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BREAKING | HAMISH MACDONALD farewells the ABC

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Hamish Macdonald has ended his ABC career before it barely began.

Former Host of Q&A Hamish Macdonald (image – smh)

In a glowing press release the National Broadcaster has sung the praises of Macdonald but the revised Q+A has struggled with him as host, even before moving to the controversial Thursday timeslot from it’s traditional Monday night home.

The move is sudden and comes after Macdonald had been missing in action from the show for around 6 weeks with David Speers and Virginia Trioli, although Macdonald did make an appearance on 27 May.

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While the signing of Macdonald was seen a coup for the ABC, he has been unable to land a successful show. Loved by a segment of users on Twitter, Macdonald rose to fame on 10’s short-lived 6.30 with George Negus show where he was the main fill-in.

There were divisions within 10 when Macdonald was let go and he returned to the network as a regular on The Project before becoming co-host with Lisa Wilkinson on The Sunday Project.

But none of Macdonald’s TV endeavours delivered ratings. The ABC hoped to change that when he took the host’s chair on Q+A, replacing long time host Tony Jones.

But the writing was on the wall from the very beginning. Viewers didn’t connect with the new format or host and numbers started falling.

The ABC’s decision to move the show to Thursday’s only served to highlight the growing issue.

Since Macdonald’s absence, the show has gained viewers with fill-in hosts, although there has been no confirmation on whether Macdonald chose to leave or was pushed.

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Below is the ABC announcement.

Hamish Macdonald is farewelling the ABC after an outstanding 18 months with the national broadcaster in which he anchored flagship discussion program Q+A, regularly presented RN Breakfast, hosted the Reef Live event, filed for Foreign Correspondent and reported from the field during the 2020 bushfires.

Macdonald said;

“I am enormously grateful for the opportunity I’ve been given to host Q+A and to work alongside wonderful, talented and passionate people. I am really proud of what we’ve achieved together during these extraordinary times.

“I’d also like to thank the incredible Q+A audience for all they contribute to this program each week. It is, after all, their show. Their questions and stories from all corners of Australia are inspiring, revealing and clever – and it has been a privilege to receive and read them.

“I’m really excited to be moving on to a new opportunity, and working more with the ABC in the future.”

Macdonald steered Q+A through challenging times during the initial coronavirus lockdown as well as guiding the program through the first timeslot change in its 13-year history to 8.30pm Thursdays.

ABC’s Director, News Gaven Morris said;

“Everyone at the ABC thanks Hamish for the incredible job he has done. At one stage during the lockdown he was presenting a live panel discussion program that wasn’t allowed to have either an audience or panellists in the studio. His experience and versatility came to the fore.

“Hamish has long been a part of the ABC family and we look forward to continuing that relationship when opportunities arise.”

With lockdowns continuing, Q+A will continue to be hosted where it’s possible to have a studio audience, with a rotation of the ABC’s very best live presenters.

*Additional reporting by Abbey Mikkelsen

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Robert McKnight
Robert McKnighthttps://tvblackbox.com.au/robert-mcknight/
"Leading TV commentator" - The Daily Telegraph | "Known for his impeccable sources in the TV industry" - The Daily Mail | "Always first with the correct info" - Beau Ryan | Robert McKnight is a highly regarded Australian Television Producer having worked at SEVEN, NINE and TEN during his 30 years in the industry. Currently Rob can be seen every fortnight on THE MORNING SHOW (7) and heard on NIGHTS WITH JOHN STANLEY (2GB/4BC). He is also a producer on 7 NEWS SPOTLIGHT.
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