He’s tying the knot to his shoe designer girlfriend Jasmine Yarbrough in just 20 days and now, Karl Stefanovic has been told it’s time to start rolling out a wedding body blitz.
Insiders tell Woman’s Day that the bride has informed her groom he needs to clean up his act before they walk down the aisle on December 8.
On November 13, Karl Stefanovic was spotted looking worse for wear as he ran errands around Sydney. The 44-year-old Today star’s dishevelled appearance was a far cry from the clean-cut morning show host Australians first fell in love with back in 2005.
“He seemed to be acting very erratic,” says an onlooker. “He kept darting in and out of the building and was carrying a wad of paperwork close to his chest.”
According to the source, Jasmine, 34, has told Karl he needs to shape up as she “wants every detail on her wedding day to be picture perfect – and that includes Karl”.
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In June, Karl said that he was shedding for the wedding, after “unflattering” photos emerged of him playing tennis.
However, given the father-of-three’s also admitted that “in the winter months I put myself out to pasture”, it seems it’s been a case of one step forward, two steps back.
“I was told a little while ago by a doctor I needed to make some changes to my physical health,” Karl admitted on Instagram last week alongside a snap of him lifting weights.
On his health kick, he added: “It’s been tough. I was fatter than I thought. Ha. But I’m getting there. Slowly. I want to thank @osher_gunsberg for the inspiration. And @emiliebrabonhames and @chiefbrabon for making me bleed. Its been really positive. For anyone out there I truly believe it’s never too late.”
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The wedding, which is reportedly costing him an arm and a leg, has no doubt added to Karl’s stress levels.
Add constant speculation that he’s set to be replaced as Today host and it’s no wonder he appears to be spiralling.
Despite Nine publicly backing Karl, sources believe they’re waiting to see what Today‘s guest hosts over summer do for the show’s dwindling ratings.
“Nine certainly can’t endure another year like this one,” media commentator David Knox tells Woman’s Day.
“For viewers to return in 2019 they will need to feel there is significant change, which could even extend beyond anchors.”
Meanwhile, Karl’s self-funded attempt to rehabilitate the public’s perception of him following this year’s Ubergate scandal and his bitter divorce from ex-wife Cassandra Thorburn, has crashed and burned.
Indeed, earlier this month, it was revealed that Karl had turned to branding expert Mitch Catlin to help repair his battered public image and “save his $3 million-a-year job”.
However, last week The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the news has gone down “like a lead balloon” within Nine.