Tracy Grimshaw certainly made her mark during her 17-year tenure at the helm of A Current Affair.
From interviewing the toughest politicians to hot-headed celebrities including controversial chef Gordon Ramsay, her sit-downs are part of Aussie TV folklore.
But it’s embattled Hollywood star Ellen DeGeneres who will go down as one of Tracy’s most difficult chats ever.
“Ellen doesn’t like giving interviews; she doesn’t give a lot,” Tracy, 62, said.
The sit-down took place in 2013 ahead of Ellen’s Australian tour that same year. Tracy remembers Ellen, 64, as being a “control freak” as she forced Tracy to do the interview on her terms, meaning she was already on “the back foot” going into the exclusive chat.
“I had to interview her on her set, in front of her live audience,” Tracy continued. “It was designed to make me feel small and it was designed to put me in my place. And I think that was a controlling tactic.”
Despite this, Tracy believes her interview was still a success, as she got Ellen to discuss her coming out in 1997, and the cancellation of her popular sitcom shortly after.
“I know that she doesn’t very often talk about the whole coming out thing because it was painful for her. I think she’s carrying some scars from that time,” Tracy added.
Tracy, who’s taking a well-deserved break after leaving ACA, also commented on allegations made by former employees of The Ellen Degeneres Show, who claimed Ellen bullied staff and created a “toxic” work environment.
“Is that a bad thing, does that make her a bad person? No,” Tracy continued. “But might that make her dictatorial? Probably.”
Tracy says Ellen controlled her 2013 interview. ‘I think that was a controlling tactic’.
