Lisa Wilkinson hosted the Today show with Karl Stefanovic for 10 years before departing Channel Nine on bad terms amid a gender pay dispute.
And as Lisa, 60, prepares to release her controversial new memoir, Karl is reportedly ‘freaking out’ that details about his personal life will be exposed within its pages.
According to Woman’s Day, the 46-year-old is especially worried that Lisa will spill secrets about his split from ex-wife Cassandra Thorburn, 49, and his subsequent marriage to Jasmine Yarbrough, 36.
What does she know? Karl Stefanovic reportedly fears his former Today co-host Lisa Wilkinson will discuss his marriage breakdown in her controversial new memoir. Pictured in August 2009
‘He is, with good reason, a tad worried that Lisa knows a lot of what went down in his personal life,’ an insider alleged.
‘There’s the back story around the sudden breakdown of Karl’s marriage… Lisa would’ve been privy to the details of Karl’s marriage split with Cassandra, who, by the way, Lisa has a great deal of respect for,’ they added.
Karl and Cassandra announced their split in mid-2016 after 21 years of marriage.
Opening up the ex-files? According to Woman’s Day, Karl is especially worried that Lisa will spill secrets about his separation from ex-wife Cassandra Thorburn. Pictured in May 2011
New flame: Five months after leaving his wife, Karl fell in love with shoe designer Jasmine Yarbrough (left), whom he married in Mexico in December 2018
Five months after leaving Cassandra, Karl fell in love with shoe designer Jasmine.
They married in Mexico in December 2018, and are now parents to baby daughter Harper may, three months.
Meanwhile, Lisa’s tome is also expected to address the gender pay gap dispute that led to her departure from Nine in October 2017.
According to New Idea, Nine executives are ‘expecting the worst in her book regarding her pay parity protest’.
Decade-long working relationship: Lisa sat alongside Karl on the Today show for 10 years, before leaving Channel Nine in October 2017 on bad terms
‘They know Lisa will not mince her words and won’t hold back regarding Karl and the famous ‘boys club’ at Nine,’ they insisted.
Nine has been accused of running a ‘boys club’ of male executives and on-air talent for years, with Mamamia’s Mia Freedman (a former boss at Nine) describing the workplace culture as ‘so toxic and so bad for women that it was the most distressing career experience of my life.’
Lisa was believed to have quit Today because Karl as her male co-host, was reportedly earning $2million a year with a potential bonus that could take his salary to $3million if ratings were a hit, The Australian wrote in 2017.
Reports: Meanwhile, Lisa’s tome is also expected to address the gender pay gap dispute that reportedly sparked her departure from Nine
Figures: Lisa was believed to have quit Today because Karl as her male co-host, was reportedly earning $2million a year with a potential bonus that could take his salary to $3million if ratings were a hit, The Australian wrote in 2017
Lisa, a former magazine editor, was said to be on a $1.1million a year contract, with Nine only willing to increase the amount to $1.8million, according to The Daily Telegraph.
The amount was reportedly not enough for her to stay with the network, prompting her departure.
Since joining The Sunday Project in 2018, Lisa has landed sit-down interviews with the likes of Kim Kardashian, Kylie Minogue and Bradley Cooper.
Exit: The amount was reportedly not enough for her to stay with the network, prompting her departure
In an interview with The Herald Sun in December 2018, Lisa applauded the ‘integrity’ and high ‘calibre’ of her colleagues at Ten, referencing Carrie Bickmore, Fifi Box, Amanda Keller, Julia Morris and Gorgi Coghlan.
‘One of the absolute bonuses that I really hadn’t anticipated in moving to Ten, is the calibre of my colleagues,’ she said.
Lisa’s upcoming autobiography will be published by Harper Collins, with a release date set for next year.
Rival network: Since joining The Sunday Project in 2018, Lisa has landed sit-down interviews with A-list stars. Pictured with co-hosts Tommy Little (left) and Waleed Aly (right)