Newsboys close in on Close Up

Rumours were flying at Television New Zealand last week, not only over the 90 redundancies and who's heads are on the chopping block, but also about alleged manouevrings behind the scenes of Close Up.

One News' Simon Dallow has made no secret of the fact he's keen to try his hand in a current affairs presenting role, and he confirmed to me he'd love to fill in for Close Up host Mark Sainsbury. Dallow, however, denies suggestions he had been speaking to Close Up producers about a fulltime position.

"Ha, ha, ha," Dallow roared down the phone. "You wouldn't speak to producers about it. No, I haven't spoken to anyone about that. I have a great job now."

Is there any chance Dallow could become the new Mark Sainsbury? Has anyone told The Walrus? Is Sainso ready and willing to give up his crown?

"Well, I've lasted this long," Sainsbury said confidently, and in a I'm-not-going-anywhere tone. Would Dallow take up the Close Up role? "No, no, no, no, no. Simon has always said clearly it's the job he wants to do," Sainsbury said. "But he'd never do anything to undermine me."

So, there's no coup at Close Up, I quizzed? "No, there's no skulduggery," Sainso said. Period.

"It's no secret I've always wanted to do a current affairs job," Dallow told me. "I've let the bosses know. But, you know, they're not mutually exclusive." He means there is the possibility he could read the 6pm bulletin and fill in at 7pm in the Close Up seat. "I'd love to do the fill-in role," Dallow said.

The back-up role, let's be clear, currently belongs to Paul Henry, who has also made it plain he desires to be top dog. With two ambitious presenters in pursuit, is Mark a marked man?

Not so, Sainsbury would have me know. The back-up role is what he's happy to concede only.

"Simon would be keen to fill in," Mark suggested matter-of-factly. "He's too valuable to lose on 6 [One News]." But Henry already has that job. I'd have thought it wouldn't be fair to bring on another.

"You can have more than one fill-in," Sainsbury said revealingly.

It's common knowledge there's no love lost between Sainsbury and Henry. Last year at the Qantas Awards, Sainsbury accepted his trophy for best current affairs presenter from Henry onstage, and very ungallantly announced how much joy it gave him that Henry had to present the award to him. The Walrus had appeared to turn into a prize bitch! Henry had the last laugh, standing behind Sainsbury, trophy in hand, pretending to wallop him.

The irony is, Henry last week won the prestigious TV Guide Best of the Box award for best news and current affairs presenter. Sainsbury came fifth. The popularity awards were decided by almost 14,000 television viewers in a public vote.

Henry was thrilled. He announced he'd build a plinth in his house for his award to sit on. "What would it cost to have a spotlight put into my house? I'll have the award floodlit. Actually it looks weather proof. I'll stick it outside on the street, on the letterbox."

Joking aside, Henry's one of TVNZ's most prized possessions. And they know it. He's no stranger to burning the midnight oil. Earlier this month he presented a record five Breakfast morning shows and three Close Up evening shows in one week. One wonders why, and for how long, he's prepared to be runner-up. Surely he's sick and tired of waiting in the wings at Close Up for the host role to be made available on a permanent basis.

Mark my words: I predict it won't be long before Henry throws in the towel on the current affairs show for good.

* * *

I always felt cricket legend Stephen Fleming was the Tupperware of the Black Caps: you know, steady, solid, a bit boring, but comes with endurance. But it turns out Tupperware in its natural environment can also be rather surprising, especially when it brings its bestie: Shane Warne. Who knew the peroxide blond spin bowler is such good chums with Fujitsu's air conditioning frontman?

Chris Martin from Coldplay described Warne on Close Up as "humble and gracious", but the Shane Warne I met at the Stephen Fleming Tribute dinner at SkyCity last Friday night was also hugely funny and gregarious. And practical. The square lump hiding under the sock on his right foot was a pack of ciggies. Warney made frequent smoking stops. He also applied chapstick and texted during a speech, in a moment of extreme predictability.

Most surprising actually, was the role Bronagh Key played. The Prime Minister's wife was one of the charitable women who packed the 500 gift bags on each chair on behalf of the Starship Foundation, the recipient charity. It's nice to know the PM's wife is not above laborious work.

But the night belonged to Fleming. His gorgeous wife Kelly told me it was the couple's "first date night in nine months since the birth of Cooper", the couple's second child. You'd be forgiven for thinking Flem would be a bit more romantic, but it was a night for the boys, and they came out in droves.

Spy's sexiest sports star Kyle Mills and Jacob Oram sat near me; Nathan Astle, Craig McMillan, Brendon McCullum, Simon Doull and Sachin Tendulkar were all there, too. McCullum, who is represented by Fleming as manager, forked out $17K for a two-week trip to Europe in the auction. Warney did one better. He paid $6K on a South Pacific island holiday, and donated his last test series shirt in which he took his 700th test wicket.

To up the bidding for the jersey, Warne took the microphone and announced the winning bid would get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to receive one bowl from him in the venue, right then, right now. Cheers went up; the bidding not so much. It still went for a respectable $6K. But to the crowd's delight, Warney didn't go back on his word. In he strode, to the middle of the dance floor, while the audience gathered, forming a cricket wicket. The successful bidder took the bat and swung and missed. Oohs and ahs followed, and Warney delivered two more balls, to the crowd's delight.

Also proving a crowd pleaser was Indian cricket legend Ravi Shastri, who arrived late to the event with Martin Crowe, though not as late as Shane Bond who arrived 156 minutes after the dinner started. He'd been at a National Bank training seminar.

Warne jetted over for Fleming's special night just to support his friend. He flew back to Oz the next morning to take part in the Sound Relief concert in Sydney for the bushfires, where he was seen backstage cuddling and "cosy" with on-again, off-again wife Simone Callahan, a Sydney newspaper reported. Warne joined Coldplay onstage performing a rendition of The Monkeys' hit I'm A Believer.

The night before he'd performed at SkyCity's poker tables following the tribute dinner. Shane is very nearly a professional poker player, I understand. He trains under Joe Hachem, the bloke who won the 2005 World Series of Poker. "Room 817" he'd told my friend, who asked where he could find him later. It was a private poker room. And it would have been a sensational finale to a sensational night if poker was my cup of tea.

Rachel Glucina

Photo: Mark Sainsbury. Photo / Supplied