“I’m not a career person,” she states blatantly. Sitting on the desk with her legs swinging underneath her, her straight, natural blonde hair swept into a ponytail and wearing a pair of red hippie-style thongs she bought at a market in Burleigh Heads, Denise does not appear to be a woman of worldly knowledge. “I like to learn about things from other people. You learn the most from people that are uneducated and lead simple lives, something I aspire to one day.” Perhaps not the most inspiring message for HECS paying students but, nonetheless, an honest perspective from someone who’s been-there-done-that.

Graduating at just 19 years old, Denise began her career as a cadet journalist at the Sunshine Coast Daily newspaper. Having since worked on television and radio as a presenter and producer in Australia and the United Kingdom, in retrospect, Denise has no problem referring to most of those in the media industry as ‘psychos’. “I don’t miss being a journalist,” she affirms frankly. “Everyone’s cynical and jaded.” Blunt maybe, but not brutal. According to Denise, “that’s just the way it is.”

At 43, this candid, down-to-earth teacher can still sympathise with today’s youth. “It’s so much harder for you guys.” Denise says she likes teaching because she is genuinely interested in today’s generation and finds it frustrating and ignorant of those who believe this generation have it easy. “We had free education, but as soon as you guys get out of uni you’ve got a huge HECS debt to pay off. The worst thing we had to worry about was getting caught smoking a bit of dope.”

Not surprisingly, Denise describes herself as a realist, for whom “the Labor party is too right-wing” and a career in journalism was too restricting. She hates golf but loves a good game of rugby league. “That comes from my country roots,” she reveals. And her hero is her Granny. “She once said to me, ‘I’d like you to write Pop’s eulogy, if we don’t use it this week we might use it next week. You may as well write mine while you’re at it.’ She’s a country woman, very practical.”

Denise’s Darling Downs ‘country roots’ have influenced her life a lot, from the way she conducted her career as a journalist to how she treated people when she was travelling. “Coming from a country town does make you different. There are only so many people you can piss off in a small place. It even affects the way you treat people on a bus in Europe. At the end of the day you have to do the right thing.”

As a journalist, Denise did a lot of interviews which sometimes required brute forcefulness and a tough skin. However she couldn’t help but become friends with whomever she interviewed, which conflicted with these requirements. It was the old ladies she couldn’t help but care about. If they told her something which Denise knew could stir up the media, she would disregard it. “I’m not good with guilt. Its better I protect them from what the media could do to them because I know that and they don’t.”

Not having completely lost her faith in the media industry, she believes the ABC is still an ethical media body who is trustworthy. “Without the ABC, I shudder to think what would happen to journalism,” she says.

Once a reporter of the world, Denise now prefers to call herself an observer of the world. The glow of her youthful-looking face exposes no sign of the years of experience she has lived. The only lines on her face are those that appear after a lifetime of happy moments. It’s hard to imagine that this plain country girl helped her husband smuggle an illegal immigrant across the South African boarder. “He was so thankful, he bought us a Coke. I don’t drink Coke, but I did that day,” says this morally sound country girl.

Denise has undoubtedly done her fair share of travelling, her favourite places being Turkey, Uganda and Zimbabwe. “I prefer the under-developed countries. I don’t like clean countries or proper travel, I like things to be casual.” It’s in these countries where you meet the real people, Denise says. She described various charity organisations as ‘dodgy’ lots who drive the best four-wheel drives, stay in five-star accommodation and sleep with prostitutes. For this reason she does not give to ‘those charities’ but instead sends money each Christmas to a priest she met in Zimbabwe.

It’s somewhat unexpected that Denise optimistically believes that “you can change the world”. But realistically she admits, “It’s hard to live in this western world and tread the other path. Most days I don’t.”

Denise describes herself as uninteresting and quite boring. She doesn’t think she is anything special and advises not to invite her if you’re having a party. Admittedly, she’s a woman who was famous for ordering milk at nightclubs. She says she is not a romantic but “forgives it”, and apart from looking after her health, doesn’t care what she looks like. “I’m not a hair and make up person. Lets face it, I was never going to make it on TV.”