Penelope Kirkland, known as The Steaming Latte by her fans has a vibrant personality and is passionate about radio, travel, sport, adventure and music, which filters through to her social media platforms.
She has an active following on Facebook and Instagram, having attracted an audience keen to follow her journey and share her experiences and love for life and God…
Penelope grew up on a sugar estate just outside a small seaside town called Mtunzini on the North Coast of KZN and at the age of nine, went to a boarding school in Pietermaritzburg called Epworth where she represented the school and province in many sports, became Head of Boarding and Captained the Squash and Water Polo teams. In 2001 she was selected as a Rotary Exchange Student and lived in Canada for one year. While there, Penelope had the opportunity to take Media and Broadcasting at school and it was through this Canadian adventure that her love of travel and media began. She has since had the opportunity to travel the world extensively but currently resides in Durban, South Africa.
Her Radio Career began with a competition to co-host, with Damon Beard on East Coast Radio (ECR), for the then brand new series called Idols. Penelope went against other hopefuls in KZN and won the competition. It was at ECR that she tasted radio for the first time. A passion and deep desire to pursue a career in broadcasting ignited. Penelope went on to be accepted to study and train to be a radio DJ with the then in-store radio station known as Red Cap Radio, a pioneer of in-store radio stations and later being renamed MRP Radio. It didn’t take Penelope long to learn and perfect her skills…a few months into her training – she was brought onto the Breakfast Show known as “Feel Good Inc.”
Soon Penelope was working a 6 day week, co-hosting the weekday Breakfast Show, hosting her own solo Saturday afternoon show as well as co-hosting the Top 40 Chart Show on a Sunday. Penelope remained part of the broadcasting team for nearly four years and it was
in this time that the name of her brand “The Steaming Latte” was born. A listener named her this…because she had blonde hair and her voice sounded like a steamy cup of coffee.
Penelope was then head-hunted by radio legend Peter G to join the broadcasting team of an online radio station based in Umhlanga called MegaZone Hit Radio where Penelope became host of the weekday Breakfast Show. A few months into the job, Penelope was promoted to the
Station Manager position until her departure mid-2016.
Penelope is also the owner of an Entertainment / Dance Company Showgirl SA (visit Showgirl SA website). She is a sought-after guest speaker and has MC’d many events including a variety of sports disciplines, golf days, charity dinners and auctions. She is a professional voice over artist – recording everything from documentaries, corporate videos, radio adverts and on-hold services. Her voice can be heard on a number of local KZN radio stations namely ECR.
