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Over the course of more than a decade covering the South African television industry, if you were to ask me what on screen talent I like the most personally, I will tell you Mark Bayly from M-Net's All Access. Number one coolest guy when it comes to being famous - yet he's completely unpretentious, super funny, clever and just normal (in a mostly not normal environment). Just a guy's guy who does his work and smiles.
I spoke with the ever gracious Mark Bayly at the first birthday party of All Access when M-Net's weekly entertainment magazine show celebrated their first anniversary this past Friday in Johannesburg. Mark Bayly told me about ''the warmest, most heartfelt'' interview he's had the past year, why he's proud of being a part of All Access and who he'd still like to sit down with in the future.
See what he tells me that he now gets to do more, what side of him you won't/don't really see a lot of in the show and what he says about the huge growth curve of All Access.
For my full interview with Mark Bayly of M-Net's All Access click on READ MORE below.
Hi Mark, looking back - looking back on the past year how would you describe the All Access experience in terms of how it's been so far?
I think we've had a huge growth curve. I think all shows do. I think we started out with an identity of what we wanted. We stuck to that pretty much. For us its not so much about the glamourous side of things, its more about who are the real people behind the glamour. I think we've managed to maintain that to a large degree and I'm very proud of what we've been able to achieve.
Over the past year it felt like - I've run into you at the airports a few times, things like that - how difficult is it to bring the logistics behind the scenes of All Access together and doing the show but also maintaining a private life and having a home life?
Thankfully most of the logistics are handled by our production team who work tirelessly. Initially I used to travel to Johannesburg a lot - every week - to do the studio links. Then since we did away with the studio idea I shoot in Cape Town. I'm not doing as many as I would like, but I still really enjoy the links that we do do. In the studio you have a Teleprompter and stuff and now we do it much more ad lib which I think brings a vibrancy to the show. The traveling hasn't been too intrusive at all and I've been able to maintain a really good balance with family.
You know, its an odd question and I have been asked that a lot coming up to our first birthday - so taking nothing away from you - but it is a question we get asked. I've interviewed amazing people. I've interviewed a lot of international stars but probably the interview I've enjoyed the most has been Shaleen Surtie-Richards. She's possibly been the warmest, most heartfelt interview that I've had. We almost forgot that the cameras were rolling. We laughed. We cried. We hugged. Some of the stuff didn't make it into the final cut but it was the most real interview that I've had. We almost forgot that there was cameras there and I love her dearly and I've never met her before then. It was just the most amazing interview that I've had. That has probably been the highlight of my year.
Has All Access changed your life in any way?
It certainly has. When I did Survivor SA which had been the only thing that people would have seen me in the public arena before that . . . it was a very formulaic show. I had to portray a certain role. All Access has given me more scope to be myself. My sense of humour is probably a little more risque than what can really be shown in All Access. But its been a great ride. I've really enjoyed it. I've got a fabulous, fabulous production team and I've really enjoyed the last year and I'm really looking forward to the next one.
Is there somebody you have your eye on to still get for an interview, an event or experience that you would like to go and do with the show moving forward?
You know, I've learned a lot in this past year - with you asking me what's my highlight been and the fact that its Shaleen Surtie-Richards is not something that I would have said a year ago - with all respect to her. I would have thought it would be a big international superstar. The fact that a homegrown talent who is that real is the highlight of this past year has changed my whole perspective and what I'm looking forward to in the next year. It may be an international superstar - we all aspire to interviewing those people because its nice to connect with them because its so unreal to talk to them. Yet often the most real people are the people you meet at home. I'm not going to prejude. This last year has been simply amazing and I look forward to seeing the local people as much as I do the internationals.
ALSO READ: The first birthday party of M-Net's All Access is a red carpet, super-swanky, star-studded affair.
ALSO READ: Mark Bayly in Vrouekeur on his hopes and dreams for his beautiful boy Cooper.
All Access, Fridays at 19:30 on M-Net (All Access' first birthday party insert will be going out on Friday, 2 July 2010)
