From celebrated model and Miss Universe, to presenter and journalist: Irene van de Laar. Nowadays, the clever expert in the profession writes for LXRY Magazine and presents LXRY TV. Irene has taken her career to a high level on her own, but there are never enough wheelbarrows. Who gave her that extra push?Text: Mical Joseph
“My mother comes from a butcher's family and my father from a catering family. My very first job was as a dishwasher at my favorite uncle's butcher's shop. This was in Heeswijk-Dinther in Brabant. I worked at the butcher every Saturday afternoon and then in the evenings I looked after the same uncle's children.”
“My ambition as a teenager was to go to Hotel School or work for the Royal Military Police. I had gone through the procedures at both and had already been accepted at the Hotel School and at the Marechaussee I still had to wait and see. But then there was a hitch. My sister always said: 'Irene, I'm just going to sign you up to modeling agencies whether you want to or not.' When I was 17 she entered me for a national modeling competition. This was the competition of Linda de Mol's TV show. The modeling jobs I did occasionally after that started to pay off. My modeling career suddenly gained momentum.
As a young woman I traveled to Tokyo. I was no longer in my mother's care and cried for the first two weeks. I suddenly had to stand on my own two feet, but this experience made it possible. From this point on I traveled the world for various shoots and shows. I lived in Paris for a number of years and had good assignments. It was fantastic! After this my sister entered me for the Miss Universe pageant. I won this in 1994 and became Miss Universe Netherlands as a 25-year-old.
Once in the Netherlands, I decided to leave my modeling days behind me and was asked to audition for De Nachtrijder. At the time, this was a brand new TV program on the also brand new commercial channel SBS6. Without any television experience, I was selected from 40 women and had to obtain my motorcycle license accelerated for the program.”
“Throughout my life that has been my sister and family. They always had my back and their level-headedness also kept me grounded. My father was always very critical and was not a yes-man. This attitude really helped me: I continued to challenge myself and be critical. General director of SBS Fons van Westerloo and program director Bart in 't Hout were wheelbarrows and were decisive for the start of my TV career. They chose me for De Nachtrijder and this program gave me so many new opportunities.”
“My passion is being able to create an honest and beautiful conversation. This applies to both writing and interviewing. When I started night rider, this was my first experience with television. It had a huge impact: the program was a resounding success. How did I deal with the fame? Well, that took some getting used to. Not prepared at all. There was no internet then, so no social media, no show news either. But everywhere I went I was recognized or spoken to. Bizarre, and also fun. I see my work as a profession and also as a hobby.”
“My biggest learning moment is that I learned to never give up and always turn setbacks into something positive. Don't give up.”
“Don't say yes to everything. It's okay to say no sometimes. That is your own right. For example, my then agent once advised against participating in the new Dancing with the Stars program. He indicated at the time that we should first wait for the viewing figures. Still, I agreed to the program and so took the plunge. DWTS became a ratings hit and I made it to the finals. This was a moment where I listened to my own instincts. As an 18-year-old I still listened to others too much.”
“I want to be a wheelbarrow for my children and my friends. You can't do everything all by yourself, you need people. Me, too. That is why my immediate environment is a great inspiration.”
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