There is something special about Myf Warhurst's voice.
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She has no idea what that something is but it has helped her to forge a successful career in radio, television, as a writer and a podcaster, and now as an actor on stage. She is reheating a cold mug of coffee in the microwave when Weekender calls earlier this week.
"I was just on an hour-long conference call and I was going to do this long before I spoke to you but it didn't work out that way," she says, apologetically. Warhurst is a woman of many talents, and a busy one at that.
ABC TV's Spicks and Specks is returning in 2024 and Warhurst will be back as one of the team captains alongside Adam Hills and Alan Brough. Then there's the Eurovision Song Contest, which she presents with Joel Creasey, and the weekly culture podcast she co-hosts with Zan Rowe called Bang On.
Warhurst is also the voice of Aunt Trixie on popular ABC Kids cartoon Bluey.
She recently enjoyed a six-month stint as The Narrator in The Rocky Horror Show starring Jason Donovan as Dr Frank-N-Furter and will return to the role when the show premieres at Newcastle's Civic Theatre in January.
"Jason is lovely to work with. It was a real joy to work with someone of his calibre - he's quite the legend of musical theatre in the UK," she says. "Not a lot of women have done The Narrator role, maybe they just thought I was a good fit? Or maybe everyone else just said no [laughs]."
Rocky Horror is Warhurst's first musical theatre production and she admits she was terrified on - and before - opening night.
"I said yes to the role because I wanted to be challenged," she says.
"We all grew up watching Rocky Horror and it was a bit of a rock 'n' roll dream of mine to be involved in it, and to do some theatre, so here I am.
"I do a little bit of singing and dancing at the end when it's Time Warp time and I'm pretty sure they turn my microphone down when I'm singing but I still sing with all my heart and soul."
She says The Rocky Horror Show is "utterly bonkers, when you think about it" and that's what she loves about it.
"It's a sci-fi fantasy fairytale with a beautiful message - be who you want to be, don't dream it, be it - but some of it makes absolutely no sense and I love that.
"This production is really special. Jason is phenomenal, it's almost like this role was made for him, and the rest of the cast is so talented. Stella Perry is wildly good with an incredible voice, and so is Deidre [Khoo]. It's so full of talented people and I am really lucky to be in their orbit because, to be honest, I'm the weakest link."
I ask her about her voice - her speaking voice, as opposed to her singing voice - which kickstarted her career at triple J in 1999.
"You know, I don't think I have a particularly great voice but I do think it's an individual voice and it's one that people remember," she says.
"A lot of people don't necessarily recognise me if I'm in a shop or something, but as soon as I speak they'll say 'Oh you're Myf from the radio'. There must be something about it that sticks in people's minds but I don't know what it is, this is how it's been all my life."
Her voice also attracted the creators of Bluey who originally headhunted her for the role of Bluey's mum.
"I think they realised I sounded a little too husky for that, a little like Patty and Selma from The Simpsons, so they made up a role for me, Aunt Trixie, which is perfect for me and I'm forever grateful," she says.
"I was blown away by the success of Bluey. I don't have kids so I didn't know for ages how big it had gotten, and I was just doing a voice-over here and there. And then it got huge and there's little kids coming up to me at weddings because their mums had told them I do one of the Bluey voices."
She says she's "got a bit on the go" in 2024 in addition to Rocky Horror and the Bang On podcast.
"I'm working on a couple of documentaries which I can't talk about yet, they won't come out until later next year. Spicks and Specks is coming back and I feel really lucky that we still do something that is so much fun. When we did the reunion specials we all realised how rare it was to have a job that gives us so much joy, so we thought why not?
"Let's do it again. Basically I try to choose the stuff that I will learn from, or can help others with, or is just really entertaining."
Warhurst's three-part SBS documentary series Meet the Neighbours is a case in point. It premiered this month and follows eight households from diverse cultural backgrounds as they leave the city behind and try to live and work in the small town of Maryborough, Victoria, for three months.
"I grew up in the country and I'm very connected to country towns for that reason," she says. "Australia is a diverse country and unless our country towns reflect that, they will disappear. I'm hoping the series might start a conversation about diversity, the ageing population in country towns where the kids are leaving because there's nothing to do, and the lack of infrastructure."
As for Eurovision, Warhurst says, laughing: "As far as I know I'm still doing it but I haven't had the official word yet. Joel and I will hopefully be going to Sweden. I'm not sure if we're sending an artist, that hasn't been confirmed yet."
Warhurst said she auditioned for Rocky Horror to challenge herself. I ask if her time on I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! was the ultimate challenge, especially for someone who has been open about her anxiety.
"You know how people tell you to face your fears, and if you jump out of plane you will overcome your fear of heights? Well I say that is utter tosh, it doesn't work," she replies. "I've faced my fears numerous times now - I bungee-jumped out of a helicopter and they made me go over South Africa's tallest waterfall in a kayak and guess what? I'm still afraid of heights, and that's not changing any time soon!"
