Today is another day for axed newsreader Natarsha Belling
The embattled Today Show is rumoured to be eyeing newly free Natarsha Belling as a replacement for its own Tracey Vo, who quit her newsreader post back in April.
Confidential
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Could Channel 10’s loss be Nine’s gain?
That’s certainly the mail circulating around Sydney media circles in the wake of Channel 10’s move last week to gut a huge chunk of their on-air component, including big names like Kerri-Anne Kennerley and weather legend Tim Bailey.
Possibly one of the most shocking casualties was senior news anchor Natarsha Belling who had been a long and loyal servant at Ten, where she has worked almost exclusively for nearly 30 years.
While the writing had possibly been on the wall for some of those given the chop (rumours of KAK’s impending redundo have bubbled for some time), spies inside the Pyrmont studios say the Belling bombshell caught everyone off guard — including Belling herself.
However, there may be a silver lining for the well-liked TV journo, with Channel 9 — specifically the embattled Today Show — rumoured to be eyeing her as a replacement for Tracey Vo, who quit her newsreader post back in April.
Today could use all the help it can get. It now trails both Seven’s Sunrise and ABC Breakfast in the ratings.
Belling, meanwhile, broke her silence on her sacking late on Friday, taking to Instagram to thank ‘‘wonderful viewers, colleagues, family and friends’’ for their messages of support.
“They mean the world to me,” she wrote, adding: “2020 has been such a challenging year for so many and it has in many ways reminded us about what truly matters in life.”
Sources within Ten’s Pyrmont headquarters say Belling’s departure was one of the hardest things to stomach about the changes, which are expected to see the low-rating Studio 10 reformatted with Sarah Harris at the helm.
“Natarsha is genuinely the nicest person and universally liked … and is one of the few people who actually champions women,” said a colleague.
“We’re all a bit sad to be honest.”