Simone Buchanan’s comeback at 50
In love and making a comeback, the TV star is relishing life at 50
With her flawless complexion and petite figure, Simone Buchanan would make plenty of women green with envy.
“I almost feel like I need to age a bit more, or at least look older than I do,” the Aussie actress says, without any trace of a smile.
Most people would be jumping for joy if they’d found the secret to stopping the clock, but for this mum-of-two – who first came to our attention as a child actor – it’s like a strange curse that has c cost her career opportunities.
“It’s very frustrating and I battle with that a lot,” she admits. “People tell me I don’t look 50, and I’m quite tiny. They say, ‘We just don’t buy you as middle-aged.’ I need to look older, I think, to get offered more roles. There are still good roles for females in my age bracket, but they’re few and far between. It really is a catch-22.”
Simone says this birthday is the first she’s approached with some reservations in a long time, despite being happier than ever and about to make a comeback to the big screen.
“It’s like you’re entering the twilight years. I used to think people were old at 50 and then you hit 50... It’s a half century!”
The country fell in love with Simone when she played lovable Debbie Kelly in the hit 1990s sitcom Hey Dad..!.
But it was her portrayal of rape victim Lizzy Curtis in Shame, the acclaimed movie in which she starred opposite Deborra-lee Furness, that set her on the path to stardom. Simone was just 19.
Fast-forward 31 years and she’s about to hit the big screen again, playing a lead role in Aussie horror film Boar, alongside John Jarratt, Hugh Sheridan, Ernie Dingo and Chris Haywood.
“I’m really blessed to have been given the role,” she says, admitting she’s had to reinvent herself since the glory days of Hey Dad..! to survive.
Simone went on to star in sand-and-surf soap Pacific Drive, before landing the role of bipolar suffering Samantha Fitzgerald in Neighbours. But she’s also devoted years to teaching at the Film and Television Studio International in Melbourne.
“That’s been a great thing for me, and I’ve learned so much from teaching,” Simone says, adding she’s recently come full circle with Neighbours – she’s back in the building, but this time directing the show.
“Having the opportunity to learn the art of directing has been fantastic. A natural progression I guess. I think I enjoy being behind the camera even more!”
‘I need to look older, I think, to get offered more roles’
After surviving more than four decades of ups and downs in the acting industry, Simone admits she finally feels completely comfortable in her own skin and content with the life she’s built with husband Brett and her two sons, Tane, 20, and Remy, eight.
“I feel the calmest I’ve ever been,” she admits, explaining how they made a “tree change” last year when they moved from their beloved Northcote home in inner city Melbourne to a sprawling garden property in Hurstbridge.
“It’s been a beautiful change and it’s been great for us. We live a really quiet life and I just love it,” she says, smiling.
“We’re about to celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary and we’re still just as much in love as we were all those years ago.
“We met later in life and we’re still in the honeymoon phase. He’s the great love of my life.”
Simone says the passage of time has also left her feeling more complete than before, even if she still has a hunger to test herself as an actress.
“I don’t feel the need to be a star or the centre of attention. You go through your life worrying about what’s next, or if you’re good enough,” she says. “But now I’m just happy to be a working actor, and all I want is for people to like what I do when I do a job.”