David “Kochie” Koch “sniffed” his replacement Matt Shirvington on camera on Sunrise on Friday as he enjoyed his last day ever on the show.
Kochie, 67, was greeted with applause, hugs and well wishes from the Sunrise team and his family as he walked through the show’s studios for the last time.
In a cheeky and thinly veiled reference to when Tracy Grimshaw clumsily snubbed her ACA replacement Allison Langdon last year, Kochie pretended not to see Matt, 44, who takes over the top job as Sunrise co-host from Monday.
After kissing his wife Libby, Kochie jokingly muffled former Olympian Matt, who appeared dejected after trying to hug and encourage Kochie.
‘Just kidding, just kidding. I’ve got an Ally Langdon for you!’ Kochie said as she laughed and hugged Matt.
David ‘Kochie’ Koch ‘sniped’ his replacement Matt Shirvington on camera on Sunrise on Friday as he enjoyed his last ever day on the show
“You almost got me, you almost got me!” Matt replied laughing.
Kochie surprised his colleagues on Monday when he announced his resignation from the popular breakfast show after 21 years.
Behind-the-scenes photos show his co-hosts Natalie Barr, Edwina Bartholomew and Mark Beretta getting emotional between breaks.
Kochie, 67, was greeted with applause, hugs and well wishes from the Sunrise team and his family as he walked through the show’s studios for the last time
In a cheeky and thinly veiled reference to when Tracy Grimshaw clumsily snubbed her ACA replacement Allison Langdon last year, Kochie pretended not to notice Matt, 44, who will take over the top job as co-host of Sunrise starting Monday.
Kochie was greeted with applause and cheers as he made his way through the studio
During his on air announcement, Natalie looked heartbroken when Kochie said he had spent more time with her than with members of his own family in recent years.
It comes after an awkward interaction between Tracy Grimshaw and A Current Affair replacement Allison Langdon was caught on camera.
In November, Grimshaw concluded her 17-year run as presenter of the show and was sent off with applause, hugs and well wishes from her Channel Nine colleagues as she left the ACA studio for the very last time.
Footage of her farewell shows Grimshaw walking through a guard of honor and when Langdon goes in to hug her, she appears to reject the hug. At the time, her replacement had not yet been publicly named.
‘Just kidding, just kidding. I’ve got an Ally Langdon for you!’ Kochie said as she laughed and hugged Matt
Grimshaw has since spoken out about the uneasy disapproval.
After hugging several members of staff, including Karl Stefanovic and Peter Overton, Grimshaw walked past Langdon who had her arms out for a hug.
But Grimshaw brushed her brutally and seemed to shake her head before hugging Stefanovic.
Shortly afterwards, Langdon spoke on the Today show about the awkward moment, admitting she “didn’t get much sleep” after the incident.
“That breaks my heart,” Langdon said, watching the clip.
Footage of her farewell shows Grimshaw walking through a guard of honor and when Langdon goes in to hug her, she appears to reject the hug.
Grimshaw brushed her brutally and seemed to shake her head
Then she hugged Karl Stefanovic who was standing next to Langdon
‘I’m devastated. I mean, I turned to you at the time and said, “Tracy Grimshaw just brushed me.” When you get brushed by your hero, I must say it hurts.’
Stefanovic said Grimshaw wrote a statement and apologized to Langdon for snubbing her in the honor guard.
“Ally, I just watched last night’s guard of honor and I saw you go in to give me a hug,” Grimshaw said in her statement.
“And I hugged damn Karl! I’m sorry I missed you. I was so overwhelmed and clearly lost sight of your petite head as his large boofhead loomed into view. Big sorry.’
On the Today show, Langdon addressed the awkward moment, admitting she ‘didn’t get much sleep’ after the incident
‘I’m devastated. I mean, I turned to you at the time and said, “Tracy Grimshaw just brushed me.” When you get brushed by your hero, I must say it hurts,” she said
“Ah relief!” Stefanovic sighed and described the moment as one of the “biggest snubs on Australian television.”
Langdon replaced Grimshaw as the show’s host.
On her last show, a tearful Grimshaw thanked Australians for their support of A Current Affair, as a slew of famous faces bid farewell to the longtime presenter after 17 years on the show.
The TV veteran has been honored by celebrities and regular Aussies who have helped her show through the years.
The presenter, who has interviewed the likes of Oprah, Ellen Degeneres, Celine Dion and Sharon Stone in her 40-year career, was presented with a bouquet of flowers when she told viewers that they would “soon” find out who would take her place.
“I’m terrible at the GB word, you know, the word that ends with ‘bye’ and begins with ‘good’, because I’m going to bluff and you all know it won’t be pretty,” Grimshaw said.
“But seriously, when I started here, my bosses at the time said they didn’t like interviews longer than four minutes because you would get bored.
And now look at us. The whole show can do interviews like that because you told us you love them. Thanks for looking.’
A tearful Grimshaw was given a bouquet of flowers as she teased viewers that they would find out ‘soon’ who would take her place on A Current Affair
Grimshaw paid tribute to the entire Channel Nine team and gave a special shout-out to ‘Daria’ who she says has done her auto cue since the Today Show.
A string of high-profile Aussies paid tribute to Grimshaw, with her colleagues praising her journalistic skill and ability to connect with everyday Australians.
Anthony Albanese, Hamish and Andy, Kyle Sandilands, Ita Buttrose, John Howard, Ray Hadley and Leigh Sales were just a few familiar faces.
Mr. Albanese asked if Australian television would ever be the same, while Kyle Sandilands applauded Grimshaw for always putting her guests at ease.
On her latest episode, Grimshaw spoke to flood victims in Eugowra in the central NSW town, who received a live on-air donation of $50,000 from Coles.
The show took a trip down memory lane and returned to some of Grimshaw’s most notable interviews, including Sue and Lloyd Clarke – the parents of domestic violence victim Hannah Clarke – the Irwin family and Olivia Newton John.
In September, the veteran presenter announced she was quitting A Current Affair, later revealing she planned to take a year off to improve her work-life balance.
Ally Langdon replaced Tracy as host of ACA after leaving the Today show