Ray Hadley has been mercilessly mocked after it was revealed the radio titan could be eyeing another TV gig.
Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed this week that the veteran broadcaster met with Sky News Australia executives just hours after announcing his departure from Nine’s flagship 2GB live station last Thursday.
And viewers wasted no time in teasing the potential move, recalling Hadley’s final televised stint on Sky.
The broadcaster ran the short-lived current affairs program Hadley! on Sky which lasted only four episodes in 2010.
Sky’s then chief executive Angelos Frangopoulos did not rule out Ray’s return at the time, but admitted that a “dedicated programme” was not in his future.
“We hope to work with him in the future, but it won’t be on a specific show like it was last time. Ray is a great talent and we wish him the best,” he said.
spectators in the media spy Forums were quick to remind Ray of his latest attempt at television, with one sharing a short throwback clip from the show.
“Yeah, IIRC it only lasted four episodes,” the poster commented. ‘Perhaps ahead of its time? It would probably be a hit these days as part of Sky News’ “after dark”.
Ray Hadley has been mercilessly mocked after it was revealed the radio titan could be considering another TV gig after announcing his retirement from Nine’s flagship 2GB station.
Another suggested Hadley would find his way to Sky on Friday or Sunday nights, reducing presenter Paul Murray to four nights a week.
“I’m guessing Hadley’s new show will probably be Friday nights at 9pm or Sunday nights where Paul Murray is currently,” they suggested.
‘That is if Paul Murray wants to move to 4 nights a week like the other presenters, eg Bolt, Kenny, Credlin, Sharri, Rita. But we won’t really know until they announce their 2025 lineup in mid-January.
In response to the claim, another viewer couldn’t resist taking a not-so-subtle dig at Sky.
“They could do something really radical and give him a one-hour slot where he just talks for an hour and interviews other regular hosts and commentators, and for fun they could give him a right-wing angle,” they wrote.
Viewers on the Media Spy forum were quick to remind Ray of his last attempt at TV, with one sharing a short throwback clip from his short-lived 2010 show Hadley.
“Yeah, IIRC it only lasted four episodes,” one poster commented on a short flashback clip from the show. ‘Perhaps ahead of his time? It would probably be a hit these days as part of Sky News’ ‘after dark’
“Just to change the calendar a little.”
And the shade didn’t end there, another replied: ‘Don’t forget to rant on camera about lefties on “channel 2” until it feels like a vein bursts,’ they joked.
“No one had done that before at Sky.”
Sources said Hadley arrived at the news channel’s Sydney headquarters for the undercover chat after most of the station’s staff had already gone home for the day.
He then spent more than an hour in deep conversation with the News Corp-owned network’s chief executive, Paul Whittaker, and head of programmes, Mark Calvert.
Daily Mail Australia exclusively revealed this week that the veteran broadcaster met with Sky News Australia executives just hours after announcing his departure from Nine’s flagship 2GB live station last Thursday.
Hadley will bid farewell to her top-rated morning show for the final time on December 13 despite having around two years left to execute her multimillion-dollar deal with Nine.
Sky News Australia insiders said the network was determined to lure the award-winning broadcaster – and his loyal audience – to the political news channel, with Whittaker personally rolling the red carpet for the potential marquee signing.
Although Hadley’s contract is understood to prevent him from appearing on a rival radio network, sources said he could be free to join Sky News Australia under the terms of the deal as the TV channel does not compete directly with Nine Radio.
Any deal between Hadley and the network would likely see him take a break over the summer to spend time with his family before beginning his on-air duties in the new year.
Sources said Hadley’s strong political views actually meant he had long been more in tune with the sensibilities of Sky News Australia than those of Nine and would be a natural fit for the network.