The $200m gamble facing KIIS as new hosts step into Kyle and Jackie O’s shoes

Analysis: Dr Chris Brown, Amy Gerard and Jack Charles are taking over KIIS FM’s breakfast slot, but there’s one huge question hanging over them: can they bring in the ratings ARN once paid Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson $200 million for?

The Kyle and Jackie O Show dominated radio ratings for years before ARN axed it earlier this year after an on-air argument between Sandilands and Henderson turned nasty.

Nearly seven months later, KIIS’ ratings have plummeted and ARN’s share price hasn’t fully recovered.

Now the network appears to be pinning its hopes on three new hosts who must now achieve enough success to make ARN canning Sandilands and Henderson’s $200 million deal worth it, despite being nothing like their predecessors.

Sandilands and Henderson were known for their outrageous, often X-rated on-air antics, which ranged from graphic sexual conversations to political debates.

For a long time, it worked.

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The Kyle and Jackie O Show was so successful that ARN signed a $200 million, decade-long deal with its hosts to keep them on KIIS’ airwaves and raking in the ratings until at least 2034.

Instead, the show got the axe eight years early and ARN had to fork out millions in legal fees when Sandilands and Henderson both filed lawsuits.

ARN reached a $12 million settlement with Sandilands in June. Henderson’s $82.25 million suit will head to court in October.

ARN is taking a “refreshed approach” to its lineup in 2027, including its once-coveted breakfast slot, and the new hosts seem hand-picked to present a brand-safe, family-friendly face to advertisers and audiences.

Brown, Gerard and Charles – a beloved TV personality, a KIIS regular, and a former Nova host respectively – could appeal to listeners who had grown tired of The Kyle and Jackie O Show’s divisive approach to radio before it was axed.

Bringing in new audiences could go a long way in boosting the network’s ratings, which would be a big win given they dropped by nearly 50 per cent after The Kyle and Jackie O Show was taken off-air.

They would also be much easier to sell to advertisers, especially those who had previously boycotted The Kyle and Jackie O Show.

More advertisers means more money for the network, which would be another huge victory after ARN share prices plummeted.

But picking a brand-safe new lineup could also work against KIIS, because it’s so different from what came before.

The Kyle and Jackie O Show was unlike anything else in the breakfast slot on Australian radio, and that was part of the reason it stayed on top of the ratings for so long; listeners couldn’t get anything like it on the other major networks.

Though we haven’t heard Brown, Gerard and Charles on the airwaves yet, it’s unlikely they’ll follow the same path of courting controversy.

That could cause long-time listeners who have been waiting for a permanent replacement for The Kyle and Jackie O Show to look elsewhere, and probably won’t entice those who already abandoned KIIS to return.

ARN is taking a big gamble with KIIS’ new lineup after ripping up its $200m contract with Sandilands and Henderson, and only time will tell if it pays off.

Who are KIIS’ new Sydney Breakfast hosts?

Brown, Gerard and Charles will hit the airwaves together for the first time on Monday, November 9, but they’ve all done radio before.

Brown’s media career has spanned TV and radio, including shows like The Living Room, Dancing with the Stars, Bondi Vet, I’m A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here!

Gerard is already a KIIS regular, having previously hosted KIIS Weekends and worked as a regular fill-in host on KIIS Breakfast.

Charles worked at KIIS competitor Nova for 11 years before he quit The Chrissie Swan Show, which he co-hosted, live on-air earlier this month.

“This is a big moment for ARN and the future of KIIS Sydney. We’ve brought together big names and fresh new talent to create the best content for radio, video, social and in real life experiences,” Michael Stephenson, Chief Executive Officer of ARN said when the new lineup was announced.

“We have the biggest radio brand in the country, and we now have a team that is building something very special for listeners and creating big, new, integrated opportunities that brands will love.”

Big shoes to fill

Before The Kyle and Jackie O Show was axed, it was a juggernaut of Australian radio.

Sandilands and Henderson spent close to 30 years co-hosting together, made millions and topped the ratings year after year.

The show recorded the largest audience among Sydney breakfast FM shows in every radio survey since July 2018, won nine Australian Commercial Radio Awards and was a finalist 36 times.

That is, until it all came crashing down.

There were issues before the show was taken off-air, including multiple complaints before and after the show moved to the KIIS network in 2014, and a failed launch into the Melbourne market a decade later.

In the end, it was an on-air argument between Sandilands and Henderson that spelled the show’s demise.

Henderson refused to work with Sandilands again after the spat, he was removed from air for misconduct, and two weeks later the show was axed.