‘Abbie told me to do it.’

Six years after her daughter Abbie Chatfield waltzed into the Bachelor mansion to try and win the heart of astrophysicist Matt Agnew, her mother Laura is set to walk the same path on Channel Nine’s new spin-off series The Golden Bachelor.

And she’s going in knowing her famous daughter is right there behind her.
Laura and Abbie(Credit: Supplied)
“At first I thought she’d say, ‘No, don’t do it mummy,’” Laura, 65, tells Woman’s Day of the moment she told Abbie.

“But then she went, ‘Oh mum, you’ve got to do it, Australia is going to love you,’ and it’s not like I could say no. I remember when she went on the show [in 2019] and she was standing there at the door, waiting for her taxi… and she turned to me and said, ‘Mummy, I don’t know if I can do this’, and I told her ‘You’ve got to go, because if you’re one of the few people in Australia that’s chosen for anything, you have to go.’

“So she reminded me of that, but it’s so true. And I’m so glad that I did it because I had the time of my life.”
Laura on Golden Bachelor(Credit: Nine)
Abbie adds she’s “super excited” to see her mother on screen.

“I didn’t have to give her much advice, she will always be herself and people will love her for it,” she says. “Mum hasn’t dated since I was in primary school [and though] her finding love would be amazing, she deserves some fun and joy after very difficult times we have had as a family.”

SELFLESS MOTHER

Laura says she’d put love on the backburner following the breakdown of her first two marriages because she wanted to look after daughters Jolie, 32, and Abbie, 30.

“I didn’t date for a long time because I just wanted to make sure my kids were OK. I even went back and did my master’s [degree] in education, literacy and families because you hear all the horror stories about single parents and kids growing up in dysfunctional families. So I just worked really hard at making sure my kids were OK. And I loved every minute of it. I have beautiful kids,” she says.

THIRD TIME’S A CHARM

Laura adds she’s ready to grab this experience with both hands.

“I remember listening to this great interview with this woman who said everyone should be married three times. The first one’s for fun. Second one’s for children and stability, and the third one is for fun, laughter and romance at the end. And that makes complete sense. And so we’re aiming for the third,” she laughs.

And could the Golden Bachelor Barry ‘Bear’ Myrden himself be her third?

“Well he’s very nice looking and a great conversationalist and stable. You’ll just have to wait and see,” she hints.

Laura, who works as a teacher, adds she’s open to any opportunities, post-show.

Like her daughter, she’s certainly got the gift of the gab that could earn her another reality TV show – or a podcast with Abbie perhaps?

“That would be so funny,” she says. “I can certainly tell a few stories.”