Former Sunrise news anchor Talitha Cummins has no regrets about leaving her journalism career behind, even though it has changed her family’s dynamics.
The 43-year-old announced last week that she had closed the door to journalism for good to focus on her newly launched jewelry business.
She reiterates her point in this week’s letter Stellar magazineCummins said she is excited to enjoy her second career after being a wife and mother in recent years following her departure from Channel Seven.
“The other day I was scrolling through a section on my phone with photos from my entire career,” she said.
‘And I thought: this is the end. I’m moving on to career 2.0, moving from journalism to a whole new industry, and it couldn’t be further from there.”
Former Sunrise news anchor Talitha Cummins has no regrets about leaving her journalism career behind, even if it changed her family dynamics
Tabitha said her ex-NRL star husband Bec Lucas is now helping with the household chores at home so she can grow her business, but the couple’s two children are still skeptical about their mother’s new venture.
“The kids keep saying, ‘Why are you doing this?’ And I say, “Well, I still feel like there are things I want to accomplish,” she explained.
“I’m actually quite ambitious and quite driven and I needed a way to channel that energy.”
Tabitha said her ex-NRL star husband Bec Lucas now helps with the household chores at home so she can grow her business. (Photos together)
“The kids keep saying, ‘Why are you doing this?’ And I say, “Well, I still feel like there are things I want to accomplish,” she explained
The former Weekend Sunrise reporter, 43, announced on Monday that she was leaving the media industry for good so she could focus on her jewelry business.
Posting to Instagram, the mother of two uploaded a gallery of several throwback photos of herself presenting the news on Weekend Sunrise alongside Edwina Bartholomew, Mark Beretta and Simon Reeve.
“It’s a big day for me today,” she began her caption, adding, “I’m officially cutting ties with a 20 year career in journalism/television + media consulting and starting my diamond making business and jewellery.’
‘It’s a big change, but the move to starting my own business has given me energy and drive like never before.’
The former Weekend Sunrise reporter, 43, announced on Monday that she was leaving the media industry for good so she could focus on her jewelry business. (Photo left with former Sunrise colleague Edwina Bartholomew)
Cummins explained that her family has been making diamond jewelry for fifty years and that she founded her company in partnership with her uncle and cousin.
She further noted that her brand will help “disrupt the market” by using lab-grown diamonds instead of real diamonds.
‘When I went to the GIA (Gemological Institute of America) to study diamond grading in London, we were handed one lab-grown and one mined diamond and asked to use a microscope to tell them apart. We couldn’t,” she wrote.
Posting to Instagram, the mother-of-two uploaded a gallery of several throwback photos of herself presenting the news on Weekend Sunrise, alongside the likes of (L-R) Edwina Bartholomew, Mark Beretta and Simon Reeve
“It’s a big day for me today,” she began her caption, adding, “I’m officially cutting ties with a 20 year career in journalism/television + media consulting and starting my diamond making business and jewellery’
‘We learned that they are indistinguishable because they are chemically, physically and visually the same. They shine in the same way because they are made of the same fabric. Pure carbon. I was fascinated.’
‘Exactly the same product, much lower price. That day a company was born. I’m excited to be part of what is proving to be the biggest disruptor for the jewelry industry. I would love for you to follow me on this new adventure.”
Cummins joined the Seven network in 2004 and subsequently worked as a reporter and weather presenter across the network’s Queensland bureaus.
Cummins explained that her family has been making diamond jewelry for 50 years and that she founded her company in partnership with her uncle and cousin.
She moved from Queensland to New South Wales in 2011 and was appointed as a reporter for Seven News Sydney, before replacing Jessica Rowe as news presenter on Weekend Sunrise in 2014.
However, Cummins left Seven in early 2017 while she was on maternity leave.
She claimed at the time that she had been unfairly dismissed. Cummins subsequently reached a confidential settlement with the Seven Network.
She most recently worked as a newsreader at Triple M Sydney.
In October last year, Cummins made headlines after she spoke candidly about her sobriety, revealing she decided to give up booze after missing a weekend of work.
At the height of her alcoholism, she drank four bottles of wine a night.
Cummins joined the Seven network in 2004 and subsequently worked as a reporter and weather presenter at several of the network’s Queensland bureaus.
She moved from Queensland to New South Wales in 2011 and was appointed as a reporter for Seven News Sydney, before replacing Jessica Rowe as news presenter on Weekend Sunrise in 2014
Speak with Daily telegram Cummins said at the time that she had tried to quit drinking “many times” before getting sober for good a decade ago.
“My chief of staff sat me down after I missed work one weekend and just said, ‘You’re not doing well, are you?’ and I just said “no”. My work facade had crumbled. “Everyone knew,” she said.
While she admits it’s “hard sometimes”, the Gold Coast-born presenter said she “can’t help it” but think of what she wouldn’t have if she still drank.
In October last year, Cummins made headlines after she spoke candidly about her sobriety, revealing she decided to give up booze after missing a weekend of work.
“I have a wonderful husband and two children,” she said.
“The chaotic life I led would never have allowed me to do that… When you drink heavily, you tend to hang out with people who may not be good for you.”
She added that she now has “the ability to peel back layers during therapy” and that there is a “freedom” in “understanding why she does the things she does.”
‘I stand behind myself now. I don’t rely on alcohol for my self-confidence, so I’ve really had to develop myself.’
At the height of her alcoholism, she drank four bottles of wine a night. And yet newsreader Talitha got up at five in the morning, ready to read the morning news. On the right of the photo, at the age of 20
