Channel 10 'caught off guard' by Carrie Bickmore quitting The Project
Channel 10 executives were apparently taken by surprise when network golden girl Carrie Bickmore announced her departure from The Project last week.
Bickmore, 41, was apparently earning a whopping $1.1million per year to host the current affairs program for just three nights a week between 2021 and 2022, making her a higher earner than top-tier stars at Seven and Nine.
Ten bosses were ‘caught off guard’ when Bickmore threw in the towel, as they were under the impression Bickmore was satisfied with her lucrative part-time gig, reports .
Channel 10 executives were apparently taken by surprise when network golden girl Carrie Bickmore (pictured) announced her departure from The Project last week
Bickmore’s salary is said to be so generous that it places her among the highest-paid TV talent in Australia.
She reportedly earns more than David ‘Kochie’ Koch, who is paid about $800,000 a year to host Channel Seven’s Sunrise four days a week, as well as his full-time co-anchor Natalie Barr.
Bickmore also makes more per year than Tracy Grimshaw, the long-serving host of Channel Nine’s A Current Affair, sources tell Media Diary.
The Gold Logie winner’s salary was revealed thanks to a leaked internal memo.
Bickmore, 41, was apparently earning a whopping $1.1million per year to host the current affairs program for just three nights a week between 2021 and 2022
‘Diary is assured that details of that particular draft contract got out when it was accidentally sent to another Ten department during Bickmore’s last round of contract negotiations,’ the report states.
It comes amid speculation Bickmore is being primed to take the helm at 2Day FM’s Sydney breakfast show.
Speculation has been rife regarding where Bickmore will go next, with some insiders saying she’s primed to host A Current Affair or could even be replacing Allison Langdon on Nine’s Today show.
She reportedly earns more than David Koch (pictured), who is paid about $800,000 a year to host Channel Seven’s Sunrise four days a week, as well as his full-time co-anchor Natalie Barr
However, television industry veteran Robert McKnight believes Bickmore will instead take on a bigger role at the Hit Network.
‘I don’t think she’s going to ACA. Channel Nine has been pretty emphatic that it will be someone promoted internally. Although things can change from day to day,’ McKnight said on the .
The former Studio 10 executive producer believes Bickmore, who hosts the Hit Network’s top-rating drive show with Tommy Little, has plenty of reasons to take over the breakfast slot from its current hosts Dave Hughes, Ed Kavalee and Erin Molan.
Bickmore also makes more per year than Tracy Grimshaw (pictured), the long-serving host of Channel Nine’s A Current Affair, sources tell Media Diary
‘We need to consider… [Bickmore is] earning, what, a million dollars for her afternoon [radio] show per year? The question is, is [Bickmore] priming to take over the Sydney breakfast radio show?’ he said.
‘[The current show is] rating like crap. I have already heard whispers she’s being offered $2million a year to do the Sydney radio show with Tommy Little.’
‘Television doesn’t have the kind of money that radio does,’ McKnight later added.
Television industry veteran Robert McKnight believes Bickmore’s future lies at the helm of 2Day FM’s Sydney breakfast show. She already hosts the Hit Network’s top-rating drive show alongside Tommy Little (left) and is said to be earning a million dollars per year
Joining breakfast radio would also give the mother of three free time in the evenings to spend with her family, which is something Bickmore mentioned she was looking forward to in her resignation speech.
However, McKnight did note that Sydney listeners may struggle to connect with Bickmore, given that she is ‘a very Melbourne personality’.
‘But Carrie and Tommy have a really great show! It is really an enjoyable show in the afternoon,’ he added.
However, McKnight did note that Sydney listeners may struggle to connect with Bickmore, given that she is ‘a very Melbourne personality’
Hughesy, Ed and Erin took over 2Day FM’s breakfast slot in January, but the show has failed to rise to the top of the ratings ladder.
The show reached an all-time ratings low in 2021, but has been clawing its way back and hit its highest-ever audience earlier this year.
Yet the program still remains at the bottom of the pack, trailing behind Nova’s Fitzy & Wippa and KIIS FM’s The Kyle and Jackie O Show.
Joining breakfast radio would give the mother of three free time in the evenings to spend with her family, which is something she said she was looking forward to in her resignation speech