'Ellen' in Australia: DeGeneres' Show Goes Down Under

By Emma Koonse, Christian Post Reporter Friday, March 22, 2013

Ellen DeGeneres has landed in Sydney, Australia and announced that will be taping her daytime talk show there, she announced via Twitter.

"I made it to Australia," the 55-year-old television host posted to the social media site on Thursday, along with an image of her and an Australian native- a koala.

"The Ellen DeGeneres Show" host taped the show from Sydney's Opera on the Harbour at the Fleet Steps, promising fans a great time.

"Gotta get rest for the big show at Opera on the Harbour tmrw," DeGeneres wrote on Friday. "It's gonna be more fun than you ever thought an alcohol-free event could be."

DeGeneres, whose partner is Aussie actress Portia de Rossi, joked that she was already picking up Australia's way of doing things.

"Portia's finally getting to show me her beautiful country," started the comedian. "I'm already learning Australian. For coffee you can get a flat white, a long black or a bad boy Leroy Brown. Okay, maybe not that last one."

DeGeneres has hosted "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" since 2003 and is often compared to daytime television legend Oprah Winfrey when it comes to loyal viewers and fans.

As DeGeneres' talk show enters its 10th season this year, the comedian is also working on a new half-hour sitcom for NBC.

Also an actress, DeGeneres has appeared in "Mr. Wrong," "EDtv," and "Finding Nemo," as a voice actress, among other film roles.

Earlier this year, the talk show host received the prestigious Mark Twain Prize for American Humor.

The Mark Twain Prize joined DeGeneres' 13 Emmys and numerous other awards for her work as well as her charitable efforts. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton named the comedian a Special Envoy for Global AIDS Awareness last year.

Past winners of the Mark Twain Prize have included comical greats such as Richard Pryor, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Steve Martin, Bill Cosby, and Tina Fey. Last year, Will Ferrell accepted the award.