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Virginia Trioli to depart News Breakfast

Virginia Trioli lands a prominent ABC radio role, meaning change will come to breakfast TV.

Virginia Trioli will depart News Breakfast by the end of the year after being confirmed to replace broadcaster Jon Faine on ABC Radio.

Faine has been presenting his morning show for 23 years in Melbourne.

“I’m absolutely thrilled to be taking on one of the most precious radio jobs in the country,” said Trioli. “Jon and the ABC Melbourne team, for more than two decades, have created an agenda-setting and community-building program that means so much not only to Melburnians, but to anyone who values great conversation and the vital need for the continuing contest of ideas. Radio is in my soul and I’m pinching myself that this once-in-a-career opportunity has come my way. Melbourne — we’re going to make great radio together!”

The change is part of a wider ABC shuffle with Tony Jones to step back as the weekly Q&A host and Insiders‘ veteran Barrie Cassidy also departing. Both will be seen on ABC, if not necessarily as regularly.

As to whom may replace Trioli alongside Michael Rowland, look to recent guest co-host Lisa Millar, perhaps….?

14 Responses

  1. She was bad on local radio in Sydney & not my favourite on tv so roll on to a new presenter . But why does the ABC spend 500,000 in wages on a breakfast show with only 5% of the available audience? The actual new news on the breakfast show only covers about 30 minutes & is repeated & repeated .Even the interviews are repeated.

  2. De ja vu.

    Suspect though unlike Today/Sunrise it’s the content rather than the personality that is key so unless they get it really wrong they’ll continue from strength to strength. As long as they don’t hire Karl Stefanovic they should be OK.

  3. That is such a shame. I really only like News Breakfast because of Virginia. I didn’t think any of the fill in presenters could hold a candle to her. All were very nice but fairly bland.

  4. Agree, I listen to mostly FM community stations from all around the state of Victoria great music , interviews(with no bias questions), Trioli replacing Mr Faine nothing will change,reason ratings are slowly dropping each survey, but I look at ratings as if you get 15% audience then that means 85% are listening to something else.

  5. Wow – congratulations to Virginia. If her replacement brings even half of her warmth, personality, deftness and chemistry with Michael, the show will continue to be our only morning choice.

  6. It feels like they have been softening the audience in preparation for this. Out of the fill-ins, I hope they choose carefully, because there were a couple who turned me off. Lisa Miller was quite good, much lighter than Virginia so they may lose some of the edgy journalistic style.

    If there was a male change, they would definitely have to take Hamish McDonald – he is the best fill-in by far.

  7. Taking this news with a grain of salt. Expecting an announcement in 9 days time to announce Trioli will be staying with News Breakfast, as was the case in 2014.

    1. I don’t count on happening this time around. Last time it involved her moving up to Sydney from Melbourne (Which would be hard ask with someone with a partner and kids), this time around it’s just another floor in the building.

  8. She’ll be a very hard act to follow on ABC News Breakfast. Part of it’s slow but steady ratings and reputational climb over the last few years is undoubtedly due to Virginia’s journalistic credentials as well as her engaging personality and, particularly, the highly effective on-screen chemistry with Michael Rowland, who is also excellent.

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