1. Basil Anthony Zempilas is an Australian politician who is the leader of the Western Australian Liberal Party and the member for Churchlands in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, serving in both roles since March 2025.
45 Facts About Basil Zempilas
1. 2.
Basil Zempilas previously served as the Lord Mayor of Perth from 2020 until 2025.
3.
Basil Zempilas presented sport on Seven News Perth Monday to Thursday until 2022.
4.
Basil Zempilas was a member of the Seven Network's AFL commentary team.
5.
Basil Zempilas has co-hosted Perth radio station breakfast programs on 92.9,6PR and Triple M Perth.
6.
Basil Zempilas attended Floreat Park Primary School and Hale School in Perth; he attended Hale along with Liberal Party politician and lawyer Christian Porter.
7.
Basil Zempilas graduated from Perth's Murdoch University in 1992 with a degree in Media Studies and Mass Communications.
8.
Basil Zempilas played for the West Perth Football Club playing as a ruckman and forward, but retired due to injury.
9.
Basil Zempilas played 24 games in the West Australian Football League between 1990 and 1994, kicking 25 goals including kicking 5 in a semi final in 1993.
10.
Basil Zempilas began his career at the Seven Network in February 1994 as a cadet sports reporter.
11.
Basil Zempilas was awarded "Best News Story" at the annual Western Australia Football Commission media awards for his coverage of the Melbourne Football Club being thrown out of a West Coast Eagles closed training session.
12.
In 1996 Basil Zempilas was promoted to weekend sports anchor on Seven News, a position he held until the end of 2001, when Seven lost the rights to broadcast AFL.
13.
Basil Zempilas hosted the 1998 World Aquatics Championships in Perth and co-hosted the local television program Perth at Five with Yvette Mooney.
14.
Basil Zempilas has been involved with the Seven Network's coverage of the Olympic Games since the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where he co-hosted Tonight at the Games with Bruce Abernethy for the Western Australia and South Australia markets.
15.
At the 2002 Winter Olympics, Basil Zempilas called Steven Bradbury's win in the 1000m speed skating; Australia's first Winter Olympic Gold medal.
16.
Basil Zempilas provided rowing and basketball commentary at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and represented Seven News at the 2005 World Aquatics Championships.
17.
Basil Zempilas is the senior sports presenter on Seven News Perth, and in the past has provided AFL commentary on radio station 1116 SEN in Melbourne.
18.
Basil Zempilas joined Steve Mills to host the 6PR breakfast radio show in January 2014.
19.
Since 2012, Basil Zempilas has been part of the Seven Network's expanded AFL broadcast team.
20.
Basil Zempilas was a commentator for Seven's Australian Open tennis coverage and is the host of the annual Channel Seven Perth Telethon.
21.
In March 2018, Basil Zempilas was appointed co-host of Weekend Sunrise replacing Andrew O'Keefe after previously filling in as host of the show.
22.
In September 2019, Basil Zempilas stepped down as regular host of Weekend Sunrise, citing a desire to spend more time with his family, however he still appears on the show intermittently as a summer and fill-in presenter whenever required.
23.
In December 2020, Basil Zempilas finished up at 6PR, but the following week he was announced as host of Triple M Perth's breakfast program with Jenna Clarke and Xavier Ellis.
24.
In January 2020, Basil Zempilas announced that he was running to be the Lord Mayor of the City of Perth.
25.
Basil Zempilas said if successful in the election, he would step down from his role on 6PR, but continue working with Seven News.
26.
Basil Zempilas has been criticised for using his media presence to promote himself as a candidate, and for his support by The West Australian, who is his employer.
27.
On 17 October 2020, Basil Zempilas won the election, defeating six other candidates.
28.
Basil Zempilas defeated his nearest rival, former ABC journalist Di Bain, by 284 votes.
29.
Basil Zempilas said he intends to remain as lord mayor unless he is elected to parliament, only taking a leave of absence during the election campaign in 2025, citing the precedent set by former Wanneroo mayor Tracey Roberts, who was elected to the federal parliament in 2022.
30.
In January 2007, Basil Zempilas received a fine and a three-month suspension of his driver's licence after pleading guilty to drink driving.
31.
In March 2020, Basil Zempilas conducted a television interview with former West Coast Eagles captain Ben Cousins, whose highly publicised post-football life was characterised by struggles with drug addiction and various run-ins with the law.
32.
Basil Zempilas was criticised in 2020 for using his media presence to promote himself as a candidate during the Perth mayoral election campaign.
33.
In October 2020, less than two weeks after being sworn in as Lord Mayor of Perth, Basil Zempilas made comments on his radio show that some considered transphobic.
34.
Basil Zempilas' comments caused a push to move Western Australia's annual Pride parade, PrideFest, from Perth to the nearby City of Vincent.
35.
In March 2021, Basil Zempilas was publicly criticised on Twitter by ABC journalist Emma Wynne for comments he made towards Triple M co-host Jenna Clarke during their breakfast radio show.
36.
Basil Zempilas defended his comments, which he said were taken out of context.
37.
In September 2021, Basil Zempilas was the master of ceremonies of the 2021 AFL Grand Final at Perth's Optus Stadium, the first AFL grand final played in Perth and the second consecutive grand final to be played outside Victoria.
38.
Basil Zempilas drew public criticism for the manner in which he conducted the post-game ceremony.
39.
Basil Zempilas did not allow Simon Goodwin, the coach of the Melbourne Demons, to make a customary victory speech during the post-game ceremony.
40.
Goodwin walked onto the stage to receive his Jock McHale Medal from John Worsfold, embraced Demons captain Max Gawn, and looked to make his way to the microphone, but before he could speak, Basil Zempilas invited Garry Lyon to the stage to present the premiership cup to Goodwin and Gawn.
41.
In January 2024, Basil Zempilas was captured on a hot mic apparently referring to the Australian Open women's final as a "reserve game", prior to a press conference announcing he was joining the Liberal Party.
42.
Basil Zempilas later said that he was taken out of context, and that he was referring to a "derby" between the reporter Michael Genovese and his partner hosting the news on different channels, which Genovese later confirmed.
43.
On 6 September 2009, Basil Zempilas married his longtime girlfriend Amy Graham on the island of Kastellorizo, Greece.
44.
Basil Zempilas's primary residence is a house in Floreat he bought in 2019 for nearly $2million.
45.
Basil Zempilas owns a mansion in North Coogee which he bought in 2007 for $1.6million and an apartment in Northbridge which he bought in the mid-1990s, his only property within the City of Perth.