Play School turns 60: presenter Leah Vandenberg reflects on the ABC Kids show’s extraordinary legacy

On Saturday July 18, Play School celebrates its 60th birthday.

That’s 60 years entertaining, informing and educating the nation’s children — quite the achievement.

The ABC is celebrating this milestone with a special series, Party Animals, which launches this Monday.

Each episode features a different themed party, the show’s presenters and toys creating invitations for friends, making decorations, cooking party food, and dressing up to play fun party games.

But they’re not the only ones getting in on the fun: Australian Story also marked the occasion with a reflection on Play School’s rich 60-year history — presenters like Jay Laga’aia, Don Spencer, Rhys Muldoon and Justine Clarke weighed in on its extraordinary legacy.

For long-time presenter, Leah Vandenberg, who is still very much a part of the show — and has been for the better part of 25 years — being able to help celebrate Play School has been a gift.

“Every time I think about Play School, I well up, actually,” says the presenter and actor, who first started hanging with Big Ted, Jemima, Humpty and the gang back in 2000.

She still remembers the audition fondly.

“In a sense, it doesn’t feel like it was 25 years ago at all,” Vandenberg admits.

“I remember going to that audition, being in a room with a casting agent, singing the Zoom song with the pianist there, and pretending to be a Play School presenter — it all feels crystal clear.

“Weirdly, I ended up feeling not all that nervous. I was like, ‘this feels normal. It doesn’t feel strange at all’.

“It was a really comfortable audition.”

And it was obviously meant to be.

Fast forward two-and-a-half decades, and she’s still there, dressed in her bright clothes, singing, dancing and having fun with the nation’s little ones — and she’s still loving every minute of it.

“It really is just such an honour and a privilege to be invited into the world of the child,” Vandenberg says.

“And it’s a huge privilege that parents and carers trust us — and, on a personal level, trust me — with their child for half an hour each day.”

Play School was first broadcast in 1966, and for decades since, its revolving stable of presenters have been delighting generations of preschoolers.

Vandenberg says her fan base is expansive, and ever increasing “and that is what is really special — I get children come up to me, out of nowhere (for a hug),” she explains.

“Nothing can compare to a child coming up and (doing that).

“The younger ones, they will gravitate to you . . . they are not up for the chat, they are just resonating with a feeling they have when they watch the show and they go towards that feeling — it’s so gorgeous.”

Then there are the parents and carers who also delight in being around the person who brings such joy to the little people in their lives.

Many may have watched Vandenberg as a kid — now they get to introduce her to their own children.

“(When they see me), the expression on their face softens; there’s this innocence in their eyes,” she explains.

“From a child to a 30 or 35 year-old who has now shared me with their children — it’s just lovely to be around.”

Ask any Aussie parent, and they’ll tell you how much admiration they have for the long-running show and the talented performers who make it the success that it is.

To a fault, they are all terrific; able to get down to the level of a child with an authenticity that’s hard to fake.

Vandenberg credits her time at WAAPA (West Australian Academy of Performing Arts) — she graduated in 1993 — with instilling in her an ability to be her whole, authentic self for the cameras and for the kids watching her at home.

“WAAPA has a lot to do with that, for me,” she says.

“You have to be really comfortable as a presenter; to be vulnerable and playful and not self-conscious — to know that it’s OK to be imperfect.

“You have to be OK with yourself, and OK with looking pretty silly, and that’s what drama school taught me — it just allows you to experiment and be really comfortable with your own vulnerability. “

Vandenberg is no longer just a presenter — she now writes for the show as well.

In 2021 she penned and performed a special episode that featured Punjabi music and the traditional Bhangra folk dance.

She accepted an AACTA Award for Best Children’s Program for an episode titled Play School: All Together, which she wrote.

“It was amazing, and such a creative highlight for me,” she admits.

“To be able to contribute, but especially on things like allyship and friendship; respecting each other — these things that are the core values of Play School — and for that script to be recognised, I still get buzzy when I think about holding that award, because written on it was All Together, the name of the episode, and it certainly was a team effort.”

Vandenberg loves that she has been able to help represent other cultures on the show, “it’s important,” she says.

“I get sent so many videos of kids doing (my Indian dancing) in their lounge rooms — they just love it.”

Though she has a successful dramatic acting career in tandem to her role on Play School — Vandenberg has appeared in a number of high profile series, most recently the Netflix series Wellmania and Binge’s High Country — she has no plans to step away from her role with the show.

“It’s just my favourite place to be — I just love it,” she says.

Play School airs weekdays on ABC Kids and is available to stream any time on ABC iview.