planned the whole thing and asked Craig to fall over on purpose;
“I knew it,” she yells, finger pointed at me.
“Look, I know bad acting when I see it, okay? No offence to Craig, it’s just that I knew that was not authentic. Like, he dropped that cake on purpose.”
Luckily Kelly likes a good joke and takes my revelation in good spirits. But of course, that’s just Kelly.
Co-Creator and Editor of the TV Blackbox website, Robert McKnight is highly regarded Australian Television Producer, he has worked at SEVEN, NINE and TEN, and is most well-known for creating and producing STUDIO 10. Currently Rob is the host and producer of the TV Blackbox, McKnight Tonight and Monsters Who Murder podcasts.
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