BRISBANE, Australia – Ada Nicodemou is a Greek Cypriot-born Australian actress, best known for her role as Leah Patterson-Baker in the soap opera Home and Away and as host of the reality series Please Marry My Boy.

She’s one of television’s most recognisable faces, but it has taken Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou 17 years on the show to snag an invite to Paniyiri Greek Festival, The Courier Mail reported

The Greek-Australian actor, best known for her role as Leah on the Aussie television soapie, said to the Mail that she was thrilled to finally get to Queensland for the state’s biggest cultural festival.

“I have heard so much about the festival throughout the years, so I’m really excited to check it all out but I didn’t realise how big it was,” Nicodemou said.

“It smells insane. I am really looking forward to eating the food.”

Nicodemou was born 14 May 1977 in Larnaca, Cyprus.

“In 2017 Brisbane’s famous Paniyiri Greek Festival will mark 41 years – a landmark cultural and celebratory milestone,” according to the official webpage of the Paniyiri.

“Over four decades Paniyiri has grown to become Queensland’s signature celebration of all things Greek and the state’s largest cultural festival as well as the country’s longest running Greek festival – an admirable success story for the celebration that started in 1976 when a group of passionate Greek Australians wanted to share their cultural traditions with Brisbane. Fast forward to 2017 and this kaleidoscopic cultural explosion is now legendary. More than 60,000 are expected to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Hellenic Dancers with a range of celebratory events in the lead up, and over the weekend of May 20 and 21.”