Denise Scott: Dream role and shock cancer diagnosis

Written by Carolyn Hiblen for Australian Seniors

Scoring her first lead screen role in the remake of Australian TV sitcom Mother and Son at the age of 67 should have been a dream come true for veteran entertainer Denise Scott, but receiving the shock diagnosis of HER2-positive breast cancer on the eve of filming commencing sapped any joy out of the experience.

Related: Tips on navigating a new health diagnosis.

Simultaneously undergoing intense chemotherapy while filming her role as family matriarch Maggie – a widow whose son Arthur (played by writer, creator and executive producer Matt Okine) moves in to keep an eye on her after she almost burns down her house – was no mean feat for the star. She does, however, admit it was a nice distraction from all she was going through.

“To be really honest, in the first season, because I was having chemo at the time I was filming, it was hard work,” Denise tells DARE. “When the cameras were on, it was great. But the in-between parts, I was so ill, I was really just wiped out by the chemo. But I think it made me really focused.

“The irony being that to get a lead in a sitcom at my age, when I’d never had that happen before, was so remarkable and joyful to me. And then to get a cancer diagnosis, just as filming was about to start. It was very full-on. So it was a distraction, and probably one that I was grateful for.”

Recovery and filming season two

Having undergone 18 months of treatment, Denise was like a different person heading into filming season two of the show – which premiered on ABC TV in September. “I do feel really grateful I’m around, I’m alive,” the star says, who celebrated her 70th birthday in April.

“I feel really grateful, because it wasn’t a clear-cut sort of scenario. And so, I’m very aware of that. I finished treatment now over a year ago and I’m still getting over that and what it does to you mentally and physically.

“You know, you age incredibly. There are periods where I didn’t move much, I was in bed a lot. But I definitely feel really excited that I’ve got some time to hang out with my grandkids, because they’re pretty little, and I didn’t have the energy for them. And that really got to me. So that’s beautiful. And working again is beautiful.”

The pressure of remaking such a classic Australian TV show

With the show’s debut season garnering plenty of praise – including Logie Award nominations for Denise and Matt, for Best Lead Actress and Best Lead Actor in a Comedy, as well as Best Scripted Comedy Program – some of the pressure was taken off going into their second outing. Still, the star admits there was plenty of trepidation taking on a reimagining of the iconic Australian sitcom that originally starred Ruth Cracknell and Garry McDonald.

“Oh, good grief I did [feel pressure],” Denise states. “But I absolutely believed, in my heart of hearts, that if it was handled well, it was possible [to do a good job]. But, oh, wow, I was on my Pat Malone [alone] there. People around me were just, ‘You’re kidding?’ Even my oncologist, when I said I can’t do chemo, I’m about to start filming a remake of Mother and Son, even he went, ‘They’re making another version?!’ People generally were outraged.”

Returning to the comedy scene

If anything, cancer has renewed Denise’s passion for work and, in particular, stand-up comedy, and she will be performing her new show Tickety Boo in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane from February 2026.

She has also made a return appearance in comedy quiz show Have You Been Paying Attention? “I never thought I would do that again. Apart from anything, I just thought, ‘Oh, well, I’m 70 and haven’t done a comedy gig for two-and-a-half years.’ Then off I went on the TV panel circuit.”

She seriously considered putting stand-up in the rearview, “because it’s such a stressful thing to do”. “But I’ve got a lot of stories now, and they’re all to do with cancer – like the fact that I am seriously addicted to colouring in, so I wrote a routine about it. I did actually see a cancer psychologist who was very excited about me colouring in. And then she said, ‘How often?’ And I’m like, ‘Well, I do it every day.’ And, ‘How long for?’ and I literally said, ‘Between 10 and 12 hours’!

“I’m really surprised at myself. I’ve been doing a few small gigs and I’ve really enjoyed it, and I’ve enjoyed talking about cancer and I think, if not now, when?”

Denise Scott's career highlights and future dreams

With a career spanning 35 years and everything from TV to radio, stage and screen, Denise has many highlights. She cites starring in Mother and Son as her most recent. “Mother and Son is really special for many reasons,” she says. “I think the new season is great. It’s more fun. You’re not going to have as many tears in this season. So that’s a highlight.”

Having already accomplished so much, there’s only one thing Denise has left she’d like to tick off her professional bucket list: to work with Nicole Kidman.

“I think she’d be up for it! I think she’s probably saying the same thing: ‘Yeah, I’d really like to work with Denise Scott,’” she says. “The other thing I think about is maybe it’d be nice to do a play, but you have to do it every night. I used to be a really keen gardener and enjoy cooking, and I’d like to get back to that, but I’m too busy colouring in. Just too busy!”

Related: Discover how another Australian star, Barry Dubois, showed great resilience following a life-changing cancer diagnosis.