Hilary Timmins is a

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

Career

Hilary first appeared on New Zealand Television in 1986 after studying

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

and ancient history at

Auckland University The University of Auckland is a public university, public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the largest, most comprehensive and highest-ranked university in New Zealand and consistently places among the top 100 universit ...

coupled with a busy modelling career – when she began her co-hosting role of the iconic NZ game show, ''It’s in the Bag''. Born in New Zealand to Scottish parents, Hilary went on to become a household name, appearing on many successful television shows for an unbroken 22 years. In 1992, Hilary began her long association with the New Zealand Lotto; a relationship that continued until 2008 when she left to travel abroad. She fronted the weekly live Lotto Draw during this period, in addition to scripting and creating aspects of the production. Her involvement with Lotto also stretched to the directing of many community grants and celebrity inserts, as well as appearing in numerous brand commercials and fronting sponsorship and promotional campaign including the

America's Cup The America's Cup, informally known as the Auld Mug, is a trophy awarded in the sport of sailing. It is the oldest international competition still operating in any sport. America's Cup match races are held between two sailing yachts: one f ...

and Festival of New Zealand. In addition she worked constantly as a guest speaker and host of corporate and

black tie Black tie is a semi-formal Western dress code for evening events, originating in British and American conventions for attire in the 19th century. In British English, the dress code is often referred to synecdochically by its principal element fo ...

fundraisers, public and civic functions, as well as high-profile product endorsement and commercials. Hilary has been actively involved in community and charity work. She was the Chief Celebrity Ambassador for Variety New Zealand and has worked as an ambassador for Skylight children's charity and

Victim Support Victim Support is an independent charity in England and Wales that provides specialist practical and emotional support to victims and witnesses of crime. Activities ;Support for victims of crime: Trained volunteers and employees offer free and c ...

. She has interviewed many celebrities and personalities including

Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith, (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English tenor, actor and comedian. Crawford is best known for playing both the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom ''Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'' an ...

Dannii Minogue Danielle Jane Minogue () is an Australian singer, television personality, and actress. She initially gained recognition for her appearances on the television show ''Young Talent Time'' (1982–1988) and for her role as Emma Jackson on th ...

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera (; ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. Known for her four-octave vocal range and ability to sustain high notes, she has been referred to as the " Voice of ...

, Jewell, Vanessa May,

Jimeoin James Eoin Stephen Paul McKeown (born 24 January 1966), better known as Jimeoin (pronounced "Jim Owen"), is an English-born Irish comedian and actor. Jimeoin rose to prominence in the early 1990s in Australia, where he had his own TV show and ...

Russell Watson Russell Watson is an English tenor who has released singles and albums of both operatic-style and pop songs. He began singing as a child, and became known after performing at a working men's club. He came to attention in 1999 when he sang "God ...

and

Jonah Lomu Jonah Tali Lomu (12 May 1975 – 18 November 2015) was a New Zealand professional rugby union player. Lomu is considered to have been the first true global superstar of rugby, and consequently had a huge impact on the game. He is widely regarde ...

. ;Highlights * Filming “It’s In The Bag” from

Scott Base Scott Base is a New Zealand Antarctica, Antarctic research station at Pram Point on Ross Island near Mount Erebus in New Zealand's Ross Dependency territorial claim. It was named in honour of Captain Robert Falcon Scott, Royal Navy, RN, leader ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...

. * Co-anchoring various

telethon A telethon (a portmanteau of "television" and "marathon") is a televised fundraising event that lasts many hours or even days, the purpose of which is to raise money for a charitable, political or other purportedly worthy cause. Most telethons f ...

s * Hosting and performing as a singer for the Live Lotto Draw in front of a crowd of 250,000 at Xmas in the Park, Auckland and

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

. * Being New Zealand's first female game-show host on Telebingo. * Sailing during elimination races on the New Zealand America's Cup yacht “Black Magic”. Hilary currently lives in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and recently wrote and directed the TV and educational series
Dream Catchers
, a series about inspirational New Zealanders in the UK. She is married to New Zealand film producer/financier Robert Whitehouse.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Timmins, Hilary 1965 births Living people New Zealand women television presenters Mass media people from Dunedin

Career

See also

References