A long-running radio show whose hosts signed a staggering $200million (£105million) decade-long deal has been taken off air after an incredibly tense on-air exchange which saw one of them left in tears.
Over the past 24 years, The Kyle and Jackie O Show has been a mainstay on the airwaves in Australia.
Hosted by Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson, it has become the most successful radio show ever in the country, boasting an audience of 1.5 million.
However, it has also been at the centre of a string of controversies and was previously taken off air after breaching guidelines.
Despite this, in 2024 it was announced the duo had signed a record-breaking deal that would see them each earn $100million (£52million) to stay on air with ARN Media and its KISS FM network until the end of 2034. For every episode, the pair were paid $47,000 (£24,000) each.
But this week that contract fell apart after it was announced Jackie O had quit, with a statement from her employer revealing she ‘cannot continue to work with’ her co-host.
In an ASX announcement today, ARN Media said Jackie O would ‘cease to present’ her show and the programme would be taken-off air, ‘effective immediately’.
The news comes after the radio host took over a week off from her top-rated show after an on-air altercation on February 20.
During the episode, the pair discussed the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in the United Kingdom, with Jackie O then revealing she wanted to undertake a ‘fixed star astrology chart’ on the disgraced royal.
Slamming the move, Kyle berated his co-host, declaring: ‘Your fixation on this has made you almost unworkable…you were off with the fairies.’
His comments then kicked off a seven-minute argument in which Kyle told Jackie she was ‘not doing the rest of the job, and everyone in the building has mentioned it to me’.
‘I would never say anything like that to you,’ she replied as she could be heard tearing up.
‘I don’t have any personal issue with you, but who’s to tell you these things? No-one…it’s not about love.’
After Jackie O described their interaction as an attack, Kyle hit back and said: ‘It’s not an attack, it’s an actual fact, babe.’
Attempting to defend herself, Jackie said it was ‘hurtful’ and said she ‘did her job well’.
Continuing his attack, Kyle told her: ‘I don’t know, I wouldn’t say that lately, no, I wouldn’t agree.’
The Kyle and Jackie O Show’s history of controversy
Lie detector segment
The most explosive incident unfolded in 2009 when the show was taken off air after it was found to have breached guidelines after asking a 14-year-old girl about her sexual experiences while she was attached to a lie detector – a stunt that had been requested by her mother to determine whether she’d had sex or taken drugs.
After the teenager revealed she’d been raped and started crying, Kyle asked: ‘Right…is that the only experience you’ve had?’.
Although Jackie O quickly cut off the segment and offered the family free counselling, the show came under intense fire and was briefly taken off air.
Kyle was also axed from his position as a judge on Australian Idol over the controversy.
Concentration Camp comments
That same year Kyle made comments on air about Australian comedian and actress Magda Szubanski’s weight and her work with a weight loss company, joking that it was not finished.
‘Magda could have another run out of it…she could get another season out of them, easy…she’s not skinny,’ he said.
After being challenged by his co-host that Magda might not be able to lose any more weight, Kyle went on: ‘You put her in a concentration camp and you watch the weight fall, like she could be skinny’.
Magda – who is best known for appearing in the comedy series Kath & Kim – later called the comments ‘abhorrent’. Following a four-week suspension without pay, Kyle eventually returned to air again.
Contempt of court
In July last year the pair faced potential contempt of court charges after making on-air remarks about ‘mushroom murderer’ Erin Patterson during her murder trial.
While Jackie O commented the accused’s case was ‘not strong’, her co-host declared authorities should ‘lock that b**** up’.
The radio hosts’ comments drew the ire of the trial’s judge, Christopher Beale, who referred the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions to consider contempt of court charges.
However, they were eventually dropped.
Other notable controversies
In 2019, Kyle called Christians ‘dumb as dog sh**’ for believing the immaculate conception story of Jesus and mother Mary, for which he was forced to later apologise on air for.
Then, in 2024, the Australian Communications and Media Authority found the Kyle and Jackie O Show breached the Commercial Radio Code of Practice multiple times including during a guessing game where audio clips of male and female staff members urinating were aired, with the hosts guessing which audio belonged to which staff member.
Growing sick of the argument, Jackie then told him: ‘You know what? You get someone else then instead of me…if you don’t think I’m doing my job well.”
After cutting ties with her on-air partner of more than 25 years, Jackie O has now been offered the possibility of an alternative show on the ARN network.
However, her now former co-host has been delivered a written notice from their bosses, who have said his actions were ‘an act of serious misconduct’ and in breach of his contract.
Although he’d been presenting the show in Jackie’s absence – previously telling listeners they were facing a ‘tender situation’ – he’s now been taken off-air and given two weeks to ‘remedy this breach’ or ‘cease to present the show’.
Last year Jackie O was questioned about whether she’d ever consider walking away from her titular show despite the lucrative pay day, to which she shared: ‘Yes, I would. I think the older you get…it’s important that you are staying true to yourself and that you enjoy what you do and it feels authentic.’
She went on: ‘I don’t ever wanna feel bound by this contract where I’m driven by money. I’ve never been driven by money in my career, and I always want to stay true to that. So, if it doesn’t feel right at any stage, I would be prepared to walk away from that.’
Kyle and Jackie O were cohosts on the Hot30 Countdown for three years from 2000, before staring their own drive time show in 2004. The following year they moved to the breakfast slot where they quickly dominated the radio charts.
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