“Did I do enough?” Sunrise host Natalie Barr on her family and the reality of kids leaving home
“Your children are only on loan to you”: Natalie Barr on the moment motherhood shifts forever.
There’s a moment every parent dreads and then suddenly, it’s here. The house is quieter, routines shift and the motherhood role you’ve lived and breathed for decades starts to look a little different.
For Sunrise host Natalie Barr, that moment arrived in 2024. Like so many mums, she found the adjustment to life without her kids at home anything but easy.
After raising two boys alongside a high-profile TV career, Natalie is now in a new chapter of motherhood.
Inside Natalie Barr’s family life
Family has always been at the centre of Natalie’s world. She shares two sons, Lachlan and Hunter, with her husband Drew, an Oscar-nominated film editor. The couple have been together for decades, building a close-knit family life.
After finishing film studies, their eldest son Lachlan, 24, now calls Melbourne home. In 2024, their younger son Hunter, 21, headed to Canberra for university, marking the moment both boys officially left the nest.
How it really feels when the kids leave home
In May 2024, Natalie opened up to The Nightly about what it’s really like when the kids leave home.
“It would be fair to say that I did sit around and mope a fair bit the first few months not really knowing what to do and eating a bit too much chocolate,” she laughs. “I was mourning their childhood and felt a bit discombobulated over not knowing what to do. The job of being a parent isn’t ever over, but we’re in a new part of the relationship and had to learn what the different boundaries were.”
When Hunter left for university, the emotional weight hit even harder.
“I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck. Did I do enough and be enough for them because ‘Phase 1’ is over, and we will never get it back? I have loved it with every bone in my body. But now what? And then I’m reminded about another saying from the parents who’ve been here before … ‘Your children are only on loan to you’. Hopefully, our best is enough, they are ready for ‘Phase 2’, and we can hang on for the next part of the ride.”
Finding love at university
Long before the early alarms and national spotlight, Natalie was a country girl from Bunbury, Western Australia. She attended Bunbury Catholic College, where she became head girl, before heading to Curtin University.
It was there she met Andrew, her now husband, who was also from Bunbury. Their relationship started as friendship first.
“We were really good friends for a couple of years and then we became more than friends and essentially we have been together ever since,” says Natalie.
While Drew pursued film, Natalie moved into journalism, landing a cadetship with The Wanneroo Times after writing to countless media outlets in search of a start.
From there, her career took her to Los Angeles before she eventually returned to Australia, joining the Seven Network in Sydney in 1995. After 18 years as Sunrise news presenter, she was appointed co-host in March 2021 alongside David Koch, and from 2023 has hosted alongside Matt Shirvington.
Making it work as a working mum
Balancing a demanding TV career with raising young children isn’t easy but Natalie found a rhythm that worked for her family.
Speaking with The Australian Women’s Weekly in 2021, Natalie says in the early days of motherhood and juggling her newsreader role on Sunrise, she was grateful for the time she was able to spend with her boys. “I always made sure I was home by mid-morning. I would race home to take over from our sitter and then I was able to be almost a full-time mum for the rest of the day. That was the beauty of this job.
“I was so lucky in that respect because this job enabled me to be there most of the day, even if it meant getting up at 2.30 or 3am. I could be with them and watch them grow up every day. In that way, it was magical.”
Despite her high-profile role, Natalie has always been clear about her priorities.
“My boys and my husband are my life,” says Natalie.
“I may have this amazing career, but they are my number one priority and they always have been. Andrew and the boys come first. Of course, I have always been able to run out the door to cover a story when I need to, but I only ever did that when the boys were old enough to deal with it and to be left at home.”
