Latest news with #BrendanJones
Daily Mail
08-08-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Gold FM's Brendan 'Jonesey' Jones offers to work for FREE after shock axing
Gold FM's Brendan 'Jonesey' Jones is still in shock after his Gold FM's Jonesy and Amanda breakfast show got the axe. And the popular radio host has revealed he would have 'worked for free' for a rival network if negotiations did not go his way. From next year, Jones and co-host Amanda Keller will be presenting their long-running show in the drive time slot. Taking over from the pair will be Gold 104.3 star Christian O'Connell, whose Melbourne breakfast show will be expanded to Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Sydney. Speaking about being forced to leave his breakfast show after 20 years, Jones told he was 'taken aback'. After management announced that Jones and Keller would get a network show, the 57-year-old radio star said he assumed it would be a breakfast program. Jones said he told management at ARN, 'No, we can't do that.' According to the publication, Jones and Keller will sign a new deal with ARN for a whopping $2 million and $2.5 million, respectively. Insiders say that the price is too high for Triple M, which has long courted the pair. 'When I said ''If they (ARN) try and make us take a pay cut, we could go to Triple M or 2 Day for free … just to win.''' he said. Amanda said ''Hang on Mr Negotiator." Luckily, it never got to that point. 'The opportunity to be a national show is a big deal. 'I get where management says you can't have two shows coming out of Sydney and into Melbourne. That would be crazy. I came around to it. It's a bit of a head game this business.' Inside Mail reported last month that Gold FM 104.3 star O'Connell has made no secret of his ambitions to expand his live breakfast audience beyond Melbourne. His show is already syndicated at night across the rest of the network. Meanwhile, Jones and Keller reluctantly confirmed their move from breakfast to drive last Friday. The radio hosts addressed the news on their FM show on Friday morning, saying they would drag their listeners 'kicking and screaming' to the drive slot with them. 'You and I have some big news. We have re-signed here at Gold. I don't want to say "but", but it's "and"—there are going to be some changes,' Amanda, 63, said. 'Brendan and I are going to go to the drive shift... We could have stayed doing breakfast for years. We've never fought the hours.' 'We've spent 20 years with you guys. And this is the thing. We're going to drag you kicking and screaming with us to drive,' she continued. 'We've spent every morning with you guys for 20 years, and now we're going to spend time with you later in the day. We're really excited about that.' Amanda went on to say: 'As long as you guys come with us and listen to us in drive, all is right with the world.' Daily Mail's Inside Mail exclusively broke the news of a change on Wednesday when a source revealed there were big moves being made at ARN — you can read the details here.
News.com.au
07-08-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Inside shock Gold FM breakfast Jonesy and Amanda show axing
Radio personality Brendan Jones of Gold FM's Jonesy and Amanda show was so stunned by ARN management's decision to consign Jones and his on-air partner Amanda Keller to the station's drive timeslot Jones initially considered taking the multimillion-dollar show to rival Triple M 'for free'. Speaking to this week, a resigned Jones admitted the idea of moving to the more cruisy drive timeslot after 20 years of 3.20am starts in the fiercely competitive breakfast slot initially proved a bitter pill to swallow when the directive arrived in March. Jones and Keller were forced into confirming their move away from breakfast next year after KIIS FM presenter Kyle Sandilands, the duo's ARN stablemate and longtime rival, dropped the in-house confidential news on his radio audience on July 31. Jones said the disclosure by Sandilands 'was spoiling – but that's what Kyle does'. Jones said he was 'taken aback' when ARN management confirmed in March plans to network British disc jockey and comedian Christian O'Connell's popular Melbourne show nationally on Gold. The decision would cost Jones and Keller their breakfast timeslot. 'Management said 'We're gonna re-sign you and we're gonna give you a network show'. I went 'This is great' and assumed it would be breakfast and they said 'No, can't do that.' Jones said, recalling the conversation with an unnamed radio executive. Meanwhile, he claimed, the Triple M offer has been on and off the table for a decade. He and Keller met with former Austereo Group CEO (later Southern Cross Austereo Chief Creative Officer) Guy Dobson in 2015/2016 to field an early approach. 'We've long known they were interested, by they I mean both Triple M and 2 Day (both owned by Southern Cross Austereo or SCA). Up until very recently Dave Cameron has been saying 'We'd love Amanda and Jonesy to come back to Triple M'.' Veteran radio executive Dave Cameron was at SCA for 31 years before suddenly departing the radio network, where he'd been chief content officer, four weeks ago. In a LinkedIn post he later said he had 'stepped down' from his post. In June Cameron publicly contradicted SCA CEO John Kelly who months earlier confirmed the network wanted to sign Jones and Keller. 'They should be on our network,' Kelly told media trade publication Mediaweek in March. By June though Cameron was deftly hosing down rumours the duo were set to defect to SCA. The talk, he said, was 'categorically incorrect'. Sources insist the only reason Jones and Keller aren't moving to Triple M breakfast at the end of the year, a year in which they've been out of contract and under 'option' at ARN, is lack of money. 'SCA simply couldn't afford them. They wanted a budget breakfast show and they got one,' said one radio insider in a nod to Triple M's latest Sydney breakfast show line-up of Beau Ryan, Aaron 'Woodsy' Woods and Cat Lynch. 'It has cost Triple M a lot of revenue not signing us all those years ago,' Jones stated matter-of-factly. Although the duo's new contracts with ARN aren't yet inked, the duo is expected to keep their seven-figure salaries when they move to the drive slot. They've also negotiated to take their five-person production team with them. The duo are reportedly on $2.5 million and $2 million each, with Keller taking home the larger sum. It would have made the decision to move Triple M for less, or 'for free', tough. 'Look Amanda never said that …' Jones clarified. 'When I said 'If they (ARN) try and make us take a pay cut we could go to Triple M or 2 Day for free … just to win', Amanda said 'Hang on Mr Negotiator …' Luckily it never got to that point. 'The opportunity to be a national show is a big deal. I get where management says you can't have two shows coming out of Sydney and into Melbourne. That would be crazy. I came around to it. It's a bit of a head game this business.' 'Burnt-out' Mia taking leave Mia Freedman is taking a break from her media podcast and potentially her business with her staff citing 'burnout'. The Mamamia founder used her company's podcast to confirm the news to her Out Loud audience last week. Freedman confirmed she will take 'a few months off', something one of her acolytes described on her podcast as being akin to long service leave. In a hushed voice Freedman told fans: 'I have some news … I am taking a few months off the show … because I have been doing the show for more than 10 years now. It started as a weekly show. It's now a daily show. That hasn't even been my day job … My day job has been being the co-founder of Mamamia … 'I've not taken any time off … and I didn't take any time off – I think I had two weeks off when I had my youngest child – and I've obviously taken holidays … 'I'm still going to be around. There's 150 people working here … and I feel like maybe I can step back for a little bit and obviously creatively I feel … I'm feeling the itch to go quiet and just work on some things of my own.' Freedman said the past 'couple of years' had proven 'very challenging'. 'There's a lot of pressure being the face of this business. And a lot of pressure being the one who … it's my face on the door and when things go wrong … And we employ wonderful people who are all human, as I am, and humans make mistakes as I certainly do.' As this columnist has previously reported, Freedman has come under increased scrutiny during the past two years thanks, among other things, to Foxtel's popular dramedy series Strife, based on Freedman's autobiography. The lead character in the series, Evelyn, played by Asher Keddie, is a fictionalised version of Freedman and a woman who struggles to pay rent at her start-up website business, to co-parent her children, ends her marriage on a whim, is tough on her staff, can't cook and has some disturbing personal habits. Many have struggled to reconcile Freedman – and Eve's – struggling persona with Freedman's own privileged life as the daughter of a wealthy Sydney investments manager whose personal fortune has been estimated at hundreds of millions and who owns a grand $12 million property in Sydney's east which she plans to demolish to make way for a new $4 million home. Then there has been the discontent emanating from within the not-so-happy Mamamia shop concerning what they see as the accelerated promotion of Freedman's 20-something-year-old son Luca Lavigne. Luca is one of Freedman's family employed at the website. Her husband Jason Lavigne is also on the payroll as CEO and co-founder, as is the couple's only daughter Coco, who started work as a podcast producer while daughter-in-law Jessie Stephens is executive editor of the Out Loud podcast. Stephens conceded on the August 1 podcast that her mother-in-law needed to prioritise her 'mental health' at this time. 'The internet's a lot and it's a lot at the moment. I want to be smaller,' Freedman said. The website boss plans to travel and join a choir during her break. Hegarty's sorry romantic history revealed Turns out Adam Hegarty, the 60 Minutes reporter who has been on extended leave from Nine for much of the year following the breakdown of an office relationship, has had more than one Nine girlfriend. Last week this column revealed Hegarty had been sighted back at 60 Minutes HQ in Sydney some six months after he was last seen on the premises. That sighting comes after Hegarty relocated to Melbourne earlier this year for some R&R. The move followed the breakdown of his relationship with Nine reporter Amber Johnston at the start of the year. Now we hear Hegarty was previously involved with Nine Brisbane reporter Sophie Upcroft and, in 2022, with Today reporter Izabella Staskowski. History doesn't relate the circumstances of those breakups but with three failed office romances behind him Hegarty must surely be contemplating looking further afield for love. Meantime we can report Upcroft and Staskowski have moved on with great success. In January Upcroft shared images of her wedding to machinery and equipment finance broker James Allan to social media while Staskowski announced her engagement weeks earlier to Fox News sports presenter Drew Jones at Christmas. Both women will soon welcome babies with Staskowski, who is on maternity leave, expecting her infant this week. Seven boss downsizes Channel 7's group managing director of television Angus Ross and his wife Joanne have offloaded for $13.2 million the Randwick house they bought last year. The couple made headlines after splashing out on the lavish property in May 2024, one month before Ross's promotion from Chief Content Officer of programming was announced to the market. The purchase came as Seven began axing 150 network jobs and making changes to its management structure. On paper Ross's purchase of the $12 million Federation home suggested the executive's ship had come in. The sale of it, just 13 months later, had some speculating Ross's fortunes have changed. Not likely, Seven insiders reassured us last week. Seven's longtime programming boss is virtually running Seven now, or so we hear, and is a favourite of chairman Kerry Stokes. Apparently Ross and his wife, who once served as executive assistant to legendary Seven CEO David Leckie, have simply decided they much prefer their old stomping ground of Woollahra, where they previously owned a home in Tara Street. Spaceballs 2 heads to Sydney The producers of quirky cult classic Spaceballs are in Sydney casting the sequel to the 1987 sci-fi spoof. This column hears casting agents are on the lookout for extras for the film which sees Rick Moranis, Bill Pullman and 99-year-old Mel Brooks reprise their original roles. Amazon MGM and Brooks' Brooksfilms are behind the project along children's filmmaker Josh Greenbaum directing. Brooks, who voiced the Star Wars-esque Yoda character 'Yogurt' in the original film, also directed that movie. Spaceballs 2 has been co-written by actor Josh Gad who is also expected to star.
News.com.au
06-08-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Christian O'Connell blindsided by Amanda Keller's radio reveal
Christian O'Connell was blindsided last Friday when Sydney radio duo Amanda Keller and Brendan Jones unexpectedly revealed on air they were shifting timeslots, a bombshell that lit up his phone mid-show. 'There are going to be some changes,' Keller said on Sydney's Gold FM shortly after 6am. 'Brendan and I are going to go to the drive shift (4-6pm).' The pair, who have been hosting their breakfast show for 20 years, said they felt compelled to share the news that morning due to recent media reports that claimed they were to be replaced by O'Connell's Melbourne-based show in 2026. 'We wouldn't have otherwise mentioned this, but there is a podcast that's gonna come out on Saturday about it (Game Changers) … and it was in the trade papers yesterday,' Jones said. 'We should own the news of it,' Keller added. The sudden on-air announcement caught not only their loyal listeners off-guard, but also Christian O'Connell, who was sitting 850km away in Gold FM's studios in Melbourne. 'I thought my phone was gonna actually burst into flames during Friday's breakfast show,' O'Connell told podcast, From the Newsroom. Behind the scenes, a deal had been done for The Christian O'Connell Show to be networked into Sydney breakfast from 2026, with Jonesy and Amanda to become an afternoon show on the same two stations. But that deal wasn't meant to be made public for a few weeks. 'Look, it did surprise everybody,' O'Connell told 'I'm not gonna BS you. 'But my god, those two (Keller and Jones) really deserve to do their news when they think it feels right. 'Radio is the leakiest industry in the world,' he added. 'So I get that they had this big thing that was going on and it must be hard for them not to be able to talk about it.' O'Connell said he's thrilled that Jonesy and Amanda will be heard on Gold FM in the afternoons next year, and raved about one of the hosts in particular. 'I think Amanda is one of the best broadcasters in Australia,' he said. 'I think she's incredible. 'Whenever she's come on the show to do stuff with me, I get nervous,' he admitted. 'Because … I know I'm funny, I know I'm good, but … you've really got to have your A-game ready because Amanda is like a ninth damn black belt.' O'Connell said he received a text from Keller over the weekend in which she said she was glad that he was the 'new guy'. 'She's invited me to come out for a long lunch in a couple of weeks time so we can talk about it all,' he told From the Newsroom. Christian O'Connell's big announcement After Keller and Jones' big announcement on Friday, O'Connell shared his exciting news with listeners on Monday morning. 'From January next year, we get to break new ground,' he said on Gold FM in Melbourne. 'We'll be the first ever commercial breakfast show to go live to Australia … Adelaide, Perth, Brisbane and then Sydney, from Melbourne.' O'Connell confirmed to that his breakfast show will be broadcast onto Gold FM in Sydney and Melbourne, whereas he'll be heard on DAB+ (Digital Audio Broadcasting) stations in Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. You can tune into DAB+ stations in most modern cars, online, or with digital radios. 'The future of radio listening in this country, as it's been shown with TV as well, is digital,' he said. 'So it's a great way to be able to roll it out.' Dream come true Having his show networked into multiple cities is a dream that O'Connell has had ever since he moved to Australia. 'There hasn't been a day I haven't thought about this for the last seven years,' he said on-air on Monday. That move happened back in 2018. At the time, he was one of the biggest radio stars in the UK, having hosted a hugely successful breakfast show over there for 12 years. But craving a new challenge, he quit his show, packed up his life and moved to Melbourne with his wife and kids to join Gold 104.3. It didn't take long for the city to accept the Brit, and within 18 months his breakfast show had gone to number one on the FM dial. The Christian O'Connell Show has gone through a couple of changes of late. Longtime co-host Jack Post quit in May, with ex- Today Show presenter Alex Cullen joining the program a couple of weeks ago. Also on the show is newsreader Patrina Jones, who O'Connell described as a 'wild and unpredictable powerhouse', and producer Riordan Lee aka Rio, who has 'a very smart joke IQ and is a great storyteller'. His wildest on-air moment While speaking to we asked O'Connell to tell us about the most bizarre thing that's ever happened to him while live on air. The experienced broadcaster didn't hesitate. 'I've done this competition called … Who's Calling Christian?' he said. 'The idea is that we say to listeners, 'contact a celebrity … and get them to call the show and they could win thousands of dollars for the charity of their choice … and you could win thousands as well.' 'I did it in the UK and Rod Stewart called in,' he said. 'Then Liam Gallagher called in. 'Liam said the F-word 13 times and on the radio in the UK, that is not cool, but he offered to pay any fines. 'Literally in the last 10 minutes (of the show) my producer goes, 'you're not gonna believe who's on the line right now … it's the Prime Minister from Number 10!' 'I'm trying to just suddenly ground myself in this moment,' O'Connell recalled. 'I'm thinking, what the hell am I gonna say?' But just seconds before he went live on air with the PM, one of O'Connell's producers buzzed through with some rather unhelpful advice. 'He goes, 'don't f**k this up!' I remember just getting angry, like why would you even say that? 'I remember we did this 10 minute live interview and he (the PM) was at his desk at 10 Downing Street. 'In one show, to go from Rod Stewart to Liam Gallagher and then the Prime Minister, it was like the greatest line-up on a chat show,' he said. For O'Connell, it's that sense of unpredictability, the mix of chaos and connection, that makes radio 'magic'. 'You're on a tightrope every morning and sometimes you fall off it, but there's no other medium that can offer that.'
Daily Mail
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Amanda Keller and Brendan 'Jonesy' Jones break their silence on the future of their Gold 101.7 radio show - as reports emerge who will take their Sydney slot
Amanda Keller and Brendan 'Jonesy' Jones have addressed reports they are being booted from their Sydney breakfast slot to make way for a Melbourne star. Jonesy & Amanda will be moved to the Gold 101.7 drive slot after 20 years of waking up with their listeners, while Christian O'Connell expands to take their morning slot. The radio hosts addressed the news on their FM show on Friday morning, saying they would drag their listeners 'kicking and screaming' to the drive slot with them. 'You and I have some big news. We have re-signed here at Gold. I don't want to say "but", but it's "and"—there are going to be some changes,' Amanda, 63, said. 'Brendan and I are going to go to the drive shift... We could have stayed doing breakfast for years. We've never fought the hours.' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'We've spent 20 years with you guys. And this is the thing. We've going to drag you kicking and screaming with us to drive,' she continued. 'We've spent every morning with you guys for 20 years, and now we're going to spend time with you later in the day. We're really excited about that.' Amanda went on to say: 'As long as you guys comes with us and listen to us in drive, all is right with the world.' Listeners were divided by the news, with some saying it was a 'terrible' move, while others were excited to listen to Jonesy & Amanda on the drive home from work. 'Oohhh breakfast won't be the same. I love listening to you guys in the morning,' one person wrote on Instagram. 'This is terrible. Why do we need change? It's working well now,' another added. 'This sounds more like a demotion,' suggested a third. But someone else commented: 'I will listen to you guys no matter what time of the day or night you're on.' Listeners were divided by the news, with some saying it was a 'terrible' move, while others were excited to listen to Jonesy & Amanda on the drive home from work 'I will be following you pair wherever you go,' another agreed. 'Definitely will miss you in the morning! But so glad we will still get to listen to you in the afternoon!' yet another fan wrote. Daily Mail's Inside Mail exclusively broke the news of a change on Wednesday when a source revealed there were big moves being made at ARN— you can read the details here. Our source said Christian, 52, the popular Brit who hosts breakfast on Melbourne's Gold 104.3, will be networked to Sydney's Gold 101.7, formerly WSFM. A similar thing occurred when The Kyle & Jackie O Show expanded from Sydney into Melbourne breakfast, booting KIIS FM show Jase & Lauren off their airwaves. However, insiders say this time, it will 'actually work'.
News.com.au
31-07-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Jonesy and Amanda reveal their radio future
Longtime radio duo Brendan 'Jonesy' Jones and Amanda Keller have made a major announcement about their radio future. The pair, who host the Gold FM breakfast show in Sydney, have confirmed that from next year they will host a show in the afternoon instead. 'Brendan and I are going to go to the drive shift,' Keller said at the beginning of Friday's show. The hosts said they were hoping to keep the news quiet for a bit longer, but felt compelled to make the announcement on today's show because rumours of the move had been published in the press this week. 'Radio's about being authentic and real and that's what we are,' Jonesy said. Keller added, 'to be authentic and real, we could have stayed doing the breakfast hours for longer, but as long as you guys come with us and listen to us in drive … we're excited! 'To be  given a chance after a 20-year-old show to try something new, I'm looking forward to that,' Keller said. Breakfast replacement It's all but confirmed that The Christian O'Connell Show, which airs on Gold FM in Melbourne, will be networked into Sydney breakfast as well from 2026 onwards. O'Connell was a huge radio star in the UK before he emigrated to Melbourne in 2018 to host the Gold 104.3 breakfast show. It didn't take long for listeners to warm to the Brit, and within 18 months his show was number one. His show, which features Patrina Jones and ex-Channel 9 presenter Alex Cullen, is currently rated the number two FM breakfast show in Melbourne behind Nova's Jase and Lauren. Former radio executive and host of the Game Changers podcast, Craig Bruce, told Media Week that O'Connell should be able to win over Sydney listeners. 'If anyone can come into a market and really embrace it, we've seen what Christian has been able to do in Melbourne, and I'm sure that will happen in Sydney,' he said.
