Marieke Hardy
Marieke Hardy | |
|---|---|
| Born | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Occupation(s) | Author, radio and television presenter, television producer, screenwriter, former actress |
| Years active | 1987–present |
| Known for | Radio presenter on Triple J; co-creator of TV series Laid; writer for Packed to the Rafters and Heartbreak High |
Marieke Josephine Hardy is an Australian author, presenter on radio and television, television producer, screenwriter, and former actress.
Early life and family
Hardy is the granddaughter of Frank Hardy, renowned author of Power Without Glory, and the grandniece of comedian and television personality Mary Hardy. Her parents, Alan and Galia Hardy, were involved in writing, producing, and editing several prominent Australian TV productions such as The Sullivans and All the Rivers Run.
Growing up in the Melbourne suburbs of Hawthorn East and Richmond, Hardy attended Carey Baptist Grammar School followed by Swinburne Senior Secondary College. She was an avid supporter of the Fitzroy Football Club until its dissolution from the AFL in 1996.
Radio
From April 1996 until December 2007, Hardy co-hosted the Melbourne-based 3RRR radio program Best of the Brat on Tuesday evenings, using the alias Holly C. The show gained a reputation as "the most immature program on Australian radio." Shortly after her departure from RRR, in January 2008 she began co-hosting the breakfast program on Triple J, the ABC’s youth-oriented radio station, alongside Robbie Buck and Lindsay "The Doctor" McDougall. Hardy announced her exit from Triple J in December 2009 to dedicate more time to her writing pursuits. On 23 September 2024, it was revealed that Hardy joined former breakfast radio presenter Jo Stanley and others for the launch of the Broad Radio platform; prior to this, she had co-hosted its podcast since 2020.
Television
Hardy's career started with acting roles in series such as The Henderson Kids II, All Together Now, Neighbours, and A Country Practice, before transitioning into scriptwriting.
In 2005, she co-created and produced a 22-episode drama for the Seven Network, titled Last Man Standing. The show experienced low viewership and was cancelled after one season.
She appeared regularly as a panellist on the ABC1 literary discussion program First Tuesday Book Club. Following her departure from Triple J in 2010, Hardy resumed television writing with the Comedy Channel’s sitcom about advertising, 30 Seconds.
Since 2008, Hardy has contributed scripts for 11 episodes across four seasons of Packed to the Rafters. In 2011, she co-created and co-wrote the six-episode ABC series Laid alongside Kirsty Fisher.
In 2021, Hardy became part of the writing team for the rebooted Heartbreak High and also wrote for ABC’s drama Barons. In 2024, it was announced that she would join the writing staff of Stan’s comedy-drama series Sunny Nights.
Newspaper columnist and blog
Previously, Hardy authored the blog Reasons You Will Hate Me under the pen name "Ms Fits," which received a Bloggie award for Best Australia/New Zealand blog in 2008.
She contributed opinion pieces to The Age newspaper’s "Green Guide" TV section ("Back Chat") as well as its "Life & Style" segment, in addition to writing for Frankie magazine. Hardy stepped down from her role in the "Green Guide" column in November 2009 due to increasing commitments with other writing projects.
Books
Hardy secured a contract for two books with Allen & Unwin; her debut work, You'll Be Sorry When I'm Dead, was released in 2011. She commenced writing her second book, a novel, in 2012.
Other work
In 2003, Hardy partnered with designer Sara-Jane Chase to establish Polichicks, a political apparel brand aligned with left-wing ideals.
By October 2008, after completing a one-week challenge initiated by her Triple J co-host Lindsay McDougall, Hardy embraced a vegan lifestyle.
Since 2010, she has collaborated with writer Michaela McGuire as co-host of the international literary series Women of Letters, where women read letters centered on specific themes.
In October 2010, an article authored by Hardy about Liberal Party figure Christopher Pyne for ABC's The Drum was retracted due to not meeting editorial criteria; an official apology was subsequently issued.
Hardy was named Artistic Director of the Melbourne Writers Festival in August 2017 but stepped down from the position before her three-year term concluded in December 2019.
Film appearances
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | Two Brothers Running | School Child | |
| 1997 | True Love and Chaos | Out of it Woman | |
| 1998 | Denial | Michelle | Short film |
Television appearances
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Talkin' 'Bout Your Generation | Herself / Contestant | Episode: #2.5 |
| 2002 | Short Cuts | Josephine Coxon | Appeared in 2 episodes |
| 1998 | Thunderstone | Sophie | Single episode appearance |
| 1998 | Stingers | Lara Kelly | Episode "Jelly Babies" (#1.9) |
| 1998 | Raw FM | Lucina | Episode "Raw'n'Sore" (#1.8) |
| 1995–2003 | Neighbours | Rhonda Brumby | Featured in 5 episodes |
| 1994 | A Country Practice | Yesterday Hubble | Episode "Over The Edge" (#1.23) |
| 1993-94 | R.F.D.S | Zoe Solomon | Appeared in 13 episodes |
| 1987 | The Henderson Kids II | Sally Marshall | Participated in 24 episodes |
Production credits
|2022 \ |'Barons' \ |'Writer' \ |'One episode' \ |- \ |- rowspan="2" 2023 \ |'Erotic Stories' \ |'Writer' \ |'One episode ("Come As You Are")' \ |- \ |'Paper Dolls' \ |'Writer' \ |'One episode' \ |- \ |- '2022-24' \ 'Heartbreak High' \ 'Writer' \ 'Two episodes' \ - \ '2024' \ 'Laid' \ 'Writer / Producer' \ 'Eight episodes (US Remake)' \ - \ 'TBA' \ ''Sunny Nights'' \ 'Writer' \ 'TBA' \| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | All Together Now | Writer | Contributed to 1 episode |
| 1996 | Ocean Girl | Script assistant | Assisted on 14 episodes |
| 1999 | Thunderstone | Writer | Wrote 3 episodes |
| 2000 | 'Blue Heelers' | 'Writer' | 'One episode' |
| 2001 | Horace and Tina | Writer | One episode |
| Something in the Air | Writer | Four episodes | |
| Wild Kat | Writer | Two episodes | |
| McLeod's Daughters | Writer | Episode "Playing to Win" (#1.16) | |
| 2002 | Short Cuts | Series writer | 22 episodes |
| 1995–2003 | Neighbours | Writer | 37 episodes |
| 2002-03 | Always Greener | Writer | Four episodes |
| 2003 | The Sleepover Club | Writer | Various episodes |
| 2005 | Last Man Standing | Series writer and producer | 22 episodes |
| 2007 | Marx and Venus | Writer | Episodes unspecified |
| 2010 | Spirited | Writer | Episode "Cats in the Cradle" (#1.6) |
| 2011–2012 | Laid | Co-creator, series writer and co-producer | 12 episodes |
| 2013 | Mr & Mrs Murder | Writer | Episode "En Vogue" (#1.3) |
| 2008–2011 | Packed to the Rafters | Series writer | 15 episodes |
| 2013-15 | 'Wonderland | Writer | Five episodes |
| 2016 | Family Law | Writer | Two episodes |
| 2017 | Hoges | Writer | One episode |
| Seven Types of Ambiguity | Writer | One episode | |
| 2016-18 | 'Nowhere Boys | Writer | Five episodes |
| 2017 | Growing Up Gracefully | Script editor | Six episodes |
| 2021 | Metro Sexual | Consultant | Six episodes |
| Rosehaven | Script Producer | Eight episodes |
Children's fiction
- Short Cuts, Angus & Robertson, 2002
Humour
- You'll be Sorry When I'm Dead, Allen & Unwin, 2011
Play
- No Pay? No Way!, Sydney Theatre Company, 2020
External links
- Articles with short description
- Articles with hCards
- No local image but image on Wikidata
- Living people
- Australian bloggers
- Australian women bloggers
- Australian screenwriters
- Australian women screenwriters
- Australian people of English descent
- People educated at Carey Baptist Grammar School
- Triple J announcers
- Australian women radio presenters
- Bloggers from Melbourne
- 21st-century Australian screenwriters
- People from Hawthorn, Victoria
- People from Richmond, Victoria
- People from the City of Boroondara
- Year of birth missing (living people)