Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson’s radio expansion into Melbourne has not been delayed, despite reports.
The Kyle and Jackie O Show announced their historic new radio deal back in November, which will see them expand from Sydney to Victoria’s capital.
While the pair are due to return to the airwaves in Sydney on Monday, January 15, their first official broadcast in Melbourne will be in the second quarter of this year.
A source at the station told Daily Mail Australia: ‘It’s not accurate that the expansion into Melbourne’s been delayed because the [Melbourne] show was never set to begin airing this Monday.’
‘At this stage, the launch date’s still to be determined but will likely fall [in the second quarter] of this year,’ they added.
Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson ‘s radio expansion to Melbourne has not been delayed, despite reports
The source said there’s still a lot of planning and arrangements to be set before the big transition.
Meanwhile, ARN released a statement on Friday revealing Byron Cooke will remain on KIIS 101.1 during the summer before Kyle and Jackie O make their way south.
‘Think of KIIS 101.1 as a footy team and Kyle and Jackie O are our star players,’ Byron Cooke said.
‘I’m coming on as the emergency sub in that ridiculous yellow vest. I’ll give it a red-hot crack and then the inevitable will happen – I’m sent back to the VFL.’
While the pair are due to return to the airwaves in Sydney on Monday, January 15, their official first broadcast from Melbourne most likely won’t be until later this year
Byron has been a part of KIIS 101.1 since early 2022, working in a number of on-air positions prior to becoming the station’s workday announcer.
In November, the Sydney-based radio duo signed a record-breaking $200million, 10-year deal live on-air – keeping them on the airwaves until 2034.
A spokesperson for ARN confirmed to Daily Mail Australia the deal for the Sydney duo meant their work pals Jase Hawkins and Lauren Phillips were out of a job and their Melbourne breakfast show finished up in December.
Lauren broke down in tears while announcing the news to her listeners, sobbing that she didn’t want to ‘say goodbye to Melbourne’.
Pictured: Kyle Sandilands (L) and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson – their new deal means that the duo will dominate markets outside their Sydney-based audience and extend their reach into Melbourne for the first time
Jase and Lauren’s show was successful for KIIS FM, bringing in new listeners for the station and sitting third in the Melbourne market behind Fox FM’s Fifi Fev & Nick and GOLD104.3’s Christian O’Connell.
In a statement to celebrate the historic contract renewal, Sandilands said, ‘Fans of the show will be stoked to hear that this 10-year deal is the longest radio deal in Australian history.
‘Love us or loathe us, Jackie and I will be continuing with our politically incorrect nonsense for a long, long time.’
Melbourne KIIS FM stars Jase Hawkins, 42, (left) and Lauren Phillips, 41, (right) were out of a job and their Melbourne breakfast show finished up in December
He added, ‘We want to thank the listeners. Staff. All the clients. Even senior management, I’ll give a nod to. They actually did something brilliant.’
The duo will dominate markets outside their Sydney-based audience and extend their reach into Melbourne for the first time.
It’s been reported one unique clause in the contract gives Sandilands the ability to broadcast the show from ‘anywhere on the earth’.
The shock jock has often worked on the KIIS FM show from Los Angeles and other places, so the new contract will give the flexibility to continue broadcasting from wherever he chooses.
READ MORE: The fate of Ali Clarke’s Adelaide breakfast radio show revealed amid rumours it will be axed because of Kyle and Jackie O show’s expansion into other states
Ali Clarke’s Mix 102.3 breakfast radio program is undergoing a major change this year, following reports The Kyle and Jackie O Show’s rumoured expansion to Adelaide would see it axed. Pictured: Ali Clarke (R) and Max Burford
