Matt Chisholm now lives on a 29-hectare sheep and beef farm at Chatto Creek, near Alexandra in Central Otago, with his wife Ellen Chisholm and their three children, Bede, Finn and Bree. The former Survivor NZ and Celebrity Treasure Island host left TVNZ at the end of 2019, has written two books about the change, and tours as an ambassador for the Rural Support Trust.
For a decade he was one of TVNZ’s most familiar faces, from Close Up and Sunday to two reality franchises. Then he swapped Auckland for a block of land in the town where he wanted his kids to grow up. Here is where he is now, who he is married to, and why he no longer hosts Celebrity Treasure Island.
What is Matt Chisholm doing now?
Matt Chisholm farms sheep and cattle on 29 hectares at Chatto Creek in Central Otago, writes, and speaks around the country as an ambassador for the Rural Support Trust, a role he has held since 2022. He has said he still does some TV work, but he has not announced a new regular hosting job as of November 2026.
The farm has grown into more than a lifestyle block. In February 2025, ahead of his Time Out Tour stop in Timaru, the Otago Daily Times reported that he had started a Southdown sheep stud and planned to breed Speckle Park cattle. The Time Out Tour, run with the Rural Support Trust, is about mental wellness and resilience in rural communities. “Life’s busy with my TV work and a young family, but I want to be able to give back where I can,” he told the paper.
Who is Matt Chisholm’s wife?
Matt Chisholm is married to Ellen Chisholm, often called Elle. The couple had been married for five years in 2021, when Ellen was expecting their third child, the Otago Daily Times reported. Ellen moved to Central Otago with Matt in 2019 and has kept her own career alongside the farm.
Who is Ellen Chisholm?
Ellen Chisholm worked as a PR and communications manager, and after a year off work she started as itinerary design manager at the luxury tourism company Ahipara Travel, the NZ Herald reported. She also helped name their daughter. Talking about family life in a Woman’s Weekly interview republished by the Herald, she joked, “Basically, it’s me that keeps him well.”
Matt Chisholm’s children and family
Matt and Ellen Chisholm have three children. Their sons Bede and Finn were small when the family moved south in 2019, and their daughter, Bree Pippa Chisholm, was born on 2 October 2021. The family of five lives on the farm at Chatto Creek.
Bree’s name caused some smiles, because it is also the name of his Treasure Island co-host Bree Tomasel. The couple said the name came from the Desperate Housewives character Bree Van de Kamp and is also a short form of Bridget, the name of Ellen’s sister.
Matt Chisholm’s brother Nick
His first time on television was not as a reporter. In 2007, while studying journalism, he appeared in a 20/20 story about his brother Nick, who has locked-in syndrome. Through that story he met producer Mike Valintine, who offered him a reporting job on Close Up in 2008, according to his NZ On Screen profile.
Why did Matt Chisholm leave Celebrity Treasure Island?
Matt Chisholm did not quit Celebrity Treasure Island. TVNZ let him go after the 2022 season, saying the show wanted a new hosting duo, and he revealed it himself on social media just before the 2022 finale. Bree Tomasel stayed on with a new co-host for 2023.
He was blunt about it. “I’ve been let go from the job … none of us are indispensable,” he wrote, adding that saying he had stood down to spend more time with family “would be dishonest”, the NZ Herald reported. TVNZ said “a new hosting dynamic is just one of the changes viewers can expect to see in 2023”. He had co-hosted the show’s first three seasons, starting in Fiji in 2019, and the full host and winner list is in our Celebrity Treasure Island guide.
Matt Chisholm on Survivor NZ and his TV career
Matt Chisholm hosted Survivor NZ in 2017 and 2018, seasons filmed in Nicaragua and Thailand, during almost 12 years as a TVNZ reporter on Close Up, Sunday, Fair Go and Seven Sharp. He co-hosted Celebrity Treasure Island from 2019 and left TVNZ at the end of 2019 to move to Central Otago.
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 2007 | First TV appearance, in a 20/20 story about his brother Nick |
| 2008 | Starts reporting for Close Up on TV One |
| 2008–2019 | Reports for Close Up, Sunday, Fair Go and Seven Sharp |
| 2017–2018 | Hosts Survivor NZ (Nicaragua, then Thailand) |
| 2019 | Co-hosts Celebrity Treasure Island in Fiji with Bree Tomasel |
| September 2019 | Announces he is leaving TVNZ for a farm at Chatto Creek |
| 2021 | Publishes his memoir Imposter; daughter Bree born |
| 2022 | Let go as Celebrity Treasure Island host; becomes a Rural Support Trust ambassador and starts the Time Out Tour |
| 2024 | Publishes The Road to Chatto Creek |
When he announced the move in September 2019 he wrote, “Elle, Bede, Finn and I are heading to Chatto Creek, Central Otago.”
Matt Chisholm’s books
Matt Chisholm has written two books, both published by Allen & Unwin. Imposter (2021) is a memoir about drinking, self-doubt and depression, and The Road to Chatto Creek (2024) follows his first years farming in Central Otago. Both are available in New Zealand bookshops and libraries.
- Imposter: On booze, crippling self-doubt and coming out the other side (2021). He describes growing up in Otago, heavy drinking from his teens, giving up alcohol at 34 and later being diagnosed with depression. “I have always felt like an imposter, a fraud,” he told the Otago Daily Times.
- The Road to Chatto Creek (2024), with photographs by Lottie Hedley. It covers learning to farm from scratch, from buying, breeding and caring for stock to lambing and feed costs, and planning the family home.
Where does Matt Chisholm live?
Matt Chisholm lives at Chatto Creek, a tiny settlement near Alexandra in Central Otago. The family first moved to the area in 2019 and later built a farmhouse on their own 29-hectare block.
Frequently asked questions
Is Matt Chisholm married?
Yes. He is married to Ellen Chisholm, and they have three children: Bede, Finn and Bree.
How old is Matt Chisholm?
His exact date of birth has not been published. The Otago Daily Times gave his age as 44 in a 2021 profile, which puts him in his late 40s.
Who hosted Celebrity Treasure Island with Matt Chisholm?
Bree Tomasel. The pair hosted the first three seasons together, starting in Fiji in 2019.
Is Matt Chisholm still on TV?
Not as a regular host. He left TVNZ at the end of 2019 and has since said he still takes on some TV work alongside farming and speaking.
