Troubled Channel Seven star Matt Doran has personally parted ways with the network after sparking a frantic police investigation Tuesday morning when he failed to show up for work.
Doran, 40, disappeared while on assignment in the Hunter Valley, where he was covering the horrific bus crash that shook the country over the long weekend.
He was later found in a cafe.
The high-profile crime reporter, who has a history of personal trouble, was last seen at a local soccer field on Monday afternoon speaking to members of the Singleton community.
Earlier, locals had seen Doran drive away from the home of newly married couple Mitchell Gaffney and Maddy Edsell, whose marriage was at the center of the tragedy.
Seven star Matt Doran (pictured with his wife Kendall Bora) has personally parted ways with the network after sparking a frantic police search when he failed to show up for work on Tuesday
An eyewitness recalls the surprising way he spoke to members of the Singleton Roosters football team, for whom several wedding guests played.
“He seemed distracted when he was interviewing,” the source told Daily Mail Australia.
“He didn’t want to be there.”
Doran’s behavior did not go unnoticed by viewers, with his Monday morning coverage – the day after the fatal crash – generating a number of critical tweets.
When the star reporter failed to return calls, texts and emails ahead of his scheduled appearance on Tuesday’s Sunrise, a producer went to see him at his hotel in Singleton, but there was no knock on his door.
Concerned colleagues contacted the police, who sent out a missing persons alert across the region.
Doran was eventually found in a nearby cafe and quickly replaced by his colleague Liam Tapper on the air.
Pictured is Doran covering the tragedy of the Hunter Valley bus crash on Monday – the day before he went missing
Seven has yet to make a statement about Doran’s well-being; however, insiders say several factors may have contributed to his troubling behavior.
One suggested that perhaps Doran was struggling with the confrontational nature of the tragedy of the wedding bus crash.
Doran and his wife, Today show producer Kendall Bora, were reported to have spent the long weekend at their $1.75 million vacation home in Berowra Waters, north of Sydney. one of the first reporters to arrive early Monday morning.
His live cross to the Channel Seven studios was about 1 km from the crash site where 10 wedding guests died.
“One wonders if a job like that might be too much for someone prone to emotional stress,” a Seven insider told the Daily Mail Australia.
“It would traumatize anyone, but especially someone who is particularly sensitive or struggling.”
On top of that, Doran was – until recently – touted as a possible replacement for retired Sunrise presenter David Koch. The role instead went to Matt Shirvington.
Doran was assigned to cover the bus crash the same day Shirvington made his debut as a Sunrise anchor alongside Natalie Barr.
Kyle Sandilands said he thought Doran was “dirty” about missing Sunrise’s main performance
Doran’s wife Kendall Bora is an executive producer of Nine’s rival breakfast show Today
Radio host Kyle Sandilands speculated that Doran had struggled to be knocked out amid the fallout from his infamous Adele interview in late 2021.
“He’s still grossed out that Shirvo got the big Kochie job. Because [Doran is] the Weekend Sunrise guy, so you’d think he was in the running for Kochie’s job,” Sandilands said.
“But no, not after the Adele fiasco,” he added, referring to Doran’s disastrous interview with the Grammy-winning singer in which he admitted he hadn’t listened to her album prior to the sit-down.
The British musician then walked out in a rage and the interview, which reportedly cost the network $1 million, was never aired.
Ten people were killed and 25 others injured after a bus carrying guests from a wedding back to a Singleton property rolled over on its side (pictured)
NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday: ‘Earlier today, Port Stephens Hunter Police District officers received a notice of concern for a welfare report for a 40-year-old man.
Officers launched an investigation and found a man a short time later. There is no further police action.’
It is understood that Doran’s wife Kendall Bora, an executive producer of Nine’s Today, abruptly left work to go to the area to find her husband.
Reporter Liam Tapper replaced Doran on Sunrise on Tuesday morning (seen in Cessnock)
“Matt Doran didn’t show up for work today. That’s a fact,” said a source.
Channel Seven has been contacted for comment.
The incident comes just weeks after Doran put up for sale his lavish two-bedroom apartment in Bellevue Hill, in Sydney’s posh eastern suburbs.
The house will be auctioned by BresicWhitney on June 24 with a target price of $1.8 million.
Doran, who began his career as a police reporter at the Herald Sun, joined Seven in 2017 after nearly eight years in the Network Ten newsroom.
Two years later, he was promoted to his current role as co-host of Weekend Sunrise along with Monique Wright, after intermittently replacing weekday host David Koch.
If you need help, call Lifeline on 13 11 14