Channel Seven star Rob Brough has revealed the heartbreaking reason he disappeared from screens last August amid rumours he had been axed.
Speculation had been rife that the veteran news anchor, 70, had been axed amid the staff cuts that swept through the network in 2024.
But the popular Queensland journo has now revealed he has been on extended leave to support his daughter Jess Willmott as she battles aggressive brain cancer.
‘About four years ago our daughter Jess was diagnosed with breast cancer. That was pretty confronting,’ he told ABC Sunshine Coast radio on Tuesday.
‘We got to a tough stage where things weren’t working and not a lot of options were available,’ he explained.
‘It was just an easy choice for me to leave work and spend as much time as I could around her and her family.’
Channel Seven star Rob Brough has revealed the heartbreaking reason he disappeared from screens last August
Brough said he has devoted his time to helping raise Jess’ three children, Indigo, Milla and Madden.
‘That’s a beautiful thing because bringing up your children and then being a part of your grandchildren’s upbringing is as good as it gets,’ he said.
The TV star also suffered heartbreak almost three decades ago when his three-year-old son Sam suddenly died.
During his absence, Brough’s chair for Seven’s regional bulletins on the Sunshine Coast, including Cairns, has been filled by Nathan Spurling and Joanne Desmond.
The pair also co-anchor the news for Townsville, Rockhampton and Toowoomba.
Brough began his career in radio in the 1970s before moving into television roles with ABC and Channel Nine.
His profile surged when he landed the coveted role of game show host on Seven’s ratings hit Family Feud in 1990.
Brough was replaced in 1995 and later returned to presenting regional bulletins for Seven in Queensland.
The popular Queensland journo revealed he’s been on extended leave to support his daughter Jess Willmott as she battles aggressive brain cancer
It comes after fans began commenting online about Brough’s absence.
A thread on Reddit, posted soon after Brough took leave, suggested the newsreader may have had a falling out with staff.
‘There was a guy who works at the 7 Sunshine Coast studio posting in one of the Aussie subs not that long ago that Broughy isn’t liked anymore by most of the staff, that combined with Channel 7 recently axing a lot of their QLD newsreaders makes me wonder if he’s going to be shown the forced retirement door soon,’ a user posted.
A third posted on the Reddit thread, ‘So what is going on with Rob ? He is our favourite newsreader, the only reason we watch 7 News, and if he isn’t coming back, well that’s that…’
