Andrew O’Keefe was once seen as Seven’s secret weapon, a revered talent whose multifaceted experience saw him able to slip onto any show.
Be it morning news program Weekend Sunrise or game shows, including the much-loved Deal Or No Deal and The Chase Australia – with effortless charm.
However, after a string of controversies, including a recent severe allegation against him, Andrew’s star has plummeted from headlining host to headline grabber.
Last week, the 49-year-old son of the late Justice of NSW Supreme Court Barry O’Keefe was accused of allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, Sydney doctor Orly Lavee, 41.
A Seven spokesperson has confirmed it happened after Andrew had been dropped from the network.
“Seven is obviously very concerned to read the reports regarding Andrew O’Keefe. We have had a 17-year relationship with Andrew across a number of
programs, although he is no longer with the network.
“As this is a police matter before the courts, we cannot comment further.”
“Seven is obviously very concerned to read the reports regarding Andrew O’Keefe,” a Seven spokesperson said.
(Channel Seven)ANDREW’S NEW LOW
Found wandering the streets near Orly’s apartment in Sydney’s Randwick, the former The Chase host was arrested at 3.30am and taken to a nearby police station, where he was charged with common assault.
He was released on conditional bail but must now not contact or approach his partner, unless through legal representation.
Late last week, the case was adjourned until February 18, with Andrew’s lawyer saying the allegations would be contested in court.
Still, it’s a new low for the former star, who was a founding member of domestic violence charity White Ribbon Australia. He was also made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2017 for services to broadcast media and for his charity work.
Andrew was released on conditional bail but must now not contact or approach his partner.
(Getty)But this isn’t the first time he’s landed himself in hot water.
Following the demise of his 18-year marriage in 2017 to Eleanor – who he shares three children with – Andrew appeared to numb himself with partying, which draws dark parallels to the life of his uncle, superstar rocker Johnny O’Keefe, who died from a heart attack brought on by a drug overdose at the age of 43.
In 2019, Andrew said he believed that the O’Keefe males possessed “a strong strain of something that verges on mania”.
One year earlier, photos surfaced of him kissing a young woman at a nightclub in Tasmania. The woman, who was 21 at the time, told Woman’s Day he’d told her he’d been on “a 48-hour bender” and she was “shocked” when she put her arm around him for a photo and he kissed her.
In 2008, Andrew was also famously filmed collapsing into a gutter outside a Melbourne nightclub. In early 2019, Seven announced The Chase was going on hiatus in order for Andrew to check himself into a mental health clinic as he attempted to overcome what he deemed a “sense of loss of meaning” in his life.
MUCH-NEEDED BREAK
“I’ve had a few things going on in my life in recent times – there have been a few things going on in my life as a constant for a little too long,” he told the media eight weeks later.
“I was surprised to discover perhaps I was not as resilient as I imagined I was and that I was exhausted, I was a bit lost.”
Despite cleaning up his act and returning to work, touring the country with his Andrew O’Keefe Shouts Johnny O’Keefe show and moving to Sydney to be closer to Orly, Andrew’s latest scandal has friends, family and colleagues fearing he hasn’t yet managed to shake his demons.
Following the alleged incident, a visibly distressed Orly said she didn’t want to talk about what had happened.
