Kyle’s love letter to Jackie: I’m sorry

“If I could wave a magic wand and turn back time I would reverse it all,” a contrite Kyle Sandilands told me in a phone call after this morning’s show.

Jackie was missing from the Kyle and Jackie O show last week after an on-air altercation between the two and will also be away all this week. It’s not a ratings stunt.

“We’ve had blow ups before, I’ve stormed out, she’s stormed out…

“I’ve known Jackie for over 30 years, she’s family, she’s my closest friend… I’m sorry for what I said… it sounds like I’m writing a love letter” said Kyle.

Can I use that in the headline? I asked Kyle.

“Sure,” he said.

Kyle didn’t realise that what he said to Jackie about not paying attention to the discussion and that others in the team were talking about her, would have cut so deeply. He thought it was part of the usual banter and bickering they share on air with their audience on a regular basis and that it would blow over. He has now come to the realisation that it must have been more than that.

“Some people get so close they can treat the other person badly, but don’t realise the effect it is having on that person. That’s the mistake I made. I didn’t realise what I was saying would hurt Jackie like that.”

After some joking with me along the lines of ‘on the rare occasions I make a mistake’ Kyle got serious and was clear that he accepts responsibility for saying the wrong thing and not being sensitive to Jackie’s feelings.

“I didn’t realise it was so serious, we’ve had blow ups before, but I know she’s got my back and I’ve got hers…”

Kyle explained that he was doing the show from home that day, because he is also filming Idol, so he didn’t immediately get the sense of how his words were affecting Jackie. Then he realised “she’s got the shits,” but it was too late. Kyle sent Jackie a text saying he was sorry he hurt her feelings after that show, as he has done before, but this time he didn’t hear back from her.

“All that is no excuse. It should have been a conversation we had between ourselves off air…

Kyle sent another longer text to her on the Sunday, explaining and apologising again.

“Normally I would reach out to her, but by then I realised something was wrong so I didn’t want to call her in case that would squirt fuel on the fire and make it worse,” Kyle told me.

“I’m not sure if there’s something else going on here. I’m not sure where she’s at… I could have done something that I’m not aware of.

“It’s like a married couple, in the early days they may both do things that seem cute and adorable, but there comes a time when that’s no longer the case.”

ARN management has now become involved, so Kyle has continued to give Jackie some space.

“Management said ‘let us deal with it’… They’ve got good reasons I suppose,” he said. However he is worried that the more people get involved the more chance there is for misunderstandings or selective leaks, as in the case of the mention on 3AW today. “Who leaked internal information… I haven’t heard anything.”

On Tuesday morning’s show, Kyle commented that Jackie is likely to return in the next few days. Referencing his ‘love letter’ Kyle also told listeners:

“We had to have a meeting this morning with all the staff here because after reading all the lies and the opinions of all of these apparent experts, the staff here thought that their jobs were at risk because people are saying on TV shows and other radio stations we’re about to tear the contract up… Let me make one thing clear. Regardless of how this ends up, the show will surge forward regardless of who’s here and who’s not here.

“Jackie’s intention is to come back to the show, so the show’s not over, and regardless of what these experts say about the contract, Jackie’s contract and my contract are separate with the company, so therefore if I died right now, Jackie would continue on with the show.”

Listen to the comments at the end of the show.

Steve Ahern is publisher of this audio industry trade journal.