Kyle Sandilands sacked by ARN, says it is ‘over to his lawyers’ as Jackie O spotted following radio show collapse

Jackie ‘O’ Henderson has broken cover after ARN Media officially killed off the Kyle and Jackie O Show on Wednesday morning.

With freshly curled hair and a full face of makeup, Henderson was seen leaving her home in Clovelly about 10am.

She pulled out of the driveway in a black SUV with tinted windows rolled up, not stopping to speak to media.

Hours earlier, her co-host, Kyle Sandilands had his contract terminated and declared a legal war on the broadcast network.

Sandilands confirmed his $100m contract had been terminated in a statement on Wednesday morning.

“My lawyers told them last week this would be invalid. And guess what? It is,” he said.

“Let me tell you what actually happened here. Jackie and I had a blue on air. That’s it. The kind of thing we’ve done a hundred times in 25 years.

“They sacked Jackie. They suspended me. They wouldn’t even let me pick up the phone to call her or anyone else on the show.

“Then – and this is the bit that gets me – once they’d made it impossible for the show to go on, they turn around and say, ‘You didn’t fix it. You’re fired!’.”

Sandilands said he apologised to his long-time co-host the night of their “blow-up” and meant it.

“But that doesn’t mean I will stand by while I am separated from the people who’ve listened to me every morning for 25 years,” he said.

“Before they suspended me, ARN said, ‘Let us handle it,’ and I listened.

“In the two weeks since, I’ve done everything ARN asked.

“I said, put me back on air. I’ll work with Jackie. I’ll work with someone else. Whatever you need.

“Every single time – ‘no’. They weren’t interested. They didn’t want to fix this. They thought they saw a chance to get out of the contract they signed with me a year ago, and they ran with it.”

ARN published a market announcement to the ASX soon after Sandilands’ statement was made public, saying his contract would be terminated after “serious misconduct” during the February 20 broadcast of the Kyle and Jackie O Show.

“This decision follows the company’s ASX announcement on March 3, which outlined that ARN had provided written notice to Mr Sandilands and Quasar Media stating that it considered Mr Sandilands’ behaviour during the broadcast of February 20 to constitute serious misconduct and a breach of ARN’s services agreement with Quasar Media, under which Mr Sandilands presents the Kyle and Jackie O Show,” the statement reads.

“The Kyle and Jackie O Show will no longer be presented.”

Sandilands went on to claim ARN “knew exactly what they were getting” when they signed his $10m-a-year deal.

“They’ve worked with me for over a decade. They knew how I work, they knew the show, and they were happy to pay for it – because I delivered,” he said.

“Number One ratings. Year after year. Hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for their business.

“I held up my end. I always have.

“So, you tell me – why would ARN prefer to breach a contract and pay the legal consequences rather than honour the contract and pay me to do what I do best? That’s the bit that doesn’t make sense.

“I’ve got a contract until 2034. I’ve got rights under that contract. And ARN hasn’t honoured the contract.

“So, it’s over to my lawyers.

“To the people who tune in every morning – you lot are the reason I’ve done this for 25 years.

“You didn’t get a say in this. Neither did I. But my lawyers will.

“I’m not done. Not by a long way.”

‘I’ve dealt with tougher things’: Sandilands defiant

Speaking to entertainment reporter Robert McKnight on a livestream Tuesday night before ARN announced the contract termination, Sandilands said he was “more than happy to show up there tomorrow to do the radio shows”.

Sandilands had just finished recording Australian Idol as he spoke to McKnight, and said he had expected an answer on the contract by midnight Tuesday into Wednesday.

“I’m willing to execute the contract as signed, as promised; same chairman signed it, same chairman wants to take it away, so we’ll see what happens,” Sandilands said.

Close friend and Sydney night-life figure John Ibrahim had been one of many to check in on the radio star’s mental health.

“My best mate, John Ibrahim, called me today and said,’ How are you?’ I said, mate, I’m fine. And he said ‘how’s your mental health?’ And I started laughing. My mental health is fine,” Sandilands said.

“Even my wife said to me, ‘You’re remarkable the way you’re handling this’. And I said, look, laying down in the corner and crying is not the way … I’ve had way worse things than this to handle. I was a homeless teenager.

“I’ve dealt with tougher things. I just decompartmentalised it, and as I said, I’m willing to do the show, if they’re willing to put me on, and time will tell. Might be a different conversation in the morning,” Sandilands said on Tuesday night.

The on-air spat that killed radio’s biggest show

Sandilands was suspended from KIIS FM in late February after an on-air argument with Jackie O (Henderson), which resulted in her leaving the show mid-recording and subsequently failing to appear on-air for more than a week.

While riffing mid-show, Sandilands made comments criticising Henderson’s work ethic, accusing her of being “unfocused and “off with the fairies”.

Henderson, visibly upset by the comments, told Sandilands she would “never say things like that” about him and that his comments had been “a total attack”.

Sandilands doubled down on the comments, telling Henderson “it’s not an attack, it’s an actual fact babe, I’m sorry”.

Sandilands was given a 14-day deadline by KIIS parent company ARN to “remedy” the feud.

Henderson’s $100m contract was terminated by ARN after she told her bosses she could no longer work with Sandilands.

Reports have since emerged that she is considering legal action against her former employer for wrongful termination.

More to come