Why Location Location Location NZ’s Jayne Kiely disappeared from the spotlight

Jayne Kiely had been off our TV screens for almost 15 years. Photo / Amalia Osborne

The telly presenter is right at home in a new show, but what took her out of the spotlight for so long?

Jayne Kiely had been off our TV screens for almost 15 years and was happily working as a real estate agent for more than a decade when she received a phone call a few months ago asking her if she’d consider auditioning for the TVNZ show Location Location Location NZ.

“I thought it was someone winding me up at first – but of course, l said yes!” says Jayne. “Then I immediately went into level up mode, bought some top-strength concealer and rang my hairdresser Barb for an emergency appointment to get the greys out of my hair as the audition was in five days!”

Naturally, Jayne needn’t have worried. She nailed the screen test, got on brilliantly with her co-star, fellow real estate agent Paul Glover, and the show became an immediate hit with Kiwis who were already hooked on the UK and Australian versions of the series.

Jayne got on brilliantly with her co-star and fellow real estate agent Paul Glover. Photo / NZ Woman's Weekly

“I think what makes people love the show is the same reason I love being a real estate agent – you learn the stories of people’s lives through their homes,” she explains.

“In my job, I get to hear about people’s memories of the house they’ve lived in and loved, which is often the place they brought their first baby home from hospital, celebrated milestone moments, where they celebrated 21st birthdays and met their grandkids for the first time.

“I develop a genuine connection to the home. I know it sounds a bit sentimental, but that’s how I feel.”

Jayne is clearly emotionally attached to her job – something which was probably a factor in her pilot husband Paul, 60, initially telling her she was “too nice to be a real estate agent”.

She admits, “Real estate is brutal – far more brutal than TV! There are a lot of crazy ups and downs – one week can be amazing and the next can be terrible.

“At the beginning, I threw everything into it and I’d take it personally if a sale didn’t go through as I’d assume it was because I hadn’t done something right.

“It’s not an easy game – you’re trying to do the best for your client, and dealing with a lot of emotions and expectations, so if things didn’t work out, I’d blame my own ability to get the job done.

“But I’ve learned over time that you must accept not everything is your fault. I had to learn to put my big girl undies on, get broader shoulders and make it work. And if it didn’t, that was okay.”

Jayne says a large part of her success comes down to her age – the former elite track and field athlete turned 60 this year.

“As I’ve grown older, I’ve become more patient and I have more empathy,” she tells. “When I was younger, I’d throw myself into everything at full speed and not think about the consequences. These days, I take a step back and evaluate a lot more.”

When Jayne landed the job on Location Location Location, insecurities as a 60-year-old mum popped up. Photo / Amalia Osborne

That careful mindset was especially helpful for the former Commonwealth Games athlete and popular TV personality, whose previous roles include presenting 10 seasons of Mitre 10 Dream Home, Weddings, Game of Two Halves, Sports Cafe, A Question of Sport and appeared on the original series of Celebrity Treasure Island – when she found herself back in the spotlight this year.

“I was in the TV wilderness for years because basically I stopped getting work,” she says.

“As I got older, newer, younger talent came in and I became less relevant. And that was fine – that happens – and I went into real estate because I knew I had a lot more in the tank.”

But when Jayne landed the job on Location Location Location, up popped all the insecurities you’d expect from a 60-year-old mum to two adult kids.

“TVs are pretty high-definition these days, so my immediate reaction was like, ‘Do I need to get my teeth whitened, get some sort of work done or buy some new clothes?’” she laughs.

“But the feedback I’ve had from family and friends, and even strangers, has been lovely. People have told me I look just the same as they remember, which is perfect.

“Because with me, what you see is what you get – I’m just me. And why would it be any other way? Because I’ve learned that it’s far too hard to try to be anyone else.”

While Jayne has been uplifted by the public’s response to the show, two people whose opinions really mattered were her sons, Tom, 26, and Jack, 24.

“It’s been so nice! When I was on Dream Home, they were about three and five, and when my show came on, they’d go, ‘Mum! I don’t want to watch this – I want to watch Blues Clues. Change the channel!’

The host loves her real estate job with a passion. Photo / Amalia Osborne

“Now they want to watch my show and they’ve both told me they are proud of me, which means so much.”

Yet although the boys are super-supportive of their mum, they’re doing it from afar, with Tom currently in Bali, catching up with his mates before heading to Europe for their winter season, and Jack living away from home and working in commercial real estate.

“I still miss them terribly,” admits Jayne.

“I was a basket case when Tom left to go on his OE! It was time for him to go – as a parent you want your kids to go and do their own thing, and be amazing.

“At their age, I was travelling the world as an athlete and having the time of my life! But off they go and you’re left there, feeling like you just lost a little piece of your heart.”

Jayne clearly recalls her empty-nest blues as if they were yesterday.

“I remember going to the supermarket after they’d both left and instead of buying a bag of potatoes, I got about four individual potatoes in a little paper bag – it was so sad,” she says, a little tearily.

“For ages, I was cooking way, way too much food. There was no way Paul and I could eat it all. To be honest, I’m not much better now – if I know they are coming home, I stuff the fridge full of things I know they love. You never stop being a mum, do you?”

While Jayne still gets misty-eyed when she talks about the boys, she is obviously in a great space and loves her “normal” real estate job with a passion. She still exercises daily, using the gym at their Auckland home, and does Pilates.

Jayne takes their dog Frank for a walk every day. Photo / Amalia Osborne

“For my age and body, core strength and stretching are really important,” she says.

“All those years of long jump and triple jump mean I’m starting to get a bit sore in my hips and knees. I also take our dog Frank for a walk every day – dogs are a great way of making sure you get out into the fresh air. But I’m not tearing around like I used to.”

She also admits that these days she has to pare back her timetable a little – something that was tricky while filming a TV series and juggling a seven-days-a-week job.

“I do get tired, and I’d never have been able to make Location Location Location without my teammates Amy [Robertson] and Dinusha [Sujani],” Jayne says of the other two members of Kiely & Co, a subsidiary within Ray White Remuera that Jayne set up earlier this year.

“When I got the TV role, I asked them to tell me honestly if they thought we could cope with me filming and doing the day job at the same time,” tells Jayne.

“And they were amazing. We checked in with each other all the time and I’d hop on to my phone or laptop during filming breaks. We live in a very connected world these days, so we managed to make it work.”

Despite the occasional tiredness, and the aches and pains, Jayne wouldn’t have things any other way.

“At my 60th birthday party, I stood up in front of my family and friends and said, ‘I am so grateful to be here,’” she tells.

“I was very mindful of the people in that room who had lost husbands, wives and friends before they ever got to 60.

“I’m very aware that I am very lucky. Things can change on a dime, so I don’t feel sad about being 60. I am very grateful that I have been able to reach the age of 60 and I’m going to embrace and enjoy it.”

AA Insurance Location Location Location NZ is on TVNZ 1 Sundays and TVNZ+.

Hair and Makeup: Katie Fell. Styling: Angela Stone. Clothes: Farmers.