Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O” Henderson were once close friends.
Photo: Instagram: @jackieo_official
Kyle Sandilands has argued he is not in breach of his AU$100 million contract with ARN Media, after being taken off air for “an act of serious misconduct” on his and Jackie “O” Henderson’s hit radio show.
On Tuesday Sandilands released a statement calling on ARN Media, the owner of KIIS FM, to “honour our agreement” and let him return to the Kyle and Jackie O Show.
“I have a contract with ARN that runs until 2034. I am committed to that contract,” he said.
“Despite what ARN says, I am not in breach of that contract.”
Last week the network said it considered Sandilands’s behaviour during the show on February 20 “an act of serious misconduct”, which was in breach of his contract.
During the February 20 show, Sandilands had an on-air argument with Henderson in which he described her “fixation” on horoscopes as making her “almost unworkable”, an exchange she described as an attack.
The tirade from Sandilands was prompted by a segment where the pair had discussed the arrest at the time of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in the United Kingdom.
Henderson had shown interest in looking up the former prince’s horoscope.
In an ASX announcement last Tuesday, ARN Media said Henderson had “given notice” she could not continue to work with Sandilands.
Henderson later denied she had quit the show.
“Ms Henderson will cease to present the Kyle and Jackie O Show,” ARN Media’s statement said, confirming the Kyle and Jackie O Show would be taken off-air “effective immediately”.
A suspended Sandilands was given 14 days to “remedy this breach” or “cease to present” the show.
“ARN told me that I am not allowed to contact Jackie. They have told me that I am not allowed to speak to my colleagues,” Sandilands said on Tuesday.
“The truth is that ARN terminated Jackie’s contract on the same day it accused me of a breach.”
Sandilands said he contacted Jackie O hours after the on-air argument.
“That same evening, I sent Jackie a message telling her I was sorry for anything I said that didn’t go down well, that I love her and care for her, and that I could have handled it better,” he said.
“I meant every word of that, and I still do.”
– ABC