Jackie ‘O’ Henderson will step away from KIIS FM Breakfast for several days to “gather her thoughts” following an on-air clash with co-host Kyle Sandilands that played out live on Friday.
The move was confirmed by Sandilands on Monday morning’s show, after the pair’s heated exchange over Henderson’s work ethic left listeners stunned.
On-air clash escalates
The stoush began with Sandilands criticising what he described as Henderson’s recent “fixation” on astrology before broadening his attack to her overall performance.
“You’re not doing the rest of the job, and everyone in this building has mentioned it to me,” he said, claiming staff had repeatedly asked what was “going on with Jackie” over the past month. “It’s not great, it’s just a fact. Wake up (beep) .. I’m not lying to her to make her feel bad.”
Henderson pushed back, telling him: “Well, let management talk to me then. No, please, I welcome it.”
As the exchange intensified, Henderson became emotional. “I would never say things like that about you,” she said. “There are so many things that you don’t do, and I would never bring them up, and I would never say what people say.”
Sandilands replied, “Feel free, it’s an open forum,” but Henderson declined to continue what she described as a “tit for tat,” labelling the situation “mean and nasty.”
Industry reaction
Speaking to Mediaweek, Game Changers podcast co-host Craig Bruce reflected on what the moment could signal for the long-running duo.
“We all need to remember that these guys have been together for over 25 years and that nothing lasts forever. In my experience with the show, their superpower was their connection with each other and their shared values and goals for the show. It sounds like that has may shifted a little in recent times.”