He’s considered by many as an icon of Australian music and TV for his popular music program Countdown, which aired from 1974–87.
But Molly Meldrum, 74, has said the label makes him cringe.
‘I just feel I don’t deserve that title. Others do, but I don’t,’ he told Stellar.
‘I don’t deserve that title!’ Molly Meldrum, 74, has said being called an icon makes him cringe
The TV personality said being called an ‘icon’ was not something he worked for.
Instead, he said he enjoyed producing records and working in a team to put a music show together with live performances and artist interviews.
The TV personality listed big names such as Barry Humphries, Sir Donald Bradman, Michael Hutchence, Kylie Minogue, Paul Hogan and Olivia Newton-John, as perfect candidates for the title.
‘These are all people I really admire for what they’ve achieved. Words like “icon”, “superstar” and “legend” are overused these days.’
Humble: The TV personality said being called an ‘icon’ was not something he worked for. ‘I just feel I don’t deserve that title. Others do, but I don’t,’ he said
Working hard: The TV personality listed big names such as Barry Humphries, Sir Donald Bradman, Michael Hutchence and Kylie Minogue as icons, saying ‘These are all people I really admire for what they’ve achieved (Molly pictured with Prince Charles)
However, he said Countdown was all deserving to the iconic status.
‘We didn’t realise how big Countdown was becoming when we started making it — 30 years after it finished, I’m still getting people stopping me almost every day to tell me how much they loved the show.’
At the 2017 Logies, Molly cut off actor Samuel Johnson during his Gold Logie winners speech for his portrayal of the music host in the Channel Seven TV movie called Molly.
Iconic status: However, he said Countdown was all deserving to the iconic status. He said, ‘we didn’t realise how big Countdown was becoming when we started making it — 30 years after it finished’
‘I know it’s very hard to play an old drama queen like myself, and you did a great job, right,’ he said on stage to Samuel.
The heartfelt speech comes after the Molly had a near death experience in 2011.
He was placed in intensive care after falling almost three metres off a ladder with injuries to his ribs, shoulder, head and a punctured lung.
Awkward but meaningful: At the 2017 Logies, Molly cut off actor Samuel Johnson during his Gold Logie winners speech for his portrayal of the music host in the Channel Seven TV movie called Molly