She used to be in our living rooms five days a week, but these days it’s rare to see Judy Bailey on our TV screens. However, don’t make the mistake of thinking the popular former newsreader is sitting around twiddling her thumbs.

Judy laughs as she sinks into a comfy sofa and says, “I don’t have time to do nothing. I’m busier than ever – it’s a bit mad really.” Charity work takes up a huge chunk of her time along with promotiona duties, the odd bit of TV presenting and her family commitments – she’s a doting grandmother-of-two.

Her diary is jam-packed but Judy says she wouldn’t have it any other way. “It’s a full old life, but that’s great. I think I’m probably the happiest I’ve ever been. I’m having the best time and I feel really blessed.”

Judy (57) says she feels privileged to be able to spend so much time supporting a variety of charities. She doesn’t like the word passionate, but it’s hard to think of a more appropriate term to describe Judy when she’s discussing the causes close to her heart. There’s a spark in her warm brown eyes and her whole face becomes animated as she talks about the organisations she works for.

“I’m really loving what I’m doing and feel like I’m contributing. It’s good to feel that you’re making a difference. “I believe it’s healthy to think outside yourself and look at what you can do for others. That was something my mum and dad instilled in me and I hope I’ve instilled it in my children Gemma, James and Sam. “And really, you do get so much more out of it than you put in.”

After many years of informing us about terrible cases of abuse and grief via One News bulletins, she’s welcoming the chance to help address some of the issues that touched her so deeply. “There were times when I felt like I was bringing this catalogue of misery into people’s living rooms night after night. “I can still clearly remember many of those dreadful child abuse cases, like James Whakaruru and Delcelia Witika. You can’t read that stuff and divorce yourself from it – well, I can’t. I felt a real need to try to do something about it.

“Being able to do this sort of work makes sense out of the crazy celeb profile thing you get when you’re on telly.” Judy says that except for a few special projects, her presenting days are all but over. “I don’t see myself as a TV performer any more. I feel like that chapter is pretty much closed, apart from a couple of things.”

She especially enjoys presenting Maori TV’s Anzac Day coverage, even though it’s a long, exhausting day. “Doing all those hours on the trot is like Telethon without dancing on tables,” she jokes, “but it’s a real privilege to be able to tell the stories of our brave servicepeople. Those stories are part of our history and it would be a great loss if they weren’t told.”

In the meantime, Judy can be seen on the Documentary Channel, presenting a series called Little Miracles, which follows young patients at a Canadian children’s hospital. “It’s a study in courage and humanity,” says Judy. “It’s an inspiring watch.” It’s no surprise that she jumped at the chance to be associated with Little Miracles, as most of the charities she works with involve children, families or nurturing of some kind.

They include Jigsaw, an umbrella group that brings together lots of organisations that deal with child abuse, and Seasons, which offers peer grief support to children who have been separated from someone they love because of death, divorce or other circumstances, such as having a parent in prison.

“Grief is a strange thing,” says Judy. “If you don’t acknowledge it and deal with it, it can be a lump in your heart for a long time. It can hold you back.” Judy is also a long-time patron of the Muscular Dystrophy Association – thanks to her son James’ friendship with someone who has the illness. “Lachlan wasn’t expected to see his 10th birthday, let alone his 30th, which he celebrated a short time ago. What’s more, he’s just got married. He’s an amazing guy.”

She also enjoys her involvement with Women’s Refuge and North Shore Hospice, but the organisation that absorbs much of her time is one she helped to found, the Brainwave Trust. Its aim is to educate people about the importance of nurturing children in their first three years of life so their brains develop properly and they can grow into capable, well-adjusted adults. It’s based on the latest research into neuroscience which shows our early experiences of relationships trigger connections in our brains and determine the sort of adult we’ll become.

Judy feels strongly that if people really understood the importance of those first three years, it could mean there would be no need for organisations like Jigsaw and Women’s Refuge. Judy’s work with issues that affect families seems even more apt given that she was known as “the Mother of the Nation”. She laughs good-naturedly when she’s reminded of the nickname and reveals her children always thought it was mad.

“It was probably somebody taking the mickey out of me, but I like to think of it as a term of endearment.”
These days Judy’s favourite term of endearment is Ju-Ju, which is what her grandson Harry (3) calls her. As busy as she is, Judy always makes time for Harry and his cousin Sadie Mae, who is just two-and-a-half months old.

“I love being a grandmother so much,” smiles Judy. “It’s the most wonderful sort of love – all care and no responsibility! I can say to the kids, ‘Don’t worry about your vegetables, eat the ice cream!’” She also tries to squeeze in time with husband Chris at their Coromandel bach, where they’ve been busy planting limes. If she gets a spare moment, she loves to lose herself in a good book or take her dogs for a walk but, these days, Judy rarely finds herself with nothing to do.