Dynamic Duos: three workplaces, two decades, unlimited good times
In this week's Dynamic Duos, News Corp Australia's Body+Soul editor-in-chief, Jacqui Mooney, and host of Healthy-ish, Felicity Harley, reflect on over two decades of friendship.
In Dynamic Duos, Mumbrella each week asks two colleagues with a professional and personal affiliation to share with readers the importance of workplace relationships in an increasingly hybridised world of work.
Jacqui Mooney:
Felic and I met in another media time, the glory days of women’s lifestyle publishing at Park Street, when Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Aniston reigned supreme, and ACP was still owned by the Packers. We worked together at CLEO where Felic was features editor. Smart, funny and talented, she made an impression immediately, brimming with ideas after freelancing overseas for several years. From day one, she was a genuine pleasure to work with – whether it was brainstorming potential cover stars, workshopping all manner of crazy coverlines or wrangling nominees for Bachelor of the Year.
Our careers next intersected as fellow editors at Pacific Magazines, where Felic had launched Women’s Health into Australia. Her energy was infectious, and what she created with the brand over the next nine years was truly impressive. I’ve always had the utmost respect for Felicity as a person, and as a professional. We both live in Sydney’s inner west. Are both hugely passionate about health (so much so that Felic studied a graduate diploma in public health) and are both equally obsessed with sport.
When I joined News Corp Australia to relaunch Body+Soul in February, one of the biggest draw cards was the chance to grow an already hugely important media brand – that helps shape the health of the nation – across print, digital, social, video and audio. And in a crazy coincidence, it’s thanks to our daily podcast Healthy-ish, which Felic has hosted since 2021 – that we’re finally working together again. With the launch of the News Health Network, I’m beyond excited about what the future holds, and what we’ll be able to achieve together as Body+Soul continues to push into new spaces.
Felicity Harley:
Jacq and I met circa 2002 when I began working at CLEO magazine as their features editor. As deputy editor, she sat in a glass fishbowl, of sorts, right in front of me so we got to know each other well. Amidst the frocks and shoes and after-work functions, she was also a superb chief wrangler of copy and deadlines, and keeping us all in check.
She has beautiful handwriting, and I can still visualise on my printed-out paper copy, the marking-up of errors and her worthy suggestions. I learnt a lot from her during that time. It was another 20-odd years before we worked on the same brand, this time Body+Soul.
For some of the years in between, we shared a publisher when she was editor of Prevention and I was at the helm of Women’s Health with daily chats in the kitchen and during meetings. I’ve always admired Jacq’s professionalism in every sense of the word – she is committed, loyal and respectful. She really is one of the best editors in the business, deeply passionate about building and finessing a brand.
Jacq has done an impeccable job of steering the Body+Soul brand into a new era, reflecting its core values and brand heritage. She innately knows health and wellbeing, and it reflects in the print product she and her team produce each week (no easy feat!). I’ve always admired Jacq for her commitment to “living the brand” – from running marathons, to hiking trails and, of course, her love of women’s sport.
Jacqui on Felicity:
Most memorable moment with Felicity: The 2016 Women’s Health Women in Sport (WinS) Awards. It was the year of the Rio 2016 Olympics – and also the year that Felic passed the baton to me after almost a decade as launch editor.
I remember sitting at Carriageworks in Sydney in awe of these athletes – including the Rugby Sevens, who made history as the first female athletes to bring home gold – and what Felic had created with this incredible property. The feeling of electricity and female empowerment in the room was like nothing I’d ever experienced and, over the next five years, I was lucky enough to build on what Felic had started with this game-changing initiative, growing WinS from awards night to mentorship program and eventually a television broadcast. Advocating for women in sport has become the greatest personal and professional joy of my life, and I have Felicity to thank for that.
A mutual love of the game, and a desire to push the cause of equality forward, is a bond we’ll always share.
Best word to describe her: Graceful.
No matter how busy things get, Felic is always grounded, calm and relaxed.
Most annoying habit or endearing behaviour she has: Her warm, welcoming nature. Whether it’s her guests on the podcast, or the people she works alongside, Felic immediately puts people at ease.
It’s a rare quality and one I couldn’t admire more.
Felicity on Jacqui:
Most memorable moment with Jacqui: The day I handed over the reins of Women’s Health to Jacq was a bittersweet day for me – filled with a tug-a-war of emotion. After nine years as editor, it was time for me to move on, but there was a huge part of me that didn’t want to give-up that job.
Yet, I knew I was handing over the gig to someone who would take that magazine above and beyond, and bring new energy and a freshness it desperately needed.
Also, I was giving up the Women in Sport initiative we launched in 2009 that had been my brainchild. I won’t lie, it was tough seeing Jacq at the mic for her first Women in Sport Awards, but also reassuring to know someone else with a passion for sportswomen was going to make the initiative bigger and better (and she did).
Best word to describe her: Positive!
Jacq is always smiling and sunny, and her emails are always a joy to receive.
Most annoying habit or endearing behaviour she has: Her enthusiasm… if we could bottle that up and sell it, we both wouldn’t have to work in the media anymore.
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Lauren McNamara is a journalist at Mumbrella, covering the creative and PR beat. She joined in November 2022 as editorial assistant, after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS.
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