Kyle Sandilands has confirmed ARN has terminated his $100 million radio contract, but he isn't going quietly.
The radio shock jock, 54, released an explosive statement on Wednesday morning after days of anticipation for his future. Minutes later, ARN put out a statement of its own.
"ARN has just announced that they've terminated my contract. I don't accept it. My lawyers told them last week this would be invalid. And guess what? It is," Sandilands said in his statement, released to nine.com.au by his manager Bruno Bouchet.
"Let me tell you what actually happened here. Jackie and I had a blue on air. That's it. The kind of thing we've done a hundred times in 25 years. And ARN took the situation and decided to try and burn the place down. They sacked Jackie. They suspended me. They wouldn't even let me pick up the phone to call her or anyone else on the show.
"Then – and this is the bit that gets me – once they'd made it impossible for the show to go on, they turn around and say, "You didn't fix it. You're fired!"
He claims he said sorry to Jackie the night of the blow-up.
"When I said I was sorry to Jackie, I meant it. I still mean it. But it doesn't mean I will stand by while I am separated from the people who've listened to me every morning for 25 years.
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"Before they suspended me, ARN said, 'Let us handle it,' and I listened. In the two weeks since, I've done everything ARN asked. I said, put me back on air. I'll work with Jackie. I'll work with someone else. Whatever you need.
"Every single time – "no." They weren't interested. They didn't want to fix this. They thought they saw a chance to get out of the contract they signed with me a year ago, and they ran with it."
He continued: "ARN knew exactly what they were getting when they signed my deal. They've worked with me for over a decade. They knew how I work, they knew the show, and they were happy to pay for it – because I delivered. Number one ratings.
"Year after year. Hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for their business. I held up my end. I always have.
"So, you tell me – why would ARN prefer to breach a contract and pay the legal consequences rather than honour the contract and pay me to do what I do best? That's the bit that doesn't make sense.
"I've got a contract until 2034. I've got rights under that contract. And ARN hasn't honoured the contract."
He concluded by saying he's "not done" by a long way.
"So, it's over to my lawyers," he continued.
"To the people who tune in every morning — you lot are the reason I've done this for 25 years. You didn't get a say in this. Neither did I. But my lawyers will. I'm not done. Not by a long way."
Minutes later, ARN released a statement confirming Sandilands had been terminated.
"ARN Media Limited advises that it has issued a notice of termination of contract to Mr Kyle Sandilands and Quasar Media Services Pty Ltd (Quasar Media).
"As a result, the Kyle and Jackie O show will no longer be presented. This decision follows the Company's ASX announcement on 3 March 2026 which outlined that ARN had provided written notice to Mr Sandilands and Quasar Media stating that it considered Mr Sandilands' behaviour during the broadcast of 20 February 2026 to constitute serious misconduct and a breach of ARN's services agreement with Quasar Media, under which Mr Sandilands presents the Kyle and Jackie O show.
"As noted in the 3 March 2026 announcement, Mr Sandilands was given 14 days to remedy the breach."
For 27 years, Sandilands and Jackie 'O' Henderson were the undisputed titans of the airwaves, a partnership that was forged in 1999 while hosting the Top 30 on 2Day FM.
After moving to the breakfast slot in 2005, the duo made a high-stakes leap to KIIS FM in 2014. At the time of their split, they were anchored by a $200 million, 10-year deal that was intended to keep the pair on air until December 2034.
On March 3, ARN Media released a statement saying they'd suspended Sandilands for two weeks after alleged "serious misconduct" following an on-air row with Henderson.
He was warned his contract would be terminated if he did not respond to an allegation of serious misconduct within 14 days, which expired in March 17.
It was not clear exactly what Sandilands needed to do to "remedy" the breach.
The same statement confirmed Henderson's contract had been terminated as she could not "continue to work with Mr Kyle Sandilands."
"Accordingly, ARN has terminated the services agreement with Henderson Media Pty Ltd, under which Ms Henderson presents the Kyle and Jackie O show. Ms Henderson will cease to present the Kyle and Jackie O show," it read.
"ARN has also offered to Ms Henderson the possibility of an alternative show on the ARN network.
"ARN has also provided written notice to Mr Kyle Sandilands and Quasar Media Services Pty Ltd (Quasar Media) stating that it considers that Mr Sandilands' behaviour during the show on 20 February 2026 is an act of serious misconduct which is in breach of ARN's services agreement with Quasar Media, under which Mr Sandilands presents the Kyle and Jackie O show.
"Mr Sandilands has been given 14 days to remedy this breach. If it is not remedied, ARN will terminate the services agreement with Quasar Media, and in that event Mr Sandilands will cease to present the Kyle and Jackie O show."
For that 14-day period, Sandilands was not able to return to airwaves.
The 6am show continued with fill-ins for the days that followed, starting with Kent "Smallzy" Small for the first week before Mike Etheridge, also known as Mike E, took over on Monday and Tuesday this week.
Then, on March 6, Henderson released a statement denying she'd "quit" the show.
"There has been a lot of speculation and misinformation about my departure from the show," she said.
"I want to make one important point very clear: I did not quit or resign.
"I am deeply saddened by the events of the past week and the possibility of the show ending. This has come as a shock to me, as it has to everyone else."
"At this stage, I am unable to say anything further, as I am addressing this through the appropriate legal channels," Henderson added.
It's been claimed Henderson is considering taking legal action exploring a wrongful termination lawsuit in the wake of ARN's statement to the ASX, according to the Australian Financial Review.
On March 10, Sandilands then released a statement of his own, claiming "[I] said things I wish I had said differently."
"I want to speak directly to my listeners, my colleagues and the public about what has been happening," he wrote in the statement, released to nine.com.au.
"ARN told me that I am not allowed to contact Jackie. They have told me that I am not allowed to speak to my colleagues," he said.
"I did what was asked even though it made it impossible for me to do the one thing anyone in my position would want to do – pick up the phone and talk to the person I have been talking with continually for my entire career.
"The truth is that ARN terminated Jackie's contract on the same day it accused me of a breach. It suspended me from work. All of this happened while I was being told to sit quietly and say nothing. That is not a genuine process.
"I am not going to pretend that everything about this situation is simple. Jackie told me she was hurt, and I accept that. But we have had disagreements before and we have always worked through them. That is what partners do.
"We never needed lawyers or ASX announcements to sort things out. I believe we could have sorted this out too, if ARN had given us the chance. I have a contract with ARN that runs until 2034. I am committed to that contract."
Sandilands continued in his statement: "Despite what ARN says, I am not in breach of that contract. I want to be on air. I want to be with my audience. I want to do the job I have done my entire adult life.
"I am asking ARN to do the right thing: honour our agreement and let me get back to doing what I do best – entertaining the people who have supported this show for more than two decades."
He concluded with a powerful final message: "To my listeners: Thank you. I miss you. I'll be back."
Indeed, even if Sandilands had returned to air, the radio landscape would have looked very different to what he was used to.
On March 16, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) hit ARN Media with licensing conditions after being found guilty of several breaches since the start of last year.
In a statement released on Monday, ACMA confirmed the company could face fines, suspension or cancellation of their broadcasting licence.
ACMA chair Nerida O'Loughlin said ARN had consistently failed to meet obligations under the Commercial Radio Code of Practice.
"ARN management have been unwilling or unable to control the content that has gone to air," she said. "These additional licence conditions mean further breaches will attract strong enforcement action that was not otherwise available.
"The ball is now firmly in ARN's court to take control of the content they are responsible for."
ACMA previously found ARN and The Kyle and Jackie O Show to be in several breaches of the code in 2025.
They referenced nine breaches, including two segments where audio clips of male and female staff urinating were broadcast, with hosts guessing which audio belonged to which staff member.
There was also a segment in which inappropriate discussions about pornography and masturbation occurred.
The restrictions will remain in force for five years, and will apply to the Kyle and Jackie O Show, or any new show involving either presenter while at ARN.
During their on-air row on February 20, Henderson had read from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's astrology birth chart when things kicked off.
"Your fixation on this has made you almost unworkable," Sandilands told her.
"You are off with the fairies with this s--t, it's mental."
He claimed her fixation on astrology charts made her sound like a "drug addict", knowing Henderson has faced addiction struggles before.
"You are not doing the rest of the job, and everyone in this building has mentioned it to me," he said.
"You don't know what the f--k is going on all the time, because you're looking at that phone, playing in the stars, and it's ridiculous."
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