Edwina’s tribute to mentor Mel Doyle spurs talk of her ascension to Sunrise throne
The departure of Melissa Doyle from Seven has shifted focus not to the woman who replaced her at the helm of Sunrise, Samantha Armytage, but to the woman tipped to eventually succeed Armytage, Edwina Bartholomew, Annette Sharp writes.
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The departure of Mel Doyle from Seven on Friday — months after TV fans first read of Seven’s plans to bench Doyle here — has shifted focus not to the woman who replaced Doyle at the helm of Sunrise, Samantha Armytage, but to the woman tipped to eventually succeed Armytage, Edwina Bartholomew.
Since Bartholomew’s return to work in June following the birth of her first child, Molly, last December — the vivacious blonde has sat quietly in the mix at Sunrise — at arm’s distance from the dramas that seem to constantly find Sunrise anchor Armytage (who was off again last week on carers’ leave due to the illness of both parents), yet close enough for any nervous Nancy to feel her presence.
Insiders say that despite all the fanfare and recent press given to long-time Sunrise newsreader Natalie Barr — who has had her one day a week co-hosting commitment on Sunrise increased to two days a week to allow Armytage to work a shorter four-day week — it is Bartholomew, or “Eddie” as she’s known, who remains the one to watch and the one Seven executives have marked for promotion.
With 194k Instagram followers (comparing favourably to Armytage’s 243k, Barr’s 93k and Koch’s largely redundant 2k), Bartholomew is more than holding her own in the battle for hearts and minds on social media.
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A cute baby and a pretty face will help you do that and the TV reporter has used both — to great effect — in recent months lifting her following by 40k (on par with Sunrise’s entire Perth TV audience) since announcing her pregnancy — on Sunrise of course — last year.
In the new media landscape where social media audiences matter to TV executives, entertainment reporter Bartholomew’s efforts have been noticed by bosses often dazzled and bamboozled by social media engagement statistics.
A company girl whose career owes much to Doyle, on Friday she used her social media platform to celebrate the departing older woman — who was quick to respond as a savvy media mentor might, with mutual adoring public support for Bartholomew.
“I met Mel on my very first day at Channel 7 way, way back in 2004,” Bartholomew recounted for her Insta audience.
“It was before I actually had a job and was merely an intern at Sunrise. She has always been so supportive and ready with advice and guidance. From making her coffee and producing her segments to eventually sharing a screen for presidential visits, royal weddings and some ridiculous Sunrise adventures, Mel was always calm and collected, generous on air and off. I can’t wait to follow your next adventure, friend. What a wonderful ride xx”
Alongside the post was a photograph of the two women, with others, at a 2016 Women in Media mentoring event.
“Even at the top of her game, she was willing to spend the entire evening chatting and encouraging young women who were just starting out in journalism,” Bartholomew said of Doyle.
Doyle promptly returned the love, the compliment and the plug: “Thank you lovely. What a fabulous time we’ve had! Your warmth & love for our viewers makes you very special … Your heart is as big as your smile. My love always, Mel xxx”
Bartholomew had earlier posted to Doyle’s Insta page (113k followers): “You will be missed, Mel. Thank you for your guidance over the many years I’ve known you. Some wonderful years and many more to come xx”.
Bartholomew’s generous statement was in lock-step with Seven management’s own public statement concerning Doyle’s departure, issued that same day, in which Seven CEO James Warburton wished the 25-year network veteran success going forward.
This, despite the fact the mother-of-two’s prospects in a shrinking media market are expected to be limited.
As the girl most likely now to one day sit in Doyle’s former Sunrise chair, Bartholomew still has a lot to learn.
It is only 11 months since a stray tweet from the reporter threatened to sink her career when she sent an ‘errant tweet’ to Nine News reporter Seb Costello on the platform, spurring an internetwork war of words that resulted in Bartholomew issuing a grovelling public apology and also reportedly handing over a $20,000 cash payment as part of a legal settlement.
Almost a year on, Seven
and Bartholomew have moved
on together with eyes fixed on a bright joint future, the incident clocked up as a lesson on the path to greater success.
Annette.sharp@news.com.au; Twitter: @InSharpRelief