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Andrew O'Keefe

Andrew O'Keefe.jpg
O'Keefe in 2006
Born (1971-10-01) 1 October 1971 (age 53)
Other names A.O.K
Years active 2003–2021
Known for
  • Deal or No Deal (2003–2013)
  • The Rich List (2007–2009)
  • Weekend Sunrise (2005–2017)
  • The Chase Australia (2015–2021)
Spouse(s) Eleanor Campbell (div. 2019)
Children 3
Parent(s) Barry O'Keefe (father)
Family Johnny O'Keefe (uncle)

Andrew Patrick O'Keefe AM (born 1 October 1971) is a former Australian television presenter and lawyer.

He co-hosted the weekend edition of breakfast program Weekend Sunrise from 2005 until 2017 as well as the localised versions of game shows Deal or No Deal and The Chase Australia.

Since 2021, he has been arrested several times.

Legal career

O'Keefe worked as an intellectual property lawyer with law firm Allens Arthur Robinson.

Media career

O'Keefe first started his television career in 2003 in Channel Seven's show Big Bite. Later the same year he began hosting Deal or No Deal.

In 2005, O'Keefe co-hosted the tri-network tsunami appeal Reach Out for relief efforts around Asia. In the same year, he hosted the short-lived Dragons Den and co-hosted the 47th TV Week Logie Awards.

From 2005 to 2017, O'Keefe co-hosted Weekend Sunrise on Saturday and Sunday mornings. He was co-hosting with Samantha Armytage from 2007, when Lisa Wilkinson moved to Today, until 2013, when Armytage moved to the main Sunrise program. Armytage was replaced with Monique Wright on Weekend Sunrise as a result. He also regularly substituted for David Koch on Sunrise. He presented the program for two weeks whilst Koch was on holidays during the summer period of 2013 alongside his former Weekend Sunrise co-host Samantha Armytage.

From 2007 to 2009, O'Keefe hosted the quiz show The Rich List.

On 31 May 2013, O'Keefe commenced playing the role of King Herod in the Australian tour of the Jesus Christ Superstar arena show. However, on 14 June 2013, he was admitted to hospital with a neck injury requiring surgery and was forced to relinquish the role for the rest of the tour. O'Keefe believed the injury was aggravated during a performance of the show.

In 2015, O'Keefe began presenting Seven's new game show, The Chase Australia.

In December 2017, O'Keefe announced his resignation as co-host of Weekend Sunrise after 12 years with the show.

O'Keefe's contract with the Seven Network expired at the end of 2020, and he was replaced by Larry Emdur for The Chase Australia.

Honours

In January 2017, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for his television and charity work.

Personal life

O'Keefe is one of five children. His father was Barry O'Keefe, a judge of the Supreme Court of New South Wales. He is a nephew of the Australian rock and roll singer Johnny O'Keefe.

He attended Saint Ignatius' College, Riverview, and then studied arts and law at the University of Sydney.

O'Keefe was married and has three children. In 2017, the couple separated; in 2019, they divorced.

Community and charity work

O'Keefe is a former chairman of the White Ribbon Australia, an organisation dedicated to the prevention of violence against women. He was one of the founding members of the campaign in Australia and was an ambassador from 2004, prior to the organisation's dissolution in 2019.

As a result of his work with the White Ribbon Australia, O'Keefe was appointed to the inaugural National Council for the Prevention of Violence Against Women in May 2008, which drafted the report Time for Action: Australia's National Plan for Reducing Violence Against Women and their Children on behalf of the federal government.

Filmography

Title Year Role
Big Bite 2003-2004 Host
Deal or No Deal 2003-2013 Host
NewsWeek 2004 Host
Carols in the Domain 2004 Himself
Weekend Sunrise 2005-2017 Host
Rove Live 2005 Himself
Dragons Den 2005 Host
The Chaser's War on Everything 2006 Himself
Kath and Kim 2007 Himself
The Rich List 2007-2009 Host
TV Burp 2009 Himself
Stefan and Craig: Slightly Live 2010 Himself
Review with Myles Barlow 2010 Himself
31 Questions 2012 Himself
Dirty Laundry Live 2014 Himself
Back Seat Drivers 2014 Himself
The Chase Australia 2015-2021 Host
Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell 2020 Himself
Beat the Chasers Australia 2020 Himself
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