Former Sunrise host Mel Doyle has set the record straight amid rumours she will return as host of the top-rated breakfast program following Samantha Armytage’s shock resignation.
The 51-year-old, who fronted the Channel Seven show from 2002–2013, appeared on Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa on Tuesday morning.
Mel was asked if she would ever go back to Sunrise by Nova co-host Sarah McGilvray.
Will she, won’t she? Former Sunrise host Mel Doyle set the record straight amid rumours she will replace Samantha Armytage when she leaves on Thursday during an interview with Nova’s Fitzy and Wippa on Tuesday
‘Would you go back? I mean there’s an empty seat,’ she asked.
‘The way I’m looking at it, if I had a dollar for every time I’m asked that this week I’m gonna be so rich!’ Mel replied, making it clear she would not be returning to the show anytime soon.
‘That’s it she’s in, she’s locked it away!’ Wippa said jokingly.
‘The way I’m looking at it, if I had a dollar for every time I’m asked that this week I’m gonna be so rich!’ Mel replied, making it clear she would not be returning to the show anytime soon
Elsewhere, Mel said Sam will certainly enjoy getting her nights back after no longer having to do the tough 3.30am starts.
‘Oh my goodness, it will probably take a little while to get out of the rhythm, as you guys know it’s a pretty tough gig getting up,’ Mel said.
‘[I enjoyed] having my nights back. It was not having to eat dinner at 5pm and go to bed at 7:30pm, I could watch TV at like 8pm!’ she added.
Star: The 51-year-old fronted the show from 2002–2013 alongside David Koch (L). Here: with Gilligan’s Island star, Dawn Wells
The new host of Sunrise will be announced on Thursday after Sam made the shock announcement she was leaving the show on Monday.
The 44-year-old, who joined the program in 2013, said: ‘The time has come for the sun to set on my time at Sunrise. I have always been brave and fearless in my career and this decision is no different.’
She explained she was leaving of her own choosing, and was looking forward to life away from the spotlight after a ‘bittersweet’ year that included the death of her mother, Libby, and her marriage to businessman Richard Lavender.
Over: Sunrise host Sam tearfully announced her resignation live on air on Monday, after hosting Channel Seven’s top-rating breakfast show for eight years
Her $800,000-a-year contract with Seven expires at the end of the year, and she will take an ‘extended’ leave of absence until then, reports The Sydney Morning Herald.
Her announcement follows months of rumours she was preparing to leave Sunrise in order to spend more time with husband Richard, 60, at his country estate in the NSW Southern Highlands.
While Seven has not yet announced Sam’s replacement, TV Blackbox reports newsreader Natalie Barr will be stepping in alongside co-anchor David ‘Kochie’ Koch.
Time to say goodbye: The 44-year-old, who was comforted by her co-host David ‘Kochie’ Koch (right), said: ‘The time has come for the sun to set on my time at Sunrise. I have always been brave and fearless in my career and this decision is no different’
‘As many of you know, the last six months of my personal life have been very bittersweet. Some bits have been very happy, and some bits have been very, very sad, and I want to step out of this public world for a while and take some time and calm things down, enjoy a bit of slow living, and spend some time with my precious family, my husband and [dog] Banjo,’ she said during the show on Monday.
‘I go out of this job at a time of my own choosing and on top of the ratings, which not many people on television can say they do.
‘I’m extremely proud of my almost eight years at the helm of Sunrise, my seven years before that at Weekend Sunrise, and my almost 18 years with the Seven Network.’
Supportive: Kochie said, ‘Ever since Sam joined Sunrise eight years ago, she has been the rock of the program and always led from the front’. A replacement will be announced on Thursday