- Neil Mitchell has hosted 3AW morning present since 1990
- He has held the highest scores place for nearly all that point
- Drive host Tom Elliot tipped as Mitchell’s alternative
Legendary talkback radio host Neil Mitchell will step away from the microphone on his top-rating present after three a long time with Melbourne station 3AW.
His exit will instigate a significant reshuffle within the broadcast cubicles with drive host Tom Elliot and new addition to the station’s lineup Jacqui Felgate tipped for timeslot promotions.
‘Aside from my household, radio has been my life and my love,’ Mitchell instructed his listeners on Friday. ‘I’ll miss enormously the vitality, pleasure, and occasional whack that the viewers dishes out to me each day.’
Simply three days in the past, Mitchell celebrated one other scores win with a publish on X, previously often called Twitter.
‘Nice scores for AW my program included,’ he wrote. ‘Extraordinarily grateful to the viewers for his or her help and loyalty.’
Mitchell, who will depart his function in December, mentioned the 4am begins have been ‘getting somewhat onerous’ however he would proceed to look on 3AW as an analyst and do a weekly podcast.
The 71-year-old is a member of Melbourne Press Membership’s Corridor of Fame and began his journalistic profession at The Age newspaper in January 1969 as a 17-year-old cadet.
He spent about 15 years on the broadsheet earlier than transferring to The Herald, the place he was appointed editor at 32. ‘I used to be too bloody younger,’ he instructed Every day Mail Australia final 12 months.
Mitchell made the part-time swap to radio in 1987, filling in for Derryn Hinch, then internet hosting a weekend breakfast program earlier than a stint on drive.
He moved to mornings in 1990 and other than what he referred to as ‘a few little glitches right here and there’ has been primary ever since.
Mitchell has additionally labored for all three industrial tv networks however it’s on 3AW he has made his largest impression, forging a popularity for standing up for ‘the little man’ and recurrently steering nationwide debate.
In 2013, Mitchel broke the story Ford would abandon its Australian manufacturing operations, incomes him a Walkley Award.
One other main achievement was inflicting the Victorian authorities to repay $26million in invalid fines after he uncovered defective velocity cameras used within the state.
Mitchell defined his philosophy to talkback radio in a prolonged interview with Every day Mail Australia final 12 months.
‘I’ve at all times been of the view that it is higher to be seen as an individual who’s strolling with the listeners quite than on a pedestal lecturing them and we attempt to keep away from that,’ he mentioned.
‘We signify, we argue for them, we combat for them. They’re who workers you. Always remember your viewers and the viewers are the individuals who we work for.
‘Sure, I am grumpy typically, sure we tackle fights however we even have some enjoyable and a little bit of amusing. It is a combination. It is gentle and shade. Any good journalism is.’
Of his political leanings, Mitchell mentioned: ‘I believe it is my job to be suspicious of any politician – left, proper, centre, no matter – and I strive to try this. I believe my viewers is actually leaning to the conservative, and I do this’.
Mitchell has been engaged in a long-running stand-off with Victoria’s Labor Premier Dan Andrews, who has not appeared on his program for greater than six years.
He instructed Every day Mail Australia final 12 months that Andrews was the worst Victorian premier within the state’s historical past.
On Friday he mentioned of his pending departure: ‘And, do not have fun but Daniel Andrews, I’m right here till December’.
Simply final week, Mithcell’s hour-long interview with Anthony Albanese set the nationwide agenda when the prime minister revealed he hadn’t learn the whole Uluru Assertion regardless of ‘endorsing it in full’.
Mitchell is famously non-public about his private life however has been fortunately married to Selina because the Nineteen Eighties with an grownup son and daughter. In 2019 the household bought their Malvern East house of 40 years.
Mitchell had been contracted to 3AW till June 30 however quite than signing a brand new deal, his settlement was prolonged till the top of the 12 months to provide him room to decide on his subsequent transfer.
The broadcaster and his 3AW bosses had insisted he would solely depart the morning shift at a time of his personal selecting.
Mitchell instructed Every day Mail Australia final 12 months he might by no means think about not working.
‘I reckon each time the contracts come up in concerning the previous 10 or 15 years I’ve mentioned, “That’s it, I am getting out”,’ he mentioned.
‘9 has made it clear they’re pleased with me and need me to maintain going so long as I wish to maintain going.
‘Thirty, 35-odd years getting up at 4 o’clock within the morning does take a toll. So I don’t know. I will not cease working.’
The present host of 3AW’s weekday drive program from 3-6pm, Tom Elliot, is the possible alternative for Mitchell in his 8.30am-12pm timeslot.
Elliot is an Oxford-educated former hedge fund supervisor and has been internet hosting drive since 2013, beforehand stepping up as a fill-in host for Mitchell.
Taking up Elliot’s drive spot might be fashionable former TV newsreader Jacqui Felgate who leapt into radio after leaving Channel Seven in April 2022. She has been a success with listeners and executives within the afternoon timeslot.
The switch-around would be the largest shakeup at 3AW since Mitchell joined the station in 1990.
Former 3AW colleague and The Challenge common Steve Value wrote on Saturday that 3AW’s homeowners, the Sydney-based 9 Leisure, was chasing a youthful demographic for the station.
Value claimed the change in route would sink the station and the choice was ‘laughable’ contemplating half its listeners, based on the latest radio survey, have been ‘at or close to retirement age’.
Value recounted how Mitchell’s set up as morning host started 3AW’s dominance of the Melbourne radio market.
‘Inside 18 months we – I used to be this system director by then – went from the quantity six rated station in Melbourne to #1,’ he wrote in The Herald Solar.
Since then Mitchell has persistently rated on the prime of his timeslot.
Value mentioned Mitchell had the ‘work ethic of an ox’ and Melbourne newspapers relied on him for breaking tales.
‘Folks like Neil are trusted visitors of their viewers’s properties and vehicles… 3AW must be very cautious considering it will possibly merely change the identify on Neil’s workplace door and presume continued success,’ he wrote.
In response to the latest GFK radio survey, 3AW tops the Melbourne airwaves at 14.6 per cent viewers share, with Gold in second at 11.1 per cent and smoothfm third at 9.7 per cent.
Nova and KIIS geared in the direction of a youthful demo tied for fourth spot with 7.3 per cent every and Triple M rounds out the highest 5 with 5.3 per cent viewers share.
