Season 2 Media Kit
BIG MIRACLES
In this season of Big Miracles, a new group of courageous hopefuls offer an intimate window into the emotionally charged road to parenthood through IVF.
Infertility affects millions of people worldwide. Every year in Australia one in six couples will experience infertility. But when love, hope and science intersect, many can overcome impossible odds to start their families.
From all walks of life come miraculous stories full of hope, heartache and triumph. A celebrity battling immense odds, a “solo mum” going it alone, and a woman born without a uterus who receives a priceless gift from her sister are just a few of these remarkable stories. A team of passionate specialists will guide them through the ups and downs, sharing in their joy and heartache.
Filmed over the course of four years, Big Miracles tracks the ultimate quest to create new life.
Lisa McCune
Narrator
Lisa McCune is one of Australia’s most popular and successful screen and theatre actors, earning an impressive collection of awards celebrating her performances, including four Gold Logies for Most Popular Personality on television.
Lisa recently starred on stage in the Sydney Theatre Company production of Lynn Nottage’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Sweat. She also recently co-hosted the 9Network lifestyle series The Garden Hustle alongside Dave Franklin, featured in the ABCMe series Planet Lulin, and narrates the 9Network’s groundbreaking series, Big Miracles. In 2024, Lisa won Dancing with the Stars with her partner Ian Waite.
After graduating from the Western Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) Lisa appeared in a few television pilots before landing the role of Maggie Doyle in the police drama, Blue Heelers, which went on to become one of the most popular and enduring programs on Australian television, making Lisa a household name. During her years as Maggie Doyle, she also played the lead role of Mary in the Seven Network miniseries, The Potato Factory, based on Bryce Courtney’s novel.
Her recent television credits include the Network Ten comedy series How to Stay Married, the ABC series The Ex-PM, The Warriors, and the miniseries The Divorce: The Soap Opera. Her other television credits include It’s a Date opposite Peter Helliar, for which she received an AACTA Award
nomination for Best Performance in a Television Comedy, Network Ten’s drama Reef Doctors which she co-produced, the telemovie Blood Brothers, Rake, Sea Patrol for which she received a Silver Logie Award nomination for Most Popular Actress, Tripping Over, Two Twisted, MDA, and the telemovie Hell Has Harbour Views for which she received a Silver Logie Award nomination for Most Outstanding Actress.
Lisa’s film credits include Josh Lawson’s feature The Little Death, Rowan Woods’ feature Little Fish, and The Inner Sanctuary and Body Melt.
Lisa starred as Maria in the Gordon Frost production of The Sound Of Music which she followed with her Green Room Award-winning performance as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. Her other numerous stage credits include Bell Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Moisés Kaufman’s 33 Variations alongside Ellen Burstyn, Peer Gynt for the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, Machu Picchu for the Sydney Theatre Company and the State Theatre Company of South Australia, The King And I for Opera Australia and the Gordon Frost Organisation, earning her a Helpmann Award nomination for Best Female Actor in a Musical, Shane Warne The Musical for the 2013 Adelaide Cabaret Festival, South Pacific for Opera Australia, earning her a Sydney Theatre Award and Green Room Award nomination for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical, Gloria, Dead Man’s Cell Phone, She Loves Me, Into The Woods, A Little Night Music for the Melbourne Theatre Company, The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee for STC, Guys And Dolls for the Ambassador Theatre Group, earning her a Green Room Award nomination for Best Female Artist in a Leading Role, and the STC and MTC co-production Urinetown, which earned her a Helpmann Award and a Green Room Award nomination for Best Female Artist.
Contributors
Angie Kent (34) QLD
OCCUPATION: TV Personality
FERTILITY ISSUE: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), Endometriosis, Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)
DOCTOR: Dr Kath Whitton
Australian TV favourite and resident upcycle queen on the 9Network’s Space Invaders, Angie Kent, is embarking on a solo journey to motherhood.
At the age of 34, single and facing multiple fertility-related conditions such as PCOS, endometriosis and PMDD, Angie has decided to take her future into her own hands. She is undergoing IVF in the hope of creating and freezing embryos she can use for her future family.
Angie is notoriously indecisive and finds the all-important step of choosing a sperm donor overwhelming. But the biggest concern is her long list of medical conditions, which many women can relate to. Angie – and the doctors – fear that her chronic invisible illnesses could make the process of creating good-quality eggs extremely difficult.
Anna (39) VIC
OCCUPATION: Retail/PR Manager FERTILITY ISSUE: Low Ovarian Reserve DOCTOR: Dr Daniel Lantsberg
After marrying her high school sweetheart at 26, Anna’s future looked like a fairytale. But when the marriage broke down she found herself adrift, and before she knew it she was single at 39. With her biological clock ticking loudly she decided to embark on a solo road to parenthood.
Although she’s single, Anna is far from alone. She has a tribe of girlfriends supporting her every step of the way, attending appointments and crossing fingers with her when the results are called in.
Bright-eyed and full of optimism, Anna approaches IVF with a blissful naivety. Despite being dealt some sobering setbacks along the way, her positive attitude is unwavering.
Alicia (38) & Chris (43) NSW
OCCUPATION: Alicia: Recruitment, Chris: MD of Recruitment Firm
FERTILITY ISSUE: Stage 4 Endometriosis
DOCTOR: Prof Gavin Sacks
Alicia and Chris are affluent Sydneysiders. They’re articulate and engaging. They confess “it seems like we have it all, but we’re missing the most important thing”. Alicia is emotional and adorable. Chris is a straight-shooting Irish/English expat. They met in a pub seven years ago and have been married for three years.
Alicia has stage 4 endometriosis which affects her ability to fall pregnant and keep her pregnancies. She has fallen pregnant twice but miscarried both times. The shadow of these losses hangs over them throughout their treatment.
Chris faces a family emergency during the IVF treatment. At the same time they are due to find out if their embryo transfer is successful, he must travel to the UK to say goodbye to his ailing father.
Billie (28) & Rob (34) and Shannen (30) NSW
OCCUPATION: Billie: Cleaner, Rob: Labourer, Shannen: School Canteen Manager
FERTILITY ISSUE: Billie was born without a uterus
DOCTOR: Dr Peter Illingworth
From the Western Suburbs of Sydney comes a unique and incredible story about the love of two sisters and a medical miracle.
Billie suffers from a rare medical condition called Mayer - Rokitansky - Küster - Hauser syndrome (MRKH), meaning she was born without a uterus. She still has tubes and ovaries so can produce eggs, but is unable to carry a baby herself.
It’s an impossible medical hurdle for her and husband Rob, who are desperate to have kids. Thankfully, they have an angel in the form of Billie’s sister, Shannen. Despite having already given birth to four kids of her own, Shannen didn’t think twice about offering to carry their baby.
Christie (33) & Perry (40) VIC
OCCUPATION: Christie: People and Operations Manager, Perry: Landscaper
FERTILITY ISSUE: Unexplained Infertility
DOCTOR: Dr Kokum Jayasinghe
English expats Christie and Perry spent two years struggling with unexplained infertility. But doctors made a breakthrough when surgery revealed inflammation in Christie’s uterus. This turning point led to the moment they’d dreamed of: a positive pregnancy result.
We met the couple in series two and now in series three, we rejoin them with Christie pregnant and preparing for the new arrival. She is hoping for an “all natural” birth plan, but her labour escalates into the most nailbiting part of their entire journey to become parents. The level of high drama and
heart-in-your-mouth moments in Christie’s birth is unprecedented.
Ilina (36) & Nick (29) NSW
OCCUPATION: Ilina: Personal Assistant, Nick: Concreter FERTILITY ISSUE: Endometriosis/removed tubes/low egg count DOCTOR: Prof Gavin Sacks
In order to afford their fertility treatment, Ilina and Nick live with Nick’s parents in Western Sydney. They have the overwhelming support of their big Macedonian families.
Returning from series two, where Ilina underwent an egg retrieval and received seven eggs, this season we will see the couple as they continue their treatment.
Ilina is one of the most difficult fertility cases doctors have ever seen. She suffers from severe endometriosis that has required multiple surgeries and her ovarian reserve is extremely low. But Ilina is desperate to become a mother, and the hope and heartache she experiences throughout the series is infectious.
Kaiti (37) & Sally (34) NSW
OCCUPATION: Kaiti: Police Detective, Sally: High School Teacher FERTILITY ISSUE: Same sex and multiple miscarriages DOCTOR: Dr Peter Illingworth/Dr Dave Listijono
Kaiti and Sally are a married couple from Dubbo. They are classic Aussie country folk, passionate about their home town and more at home in the bush than the city. They’ve endured a difficult road to parenthood, marred by recurrent miscarriages.
Without access to fertility services in country NSW, they initially tried to get Kaiti pregnant using donor sperm and home insemination. Kaiti fell pregnant twice through this method, but miscarried both times.
On their first round of treatment they take advantage of being a same-sex female couple and they both undergo egg retrieval.
Shelia (47) & Tyson (48) NSW
OCCUPATION: Sheila: Author, Tyson: Personal Trainer
FERTILITY ISSUE: Age-related
DOCTOR: Dr Kath Whitton
We first met Sheila and Tyson in series one, where their journey to parenthood began with heartache. The couple, who met in their late forties, decided to try for a baby after a whirlwind romance. Facing the challenges of age-related infertility, their initial attempts at IVF were unsuccessful with the 11 eggs Sheila had frozen when she was 38-years-old unable to produce a pregnancy. They tried another six rounds of treatment with her 45-year-old eggs, but were still not successful.
Sheila and Tyson’s story continued in series two, where after seven failed rounds of treatment, they navigated a difficult decision. With their options running out, doctors recommended using donor eggs. Sheila struggled with the idea of her child not sharing her genes. But she was determined to become a mother, so the couple decided to buy donor eggs from the USA, a move that boosted her likelihood of pregnancy from just 2 per cent to 50 per cent. This was the breakthrough they’d longed for and finally Sheila fell pregnant.
Now, in series three, their joy is palpable as we join them once again mid-pregnancy. They are overjoyed, but as they approach the third trimester they’re rocked by a medical emergency that puts Sheila’s pregnancy in jeopardy. After so much struggle to fall pregnant they’re faced with a tumultuous ride to the finish.
Doctors
Professor Gavin Sacks Sydney
A/Prof Gavin Sacks, Clinical Director at IVFAustralia, is one of Australia’s leading fertility specialists. He studied medicine at Oxford and Cambridge Universities, completing a PhD on pregnancy implantation.
Gavin’s main research interest is in unexplained infertility. His work resulted in the introduction of natural killer cell testing in Australia. He has pioneered the Bondi Protocol, a treatment option for some women who experience recurrent implantation failure and miscarriage.
Gavin values creating strong connections with patients, supporting them during an emotional time in their lives. His passion is to deliver the best chance, in the shortest time, with the least cost, to have a baby.
Dr Kath Whitton Sydney
Kath Whitton is a Fertility Specialist and Gynaecologist. She is a calm and compassionate doctor whose patients value the individualised care she delivers for all couples and individuals.
Kath studied postgraduate medicine at the University of Sydney, specialising in obstetrics and gynaecology, before continuing her studies and completing the University of NSW Masters of Reproductive Medicine, along with completing her Fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility with IVFAustralia.
Her special interests lie in adolescent gynaecology, polycystic ovarian syndrome, as well as general infertility. She is actively involved in research and the training of medical students and junior medical officers.
Dr Daniel Lantsberg Melbourne
Dr. Daniel Lantsberg is a highly regarded consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist specialising in infertility and reproductive medicine. As Clinical Director at Melbourne IVF and Clinical Director of The Fertility Centre in Werribee, Daniel combines cutting-edge medical expertise with compassionate, patient-focused care.
He also serves as a fertility specialist at the Reproductive Services Unit at The Royal Women’s Hospital, where he plays a vital role in training the next generation of fertility sub-specialists. In addition, Daniel is a Senior Lecturer in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Melbourne, contributing to education and research in reproductive health.
Dr. Lantsberg is deeply committed to offering advanced, tailored evaluations and treatments for male and female infertility. His passion for fertility preservation and egg freezing has earned him recognition as a trusted authority in these fields. Known for his approachable, informative, and compassionate nature, Daniel’s philosophy centers on personalised care: “One size does not fit all.” By combining dedication, innovation, and clinical expertise, Dr. Lantsberg ensures every patient has the best possible chance of achieving their dream of building a family.
Professor David K. Gardner AM FAA Melbourne
David Gardner is an IVF pioneer and world-renowned scientist, as well as Virtus Health’s Group Director of ART, Scientific Innovation & Research, and Scientific Director of Melbourne IVF.
To describe him as a leader in the field of IVF and embryology is an understatement. Over a career spanning four decades, he has worked in leading scientific roles around the globe, published 300 papers, and edited 16 books on IVF and embryology. His greatest accomplishment is pioneering blastocyst culture and transfer which significantly increased pregnancy rates and led to single embryo transfer. Subsequently, his internationally acclaimed embryo grading system, developed over 25 years ago, the Gardner Grade has become the global standard for selecting blastocyst (five-day-old embryos) for transfer.
Despite the accolades, David’s passion for the power of science in creating human life has never dimmed. Operating from Melbourne IVF, he is in awe of the work his colleagues perform daily.
