Adrian Barich: Why record-breaking Telethon 2026 was WA at its very best

Sometimes a humble piece of television can be a lifeline. And sometimes, a billionaire just wants to give a little boy a hug.

Both moments told me everything I needed to know about Telethon 2026. At Saturday’s Telethon brunch, Perth mum Pamela Campbell stood before several hundred people and shared the story of her beautiful son, Callum, who died from leukaemia in June 2021, aged just five. People were openly weeping and I’ll admit I was one of them.

Callum endured 350 nights in hospital, countless procedures, chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant and two devastating relapses. For two and a half years, his family held on to hope. Then, heartbreakingly, they had to say goodbye.

But it was something Pamela revealed about how she survived those dark days that really struck me. Every night, at 7pm, she and the other mums on the hospital ward would watch Home And Away.

“It signified that we had gotten through the day and I was ready to face the night,” she explained.

Think about that for a moment. A television soap opera, with its tangled romances, dramatic cliffhangers and people who seem to spend an extraordinary amount of time getting into trouble in such a small coastal town called Summer Bay became a survival strategy for a mother enduring the unimaginable.

For 30 minutes, Pamela could escape her reality. After her speech, the Home And Away stars that were in Perth embraced her on stage. Then came another surprise: Seven offered to fly Pamela and her family to Sydney to visit the set. What a beautiful gesture. A television show that had helped her through the darkest chapter of her life was going the extra yard.

Pamela’s story was a reminder that we never really know what someone else is going through or how something seemingly ordinary might be helping them hold it together.

She also spoke movingly about the silence that followed Callum’s death. The family not only lost their little boy but also the hospital team and support network who had become like family during his treatment.

Her plea was simple: remember children who have died, say their names, and don’t let their families become invisible in their grief. It was a great message for those of us who would later be on air.

What a superpower she had, though, to stand in front of a room full of strangers, share your deepest pain and make hundreds of people feel something profound.

It was the actually the right way to begin a weekend that would deliver plenty of laughter, entertainment and, ultimately, a record-breaking $101 million for sick and disadvantaged children across Western Australia.

But for me, another moment captured the spirit of Telethon beautifully. My boss (well after three others) Mr Kerry Stokes, is a media giant, a billionaire and one of the most powerful figures in Australian business.

But at the closing moments of Telethon 2026, he turned to nine-year-old Telethon star Aiden Narsico and asked if he could give him a hug.

For us on Seven, suddenly it was just a human being showing a little boy some love. And that’s what Telethon is all about. We were touched, we were emotional, and I reckon we’ll remember that moment for a very long time.

Aiden, who lives with a rare condition affecting his ability to breathe automatically, has spent his young life navigating challenges most of us can barely imagine. Yet there he was, bringing joy to everyone around him. I love the little fella. I’ve been to his school and I know what his parents have overcome.

That simple exchange was incredibly moving. It was a reminder that sometimes the most meaningful thing we can offer another person costs absolutely nothing.

Of course, Telethon had its lighter moments, too. There was the annual brilliant parade of celebrities, sporting heroes and Seven personalities, all who do their bit and can’t wait to do it next year as well.

And a car giveaway produced one of the weekend’s great television moments when the winner’s son appeared in the background wearing nothing but a towel.

You couldn’t script it. Nor, I suspect, would you want to. Shane Crawford and Katie Brown were sensational. Our camera operator, Simon Hydzik and producer Katherine Cunningham, who was hiding in the back of the new car were enormous.

There were incredible donations, government support, volunteers answering phones and ordinary West Australians digging into their pockets.

The who’s who of WA dug deep at the Telethon Ball, raising an incredible $25 million in one night. But I suspect the most powerful thing in that room wasn’t the money, it was the realisation that behind every dollar is a child, a family and a story that stays with you long after the last dance.

The final tally smashed the $100 million barrier for the first time in Telethon’s 59-year history. Those dollars will help fund vital equipment, medical research and services supporting children and families across our State. They save lives, they give families hope, they let little kids and their loved ones create memories by extending lives.

And that is incredibly important. But Telethon has always been about more than the money. It is about the children who get to experience a moment of joy, the families who find support when they desperately need it, and the community that rallies around them. Pamela reminded us that some families leave the hospital without their child. Aiden reminded us to treasure the moments we have. And Kerry reminded me that everywhere there is a human being capable of a beautiful act of kindness.

That’s Telethon. And that’s WA at its very best.