Duncan Campbell: “I knew within the first 10 minutes K & J wouldn’t work in Melbourne”

Duncan Campbell says he probably knew within the first ten minutes of hearing Kyle & Jackie O’s first networked Breakfast show into Melbourne that it wasn’t going to work.

ARN’s former Chief Content Officer makes the startling revelation on the latest episode of the Game Changers Radio podcast, telling hosts Craig Bruce and Irene Hulme “First of all, it’s a great shame that it ended the way it did end. The show was one of the best in the world, as far as I was concerned.”

“The chemistry was just amazing. The last couple of years, and I think they’ve said this – the show went off the boil a little bit. Kyle was still very passionate about the show – and so was Jackie – but I think the edge was no longer there. I think they had lost a little bit of the passion for it. And the audience picked up on that as well.”

“I always say they had their best ratings on KIIS but they sounded their best on 2DayFM.”

Campbell says he headed up all the key talent contracts … except for the most recent one: that being Kyle & Jackie O’s much-publicised ten year, multi-million dollar deal.

“Ciaran (Davis) and the Chairman (Hamish McLennan) were very much … they took control of that. I didn’t sit down with the lawyers, whereas I would normally sit down with the lawyers and bash out the contract, so to speak.”

“I guess the size of it, as well. It was a big deal. A long term deal. So Ciaran and Hamish really sort of took control of that.”

Of Kyle & Jackie O’s very first ill-fated, X-rated show on Melbourne’s KIIS 101.1 in April 2024, Campbell says “I’d spoken to Kyle on Friday,” says Campbell. “DB (KIIS Head of Network Derek Bargwanna) and I both spoke to him and (said) ‘Let’s just go easy on Monday,’ and he was all for that.”

“But something happened between Friday and Monday.”

“I was at home on Monday morning and I was just shaking my head going ‘Wow, this is going to a whole other level now.’”

“And the rest obviously unfolded as it did.”

Campbell also confirms that he didn’t have a discussion with Kyle Sandilands after that first show.

“That was probably the one big failing,” he admits. “We were late in getting to him and talking to him. I mean, we eventually did talk to him, but that was sort of around September or October.”

“I guess in hindsight, we should have spoken to him earlier.”

Campbell admits he knew right from the get-go that networking the show into Melbourne was going to be a massive challenge.

He says he’s never been a fan of networking.

“I think that radio’s two great strengths are the live and local component and the personalities which form these unique connections with the audience – they consider them their friends.”

“Once you remove that, you start to shave away the reasons why people listen to the radio.”