Denise Drysdale moves in with Jessica Rowe, her husband and children ‘rent free’ in Sydney mansion

They’ve been friends and colleagues for a long time, and now Denise Drysdale and Jessica Rowe can call themselves roommates too.

Denise, 75, has moved in with Jessica after the 53-year-old invited her to stay ‘for free’ at the Sydney mansion she shares with her newscaster husband Peter Overton and their two teenage daughters, reports show.

According to women’s Day magazine, Jessica has ‘invited Denise to stay at her place when she’s in Sydney filming Studio 10, after moving to the Gold Coast’.

Denise, who previously expressed her desire to live a ‘nomadic’ lifestylesold her property in Merimbula, New South Wales in 2015 for $870,000 and moved to Queensland so she could be close to her family.

The publication says Denise makes her living on Jessica’s $11 million property in Vaucluse by cooking meals for the family and keeping everyone entertained.

“Anyone who knows Denise knows she hates wasting money, and they really are best buddies, so it made sense,” a source told the publication.

Jessica often documents her escapades with Denise when she comes to town, having previously uploaded photos of the pair cooking, doing housework and laughing together in the living room.

Jessica, who left Studio 10 to become a full-time housewife in 2018, has also shared photos of her dropping Denise at Channel 10 studios for work.

According to Woman’s Day magazine, Jessica has “invited Denise to stay at her place when she’s in Sydney filming Studio 10, after moving to the Gold Coast.” Pictured: Jessica with husband Peter Overton

The publication says Denise makes her living on Jessica’s $11 million property in Vaucluse by cooking meals for the family and keeping everyone entertained.

Denise has spoken before about her dreams of a possession-free life, tellingly A current situation in 2014: “I’m getting older and I looked around at this stuff I have and I thought, ‘This is ridiculous, I’m getting rid of it so I can be free and easy as the wind.'”

At the time of the interview, Denise had put her property in Merimbula on the market despite having no other home to move into.

The Gold Logie winner said it was “exciting” not knowing where she would live next, revealing she wouldn’t keep some sheets, underwear and pajamas until she was done with the sale.

“Anyone who knows Denise knows she hates wasting money, and they really are the best of friends, so it made sense,” a source told the publication.

Unfortunately, her dream of a light-hearted lifestyle came crashing down in recent years after she suffered a series of health issues, including a knee replacement, detached retina, broken shoulder, blood clot in the leg, and a staph infection.

In September 2021, she was also diagnosed with a rare and painful facial condition called trigeminal neuralgia (TN).

Denise went public on the condition that she conduct a segment on Studio Ten.

Denise has previously spoken about her dreams of a life without possessions, telling A Current Affair in 2014: “I’m getting older and I looked around at this stuff I have and I thought, ‘This is ridiculous, I’ll get rid of it so I can be free and easy as the wind’

Showbiz reporter and Denise’s good friend Craig Bennett broke the news about the show.

“Why you haven’t seen her on the show for a while is for this reason: last week [Denise] was taken to hospital after suffering “unspeakable pain,” he said.

Craig recalled how Denise had told him the pain was the equivalent of being “struck by a bolt of lightning” or being touched with “a red-hot poker.”

Unfortunately, her dream of a light-hearted lifestyle came crashing down in recent years after she suffered a series of health issues, including a knee replacement, a detached retina, a blood clot in the leg, and a staph infection.

In August of the following year, Denise announced that she was finally on the mend after months of pain.

“It’s great to laugh again. I haven’t really laughed in over a year – my life had become a nightmare of agonizing pain and fear,” she told Now To Love.

Denise admitted that the debilitating condition had plunged her into a deep depression.

“I was afraid the crippling pain would become my life. That I couldn’t go out, have fun with friends, smile, hug my grandchildren or go to work.’

In September 2021, she was also diagnosed with the rare and painful facial condition trigeminal neuralgia (TN).