SANDRA Sully has revealed she was bullied by a colleague who "tormented" her for almost 10 years.

The veteran anchor - who has been with Channel Ten for 20 years - told CLEO magazine that she was left "very distressed" by a woman who tried desperately to sabotage her career.

"She wasn't a fellow presenter but she was a colleague who tormented me or tried to torment me for nearly 10 years," Sully told CLEO.

"Her behaviour was underhanded and deceitful."

Sully says the incidents built up over time and she soon became aware this woman clearly didn't like her and would stop at nothing to try to derail her career.

"It then escalated to a level where I was very distressed.

"She tried to control me by painting me as difficult, demanding and high maintenance.

"She used those old tricks of flirting with bosses and using her feminine wiles to present me as demanding 'talent' to her superiors and they all fell for it. She was a toxic person. It was about control."

media_camera Sully shared her story in the hope of inspiring other young women to stand up to bullying. Picture: Channel Ten

Sully says she felt completely disempowered to deal with it due to the presumption that television presenters are self-centered and egotistical.

"I'd just been through an assault and a divorce at the time, so I was in a particularly vulnerable state. I dealt with it on a very personal level.

"I thought nobody would believe me."

After a succession of bosses and years of distress, the woman was finally ordered to leave Sully alone.

The 48-year-old says that not calling out the bullying was one of the biggest mistakes she has made in her career.

"This isn't about saying, 'woe is me, I've had a terrible time of it.'

"Whether the issue is bullying or something else, it takes courage to stand up and say what's wrong is wrong."

media_camera Sandra Sully has marked 20 years with Channel Ten. Picture: News Corp Australia

CLEO editor Sharri Markson said Sully had been reluctant to talk about the issue in the past but decided to open up in the hope of inspiring young women to stand up to workplace bullying.

"Sandra chose to share her story with CLEO because she wanted to speak directly to young women," Markson told news.com.au.

Added Sully: "It's not just about yourself but also the people that follow you. You create a better work environment if you stand up."

Fellow news veterans such as Seven's Chris Bath and her sports presenter husband Jim Wilson took to Twitter to praise Sully for her bravery in speaking out.

BRAVO @Sandra_Sully for your candour about that hideous workplace bully you had to deal with for 10 years @channelten #zerotolerance — Chris Bath (@ChrisBath7) August 18, 2013

Good on @Sandra_Sully for having the courage to talk about the bully she encountered in the workplace, interesting read in @cleomag — Jim Wilson (@Jim_Wilson7) August 18, 2013

Originally published as Sully: I was bullied for 10 years at Ten