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Thanks to Australian reader Bianca for sending us this story in the local press about Kate Walsh’s lucky life in Western Australia. Kate just happened to be on vacation in Perth in March when lockdown started. Apparently Western Australia is extremely safe for people, with less than 750 coronavirus cases total, thanks to their premiere, Mark McGowan. Early lockdown and government restrictions have allowed people to resume regular life. Kate has been able to act in their local theater, go to restaurants and of course snorkel, kayak and enjoy the outdoors.
Grey’s Anatomy star Kate Walsh — who has made WA home since the coronavirus pandemic — has heaped praise on Premier Mark McGowan for his “exemplary” handling of the crisis and revealed her plans to bring a streaming show to the State.
Cocooned far away from her home in virus-ravaged New York and family across the US, the actor and producer has felt “fortunate” to have been grounded in WA after an impromptu holiday to Perth in March.
With little choice but to stay when COVID-19 prompted the Federal Government to close international borders, Walsh has since embraced the West Aussie lifestyle after settling in Cottesloe.
“It’s a really tricky time. Mark McGowan handled it so well with locking down and people were vigilant about social distancing, paid attention and adhered to the different lockdown phases.
“I wouldn’t trade anything for being safe. People back home are like ‘what, you don’t wear masks? You’re allowed to go to the gym? You can go to a restaurant?
“As much as I would like to be able to go home and come back, there are surges and different rounds coming. How it’s been handled here, like I said, is so exemplary and I feel very fortunate to be able to have a normal life here.”
The Hollywood star has been making the most of her time in the State, from getting her diving ticket off Rottnest and seeing turtles off Exmouth to soaking up some “Broome time” Walsh has been ticking off bucket list destinations and experiences.
Walsh said another reason she loved WA so much was because it was “literally the only place in the world that’s doing theatre”.
She has featured front and centre in American playwright Sharr White’s Tony-nominated Broadway drama The Other Place at the new Fremantle Theatre Company. The play’s opening night on October 17 was to a sell-out crowd.
Kate’s next plan is to start a production studio there. That all sounds so relaxing, normal and promising. I can only dream about that sort of lifestyle. Maybe in a year, when things have turned around here, we’ll be able to get back to 75% to 80% of what our lives used to be. I like Kate and while of course I’m jealous of her I’m not mad about it. She’s not gloating because she’s had projects to promote (Umbrella Academy’s second season came out in July and her movie Almost Love started streaming on Netflix earlier this month). She’s been open but lowkey about her Australian lifestyle. Kate also has a movie with Liam Neeson, Honest Thief, out now in theaters. Bet she doesn’t miss being here at all. Who would?
An unreal slice of heaven! Thank u #SalSalisNingaloo for an incredible, safe & extraordinary stay! ❤️ At a time in the world where most people cannot travel I feel very fortunate to explore Western Australia & Ningaloo reef is one the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen 🙏🏽 pic.twitter.com/eCq2VHM6B4
— Kate Walsh (@katewalsh) August 20, 2020
The State Government wants to create a mini-Hollywood on the west coast by building a film studio in Perth following US actress Kate Walsh throwing her support behind productions coming to WA. 🔒 https://t.co/RtwRt9Thyb #wanews #perthnews pic.twitter.com/X7QLcIwwJw
— The West Australian (@westaustralian) August 18, 2020
Good for her! It’s not like she ran to Australia after all the word on travel bans came down or acted like she was “trapped” there (Kristin Cavawhatsis, I’m side eyeing you). She was there, stayed there, and made the most of her time there.
imho if anybody wants to and can afford to go there now, quarantine for two weeks or however long is necessary to make sure nobody’s sick, and then stay there for a while (or longer) to sit this one out, that’s fine
You actually can’t do that. Our international borders are closed to non Australians right now and have been for most of the year – and that is unlikely to change for quite some time.
Indeed, only very limited numbers of Australians are allowed in each week. Mostly because roughly one third of people coming from overseas are testing positive for COVID and they are trying to control the flow of COVID into the country. It’s actually a good marker of how much most countries are under-testing because 100% of people entering are tested so the 1/3 number is pretty representative of what’s happening.
There are some exemptions to the non-Australian entry rule, and that’s people who are engaged in significant works that will create money and jobs for the economy. So, for instance, a couple of big Hollywood movie productions.
The other barrier to entry is that the government is no longer paying for the two weeks of compulsory isolation in a hotel. The travellers are, and it costs about 3K AUD. Additionally flights are extremely hard to come by and very expensive right now.
Perth is such a fun city to-it has a small town feel even though it’s a big city.
Love her. Share my b’day with her 😍 She was the best part of Grey’s A.
Agreed! She’s so lovely, like a real movie star.
How nice for her. Making the best of things, and lucky to be in a lovely place.
Here’s the thing: With better pandemic management so many more of us could be living, if not 100% our pre-pandemic lives, then at least something more approaching them. It would be better for the economy, better for public health, better for overall and individual physical and mental health. The health system wouldn’t be backed up, schools would not be danger zones, and we would be making creative adaptations to support our communities while we wait for mass vaccination, boosters, and whatever else is necessary.
Instead we go from “lockdown” to “lockdown,” with more punitive measures to substitute for the more lastingly and broadly effective test-trace-isolate. The punitive measures only turn off more people and exacerbate exhaustion.
I’ve tried to explain this to my French boyfriend. The whole point of locking down and staying at home is to prevent rampant transmission of the virus. Even if you are sick during lockdown, because you are at home, there is a smaller risk that you infect someone else outside of your home.
Theoretically, once the lockdown ends, those who have been infected should be cured or in the hospital in quarantined areas meaning that the risk of transmission is virtually zero. I know in reality this is not the case, but we see that some countries are getting there because their population 1) Trusts their governments and follows the rules. 2) Loves their fellow man and follows the rules AND/OR 3) Understands that they must do this now in order to live normally later.
This is where American individualism and “exceptionalism” get us into trouble. The idea of doing anything for fellow human beings is abhorrent to so many in the US, and so many people refuse to realize they live in a society with other people. I have so many neighbors and coworkers who believe they are islands and their actions don’t affect other people. The concept of public good has been eroded in this country for many years, with the Trump Administration delivering the death blow. We owe things to other people because that’s what it means to live in a society.
The thing is, they stop at red lights, don’t they? That’s proof they understand they are NOT islands and their actions DO affect other people….this is the disconnect I don’t get. @SusieQ, your last sentence is everything “We owe things to other people because that’s what it means to live in a society.” The only thing I would add is that’s what it means to live in a CIVILIZED society.
The lack of civility in public spaces has become our downfall ~
@SuzyQ Agreed. I’m so sick of American individualism and exceptionalism. And it’s across the board, across demographics. I’m afraid for my life and just this morning some woman wants to argue with me about getting on the small building elevator already full with me and my bike, like she’s going to squeeze herself into the less-than-6-feet-apart space right next to me six *inches* away. What is that even? Wait one minute for the next one to save both of our lives but no. 🙁
Yes to all the points you make. We know the things that make a difference and slow/stop the virus spread. Do them and we can all get on with our lives to the benefit of EVERYONE.
It’s important to note that WA Premier Mark McGowan and QLD Premier Anastasia Palaszczuk have been under incredible pressure to open their borders, from our smug Trump-lite vacuous blodge of uselessness Prime Minister Scott Morrison… the same guy who tripped off to Hawaii during our huge bushfires last year. He and his crony non-leader ministers have sustained a non-stop war, helped by the Murdoch dominated media here, attacking them for having the temerity to restrict their borders until other states and territories improve our COVID numbers.
And they’ve been especially vicious against the Victorian Premier, Dan Andrews, as he’s locked the state down hard to deal with a large outbreak a couple of months ago. Victoria has finally got their cases down from over 700 a day to a couple or one a day with no deaths – no thanks to Morrison and co.
It takes incredible strength, courage and endurance to survive a sustained Murdoch/conservative hit job and these premiers may well pay the cost at the next election. But they’ve saved countless lives.
she is one of the few actresses her age that does not see to have frozen and injected the crap out of her face.
Good for her. That part of Australia is lovely. She’s always seemed like a solid person and very down to earth. I really miss being able to travel. I realize how much I’ve taken it for granted.
I was supposed to have been in Perth this September but Covid … grrr! Have an old work colleague that lives there and looking at the photos she posts on FB you would think that life was “normal”.
Hey fifee – I’m here in Perth (born & bred) and I can tell you that life is normal! Soooo normal. I wish other countries could see just how normal it is, follow suit, and a whole heap of the globe would be so much better off! xx
My young cousin has lived in Australia for nearly 3 years. She loves it. She is a gymnastics and cheer coach. Who would have thought there would be an opportunity for an American to move to Australia for that? She was hesitant to move at first but I told her she was young, with no husband or kids and it was the perfect time to explore the world and her options. I am glad she took my advice. I get to live a bit vicariously through her.
Oh my gosh, what city? And does she have a partner now? I met a cheer and gymnastics coach from Canada here in Perth at a wedding recently and I’m wondering whether it might have been her!
in the area around Queensland. She was seeing some Australian boxer but I think that might be over. Need to check in with her and get an update. LOL
I’ve seen heaps of cheer coaching studios around where I live in Sydney and I was a bit shocked too, I didn’t think we remotely had that here. Good for them I guess, they can finish up their training and work for the NRL until they retire lol.
I’ve been to Cottesloe and I am so jealous she got stuck there. The main beach is so beautiful, I often dream about it. There was a flock of pink cockatoos in a tree the day we went. My sister studied abroad in Fremantle. It was so fun visiting her.
I’m in Perth and it does kinda feel almost like life as normal here, we’re very lucky with no current community transmission (or has been for months). For once our extreme geographical isolation with other cities – we’re surrounded by ocean or desert – is working in our favour 🙂
However we have a hard border not only with the world but with the rest of Australia! So it’s hard to come here and hard to leave. You need to apply to go interstate and many people have been rejected from coming in/out.
Also because it feels like life as normal here there is a bit of complacency which makes me wonder what will happen with the second wave but overall feel very fortunate our state government has protected us. And fun to see Kate Walsh pop up in the local news every so often.
Wow, she lucked out! Good for her. Hope the movie studio does well.
I am so frustrated with so many people here in the US. We’re never going to get this under control here until there’s a vaccine, and even then people will refuse to take it.
Western Australia is my home, where I grew up. Seeing the photos and thinking about the places mentioned made me weepy- I’m stuck in Chicago and won’t be able to see my family over the holidays. I long for the normalcy of aussie life.
I loved her bitchy icy and yet enthusiastic character on Umbrella Academy. If they resume work on season 3, I hope they find a way to bring her back to the story.
Australia, Taiwan, and a handful of other countries have handled COVID-19 very well. Glad Kate is doing well in WA. Strange times we live in.