Lisa Wilkinson and Karl Stefanovic have stepped out for a friendly lunch together, two weeks after her whirlwind departure from Today.
Taking to Instagram, Lisa, 57, shared a selfie of herself and her former co-host — proving there’s no animosity between the two amid consistent rumours of a pay dispute.
She captioned the shot: “The best lunch today with this guy… @kstefanovic.”
Lisa’s followers were quick to comment on the surprise rendez-vous, with many expressing their upset at the shakeup.
“Miss seeing you @lisa_wilkinson on the @thetodayshow 😪 It’s not the same without you both together,” one commenter wrote, another adding: “Can’t watch today show now, rubbish without you.”
A third noted: “You two were the best combo, so complementary. must say I’m struggling to watch Today even though I love Karl, it’s just not the same.”
Lisa will be joining news and current-affairs program The Project as co-host alongside Carrie Bickmore, Waleed Aly and Peter Helliar in January. She will also be hosting The Sunday Project.
She announced the news on Twitter, writing: “I have some news. I’m sad to say that today was my last day on The today show. The following statement is from Channel Nine.”
According to the statement, Channel Nine could not reach an agreement with Lisa to extend her contract for her hosting duties on the breakfast program. Multiple reports suggest the respected journalist was waiting for equal pay to her co-host to re-sign a new contract.
Woman’s Day recently revealed that Lisa was paid $1.1 million in comparison to Karl’s super-size salary, comprised of $2 million in wages and an extra $1 million for use of his image by Nine.
WATCH: Sylvia Jeffreys weighs in on the rumoured pay dispute. Post continues…
The statement read: “Nine today confirmed we have been unable to meet the expectations of Lisa Wilkinson and her manager on a contract renewal for a further period.
“Today Show is one of the biggest roles there is in television and requires an enormous commitment from its hosts. The partnership between Lisa and Karl has taken the show to the success it is today and we thank Lisa for everything she has done for the show and for Nine over the past 10 years,” said Nine CEO Hugh Marks.
Lisa added: “I want to thank Channel Nine for the privilege of co-hosting the Today Show for the last 10 years. I would particularly like to thank my colleagues Karl, Slyvia, Georgie, Tim, Richard, Stevie and Natalia, as well as the hard-working producers and the entire team behind the cameras – every one of them has contributed to the incredible success of the show over the years.”
“Most particularly though I want to thank the Today Show audience who have been so supportive and incredibly loyal to me over the last decade.”
“I can never thank you enough and I look forward to seeing you soon.”
Stay tuned!
