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29 Jun, 2025
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'I'm the Inconsistent Parent': down-to-earth Ally Langdon's parental guidance
@Source: canberratimes.com.au
Parental Guidance returns to television on Monday with eight brave families showcasing to Australia their parenting styles - boiled down this season to Traditional, Pro-Tech, Active, Up Front, Authoritative, The Hard Way, Life School and Positivity. Host Ally Langdon laughs when asked to describe her parenting style. She and husband Michael Willesee Junior have two children - son Mack, eight, and daughter Scout, six. "This is easy because I've had three seasons to think about it. It's like, 'Okay, we have our Authoritative parents, we have our Hard Way parents and we have Ally and Mike - the Inconsistent parents," she said, down-to-earth as ever. "That's not really fair to my husband, he is pretty good. It's more me. I'm up, down, left, right - you've got to keep the kids guessing. You know, screens are fine today but all of a sudden, screens are banned for a week." What Australia has learned over the last two seasons of Parental Guidance is that everyone parents differently and everyone can learn from each other. Langdon and parent expert Dr Justin Coulson guide the families through real-life challenges that show up the strengths and weaknesses of each approach. She appreciates how brave and upfront each family is as this season they discuss the big topics of screen time, consent, body image and mental health. "Everyone who comes on that show, they are all awesome parents. They've got these phenomenal kids," Langdon said. "And most of them come on because they believe, 'Hey, we're doing it this way, we think it really works, we believe in it. But, we're also here to become better parents'. "Most people in that room do actually take on board what the others say." There are polarising moments this season, especially in the episode about consent. When one dad put forward the view that "we've got to stop feminising our boys", there were all kinds of reactions. "I looked around the room and you've got a couple of people nodding and then there were a couple of people who I felt I was going to have to chain them to their couch," Langdon said. "The great thing is, I know in that moment, in that conversation, there are people sitting at home in their lounge rooms who are going to agree with him and other people who are going to feel really strongly the other way. "Just sitting at home watching, whatever you're thinking, someone in that room is going to say and I think that's the beauty of the show - you do cover it all." Like any busy mum, family is a juggling act for Langdon and her husband, who works in communications. She's had a big year - hosting the Paris Olympics, fronting A Current Affair, helming federal election coverage and now returning with Parental Guidance. She also just hosted a domestic violence forum which will screen as a special on A Current Affair this week. So it's probably fitting that Langdon has, for the first time, been nominated for the Gold Logie, the winner announced at television's night of nights on August 3. Langdon has been enjoying mixing it with the other Gold Logie nominees, including her good friend Lisa Millar, who earned a nod for her work on ABC News Breakfast, Back Roads and Muster Dogs. "It's actually been really fun, once the shock of it all has worn off," she said. Langon is also nominated for two other Logies for Best News Coverage or Public Affairs Report for her emotional interview with Professor Richard Scolyer and the Ray Martin Award for Most Popular News or Public Affairs Presenter. A Current Affair is also nominated for Best Current Affairs Program. Langdon is a tough but fair, no-nonsense but compassionate host of ACA. She has formed a close bond with Australian of the Year Professor Scolyer, who has shared his battle with brain cancer, which is obvious in her powerful, Logie-nominated interview with him. "For him and his family and for the cause, I really want that one to win," she said. "I want to win that one for him." Langdon has been at the helm of ACA since 2022. Her late father-in-law, the legendary Mike Willesee was the first host of ACA, but died in 2019 before seeing Langdon take on the mantle. "I was actually really overwhelmed winning the Silver Logie last year for exactly that reason. He started this show," she said. "Everyone on the show cares, and we're all on this little ride together."
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