Stevie Nicholson (born 30 December 1983) is an Australian television personality and performer. He is a former member of the Australian children's musical group Hi-5 from 2007 to 2015.

Stevie Nicholson
Nicholson in November 2011
Born (1983-12-30) 30 December 1983 (age 40)
Education
Occupations
  • Actor
  • singer
Years active2007–present
Spouse
(m. 2019)
Children1

Early life

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Nicholson was born in Hobart and grew up in Melbourne, attending St Kevin's College in Melbourne. Before he became a member of Hi-5, he had worked at Brainstorm Productions on a show called Verbal Combat.

He has revealed that his childhood was marred by a serious illness, bacterial meningitis, before he discovered acting in his teenage years.[1] Children's entertainment programmes such as Playschool were key to his recovery, which explains his continued passion for the industry.[2]

He has completed an Arts degree at Deakin University.

Career

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Nicholson joined the Australian children's musical group Hi-5 in June 2007 when original member Tim Harding was injured in a serious motorcycle accident.[3][4] Nicholson was hired as an understudy just a few days prior to this, and immediately took on Harding's touring responsibilities.[1] In November, Harding announced his permanent departure from the group after recovering from his injuries, with Nicholson taking his place as a permanent member[4][5] Creator of the franchise Helena Harris stated, "it's like [he] was born to this job."[1]

Nicholson filmed seven television seasons of Hi-5 and Hi-5 House, before announcing in August 2015 that he would be departing the group at the end of the year.[2] He revealed intentions to further his performing career and author a children's book entitled Superdudes.[2] Of his time with Hi-5, he stated, "it has been an absolute whirlwind journey", and expressed that he had learned more from children than he had been able to teach.[2][6] His final performance was on tour with the group in December. His replacement was Lachie Dearing.[7] He returned to the group as a guest performer in December 2018 and November 2019.

After Superdudes was released in October 2015, Nicholson transferred the work to the stage with a tour featuring characters from the book.[8][9] The tour experienced an overwhelmingly positive response in the Philippines in 2016.[10] The group toured regionally across Singapore, Hong Kong and Indonesia in 2019.[11]

Personal life

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Nicholson married fellow former Hi-5 member Tanika Anderson in November 2019. Anderson gave birth to their daughter, Wild Mei Nicholson, on 8 November 2022.

Publications

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  • Superdudes (October 2015)

Filmography

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Film roles
Year Title Role
2013 Hi-5 Some Kind of Wonderful Himself
Television roles
Year Title Role Notes
2008–11 Hi-5 Himself Series 10 to 13
2013–16 Hi-5 House Himself Series 1 to 3

References

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  1. ^ a b c Sams, Christine (11 November 2007). "Hi-5's Got a New Man About the Set". The Sun Herald. Fairfax Media. stevie.com.au. Archived from the original on 10 April 2013. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Kaur, Gurveen (7 September 2015). "Learning from kids with Hi-5". The Straits Times. SPH Digital. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  3. ^ Connolly, Fiona (24 August 2007). "Harding weighs up his options". news.com.au. News Limited. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  4. ^ a b Knox, David (15 November 2007). "New look Hi-5 says hi to Sunrise". TV Tonight. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  5. ^ "Harding waves farewell to Hi-5". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). 12 November 2007. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
  6. ^ "Departing Stevie reflects on 'whirlwind' nine years as Hi-5 member". The Daily Telegraph. 3 September 2015. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  7. ^ "Hi-5 head to Perth for 'World of Dreams' tour". The Daily Telegraph. 13 June 2015. Retrieved 24 February 2016.
  8. ^ "'Superdudes' created by Stevie Nicholson and illustrated by Nick Rudich - Grandkids Corner".
  9. ^ "Kid Style File | Baby, Pregnancy, Fitness, Food & More". 9 February 2024.
  10. ^ "Stevie Nicholson of Hi-5 Returns to Philippines With Superdudes | Wazzup.PH". www.wazzup.ph. Archived from the original on 31 March 2016.
  11. ^ "The Super Santa Christmas Show | Kids in Singapore". Time Out Singapore. 5 November 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2020.