The tell tale signs Studio 10 was in trouble – as Network Ten axes its breakfast show after a decade on Australian TV

Channel Ten announced on Tuesday that its morning show Studio 10 had officially axed after more than a decade on Australian screens.

But the cracks first appeared on the show in 2018, when panellists Ita Buttrose and Jessica Rowe both left the programme.

A TV insider said this at the time women’s Day magazine that the show was “beginning to look a lot like rats abandoning a sinking ship.”

Ita left after rumors of tension on set with her co-host Denise Drysdale, which ultimately culminated in the now infamous ‘Brussels sprouts incident’.

Tensions flared in November 2017 when Denise ‘hurled’ a Brussels sprout at Ita while filming a Christmas segment.

Denise apologized for the incident, telling the Herald Sun: ‘I called Ita before Christmas; we talk, we all get along. “I did the wrong thing, it was completely my fault, I’m sorry it happened.”

However, in a statement to Ny Breaking Australia, Network Ten strongly denied claims there were tensions between Ita and Denise, calling the allegations ‘offensive’.

Jessica, meanwhile, announced her departure from Studio 10 in March 2018, saying she wanted to spend more time with her family.

Woman’s Day magazine subsequently claimed that Jessica left the show because she realized the program was “in decline.”

Former Studio 10 panelists Kerri-Anne Kennerley, Natarsha Belling and Joe Hildebrand was also axed from the show in 2020 due to Channel 10’s mass layoffs.

Kennerley was a vocal critic of Studio 10 after her departure, saying it was “sad” to see Studio 10 become an unbearable wake-fest after she was fired.

Her departure from the show coincided with Studio 10’s content becoming more politically progressive, as well as a sharp decline in ratings.

The show has become one of the lowest viewing daytime programs in Australian TV history, lagging far behind rival programs on Seven, Nine and ABC.

The controversial program has swept through tens of thousands of viewers over the past year, leaving industry spies repeatedly wondering how long it would stay on the air.

In April, the show’s ratings plummeted to the lowest in its ten-year history, with a shocking average of just 10,000 viewers in the five-city metro.

However, a spokesperson for Network 10 recently told Ny Breaking Australia that Studio 10 was not going anywhere.

“Studio 10 is a regular part of our daytime program, offering fun, entertaining and engaging content led by a fantastic panel,” the spokesperson said.

But in December 2022, it was announced that Studio 10 would be reduced from three and a half hours to two hours, moving the start time to 10am instead of 8:30am.

According to The Australianratings were so low that ‘few media experts were overly surprised’ when Studio 10’s run was shortened.

A spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday that the final episode of Studio 10 will air on Friday, December 22, after more than a decade on Australian screens.

Hosts Angela Bishop, Narelda Jacobs and Tristan MacManus, as well as special roving reporter Daniel Doody, will remain with the network and will be deployed in various roles.

Bishop and McManus admitted in an emotional Instagram video that it had been a “tough day” after being told of the news over lunch on Tuesday.

“It’s a tough day for the entire Studio 10 family as we have loved bringing you the show for the past decade,” Bishop said.

“We are all very proud to be part of it. To wrap up, I’m going to squeeze out a quote: “Don’t cry because it’s over, laugh because it happened.”‘

Sitting next to Bishop as she put on a brave face, MacManus added: “We absolutely love it. We loved spending every morning with you.

‘It’s been really great. Sometimes tough, but always worth it. And we always laughed. We have always enjoyed spending our mornings with you.”