They’ve been comfortably basking in the glory of being the top-rating breakfast television show for years, but it seems Sunrise‘s steady reign could be well and truly over in the wake of relentless scandals.
Following Edwina Bartholomew’s rogue Twitter spray last week, Woman’s Day understands top executives at Seven are being forced to take immediate action, with a well-placed insider exclusively revealing the show could be about to suffer the same fate as their rival Today with a total shake-up of the hosting panel!
“The show is a sinking ship – there’s a new scandal every week, sometimes every day,” the insider dishes.
“They’re weighing up all the options and one is an all-new team. They think it’s time to revamp the show completely. It could be a bloodbath just like Today, maybe even worse.
“They’re currently up against an all-new team at Today, so the ratings won’t take such a big hit in the transition period,” explains the insider. “If they’re going to implement such drastic change, now would be the time to do it.”
“There’s a new scandal every week,” an insider says of Sam and her co-stars.
(Image: Media Mode)And it seems Seven executives are even looking to Today for inspiration on how to go about the shake-up.
“They saw what happened when Nine dragged the Karl [Stefanovic] saga out, so they want to nip it in the bud before they lose any more viewers,” the source reveals. “Something has to be done before it’s too late.”
WATCH: Samantha Armytage burns Karl Stefanovic. Post continues after video…
It’s not just the bosses at Seven who aren’t impressed – the recent gaffes have also left a bad taste in viewers’ mouths with ratings dropping over the past few weeks in Melbourne.
Industry critics have even labelled the show as “nasty” and “bitchy”, and called out the presenters for being “bullies”.
The morning show hosts have been branded “bullies”.
(Image: Media Mode)Edwina causes a legal nightmare
Edwina Batholomew found herself in hot water after posting an “errant” tweet targeting Nine reporter Seb Costello.
The 36-year-old presenter deleted the divisive tweet soon after posting it and issued an apology saying she was “half asleep” at the time and didn’t mean to cause offence.
Her excuse left fans unimpressed and Nine is reportedly considering legal action against the breakfast reporter.
Edwina Batholomew found herself in hot water earlier in the week.
(Image: Media Mode)David Koch and the “Elbowgate” saga
Veteran host David, 63, saw himself at the centre of a bizarre feud with MAFS star Martha Kalifatidis after he claimed he was “bruised” after being “elbowed in the ribs” by her on the Logies red carpet.
His version of events was backed up by his co-hosts – Natalie Barr called Martha “fierce”, Sam Armytage mocked her dwindling “15 minutes of fame” and Mark Beretta joked, “Do not get between Martha and the camera!”
But the reality bride was quick to brand the cast as “bullies” after it was reported senior Seven executives were “getting annoyed” by the saga dubbed “Elbowgate” and were wishing “it would all just go away”.
Kochie and Married at First Sight star Martha’s run in at the TV Week Logies made headlines.
(Image: Getty Images)Natalie slammed by viewers!
Newsreader Natalie Barr was forced to apologise for saying “dole bludgers are trying to take advantage of the welfare system” on live TV after introducing a poorly worded segment on the Newstart debate.
The controversial statement forced the 51-year-old to issue an apology for the on-air “mistake.”
The segment sparked a severe backlash from Sunrise viewers, with one viewer calling Natalie “disgusting.”
Nat was forced to apologise to viewers after a poorly worded segment.
(Image: Media Mode)Sam spits the dummy!
Triple M’s Lawrence Mooney recently accused Sam Armytage of “spitting the dummy” after she was the first to be eliminated on Seven’s The Chase Australia.
According to Lawrence, the 43-year-old refused to leave the studio floor after claiming she had been “humiliated” on set.
The incident comes after radio host Kyle Sandilands was forced to hit back at Sam’s on-air digs, after she declared Kyle’s handball match with former PM Kevin Rudd, which was simulcast on Sunrise, was a snooze.
A furious Kyle says the breakfast show team “begged” him to take part in the segment and announced he had banned Sam from his show.
Kyle Sandilands was forced to hit back at Sam’s on-air digs.
(Image: KIIS)