Deborah Knight to co-host Today show with Georgie Gardner

Channel 9 has shaken up the talent fronting Today, with an all-female team to host the struggling show. And the rebuild promises to have Melbourne viewers in mind.

Deborah Knight and Georgie Gardner will co-host Today. Picture: Instagram

Channel 9 is investing in girl power to revive the flagging fortunes of Today, with an all-female hosting team.

Georgie Gardner and Deborah Knight will front the national TV breakfast show from next Monday in a wholesale shake-up of the show’s talent.

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It’s a bold move to put the tumultuous Karl Stefanovic years behind them and a clear nod to the show’s need to reconnect with female viewers.

Knight, 46, and Gardner, 48, will lead the new era of Today alongside Melbourne newsreader Tom Steinfort and sports presenter Tony Jones.

Knight, a mum of three, has been Today’s go-to fill-in host for the past seven years.

Tom Steinfort, Georgie Gardner and Deb Knight will front Today this year. Picture: Channel 9

She nabbed the plum role over hotly tipped male contenders Brenton Ragless and Ben Fordham.

60 Minutes jetsetter Steinfort has traded his passport for a first-class seat alongside the two women.

“It was not entirely on my radar,” Steinfort said of his surprise Today move.

“60 Minutes was a good fit and I had only just started there full-time last year. I got engaged last year and I had a lot of this year already planned and then this opportunity came up.

“It is exciting. I am out of my comfort zone for the first time in a long time.”

Steinfort won’t sever ties completely with 60 Minutes.

“The plan at the moment is to focus on Today but try to do some 60 Minutes stories. It may only be one or two but to still keep my toes in the water,” he said.

Part of Nine’s rebuild of Today is to make the show less Sydney obsessed.

“In the past, they didn’t really give Melbourne stories the weight they deserved,” Steinfort said.

“If something big happened in Melbourne they were all over it, (but) it’s the day-to-day stuff and I think that is something I can help a lot with.

“The show, I think, did get Melbourne wrong for a little while there and that is definitely something that can be easily fixed by getting a few people in there who have it at the forefront of their mind and know the city and know what makes it tick.”

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As part of the Today revolution, Melbourne journalist Tony Jones will replace Tim Gilbert as the show’s sports presenter. Jones will present sport from Today’s Melbourne studios on Mondays and Fridays.

In a further shake-up, Today Extra host David Campbell will join Weekend Today as co-host alongside Allison Langdon, filling the role left vacant by the departure of Peter Stefanovic.

Campbell will reduce his hosting commitments on Today Extra to three days a week, with Richard Wilkins taking the reins alongside Sonia Kruger on the Thursday and Friday editions.

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