NEED TO KNOW
- Sarah Abo has confirmed that she has stepped away from the Today Show earlier than expected.
- Initially planning to go on maternity leave in August, she shared that she has been in and out of hospital with high blood pressure.
- Her announcement came weeks after her former co-host, Karl Stefanovic, was sacked by the Nine Network.
- The sudden departure has left Nine scrambling behind the scenes to find permanent replacements for Karl and Sarah.
Sarah Abo has announced she will not be returning to the Today Show before her maternity leave, explaining the reason for her “abrupt” departure from the program.
Following Karl Stefanovic’s axing last month, there’s been speculation about whether his co-host, Sarah, would stick around on Nine, with suggestions she was jumping ship to Seven.
After a sudden absence from Today, Sarah, who was due to go on maternity leave next month, has taken to Instagram to set the record straight.
“Copped a bit of a curveball last week with high blood pressure and have been in and out of hospital since… thankfully I’m in the safe hands of magnificent doctors, nurses and midwives taking incredibly good care of bub and me and we are both well,” she wrote.
“They have ordered rest as they monitor me though! Which means I won’t make it back to @thetodayshow to say goodbye to all you wonderful people before so abruptly heading off on maternity leave.. I’m sorry.”
While she hasn’t announced her due date, it was initially believed that she would go on maternity leave in August, after announcing her baby news in March.
That same morning, Sylvia Jeffreys and Charles Croucher relayed the same news to concerned viewers live on Today.
Who will replace Sarah Abo on Today?
Amid the shock announcement, one source exclusively tells New Idea that while Nine is happy that Sarah is taking care of herself, the “timing is catastrophic for the network”.
“Bosses never in their wildest dreams imagined a situation where they’d be losing both main anchors at the exact same time,” our source reveals.
“First Karl getting axed after that trainwreck interview, and now Sarah having to pull the pin early because of her blood pressure.”
“It’s an absolute mess behind the scenes, and the pressure on management right now is like nothing seen before. Everyone is incredibly stressed.”
With a rotation of hosts in the morning slot, the insider says that Nine “cannot afford” to get their permanent replacements wrong.
“If this next chapter isn’t planned correctly, it could be the final nail in the coffin,” the source continues.
“The reality is, the succession plan just isn’t there.”
“Nine always recruited from within, but right now the fit isn’t necessarily right.”
“Tom Steinfort and Charles Croucher have been filling in, but neither of them is hitting the mark as a permanent replacement for Karl, let alone trying to steady the ship now that Sarah is gone too.”
The source claims that the network is still in the middle of screen testing in order to get the chemistry right.
The timing of Sarah’s departure has left the network in a “total scramble” to find the perfect replacement.
“The network is desperate to find someone who can connect with the audience, but they’re genuinely nervous. There’s zero room for error,” our source adds.
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