From TV and movie star to holiday home owner — inside Megan Gale’s stunning rural Victorian getaway

She’s walked down catwalks across the globe, starred in blockbuster movies opposite the likes of Charlize Theron, and has conquered the small screen as host of TV shows such as Project Runway Australia. Megan Gale, is one of the country’s entertainment industry success stories.

But the route to her most recent business venture — as holiday rental property owner and manager — began in the most unlikely of settings: the quaint Victorian spa town of Daylesford.

“Daylesford had always been a favourite spot for Shaun (Megan’s fiancee, former AFL player, Shaun Hampson) and I to visit pre-kids,” Gale says. “And then, once we had a little family of our own, we would take the kids. It was then, when looking for accommodation, we came across Dollywood.”

The weatherboard property is adorned with a Hollywood-esque neon sign. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

A weatherboard holiday home, one-and-a-half hours drive from Melbourne, Dollywood Daylesford’s unique aesthetic – a homage to Hollywood’s golden age meets Palm Springs meets Californian coastal – has made it  one of the most recognisable properties in the area.

“We loved the place so much we soon became regulars, often staying there on mini breaks with the kids and our mums,” Gale says. “We started house hunting in the area for our own little property, which we could enjoy ourselves and also open up the doors to share with others.”

While on their property search fate intervened, and in August of 2020 the owners of Dollywood (a couple who Megan and Shaun had become friendly with over email) asked if they would be interested in buying it.

“Shaun and I didn’t even chat that much about it,” Gale said. “We had always loved Dollywood and often joked about trying to buy it, if it ever came on the market.

“It was a no brainer and the timing was perfect, plus the owners ideally wanted to sell it to someone that loved it as much as they did, who wanted to retain the look, feel and spirit of the house and keep it as a holiday rental. That was exactly our intention.”

Nods to the home’s namesake are present throughout. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

Snapping up the property in September 2020 for $800,000, the Dollywood purchase that added to their exisiting property portfolio, which includes their primary residence (a spacious four-bedroom house in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Iris) which they purchased in 2018 for $3.12 million.

Despite both the property and its setting being a far cry from the red carpet fanfare and the bright lights of the big city, it represented a much-needed project for the model-turned-actress in the wake of the devastating grief she felt after the unexpected death of her brother in 2020.

“It had been quite a challenging year in so many ways,” said the Perth-born star. “To say it came along at just the right time is an understatement.”

Uniquely positioned as buyers who had already experienced the ins and outs of the property during multiple stays before signing on the dotted line, Megan and Shaun knew the four-bedroom, two-bathroom bungalow was move in ready. However, they were determined to put their own stamp on it, too.

Shaun Hampson and Megan Gale bought the property in 2020 after staying there as guests. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

“We wanted to retain as much of the original style as possible and honour what the previous owners had done but add a little of our own flair,” explained Gale. “We had purchased the house pretty much as is, meaning we bought it practically fully furnished, save for a few pieces, in order to keep the same look and feel that Dollywood was well known for, taking an ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ approach.

“Saying that, we have made a few changes to the interior furnishings: adding a beautiful, plush pink couch, giving the velvet love seat a colour change from dark forest green to gold, adding a cute, kitsch pink leopard, and some new artworks from some of Melbourne’s best artists. There’s also a fabulous Slim Aarons print in the middle of the hallway that I had framed — it suits the house so much.

“Also, last year we painted the entire exterior, added a brand new pink front door and re-decked the entire outdoor verandah and front exterior entry, just to freshen everything up. I’d love to re-tile the bathrooms and paint or wallpaper the bedrooms and add some other subtle aesthetic changes, just to add some new life to the space and we hope to do this in the next 6-12 months.”

The cosy bathroom. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

Stripping away the red carpets, the award shows and all the other trappings that come with life as an Aussie A-lister, Gale has gone ‘back-to-basics’ after beginning a family. She welcomed son River in 2014 and then daughter, Rosie May Dee, three years later. And Dollywood is part of this transition and life priorities shake up.

“We really do love spending time there and enjoying it for ourselves and making memories,” she said. “One of my favourite stays there was not long after we had purchased it. We visited over New Years 2020. The house kind of symbolically marked the beginning of a new chapter, so it was great to start the new year there with Shaun and the kids and my Mum was there too which was lovely.

“We had always stayed there in winter and you really just want to bunker down, get the fire going, stock up on supplies and take advantage of all of the boardgames, vinyl record collection and record player that we have on hand and enjoy lazing around the fire with family and friends.

Gale enjoys the property with het family, and rents it out when she’s not there. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

“The warmer months are quite lovely too. It’s great to open up the house a bit more and let the beautiful, warm, fragrant country air flow through the interior. Create some grazing platters and open up the big kitchen windows that lead out to the breakfast bar on the deck, crank up the Sonos speaker system throughout the house and really just enjoy the space.”

With family being her top priority it’s unsurprising that Megan’s favourite space in the property is the lounge room.

“It’s the space that brings everyone together,” she said. “The internal timber cladded, curved wall — which divides the living areas from the sleeping spaces — adds warmth to the house, with the Ned Kelly wood heater supplying literal warmth.

“I also love ‘Bedroom 2’, which I also call “The Beverly Hills Room” as its interior is a nod to the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles, with its palette of soft pinks, cream and green tones and a picture of the hotel on the wall. It’s just a lovely room to sit in, read a book, relax and perhaps have an afternoon nap.”

The Beverly Hills Hotel was an inspiration for one of the bedrooms. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

While the holiday home ticks the ‘location, location, location’ box, for Megan and its ever-expanding guest roster, it is the painstaking detail and thought that has gone into the interior design of Dollywood that makes it so special.

“The look and feel off the house is so unique,” she said. “There is nothing like this in Daylesford or for miles around. When you enter the house you immediately get the sense you’ve come home. You feel like you belong there and can settle in right away. Its location is also superb – you are just far enough way from town that you feel secluded and it’s quiet, but close enough to everything that it feels convenient.”

As important as the property has been to the star and her brood, its importance as a money-making commercial rental trumps sentimentality.

“Even though we did buy the property knowing that we would stay there, it’s a business first and foremost,” asserted Gale. “So the business and our guests are always the priority.

“As attached to Dollywood as we are, we always have to look at it as a business, which then means you have to form kind of a detached attachment to it. It will be hard to part with one day for sure as it holds a lot of memories for us as a family.

The property has four bedrooms. Picture: Courtesy of Megan Gale.

“If we did decide to sell it ideally we would probably want someone who was willing to take it over as a business. It has taken a lot of time, effort, energy, love and care to get both the house and the business to this point, so it would be a shame for all of that to end.”

When quizzed about whether she’d expand upon her rental portfolio after the success of Dollywood, the 48-year-old admits that she and her husband have already considered the prospect.

“Shaun and I often speak about getting a little fixer-upper and creating another Dollywood,” she said. “But right now we are so busy with work and two very active, growing kids, that we’re maxed out with time but … maybe one day!”