Jase Hawkins and Lauren Phillips Take a Subtle Swipe at Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson
Jase Hawkins and Lauren Phillips, the hosts of the Nova breakfast program, subtly criticized Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson during their show on Wednesday morning. This came after the shocking news that The Kyle & Jackie O Show had collapsed.
The radio duo were taken by surprise in 2023 when their KIIS FM Melbourne show was canceled to make way for Sandilands and Henderson’s expansion into the city from Sydney. While the co-stars did not directly address the news, Hawkins made a remark about ‘fighting’ on the show.
Hawkins, who once lived with Sandilands at the start of his career in the early 2000s, advised his colleagues that today was not the day to be fighting live on-air. His comment followed a playful argument between Phillips and Clint Stanaway, who had taken an early day off to attend a charity event.
“Guys, today is not the day to have a fight,” Hawkins joked before transitioning to an ad break while Phillips and Stanaway laughed.
Fans took to social media to express their satisfaction with the end of The Kyle & Jackie O Show, calling it ‘karma’ for Jase and Lauren. One user wrote on Instagram: “Karma eventually catches up in this lifetime! #amen.” Another added: “Haha karma at its finest – shame @kiis1011.”
Some fans expressed relief, saying, “Karma has come for replacing Jase & Lauren! I stopped listening to KIIS since then.” Others suggested that KIIS FM would now wish they hadn’t gotten rid of Jase and Lauren.
Hawkins and Phillips were blindsided in 2023 when their Melbourne show was axed to make way for Sandilands and Henderson’s big expansion. At the time, Sandilands expressed indifference to his competitors being sacked, stating that it ultimately came down to who was attracting the most listeners.
“No, I don’t care. That’s why we went for Melbourne, we were like, ‘We’ve given this Jase and Lauren on KIIS FM a good run, it can’t get over fourth in the radio ratings, so we’ll take it,’” he said at the time.
However, Hawkins and Phillips had the last laugh as Sandilands and Henderson consistently failed to outperform their Melbourne counterparts, who were hired by Nova after they were axed by KIIS.
As the shocking news broke on Tuesday that Henderson’s $100 million contract was terminated, there was a resounding one-word response—’Finally.’
“Finally! She’s (Jackie) so much better without him,” wrote former Miss Universe Australia Olivia Molly Rogers on Instagram. Another user commented: “Finally! About time! Now to make sure Kyle is never ever allowed back on air!” A third added: “About time. The only thing surprising here is that it took so long. Hopefully this means the end of Kyle on the radio altogether too.”
The Kyle & Jackie O Show collapsed amid the high-profile feud between hosts Sandilands and Henderson. KIIS FM’s parent company ARN announced on Tuesday that Henderson’s $100 million contract had been terminated after she told executives she “cannot continue to work with Mr Kyle Sandilands” following his harsh comments on-air that left her in tears.
Sandilands has been suspended and given 14 days to “remedy” the breach or else faces termination. ARN provided written notice to Sandilands stating that it considers his behavior during the show on February 20 “an act of serious misconduct which is in breach of ARN’s services agreement with Quasar Media.” The KIIS breakfast show will be taken off-air immediately, with “interim arrangements made for the show.” ARN has offered Henderson the possibility of an alternative show on the network.
Sandilands and Henderson signed a 10-year deal with Australian Radio Network (ARN) in 2023, and have eight years left on the contract. They were paid a reported $200 million in that landmark negotiation and earned approximately $47,000 per episode.
Henderson, 51, has been AWOL from the Kyle & Jackie O show since Friday, 20 February, after Sandilands, 54, accused Henderson of being unfocused at work. During the on-air feud, Henderson broke down in tears when the pair were discussing Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. Sandilands got angry at her when she proceeded to read out the disgraced royal’s birth chart. He lambasted his co-star, claiming that her love for astrology was affecting her work. When Henderson attempted to defend herself and accused him of launching an attack on her, he stated he was only expressing the “facts.” An emotional Henderson said she was deeply “offended” by his brutal comments during the clash. She took a leave of absence following the altercation, and was expected to return to the show on March 2. On Monday, it was announced that her return to the airwaves has been pushed back another week. Sandilands started Tuesday’s show by revealing that Henderson would return to the airwaves “at some stage”—however, that was not to be.
