For the first time since her notorious Logies speech put the man on trial for allegedly raping Brittany Higgins on hold, Lisa Wilkinson is back in front of the television.
In a pre-recorded appearance on the Today Show on Friday morning, the former breakfast show anchor, 62, gave viewers a kiss as she paid tribute to the show’s 40th anniversary.
The Today show family and the many years we spent eating breakfast together will always hold a special place in her heart, she said.
Since mentioning alleged rape victim Brittany Higgins in a speech at the Logies on June 19, Wilkinson had not been seen in public until her remarks.
For her one-on-one interview with the former ministerial employee in 2021, Wilkinson had recently won the prize for Outstanding News Coverage.
In order to prevent biasing the jury, ACT Supreme Court Justice Lucy McCallum was compelled by the acceptance address to postpone the rape trial only days before it was supposed to begin on June 27.
Wilkinson used her Friday comments as an opportunity to make fun of her former co-host Karl Stefanovic’s own Logies slip-up.
The day after the Logies in 2009, Stefanovic arrived at work still inebriated, slurring his words and laughing at Wilkinson.
After a night of partying at the Logies, he later apologized for his contentious appearance and acknowledged that he was not “at my best.”
That fateful morning, Wilkinson recalled, “the entire nation of Australia realized Karl had to be wasted if he was going to keep saying live on the air that I was gorgeous.”
I miss the people more than the early mornings or sleep deprivation.
I told myself, “I’ll be doing well if I can stay in this chair for six months.” In light of this, it has been an honour—and one I still pinch myself over—to share that desk every morning for almost 11 years.
Soon after learning Stefanovic was earning more money than she was, Wilkinson requested a pay raise and was fired from the show in 2017.
Wilkinson claimed she was “quietly angry” on her last day of airing because “nearly every interview was done by Stefanovic alone.”
She said in her memoirs, “I don’t know what moved me, but as I sat in the doctor’s waiting room, I sent an email to [her manager] Nick Fordham and [her husband] Pete FitzSimons.”
Guys, I’m going to keep track of how Karl and I divide up hosting responsibilities in the upcoming weeks, the email said.
“I don’t know when I might need it as a record, but…” Even the interviews that Karl and I would typically conduct together this morning were handed to Karl alone, leaving me without a single solo interview.
At 8.40, all I had was the “girls chat” portion. What the heck are the 1960s?
After meeting with Nine’s CEO Hugh Marks for several hours, her manager Nick called her when she was shopping at her neighbourhood Woolworths.
She was “permanently off” the Today show, he said, and would never appear again.
The embarrassment I felt at that time was enormous, even though the news of my termination was probably still hours away from becoming public, Wilkinson said.
Wilkinson had requested $2.3 million, which would have put her considerably over Stefanovic’s $2 million compensation, Marks publicly disclosed after she left. She questions that amount.
Despite her rocky departure from the show, Wilkinson claimed on Friday that she still had “many wonderful memories” from her time there and that she looks back on her time on the show with fondness.
I went home with a lot of treasured recollections. I believe we went through six in my time, from being referred to as “sugar tits” by Sacha Baron Cohen’s general Aladeen to the daily breaking news of yet another Australian prime minister.
She gave the camera a kiss as she wrapped off her pre-recorded birthday message.
After her Logies mistake, Wilkinson may be ready to return to broadcast after choosing to appear in the 40th birthday show.
The Channel 10 actress missed a highly anticipated interview with Thor actor Chris Hemsworth because she took a lengthy break from her on-air duties.
In the days that followed, the show made absolutely no mention of the awards ceremony.
According to a spokeswoman for Ten Network, the company “completely supports Lisa in her continuous and unwavering commitment to acting appropriately as a witness in the trial.”
Ten claimed that media coverage had “caused serious injury” and demanded that these organizations stop harassing Lisa in order to give her the best chance to testify in court and for the trial to proceed in a fair and timely manner.
“We are carefully watching all coverage of this matter, and Lisa and Network 10 reserve their rights with regard to any foreseeable defamation claims,” the statement reads.
Wilkinson’s statement prejudiced potential jurors, which prolonged Higgins’s trial against former political aide Bruce Lehrmann. Lehrmann has entered a not guilty plea and is accused of raping Ms. Higgins in Parliament House in 2019.
In a police interview, he said he didn’t have sex with Ms. Higgins, refuting these allegations.
The trial has been rescheduled for October 4 by the ACT Supreme Court.
Since “the distinction between an untested allegation and the fact of guilt has been lost somewhere in this debate,” Chief Justice Lucy McCallum made the decision to postpone the trial “regrettably and with gritted teeth.”
She pointed out that before Lehrmann would have access to a fair jury, popular interest in the case needed to wane.
Shane Drumgold, the crown attorney for Higgins, concurred with Justice McCallum’s ruling and pointed out that the 102-day delay was longer than those granted in comparable instances.
Network 10, Wilkinson, and the proprietors of Sydney radio station WSFM were all given a warning by Mr. Drumgold to stop discussing the trial.
The three parties also concur in the written agreement that any further remarks may constitute contempt of court.
Mr. Drumgold stated that he would seek an injunction to halt further public commentary if Network 10, Wilkinson, and WSFM did not make the commitment.