She’s been waiting 91 years for her moment in the spotlight, and for New Zealand’s Got Talent’s oldest contestant, Olive Turner, patience has finally paid off.
The Cantabrian won the hearts of the public and the judges with her rendition of I Could Have Danced All Night from the musical My Fair Lady, reaching the semi-finals of the hit reality show – and she’s determined to shine just as brightly as the young guns. “Oh, I’m confident,” she grins. “I had so much fun last time. It was wonderful to get back on the stage after about 20 years.”
Olive’s first memories are of her singing, and she has always harboured a dream of making it big as a professional singer. During World War II, Olive found the time to indulge her passion, performing in concerts and with bands to entertain soldiers, using some of her wages earned by sewing uniforms for them to pay for secret singing lessons.
However, she’s had to put her aspirations on hold several times during her life – most notably when she was raising her three children. “In my forties, I started singing again,” she says. “I was performing with the Trinity Theatre workshop group and the Christchurch Gilbert and Sullivan Society. “I still perform now. I sing every fortnight down at the Princess Margaret Hospital, so I’m still in the business – so to speak!”
Olive is using a stage name for the show – when she’s singing, she goes by Olivia.
Now living in a retirement village after her beautiful home was destroyed by the Christchurch earthquakes, it was Olive’s “manageress” at Silverstream Village who convinced her to enter the show. “She gave me the printout from the computer and it said they were looking for senior citizens, and I thought, ‘Wow, isn’t that wonderful! Someone wants someone who’s old!’”
Olive will be singing a classic by a famous crooner on this week’s show and she says there’s plenty more star performances in her yet, even if it’s just at the local pub for karaoke – if someone can drive her there. “The lady I used to do karaoke with, Shirley, died, so I haven’t been in a while. But if someone would come and pick me up and take me I’ll go!”
While the lyrics are harder to remember and the throat takes a bit longer to warm up, Olive says she’s ready for her semi-final performance, and when it comes to Olive, mark her words – she’ll be doing it her way.
