After a seven-year stint at Channel 10, Lisa Wilkinson’s time on the network’s payroll is finally coming to an end.
Yes, you read that right – despite not being on our screens for over two years, Wilkinson has remained on Ten’s books. But at the end of this month, the tumultuous relationship between Wilkinson and Ten will officially be over, marking the end of an era in Australian television.
WHO’S THE REAL WINNER?
For Channel 10, Wilkinson’s departure is a welcome relief. Reportedly earning a whopping $1.7 million per year, her salary will surely provide some much-needed financial freedom for the cash-strapped network. But what does this mean for Wilkinson herself?
A CAREER IN LIMBO
Turning 65 this month, the former breakfast TV darling seems to have few options in commercial television. It’s not like she’s simply burnt bridges – she’s torched them. From her acrimonious split from Nine’s Today show to her abrupt departure from The Project on Ten in 2022, Wilkinson’s had a very public fallout with Australia’s major networks.
PAST CONTROVERSIES
Who can forget Wilkinson’s tell-all book about Nine, which exposed the network’s underbelly? Or her rapid shift to Ten in 2017, only to resign in tears five years later, citing “targeted toxicity” from sections of the media? And then there was her official complaint against the Seven Network about an interview with Bruce Lehrmann, effectively making her persona non grata at all three major networks.
THE LOGIES SPEECH THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING
Of course, the turning point in Wilkinson’s career came with her controversial acceptance speech at the 2022 Logies. Accused of potentially jeopardizing Lehrmann’s right to a fair trial, the speech sparked heated debate. Fast-forward to this year, when Network Ten and Wilkinson won their landmark defamation case against Lehrmann, following Justice Michael Lee’s findings that the former Liberal staffer likely raped Brittany Higgins in Parliament House.
WHAT NEXT?
As Lehrmann’s appeal against the defamation findings prepares to be heard next year, one thing is certain: Lisa Wilkinson’s future in television remains uncertain. Will we see her return to the small screen, or is her time in the spotlight at an end? Only time will tell.