For co-host Lisa Wilkinson it was the hippo calf.

The Today Show broadcast from Taronga Western Plains Zoo on Thursday morning to celebrate the program’s 35th birthday.

The broadcast attracted about 500 people between 5.30am and 8.30am, said Taronga Western Plains Zoo promotions and public relations manager Shallon McReaddie.

It was the first time the either host had been to the zoo. But Mr Stefanovic said he was blown away by the facility and the staff, as well as the people of Dubbo who showed up to greet them.

“The people have been just terrific here. They came out in the cold and the wet with big smiles on their faces and that to us is what it’s all about,” he said.

Mr Stefanovic said the zoo was the “greatest facility of its kind”.

“It’s the closest to something like what you’d see in South Africa that I’ve ever seen. For me it was a real eye opener,” he said.

“For us to be able to broadcast that to Australia, I mean everyone knows it’s here, but to be actually able to see it, it means people will come here and experience it for themselves.”

From the bottleshop to Coles, Mr Stefanovic said it seemed as though everyone he spoke to in Dubbo was involved in setting up Thursday’s broadcast. The co-host said he planned to Old Dubbo Gaol and take a look around Dubbo before he left.

“We’ll definitely be here again. It’s taken us too long to get here but we’ll be back,” Mr Stefanovic said. 

“We try and get out and promote Australia, and promote Australian tourism, and that leads to Australian jobs, but highlighting regional areas of Australia is something that is very, very dear to our hearts.”

Mr Stefanovic has hosted Today for 12 years, while Ms Wilkinson has a decade as presenter under her belt.

“It’s the best job on tv,” Ms Wilkinson said.

“As a journalist you get to do absolutely everything, and you get the rush of live television and getting to do breaking news and you do everything from interview he prime minister to interviewing every kind of celebrity there is, to interviewing real people with tier real concerns and addressing the issues that matter to Australians. For us it doesn’t get any better than that.”

it was such a treat to be part of the way Australia wakes up every day, the co-host said.

Today has been broadcast since 1982. The show’s longevity was due to all those who worked on it, Mr Stefanovic said.

“It’s the bet show on Australian television as far as we’re concerned. This and Thunderbirds,” he said.

Ms McReaddie said it was a great morning with the Today team, with everything running smoothly, despite the wet start.

“This broadcast gave us an amazing opportunity to showcase all that we have on offer here at the Zoo and in the region, to a national audience,” she said.

“We’d like to thank Today, Destination NSW and Dubbo Regional Council for making the broadcast possible.”

There were celebrities, koalas and some very dedicated fans, but it was baby Lottie who stole the show on Thursday morning.

Curbie Caroll said she turned up to Taronga Western Plains Zoo at 6.30am determined to get the four-month-old on the television. However she wasn’t expecting The Today Show co-host Karl Stefanovic to take Lottie Woodham out of her arms and onto the set.

It was an exciting yet nerve-wracking moment, Ms Caroll said.

Thankfully Ms Carroll said she had just enough time to let her loved ones know to start watching.

The mum said she had wanted to see what the show was like behind the scenes. It turned out to be nothing like what she expected, said Ms Carroll.