Suzanne Paul

Suzanne Paul (born Susan Barnes, 16 November 1956) is an English-born New Zealand television personality and actress. She first gained fame for marketing Natural Glow makeup and appearing in infomercials in the 1990s, for which she was affectionately nicknamed the "infomercial queen".

In the late 1990s, Paul was the host of Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? and Garage Sale. In the 2000s, she hosted Second Honeymoon, and had minor roles and cameos in Being Eve, Outrageous Fortune, and was a regular panellist on How's Life?. Paul's other acting credits include as Paloma in season 3 of My Life Is Murder in 2022, and performing on stage in two productions: Stepping Out in 2010 with the Auckland Theatre Company, and Dirty Dusting in 2011. Paul has also appeared in several reality shows as a contestant or guest, including Celebrity Treasure Island, Intrepid Journeys, and most notably as the winner of season 3 of Dancing with the Stars in 2007.

In addition to her work in entertainment, Paul also started her own clothing brand for short women in 2009, named "Suzanne Paul: Petite". She was formerly bankrupted in 2005, following the demise of Rawaka Māori Village, a controversial tourist business she had opened in 2004. However, she paid back a portion of the debt and sought early discharge, and returned to her work in products and sales to make a financial recovery. In 2008, she published her memoir, But Wait, There's More.

In 2025, Paul was awarded the Scroll of Honour from the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand for her contribution to New Zealand entertainment and support of charities.

Early and personal life Paul was born in Wolverhampton and grew up in the working class area of Whitmore Reans. She described her childhood as "very low-working class", saying her family home lacked an indoor toilet and hot water. Paul's mother left their family, and she was raised by her father, who worked long hours at a factory. As an older child, Paul earned pocket money helping clean tables in a local pub. Originally intending to go to Australia, she relocated to New Zealand in 1991 after first visiting Auckland on a stopover. whom she met when she was 40. Their marriage failed in part due to the stress of unsuccessful IVF treatments. In 2005, she married Duncan Wilson. They divorced in 2016 due to Wilson's struggle with Asperger syndrome. In March 2020, she became engaged to drummer Patrick Kuhtze. He had also been married twice before. The wedding was planned for October 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They got married on 30 October 2022. In 2022, online news website The Spinoff described her as "New Zealand's undisputed infomercial queen" who "has a knack for reinventing herself and popping up where we least expect her to". It was accompanied with a music video depicting Paul dancing at a club, inter-spliced with infomercial footage. In 1997, Paul released a cover of the single "Life Begins at 40" by Dave and the Dynamos.

Television and acting In the late 90s, Paul presented various television programmes for TVNZ produced by Greenstone TV. She hosted Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?, a 1998 show in which ordinary people cooked a meal in their home before the arrival of a surprise celebrity guest. In 2001, Paul presented Second Honeymoon alongside Parker and Cherie Penney, in which couples go on a second honeymoon. despite breaking a rib in the final. In 2011, she appeared in the show Dirty Dusting, which toured around New Zealand.

In 2021, Paul appeared as a guest in episode 5 of the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under. In 2025 she was awarded the Scroll of Honour from the Variety Artists Club of New Zealand for her contribution to New Zealand entertainment and support of charitable organisations. Business ventures and other work In April 2004, Paul opened Rawaka Māori Village, a tourist centre in Auckland, which she described as "cabaret meets kapa haka". The Rotorua Daily Post said the venture was shunned by some Māori who described it as "tiki tacky and culturally questionable". The venture closed in July 2004 and was put into voluntary liquidation, owning more than $1 million. A year later, Paul was declared bankrupt. She vowed to pay back her debts and sought early discharge from bankruptcy.

In September 2008, Paul published a memoir titled But Wait, There's More.

Filmography

Television

Discography TitleYearPeak chart positionsNZ"Blue Monkey"199441 "Life Begins at 40"1997