Georgie Gardner has spoken out on her ‘tough’ year working alongside Karl Stefanovic prior to his firing from the Today show in 2018.
The former Today show co-host told the It’s All Her podcast that Karl’s private life overshadowed the breakfast program.
‘I had a year hosting with Karl, which was a lot of fun. But it was also a period in his personal life where there was a lot going on’ the 53-year-old said.
‘And there was a lot of noise. We were never sort of able to get traction because there was always so much speculation about his private life.
‘It was really tough for him. And it was tough for us.’
Georgie Gardner has spoken out on her ‘tough’ year working alongside Karl Stefanovic prior to his firing from the Today show in 2018. Both pictured
Gardner went on to explain that she had no hard feelings towards Karl personally and the pair were friendly.
‘We really got on well and really liked each other and had, it was a great chemistry actually,’ she said.
‘Anyway, one thing led to another, he was moved off the show. In fact, they moved everyone off, which was very, very tricky for me.’
After months of speculation, Stefanovic was finally dumped from the Today show in December 2018.
Channel Nine confirmed he was parting ways with the breakfast program after almost 14 years in the role.
‘I had a year hosting with Karl, which was a lot of fun. But it was also a period in his personal life where there was a lot going on’ the 53-year-old said
The start of the program’s downward spiral can be traced back to September 2016, when it emerged Karl had separated from his wife and the mother of his three children, Cassandra Thorburn (left)
Rumours had swirled for months that Karl was set to be axed from the Today show on the back of terrible ratings driven by viewers’ unhappiness at his controversial personal life.
As a result, the Today show nosedived in the ratings, plunging to a 12-year low in recent months.
The start of the program’s downward spiral can be traced back to September 2016, when it emerged Karl had separated from his wife and the mother of his three children, Cassandra Thorburn.
A few months after the split, Karl began dating former-model-turned-shoe-designer Jasmine Yarbrough, who is ten years his junior.
Amid a blaze of negative headlines, Karl’s divorce, his new marriage and his attitude towards colleagues tarnished his public image.
A year later, it was announced that Karl would return as Today show frontman alongside Allison Langdon, and he has remained at the helm since 2020.
Gardner went on to explain that she had no hard feelings towards Karl personally and the pair were friendly. ‘We really got on well and really liked each other and had, it was a great chemistry actually,’ she said
