Name: Phil Keoghan
Occupation: Television presenter

Phil Keoghan’s life has been full of travel and adventure. He has worked in over 50 countries around the world as a television host, producer, writer, actor, and cameraman on more than 1000 episodes of different programmes. Currently he is the host of The Great Race.

Phil’s answers to questions from students:

Do you like your lifestyle?
From Tracey
Hi Tracey, what I love more than anything are people and travel which is what my work is all about. I never wanted a nine-to-five job and routine. I really like the idea of not knowing what’s going to happen next. I don’t know what will happen after The Amazing Race which is scary and exciting at the same time. My dream was to have a house in LA and an escape place in New Zealand. After ten years hard work I’ve managed to do that so now my family and I commute back and forth as much as I can. If I could do everything I wanted to in New Zealand I would want to live there but because I can’t right now, being able to go back and forth is the best compromise. I work out everyday, running, mountain biking, rollerblading, lifting weights etc, so living near the beach is perfect. I feel very happy and lucky to have my current lifestyle.
How old are you?
I am 35. I was born in Christchurch, 31 May 31 1967, which makes me a Gemini. When I was younger I remember thinking how old 35 was. I remember older people telling me how fast time goes and they weren’t kidding. I write my age down and I find it hard to believe it’s mine.
Why do you work where you work?
I work in LA because this is the world headquarters of film and television. Ten years ago I sold everything I owned in New Zealand and headed overseas with a back-pack. I really didn’t know anybody in the industry and even though I had been working in New Zealand television for seven years nobody knew me here and I had to start again. It was extremely difficult at first but a good challenge. I have always admired New Zealanders who have headed overseas and made a mark in the US. People like Sam Neill and Roger Donaldson (film director of The Recruit) have accomplished unbelievable things over here which New Zealanders should really feel proud of. They are real inspirations for me and I would love to follow in their footsteps.
Why do you give away money?
One million US dollars for the first team to race around the world is a pretty good incentive for people to give it everything they have. As a result we end of up with an entertaining series.

How much do you get paid for an episode or a series?
From David
Well David, ah… mmm… If you get on a network show in America you get paid extremely well. I am very lucky. But don’t forget you can go months without a gig. Let’s just say that I get paid more money per episode than I did presenting a whole year of Spot On in New Zealand. Spot On was my first presenting job. It ran for about 16 years on TVNZ and was an incredible experience. I was only 19 or 20 when I got it and would have worked on it for nothing. Every week people would write into the show and ask the presenters to do something. Basically I got paid to do all the things I love – diving, flying, trying new things, and interviewing interesting people of course.
Do you have another job?
If you log onto philkeoghan.com you’ll be able to see some of the other things I’ve done. Last year I co-created a science and technology series, The Human Edge which is screening around the world on National Geographic and in January I was presenter a series for A&E (US cable network) called The Best of Both Worlds. The biggest full time job I have though is looking for jobs. I’m always working – it’s just that sometimes I get paid and the rest of the time I’m working for nothing, developing new projects, writing, and networking to get the next paying job. That’s the nature of the business. You have to be very disciplined because you are your own boss.
Do you have a wife or children?
I have been happily married to my beautiful wife for nearly ten years. I met her in New Zealand when we worked together on a show called That’s Fairly Interesting. No prizes for guessing what it was about. When there were no more fairly interesting things left it was cancelled. Anyway we have a wonderful adventurous daughter who is seven. She was born in New York during a snowstorm when I was working for Fox on a morning entertainment show. She loves putting on a New Zealand accent – well she tries to.
Do you like what you do for a job?
I love what I do. It’s exciting because it’s unpredictable and is constantly changing. I really don’t know what I’ll be working on next but right now I’m developing some new concepts which I’ll pitch next month and maybe one will sell. Jobs come and go. The Amazing Race, for instance, shoots for a set period of time. Then, when it’s done that’s it. Hopefully the network decides to do another series or you just move onto the next thing.
Do you reckon that you will give up your job?
My job is constantly evolving and changing. I started as a film camera assistant, started presenting and acting, then producing and right now I’m writing a book. One day I would like to make a big film. I think I’ll always work in some form of media, but who knows?
What are you into music, sports?
I love all music. My mum was a music teacher so I grew up with it in the house. I grew up in Antigua, in the West Indies, so I’ve always had a love of reggae and calypso. I have an extremely broad mix of CDs. Right now I’m listening to: Greg Johnson, The Best Yet; The Wailers, Catch a Fire; Nature’s Best, NZ’s top 30 songs; Gaelic Storm, the band from the Titanic movie; Paul Oakenfold, Bunkka; Ray Charles, The Best Of Ray Charles; Neil Finn, One Nil; Dave Dobbyn, Overnight Success.
I love all sports. Growing up in Antigua for 8 years it was all about cricket. Viv Richards, Brian Lara etc. I used to cycle all over the island on my bike, I’ve always love cycling. Right now I mostly follow the NBA. When I was in New York I was lucky enough to get front row tickets to see the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. It’s hard to get any live rugby or cricket coverage here so I call home or log online.
What team do you like out of all the super 12 rugby teams?
Well since I was born in Christchurch it’s Canterbury of course. There’s nothing like watching a live match with huge crowd of one eye Cantabrians.

Do you enjoy hosting The Amazing Race?
From Brett
Well Brett I would have to say that The Amazing Race has been one of the best career opportunities I’ve ever had. In the last two years I’ve done four series, four loops around the world, about 350,000 km, hundreds of cities, 60 countries… and I got paid to do it. It’s the biggest production I’ve ever been involved with. I’ll never forget the opening of series 1 where I opened the show on top of an 80-storey building in the middle of winter. It really has been a once in a life experience and will be hard to top.

Study Centre, Invercargill

Page created February 2002