Luke Darcy says relationship with Eddie McGuire turned ‘frosty’ over Daniel Andrews interview

Luke Darcy has revealed his relationship with Eddie McGuire turned “frosty” after he questioned Premier Daniel Andrews over Victoria’s record-breaking lockdown.

Luke Darcy says his relationship with Eddie McGuire turned “frosty” after the broadcaster took Premier Daniel Andrews to task while they were on air last year.

Darcy won widespread plaudits after going toe to toe with Andrews and, among other things, questioning lockdown as the only choice for Victoria.

“They’re close, Eddie is close to everyone in leadership,’’ Darcy said.

“(It was) frosty. The interesting part about that is that we were both in our respective houses. Ed was broadcasting from his house and I was in my room.

“Unfortunately I would have much more preferred that to be in person. Then you get the chance to go and get a coffee, walk away from the screen.

“It was frosty, I’ve got no doubt about that. I wasn’t trying to grandstand and think here’s a moment for me. I couldn’t be true to myself without asking those questions but I knew Ed was not going to be comfortable with the questions I was going to ask.”

Eddie McGuire and Luke Darcy. Picture: David Crosling

Darcy reflected candidly on the interview in the latest episode of his Empowering Leaders podcast, which featured his fellow Triple M Friday Huddle radio hosts Nathan Brown and Mark Howard and former colleague Chris Judd.

Brown said Darcy was the only one who had “any sort of media presence” asking the government for a different theory.

“Did you feel like you were a lone wolf and did you feel like there was no one else going along for the ride with you?” Brown asked.

Darcy replied: “I did 11 years of breakfast radio and that was the final year. The first year it was just Eddie McGuire and I and everyone who understands Melbourne, Eddie has a big presence.

“He is an extraordinary debater and he probably had a fairly different view of the world than I did on those topics. Across the course of that year anyone who listened to the show would not have been surprised in any way, shape or form by the questions I asked Daniel Andrews.

“It didn’t come out of nowhere and I’d been wanting to debate those issues.

“We all should — in my mind, if you lock down a population for an extended period of time, you’d want to think there’d be great debate on all that.

“I wasn’t pretending to moonlight as an expert or an epidemiologist or a doctor, but I was frustrated by some of the political journos not asking questions.

Daniel Andrews during at Covid press conference. Picture: David Crosling

“I hope that I presented it in a respectful way, you’re a guest on our show, I’m not trying to be a smart alec here, but what about this?

“It took off because one of the arguments has been if you’re debating lockdown in Melbourne you don’t care about old people ... I just found that’s such an unreasonable rebuttal to a reasonable question.

“I referenced my dad who passed away and I said, Premier, with all due respect, I’ve been through that. I’ve just had my father who was probably struggling with loneliness being in his apartment on his own and his business being closed, more than he was with the actuality of what was going on.”

Darcy said his family received some blowback on social media but he didn’t regret it.

“For the first time the kids had a lot of people online which I hadn’t experienced before because I’d never had social media,’’ he said.

“I don’t regret it, I regret that we shut down debate in this town at the most crucial time in the history of the city. As you guys would know there’s a stubbornness to me that gets me in trouble sometimes, but I can’t help but want to debate stuff without perhaps being as concerned about the consequences.”

Darcy and McGuire finished up on Triple M’s Hot Breakfast last year but are still friends and speak regularly.

“I love the messages I get,’’ Darcy told the Herald Sun in August.

“I still get sent articles, some opinion pieces that he’ll flick my way which I enjoy. We have our debates via phone rather than on air, which is good fun.”