Meet the Actress & World Poker Tour Anchor.
Meet the Actress & World Poker Tour Anchor.
Have you ever taken a gamble on anything? And we don’t mean placing a physical bet on a game, race or animal. We mean taking a punt and backing yourself on something, AKA following that gut instinct. Well ironically, that is exactly what Lynn Gilmartin, a World Poker Tour Anchor, Actress and now Gold Coast local, did to launch her career. We had the pleasure to get to know this beautiful soul and her story, along with what she loves the most about our gorgeous Gold Coast. Read on to find out more!
How long have you been a Gold Coast local?
Two years.
Tell us a bit about you and how you ended up in the poker ‘world’?
I grew up in Melbourne (although I was born in Ireland) and moved to Los Angeles in 2013 when I began as the anchor of the World Poker Tour. I was an actor as a child so it was a dream to live in LA, but I had given up on that dream once I reached high school, believing I wasn’t good enough to be an actor — a sad result of bullying. I had decided to focus on going to university instead. So I pursued a career in marketing and landed my first job out of uni at a casino. That was where I discovered poker. Online content was a new concept back then, so when my boss wanted to make a few YouTube videos, the young performer in me burst at the opportunity to host them. And that’s where the rerouting all began. I left that job at 24 years old to fly to Vegas and start hosting online videos from poker tournaments all over the world. That job taught me so much about content production and led me to my role now with the World Poker Tour which has been life changing. I met my husband, Angel, while we were both traveling the poker circuit in South America and we’ve continued traveling the world together — 12 years so far! He is Mexican, so we were based between Los Angeles and Mexico City for about a decade. When I had first moved to LA, I was curious about the acting classes in town, but it took a couple of years to build up the courage to try one. It’s such a cliche to say, but I will never forget the exhilarating feeling once I finally did. It reignited that passion from childhood and I’ve been acting ever since.
Angel and I have travelled to Australia every year and it was set to be our forever home someday, but the pandemic spontaneously sped up that plan. We flew here in June of 2020 so I could film This Little Love of Mine in Palm Cove, FNQ. I am so proud of that movie. It was one of the first productions on the planet to fire back up again after all the closures. We were able to escape the madness of the world, form our little covid-bubble in paradise and make a magical movie together (and it actually premiered here at the Gold Coast Film Festival). Once the film wrapped, we traveled around Queensland together, waiting for things to calm down before returning to USA. We soon realised that wasn’t going to happen for a long time. We made our way to the Gold Coast, rented a house in Burleigh, and fell madly in love with this city from the moment we checked in. We never wanted to leave. That was when we decided to make the Gold Coast our home. Australia is a spectacular country and living on the Gold Coast is the icing on the cake. And to my favourite part — I fell pregnant right after we moved here! Our son, Bodhi, was born July 2021 and we are madly in love with him. He brings us so much joy. Living on the Gold Coast as a young family is a dream. We couldn’t imagine raising Bodhi anywhere else now.
The World Poker Tour is coming to The Star Gold Coast this September, how is this going to be different to other poker events?
I cannot wait for this! WPT first came to Australia at The Star Gold Coast in 2019, but it was not a Main Tour stop back then, which means our iconic Mike Sexton WPT Champions Cup was not here. Every tournament poker player across the planet dreams of having their name etched on that cup. And this September, the Sexton Cup is coming Down Under for the first time. The Gold Coast is the ideal destination for a poker player. The service at The Star is world class, combined with the wonderful, laid-back beach vibe that the city has to offer. We’ve been blown away with huge turnouts at our events here in Australia so far and now that our international borders are open, we’ve expanded the schedule of events to attract many international players. It’s set to be huge.
What do you love the most about the game?
You can learn many helpful real-life skills in this game. It’s like a microcosm of life. You learn about instincts, discipline, mastering emotions, reading other people and understanding your own ways of communicating. And, of course, when to bet on yourself. It’s a beautiful game that you can never truly master. Just like life.
In 2020, you were inducted into The Australian Poker Hall of Fame – tell us what that was like?
A massive honour. Poker has been a huge part of my life for a very long time. It was a really proud moment to stand alongside legends in the game who I used to nervously introduce myself to as a new kid on the block.
What do you consider your greatest career achievement?
Taking the huge risk of quitting my comfortable corporate career to hop on a flight to Las Vegas and chase a dream. It was in 2009 when there was so much fear around jobs. But I listened to my heart instead of the fear and that decision still continues to pay off in spades (pun intended!)
How do you define ‘success’?
Peacefulness. When you wake up in the morning feeling that, you are successful.
What are your Gold Coast favourites…
Café/coffee spot: It’s impossible to choose one! We have a rotation of six favourite coffee spots in our neighbourhood. But I do love venturing down to Tarte in Burleigh. It’s always packed for good reason.
Restaurant: Nineteen at The Star — Chef Uday Huja blows us away every time.
Bar or place for a drink: Veladora is a speakeasy mezcal bar hidden away at The Star that Angel and I are obsessed with. Remember, Angel is Mexican, so that’s a solid recommendation!
Beach: Echo Beach/Tallebudgera Creek is a dream spot to take my baby with the big beautiful mountain and the calm water to play in.
How do you choose to spend your weekends?
You’ll always find my family at a farmers market. We rotate between the Currumbin Community Market on Thursdays, Palm Beach and Burleigh on Saturdays and HOTA on Sundays. I also love paying a visit to the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary and the hospital as often as I can. I’m in awe of the work they do there as one of the busiest wildlife hospitals in the world. Fridays are a great day to visit the Sanctuary as the night market kicks off at 4pm with delicious food and live music.
If you haven’t heard of esmi Skincare in one form or the other, what have you been doing? Since its inception, the brand has developed quite the cult following with its cruelty-free, Australian-made, high quality and 100% ethical skincare products. We had the opportunity to sit down with the Gold Coast woman behind the brand, Evette Hess, and speak all things from beauty career to her local loves.
How long have you been a Gold Coast local?
I’ve been on the Gold Coast since my family moved from South Africa in 2004.
What do you love most about living here?
I honestly love EVERYTHING about the Gold Coast, I think it’s the best place to live. The beaches, the weather, that we can swim all year around, everyone is down to earth and it’s also become a hub for new businesses which I really enjoy seeing. It also has a really relaxed atmosphere which is my vibe for sure. You have to live where you can work and enjoy your life at the same time. I’m a massive advocate for this country and the Gold Coast, we are so incredibly fortunate to live here and have all the opportunities in the world at our feet.
Tell us about your career thus far.
I became a beauty therapist in 2006, then went on to teaching beauty therapy, which then lead to me having a job doing advanced skin treatments. All along I fell more in love with people, making them feel good and trying to find solutions for vulnerabilities they were facing daily. I found that treating things like skin issues really required a great skincare AND makeup routine to go hand in hand with these treatments to see benefits. Unfortunately, there wasn’t anything that really hit the mark for recommending to my clients, so I decided to create a product that I thought they would find useful. Fast forward to 2021 and we have created over 200 products for our customers now.
What’s your proudest entrepreneurial moment?
I am so proud of the business and the culture we have at Makeup Cartel. I am proud every day, and I feel incredibly fortunate and lucky that I get to work with the team I work with. They are all amazing at what they do, they are first and foremost amazing humans. So, I am humbled daily by the people that choose to give so much of themselves to our business and that they love what they do. It means everything to me. I am also incredibly proud we are able to encourage, support and add value to people’s lives in a very real way. It’s something I have always enjoyed doing (in Beauty Therapy) but it was always limited to one person at a time – now with esmi and poni cosmetics we can make a real difference in people’s lives through giving them the support and encouragement to believe that real beauty lives inside of us. By providing them a product that encourages self-care, self-love and achieving results they can see resulting in a more confident person.
Tell us about esmi.
esmi is a Vegan, Australian Made, Cruelty-free skincare product. The brand is all about exceptional customer care, making every customer feel like the pieces of gold they are. esmi is about a value exchange where after all our bills are paid, customers consciously choose to spend what is left to ‘treat’ themselves on our product, so we better make it worth their while. esmi is about breaking the wheel of traditional ‘beauty’ products and business society (men in high buildings) telling us what is beautiful. Having a daughter of my own, today has become more important than ever to instil the self-worth and self-love that starts from her behaviour and treatment of others (not appearance) to prepare her for her future.
What’s by far the most popular esmi product?
We have a few, the Uncomplicated Cleanser, Hyaluronic Hydrating Serum and 24K Gold Nourishing oil.
What’s your personal favourite product from esmi?
This would be like asking which is your favourite child – it’s impossible.
Tell us your favourites on the Coast…
Café for breakfast: There are a few but I love Le Jardin in Main Beach
Coffee spot: Paper Cup in Southport
Restaurant for dinner: I love Mamasan, Rick Shores and Etsu
Bar or pub for a drink: Rick Shores
How does your weekend usually look? It varies depending on the weather, if the weather is nice, the beach for sure, visiting friends, or if it’s cooler then we might head to Tamborine to a winery or stay home.
Summer is heating up and you know what that means? It’s BBQ time. Luke Hines, a chef, best-selling author, TV presenter and personal trainer recently released a new cookbook, Barbecue This! just in time to freshen up your BBQing skills. If you can’t get beyond a burnt sausage and grilled steak, Luke’s book will give you the inspiration to create quick, vibrant and flavour-packed dishes for your average weeknight din-dins or for full-blown entertaining. We caught up with Luke recently for a chat at Sanctuary 28’s multi award-winning Corner House on the Gold Coast to launch his highly-anticipated book and find out his best BBQ tips, his favourite dish and how to prepare a clean-eating Christmas.
What does a day in Luke Hines life looklike?
Well I am an early riser! Firstly I have always loved watching the sunrise, but my two dogs don’t give me any other choice. So the one guarantee is that everyday starts with a coffee on the beach with the dogs, then depending on my schedule I’ll either have a day in the inbox, flying interstate for work, shooting new recipe photos for books or filming episodes of The House of Wellness, the TV show I co-host. The awesome part about what I do is no day is exactly the same, so it never gets boring!
You wear many hats (chef, author, TV presenter, personal trainer, the list goes on), what do you love most about your work?
Probably the people I connect with. The main through line throughout all of my work is I get to work with and meet people from all walks of life! It could be a big name celebrity that I am interviewing for the show, or someone struggling with their health that I can guide in the right direction. Meeting new people and hearing about their life journey is never boring and more often than not, extremely inspiring.
With many best selling cookbooks under your belt, you’ve just released your newest book Barbeque This!, what can you tell us about it?
Well, you’d never believe it, but Barbecue This! is actually my 12th book. I even lose count myself! Barbecue This! really is the must have book for every Aussie who likes to eat delicious food thats also good for them! I’ve written this book to cater for people who already know their way around their barbecue but also for people who have no idea where to begin! It’s got an easy to follow guide of how to use most standard Aussie barbecues, how to cook meat and veg to perfection, a go-to list of sauces, marinades and sides and of course, more than 80+ full mouth-watering recipes that are easy and tasty.
How is your BBQ cookbook unique?
Well what’s strange is that there really aren’t many barbecue books in Australia that cater to Aussie barbecues or ingredients! They’re all very American using tools and techniques we just don’t really do here. So what I set out to do with this book is make it familiar to every backyard in Australia, so when you pick it up it feels like a no brainer to get stuck in and give each and every recipe a go!
What are your best BBQ tips?
Understanding what temperatures to cook with for optimal results and which area of the barbecue you are best to use between the flat plate and grill and whether to use the lid or not! Once you know how to use the heat only a barbecue can give you and work out which ingredient works best on the different zones, then you’ll be cooking like a pro in no time!
What’s your favourite dish to cook at home?
I am a sucker for skewers! You can load them up with some incredible ingredients and there’s bound to be a skewer that caters to everyone. You can make 100% plant based skewers or add your favourite protein such as chicken, fish or beef! They’re simple to cook and packed with so much flavour. You’ve got to try my butter chicken skewers from Barbecue This!! They’re next level!
Going into the festive season, how do you resist the many temptations on offer?
Well, I think the important thing people should know going into the festive season is there will be temptations and you should allow yourself to relax and treat yourself, its just finding some balance amongst it. Balance a treat day with a clean eating day, and don’t let a few days off your usual healthy regime derail you altogether, meaning you don’t get back on track. Everything in moderation is key, and always be kind to yourself at this time of year.
What does a clean-eating Christmas feast look like?
– A few factors go into a clean eating Christmas… and here’s how I do it….
– Shop locally supporting our producers and choose organic if possible
– Cook fresh, light, summery foods
– Celebrate heaps of vegges to go with any meat you cook
– Fill up on the good stuff so there isn’t too much room left for the naughty stuff
– Cook on the Barbecue using my book! Haha
We have to ask for your favourite Gold Coast spots…
Café for breakfast: Brio Emporium
Coffee spot: Nook Espresso Burleigh
Restaurant for dinner: Lupo
Bar for a drink: The Tropic
Beach: Tallebudgera Creek
What do your weekends look like: Sun, Sand and Surf… Food, sleep and Netflix haha!
Interview by Carly Snodgrass
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas and you know it truly is when Australia’s iconic vocal group Human Nature perform their annual exclusive Christmas Show at The Star Gold Coast. The four members Toby Allen, Phil Burton and brothers, Andrew and Mike Tierney have been performing relentessly since forming in 1989 in Sydney. Now returning home to Aussie shores after a successful 11 year residency in Las Vegas, we caught up with Phil Burton to chat about how he thinks the music industry will change and what’s next for Australia’s most beloved ARIA Hall of Famers..
You grew up in Sydney, how do you think the Australian culture has shaped your musical career?
I don’t necessarily think Australian culture has shaped things musically for us – we have always been big fans of many groups from outside Australia as well as the Aussie groups we grew up listening to through the 80s. I think where Australian culture has shaped us is more from a business sense – so often in Australia the work ethic differs from other cultures – it is very much “we’re all in this together” right from the boss at the top to the lowest rungs. We have always had that approach to the work we do, where nobody is too important to get their hands dirty, and nobody is too small to care about. I think it’s a particularly good attitude to have.
After an extremely successful recording career and a huge Aussie following, you decided to traverse the Pacific Ocean to Las Vegas. Living in Vegas for over 11 years and performing over 2,000 shows, your residency at the Sands was sadly cut short this year due to the pandemic. What were your thoughts when this happened?
We had the feeling in the couple of weeks leading up to the closure that things were coming to a head and to be honest we weren’t comfortable putting ourselves, our workmates or our audience in an unsafe environment, so we felt comfortable with the temporary closure that happened initially. Unfortunately from that point America has gone rapidly downhill and “temporary” became “permanent”, which robbed us of any chance of a proper farewell to the show and all the people we enjoyed working with. That part was particularly tough, but apart from the way it ended we will always be able to look back on what was such an amazing experience performing at the Venetian.
How do you see the pandemic changing the entertainment industry as a whole?
One experience I think people perhaps took a little for granted, but we have now all come to remember again is how important the shared experience of live concerts and events is to our wellbeing. Watching a livestream is all well and good but it’s so hard to become emotionally invested when you are watching on a screen. We all miss the excitement of the house lights dropping, the noise, the sweat, the crowd singing, the bass thump in your chest – it all adds up to an experience that I think we will put so much more value on when it comes back.
So what’s next in the story of Human Nature?
Now that Australia is beginning to open up again, we are doing our best to get out there and help lift people’s spirits by putting on a few shows around the country – especially leading up to Christmas – what is Christmas without a bit of Human Nature after all??? We can’t wait to help people find their joy again – just as we can’t wait for our fans to help us do the same. We’re all in this together!
What can fans expect on the Good Good Life Tour next year?
The Good Good Life Tour is going to bring out sides of Human Nature that people haven’t seen on stage in a long time – it’s our first opportunity to perform new original songs in years. Because of the pandemic the wait has been longer than expected, so it makes us even more excited to get out there. I’m sure the show will end up being a gigantic celebration of our freedom to get back to normal and party together. Bring it on!
First though, you’ve got your Christmas at The Star show on Saturday 19th December where you cover both Christmas classics and your own top hits, be honest… are there any songs that you get sick of performing?
Some people may not believe me here, but there really are very few songs that we ever get sick of performing. We chop and change things around in our shows but never for reasons of boredom. Particularly when it comes to Christmas songs – we only get a small window of opportunity to perform them so we really relish the chance. Christmas music has a way of putting smiles on people’s faces (incredibly important after the year everyone has had) – and the 4 of us on stage aren’t immune to that either. It’s just as much fun for us.
You’re back for a little longer than just Christmas this year, but what’s the first thing that you normally do when you return home to Australia?
Well the absolute first thing I do is overdose on good coffee and probably indulge in a little too much of the amazing fresh food that you can find so easily here. We all love catching up with family and friends as well, so doing that while simultaneously overdoing it with the food is always on the cards.
You’ve also performed on the Gold Coast several times, what do you love most about returning here?
Whenever we perform on the Gold Coast there is a slightly laid-back vibe to our show. I think life here is a little bit more relaxed than a lot of places and that seeps into the atmosphere on stage. It lends itself to a bit less intensity and a bit more going with the flow. We always have such a great time on stage here.
We have to ask for your favourite Gold Coast locations…
Restaurant for dinner: Since our last visit to The Star there are some amazing new restaurants on the Gold Coast, but I’m a big fan of Japanese food so Kiyomi’s always a favourite.
Coffee spot: Metro Coffee on Surf Parade in Broadbeach – delicious.
Café for breakfast: Tower 28 Cafe in Kurrawa Surf Club – the food is yummy, the vibe is relaxed, the view is unbeatable.
Beach: The southern beaches are my favourite – anywhere between Currumbin and Greenmount.
What does your time off on the Gold Coast look like: The Gold Coast has such an amazing outdoor lifestyle that is great to experience. I particularly love strolling to the beach for a swim or a good walk on the sand, or sitting out the front of a cafe or bar and watching the world go by. It’s all very easy to take in and enjoy – sometimes it takes being away for a while to really understand how lucky we are.
Interview by Carly Snodgrass
