Rachel Glucina: Ali Mau's flash mob dance a big hit

Ali Mau says the flash mob at Auckland Airport yesterday was a 'bit of fun' for the Fair Go Ad Awards. Photo / Doug Sherring

Her girlfriend Karleen Edmonds is an accomplished hip-hop dance instructor and it seems TVNZ star Ali Mau has got rhythm as well.

The Fair Go presenter joined her co-stars Gordon Harcourt, Phil Vine and Ruwani Perera in a flash mob dance at the arrivals area of Auckland International Airport yesterday as part of a skit to be screened at this year's Fair Go Ad Awards on October 26.

More than 100 people threw down their fake carry-on luggage and broke into a dance routine to welcome Kiwis arriving home.

"It's just a little bit of fun for the Ad Awards," Mau told me. "Most of our work at Fair Go is serious, so it's nice to do something a bit fun and different."

The flash mob routine was choreographed by Edmonds and included a medley of songs and variety of stylistic references that, Mau said, "had a distinct Kiwi theme."

The telly presenter was thrilled all sorts of people took part in the dance. "It wasn't just us Fair Go munters".

"I love the enthusiasm people have had in wanting to be a part of it. We knew there would be good dancers and bad dancers. I thought I may even be better than some of them," she laughed.

Every year the Fair Go Ad Awards mimic a world-famous and kooky television commercial. This year the critically-acclaimed T Mobile flash mob dance at Heathrow Airport was selected with the TVNZ celebs in starring roles.

"It's not our idea or a reversion of another, and we don't want people to think we're plagiarising," joked a TVNZ spokeswoman.

Last year Harcourt played the goofy guy in the "Believe it or Not" Lotto ad and, in 2009, the infamous Air NZ body-paint advertisements were imitated.

This year, he was prepared to put himself out there again. "I've worn a gorilla suit and other silly costumes, mowed the lawn semi-naked, and recently got thumped on Fair Go, but trying to dance in daylight in public is the hardest thing I've ever had to do for the show," Harcourt confessed.

"Putting it bluntly, I'm really crap. My only hope was that the flash mob would be so flash that no one would notice me."

- HERALD ON SUNDAY