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Game over at 31? Why ABC TV host 'Hex' decided it was time to switch over

She's young, popular and experienced. But at 31, former 'Good Game' host Stephanie Bendixsen feared time was running out for a lucrative move to commercial television.

Karl Quinn

When Stephanie "Hex" Bendixsen was weighing up the pros and cons of a move from the ABC to commercial TV last year, she says she turned to a senior woman who works "behind the scenes" in the industry for some confidential advice.

The telegenic presenter had been offered more money to make the switch – she won't confirm or deny the rumour she has gone to Seven – from ABC2's Good Game, on which she had worked since 2009.

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"She said to me, 'This could be a really exciting opportunity for you, but if you really love what you're doing, you shouldn't feel that you have to move. You're young, you have your whole life ahead of you to make a switch'," Bendixsen recalls.

"And then she asked me, 'How old are you, by the way?' I said 31. And there was silence. And then she said, 'I would probably be thinking about doing something substantial sooner rather than later'."

Bendixsen's brush with television's ageism may have come startlingly early, but it would probably have gone unremarked were it not for the fact the ABC used her departure, and that of her colleague Nich Richardson (aka Nichboy), as the pretext for cancelling the show after 10 years on air.

"In light of this major setback, and changes in the way audiences are choosing to get their information about gaming, the ABC has decided to end the long and successful run of the show," the broadcaster said in a statement last month.

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The spin-off Good Game: Spawn Point, aimed at younger viewers, will remain on ABC Me, with the remaining presenters, including Steven "Bajo" O'Donnell, aboard.

The daily web show Pocket was axed in December.

It's hard not to detect a whiff of scapegoating by the ABC here, though Bendixsen says there was no hint a move was afoot to axe the show.

True, management had late last year, for the first time in the decade-long run of Good Game, suggested some format changes might be in order.

"But they seemed perfectly happy to leave that to us."

When Bendixsen joined the show in 2009 as the replacement for the ousted Jeremy "Junglist" Ray, she found herself mired in controversy, but in time she won the fans over.

"So," she says, "to be blamed for the show being cancelled seven years later was really upsetting to me."  

On Monday, she published on her Facebook page a letter written to her by a 19-year-old fan called Faith, who was "very upset and angry" about her decision to leave the show.

"I won't post her letter," she wrote, "but I have a feeling it probably echoes the thoughts of many of you."

Bendixsen defended her right to make a career change, arguing no one should be forced to stay in the same job forever, no matter how good it is, or appears to be from the outside.

And then she tackled the age issue.

"As a woman in my 30s, I'll be honest – working in television is scary," she wrote.

"Every year I wonder if I'll soon be considered 'too old' to be able to forge a lasting career in television. If I lost my job suddenly – who would want to hire me?

"My decision to move on from the ABC was not only about starting something new, but also trying to make sure that I will be developing enough experience across different roles and networks to carve out a strong and varied career as a presenter."

Her missive has, she says, been overwhelmingly well received by fans.

"I think most people respect transparency," she says.

"I don't agree with the decision to cancel the show and part of me doesn't want to have to explain my reasons for leaving. But if you don't say anything people can come to the wrong conclusions."

As for the new role, you can conclude what you will because Bendixsen isn't revealing details. But she does say it will be "within the gaming space for now, though I am looking to broaden out into some other things".

It's not hard to see other areas a commercial broadcaster might want to deploy this keen foodie and traveller.

But the key question is, will she still wear the nose ring now she's joined the mainstream?

"I dare say I will," she says. "It's become part of my identity now."

Until someone tells her she's too old for that sort of thing, at least.

Karl Quinn is on facebook at karlquinnjournalist and on twitter @karlkwin

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