Why Mick Molloy walked away from radio after 11 years

While Mick Molloy has enjoyed riding the wave of unpredictability throughout his radio career, he knew it was time to bow out. This is why.

Mick Molloy, pictured at his new pub in Brunswick, has revealed why he walked away from Triple M after 11 years. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Mick Molloy has opened up about his decision to walk away from Triple M after 11 years on air.

Molloy signed off from his national drive show on Friday, which he helmed for four years, following a seven year run on the Hot Breakfast show with Eddie McGuire and Luke Darcy.

“Eleven years is longer than I’ve stayed anywhere at anytime,” Molloy told the Herald Sun. “There’s just a point when you know. You get up, you go to work, and you think I’m not as fired up about it as I used to be.

“It’s a big decision and not one I took lightly. But I thought it was time to do something else, and take on some new challenges.”

Mick Molloy in the Triple M studio for his last day on air. Picture: SCA

Molloy, who is the father of twins Fred and Lenny, 9, and co-host on Channel 7’s The Front Bar, said parenthood and a plan to expand his television show played a major part in his decision to quit Triple M.

His drive show co-host, Jane Kennedy, bowed out in January due to personal reasons, leaving Molloy to helm the program they devised for themselves, and launched in 2017, solo.

Molloy’s producer Jay Mueller, who also helmed the Hot Breakfast for eight years, also left Triple M earlier this year.

“When Jane left, I did ask, ‘What do we do now?’” Molloy says. “It was different, but I wanted to soldier on.”

This year, Molloy hosted the show alongside long-time Triple M announcer Dave Williams.

“(Williams) is the life blood of Triple M. It’s in his DNA,” Molloy said, then joked: “Even though I wouldn’t allow him on the poster, and the title of the show, it was a partnership.”

Molloy first shot to radio stardom on a nationally syndicated show with Tony Martin.

But he was coaxed back to Triple M in 2011 after doing guests spots on the Hot Breakfast.

He was in Mumbai with his younger brother and collaborator, Richard, also known as Roo, when the call came through.

Mick Molloy and Jane Kennedy were a dominant radio duo. Picture: Tim Carrafa

“I work in a pretty fickle industry, and you kind of grift from job to job,” Molloy says. “I said to Roo, ‘This is as good a time as any to go back to radio. Let’s start building again.’”

Molloy proudly pioneered the “two hour comedian shift” when he joined the Hot Breakfast, clocking on at 7am, and wrapping at 9am.

“Sam Pang owes me a debt of gratitude for those hours,” Molloy said of Nova’s breakfast show co-host. “That’s my real legacy.”

Molloy said his boys, and expansion plans on The Front Bar, will be his focus in 2022 and beyond. He has also bought the heritage-listed Hotel Railway in Brunswick in partnership with hospitality firm the Riverland Group.

“You can’t do everything, and if I add something else to my schedule, I’m not going to see my boys. That clearly is my priority,” Molloy says.

“They’re a game changer for me. They’ve made me a better person It’s great not being the centre of your own universe, and making decisions based purely on, ‘How can I look after these little men?’”

Molloy, 55, is also aware of the passing seasons and a need, as he did with Hot Breakfast, to rebuild.

“It’s getting late in the day for me. I’m mid 50s,” he said. “I need room for a new challenge, and we’re in the mood to build something from the ground up.”

Triple M's Eddie McGuire, Luke Darcy and Mick Molloy.

He is keen to explore new frontiers for The Front Bar.

“We’ve got a really good production company, and there’s a couple of ideas that might morph into sports films or documentaries,” he said. “We’re really keen to explore that, while the show is in a sweet spot, and ask what else can we do in this space?”

Molloy acknowledged Darcy and McGuire for reigniting his passion for radio.

“Eddie showed me how important it is to keep all balls in the air, which he does,” Molloy said. “He’s a funny guy and can duke it out with the best of them. Eddie is the complete package.”

Asked for his favourite moments from the past 11 years on air, Molloy replies: “I like it when radio gets unpredictable. That’s when I pipe up.

“It’s nice to meet Jason Alexander and Sting, but the most interesting people are the ones you work with, in a very small space in the studio, and the audience.

“My favourite moments are trying to know who the listeners are, and what they like, or not. I love the whole process, which is why I’ll always love radio.”