Luke Grant fired from 2HD breakfast

17Dec09

As a former employee of 2HD I was indeed sorry to read about Luke Grant’s demise. Speaking from experience I worked with Luke for about 3 years and I know how much work and passion he put into his show each and every day. Sure he had his opinions both on and off the air some of which I agreed with and some I didn’t but in saying that I always thought Luke gave everything he had when it came to his shift.
I myself have now moved on and very happy with my decision and I hope Luke can find a way to do the same. Best of luck mate.

Pete Davis

I can already hear the cheering from NXFM, KOFM and 1233 ABC. What is going at Sandgate is an absolute disaster for radio in Newcastle and the sacking of Luke Grant is going to be the last straw for 2HD unless they can find a local person to replace him – the people of the Hunter shouldn’t have to put with Grant Goldman’s program

What a complete and utter joke……..

Why am I not surprised though?

I worked with Luke for a number of years and he always bent over backwards to try and accommodate an overfull log of commercials. His sacking is a total disgrace and just emphasises the gross mismanagement of the place over the past few years. Best of luck Luke, you won’t have to try hard to find something bigger and better than 2HD.

“Yeah wahdaya reckon Slimey, we’ll sack that Luke Grant he’s just a whingin’ prick anyway, fancy trying to be a professional out here with us ha! We’ll put our butt lickin buddy Brent Ballsup into breakfast, that’ll save Bill a few $ and he’ll love us all over again despite what we’ve done to the ratings and the revenue. We’ll put stoopid Richard in Afternoons, he’s forgotten we sacked him in a coffee shop at Garden City this time last year eh?”. “Yeah that’s a great idea Guysie, but we are starting to run out of bullet deflecters don’t ya think? We got rid of Meryl cause she had more talent than me and pretty soon mate we might have to turn on each other… there’ll be no other suckers left”.

Why doesn’t this surprise me ? Luke Grant, whilst maybe never setting the world on fire, was the only thing 2HD had of any worthwhile value at all. What are they left with now ? Richard ‘stumble mumble like a 70 year old’ King and Brent ‘I love the sound of my own voice and can talk rubbish for hours’ Bultitude. Add that to the pathetic mix of weekend announcers who wouldn’t get a gig in Parkes…and a National News service staffed by cadets who think Canberra is a piece of women’s lingerie that fits over a tin. Bill Caralis isn’t fit to hold a radio licence.

Well, yet again another example of the many, many reasons why I had to get out of 2HD. What an absolute disgrace, this surely must sound the death knell of this once great station. This is not only a kick in the guts for Luke Grant, probably the most professional announcer I’ve worked with,(ditto Pete Davis)but also to the city of Newcastle and the Hunter Region. The sad reality is this is another huge loss to the radio industry. Chalk up one more name to the long list of great radio people who have either left or been rissolled out of Sandgate by the gurus at the helm. 2HD hang your head in shame and just turn off the TX. It would sound better. You clearly no longer care about servicing this community, nor maintaining a standard for the industry. Watch out, you have awoken the beast this time. 1233 and 2NUR will easily take care of your listeners who surely will leave in droves with no Luke Grant and no Steve Price. What can Newcastle expect now? Grant Goldman and Leon Delaney, excellent choice. What Luke probably doesn’t realise just yet is, they have in fact done him a favour. All the best LG.

“didn’t play enough advertisements during his show”

umm.. isn’t that a sales problem rather than a presenter’s?

I don’ know what you knucklehead wellwishers are are going on about … i know who you are … Pete, Roger Kev and even you Little Johnny !
You’ve all abandoned me and now you’re giving Lukey Boy congratulations for doing a runner. I got no idea why you all left … who in their right mind wouldn’t want to work in Sunny Sandgate.
I gave you everything and that’s how I’m repaid. None of you have got any right to go on to bigger and better things … who do you think you are! It’s my right to provide no conditions, no direction, no money and no hope for anyone that works for me.
Just because I’m miserable it doesn’t mean the people around me can’t be miserable too … a wise man once said “misery loves company”.
From now on I’m only ever going to employ and mix with miserable, no good gibberers like me.
Brent, Dicky King, Leon and good old Grah Grah Gilbert … how’s that for gibberfest value … my type of people. The rest of you disloyal types will never ever be asked to come back … No More a Sub and Coke for you !!!

Media Watch have been sniffing around Caralis for a story for a few weeks, but they are desperate fo ex-employees, especially ones who have been put through the legal wringer by Bill to come forward. Maybe this latest incident will inspire a few people to tell a few home truths and give Caralis what he ultimately deserves. What he has done to two former icons of Newcastle radio in HD and NEW is absolutely unforgivable. He needs to be made accountable and shamed. I repeat – he is not fit to hold a Broadcasting Licence, let alone 30 of them !

I’m with you, Kev Kellaway (and Mark, too). Two once-great Newcastle radio stations utterly destroyed, and the loss of local input into our community is truly tragic. The potential of them as training grounds for future broadcasters has gone, and of course their relevance and ability to SERVE their communities … well, turn the stick off. Best wishes to you, Luke G!

I enjoy listening to Luke every morning. From reading about 2HD and seeing opinions here it looks as if they have done Luke a favour! Hopefully he gets another gig in Newcastle, I will follow him. Just a shame he is a Roosters supporter! haha

Forget about putting Bill Caralis on media watch…IT NEEDS TO BE ON 4 CORNERS!!

DO A NATIONAL PRESENTATION AND GET RID OF THIS CREEP!

It’s almost 2010 and he has been allowed to get away with this for too long.

The ABC needs to do a full and thorough investigation of Bill Caralis and stop him from wrecking radio stations like 2HD and even worse…..flooding the country radio stations with all that mediocre programming from 2SM in Sydney. Country radio stations used to play a huge role in their local communities, now thanks to Bill, most of the regional stations in NSW and South East QLD have been reduced to nothing. Minimal local programming, drop outs like you would not believe from the network and the buildings and equipment are falling apart.

Once the ACMA finally does what it is supposed to do and revokes Caralis of ALL of his radio licenses, the Commercial broadcasting regulations need to be overhauled to include at least 12 hours of local programming, pay enough money so new recruits can live reasonable well and carry at least 2 trainee announcers/journalists per station.

“Holy crap Guysie, seems we’ve upset a few people this time. I told you Luke Grant was nothin’ but trouble, hey maybe I could do breakfast on 2HD. Oh sorry, I tried that once before didn’t I? Almost sank the joint single handed back then without Real Bill’s help. You know Guysie, this bloody Blog site has got more readers than we have listeners. Surely by now there can’t be anyone stupid enough left to come and work for us”.

“Yeah I know Slimey, but don’t worry I have a plan, I can go back on the air if I have to, I’ll do breakfast and show them all how it should be done. I used to be great you know. Now I can be Sir Lunch A Lot, GM, SM, MD, PD, Chief Tech, Image Voice and On Air Jock and still find the time to laugh at Real Bill’s dumb ass stories. Although with all these titles I’m gonna need a bigger business card. Hey Real Bill… can I have some petty cash for new cards”?

Having lived in Sydney all of my life, until 5 years ago, and being an avid Radio listener, I dreaded finding stations in Newcastle. I used the internet to listen, but it’s not always convenient. I discovered Luke Grant one morning, and listened, and it was quality radio, a mixture of fun, political comment, and local news. I was amazed, when the footie season came around to find the continueous call team on the weekends, so I was in Radio Heaven. Well Kill Bill didn’t pay the bills and the broadcast was stopped, that’s another 10 pair of trackie pants for bill, and another 60,000 listeners who turned off.
Now Luke has gone, and another 60,000 will stop listening, just as they did when Mike stood firm on the non payment of monies owed.
Well Luke is the last straw for us, Pricey, now Luke, and I suppose the programmers who are supposed to programme the time slots for ads will keep their jobs.

Whoever Bills accountant is, someone should tell him 2HD was a good station servicing the citizens of Newcastle, not a Tax Write Off, as it is sure to be when all of the listeners are gone.

I am not affiliated with anyone, do not know, or have met anyone from 2HD, just a listener, who has purchased plenty from the advertisers on Luke’s show, and will now way my options unless those advertisers get off their backsides, and go into bat for those who support them as well.

I will be watching with interest to see where Luke and the Salad Spinner turn up next.Chin up Luke, it’s hard to fly like an eagle when your surrounded by Turkeys.

I have been listening to 2HD since I moved to Lake Macquarie in 1990. I have always enjoyed 2HD but the last couple years or so (since the Super Radio Network) I have watched my “local” radio station disappear. Luke for breakfast and John Carrol on Saturday morning is the only local broadcasting we get. What are we going to get now? I dread to think and if it is that idiot Grant Goldman that will be then end of 2HD for me.

As Luke Grant’s last producer on 2HD, and a young media cadet trained to withstand the well-known Bill Caralis exploitation, it was with great heart ache that I learnt of his unfair dismissal. Not only have I witnessed the extended hours Luke put into his work, but also the passion for his listeners and for the Hunter community. Much has been said about Communication students struggling to find work in Newcastle, but very little has been said about the poor work conditions present in it’s heritage radio station. The below minimum wage pay and unethical attitude of management is only bearable if you are lucky enough to work under someone like Luke- who in the last 12 months has taught me more about the media industry then I could ever have hoped. Thanks Luke, it was a privilege.

Having heard the outfall from the demise of Luke Grant on 2HD,its time,maybe,that the station went for a younger announcer
who knows about handling listeners in a talkback(?)format and can,maybe,inject a bit of humour into the breakfast programme as well.i am a former listener of NEW FM from their halcyon days of Alan Cameron and Carol Duncan and also when Garth Russell and Steve Graham ran Shotgun across allcomers.Even last year when the NEW FM breakfast show ran with St.John & Don(who’ll ever forget those
Crazy-Call/Phone-Scams with Don pretending to be a Devil-Woshipper getting hitched at Sandgate-Mausoleum or
the 2 Chinese guys ordering from each other’s restaurants or John Della Bosca…AKA Don ???…wanting a menage’A'trois with SBW & Candice Falzon…or Richie Benaud…AKA Don ???
wanting to put Tony Grieg’s keys in the pitch & take it for a drive….bloody piss-funny stuff.Where did they go anyway ??) With my advancing years (i’m now 49)for the last 6 months or so i’ve listened to 2HD.I found Luke Grant a good communicater and an erudite companion on my long trips to places like Singleton,Gunnedah and Muswellbrook in my line of business.But for Criminey’s sake;I didn’t get 1 laugh from him or should i say out of him in that entire 6 months.And that’s what i think is lacking on 2HD.Surely the station doesn’t have to be that serious between 6 and 9 every morning,does it ?
2HD could do worse than replace Luke Grant with Don(forget his surname).Geez 2HD heirarchy;Please drop some of the seriousness and give us something to smile about,even if it’s once a morning.

jaydel…regards to your comment,im in agreement with you.the DJ you refer to is Don Mayo.He made me laugh too.Mayo,if you can believe the Newcastle Herald reports of January this year (2009)left NEW FM due to a Medical condition.let’s hope the same thing occurs to NEW FM management…i.e….they have to leave due to a Medical condition…INSANITY.

2HD could do worse than hire Don (from NEW FM”S St.JOHN and DON 2008 show).At least he’s got a good sense of humour and could make Newcastle giggle.That’s if his MEDICAL condition,causing him to relinquish his NEW FM post last year has
righted itself.DON;You’re sorely missed,especially by those of us who have switched from NEW FM to NX-FM when you “RESIGNED”.Get back on the Airwaves soon,PAL.

What a misnomer is the so-called Super Radio Network. It doesn’t have a Network Programming Manager, it doesn’t have a Network Chief Engineer, it doesn’t have a National Sales Director, it doesn’t have any policies, directions or guidelines for it’s many staff around the country. It’s National news room is staffed largely by teenage cadets, who have no experience because at that level Bill Caralis is not entitled to pay them the award wage. It’s flagship station, 2SM, in Sydney, hasn’t been surveyed for several years. Caralis opted out of the surveys when 2SM returned an overall listening figure of 0.5% ! Now you know why the product emanating from 2SM is of such a low standard. It’s not surveyed and Bill doesn’t care. Grant Goldman’s been at more station’s than the Indian Pacific and was washed up and finished decades ago…but no REAL station in Sydney would touch him with a ten foot bargepole. 2HD lost it’s relevance when it ceased to be a local station years ago and it’s listeneres have left in droves. NEW FM has just been left to rot and waste away. No matter who and what they pair Steve St. John with, he’s never going to get an audience…they’ve tried a dozen combinations over the years…even tried him on 2HD…still wouldn’t work. Somehow the idiots making the decisions at Sandgate just keep digging a deeper hole for themselves. Now they’ve got to find another breakfast show…good luck !

Hey! The Real Bill, what’s with the “misery loves company” remark….Does that mean your a Good Charlotte fan now? lol:

What a mess. New FM with it’s un-focused music, aimless and directionless jocks, no proper imaging, and 2HD with it’s small minded inward focus. It’s simple KO and NX are smart and proper operators, HD and NEW are just 3rd world. Poles apart!

Another reason why radio should be left to radio professionals.
2hd /Newfm have succeeded in one thing only this year.
Allowing radio Newcastle complete domination of the market. Steve smith should sent bill and guy a bottle of wine with a thank you card.

[...] run by a one-time Super Network Radio employee named Craig Wilson. Of particular interest was this article about the firing of a popular Newcastle radio personality, Luke Grant, from 2HD for the most [...]

For those wondering, asking about Don Mayo, I have done some work for him in the last week. His eye site is not good (yes he really did leave NEWFM for health reasons), he has regular injections in his eyes (excruciatingly painful he said), but is otherwise doing well. He’s currently doing some freelance consulting work for part of the Capital Radio Network (2GN/EagleFM Goulburn, 2XL/SnowFM Cooma/Snowy), a station in WA & a Station in New Zealand.
He’s happy doing what he’s doing, & with his failing eyesight & ongoing treatment, he’s unlikely to return to NEWFM or 2HD, because he couldn’t perform his duties to his personal standard, even though it may reach Bill’s standards.
For those that are still listening to 2HD, you may have noticed a few weeks ago the signal/reception deteriorated, it lasted 9 days & I’d had enough, I contacted Guy Ashford, told him what the problem was, what was the likely cause & where to go/what to look for to fix it, 2 days later it was fixed (11 days after it started), Guy got back to me & confirmed as best he could not being technically minded or having any technical knowledge that the problem was what I said it was. Brooke will know what I’m talking about I emailed her & Luke about it too. Not good when the Operations Manager has no technical knowledge & listeners are giving technical support to the station. Luckily I’m an electrical tech. & have a big interest in RF Engineering & for some reason an interest in the success & longevity of 2HD/NEWFM, otherwise who knows how long the poor, below sub-standard 2HD transmission would have continued. Unfortunately the poor sub standard programming & poor ownership control/decisions continues.

i see some of my old camarades names have been both burnt and resurrected along the frontier of newcastle commercial radio.when i worked at (and tuned into) 2hd,luke grant was always pretty sharp and the epitomy of what a professional announcer should be like and sound like,according to the attention one would pay to the professional announcer’s handbook.kev kellaway,you are so right.it really is the deathknock of this terrific radio station and a kick in the abdomen for a great bloke and exemplary professional.in this instance,i am reminded of the famous saying of one of newfm’s past program mgr’s from the late 80′s who once told me in a newfm sales meeting that the only thing that changes for you in radio is the callsigns.how right he was.

on another note,i have witnessed first hand the amazing strength under adverse conditions what don mayo is going through.(glenn…??? has already pointed this out).don may not’ve always been everyone’s cup of tea and in fact i had a falling out with him many years ago.(we have,obviously,since broken bread again).recently during a charity performance,for some not-so-lucky people,don entertained a crowd (for no fee) for about 2 (or so) hours,telling jokes,hosting trivia games and questions and doing his impersonations of sean connery,max smart,richie benaud and the like to warm applause.all this after being jammed left,right and centre with an ablative therapeutic procedure to maintain his sight,mere hours earlier.he and i have both done apprenticeships at newfm and 2hd and know where the bodies are buried (metaphorically).when i put it on him sometime later,over a coffee,that he was railroaded by management at newfm/2hd,a comment that,due to rumours i’d heard,that came from newfm and 2hd staff,within the building,his reaction was both surprising and not surprising.he surprised me with a threat to punch the first person right in the mouth who badmouthed messrs ashford or st.john to him.

it says a lot about a bloke like don,who,for a long time,was no angel and bagged a lot of people in his time,by his own admission.(and,i might add…when he was wrong…or found to be wrong…he was the first one to say SORRY,put it behind him and get on with things).in talking directly to me,he spoke very openly and quite fondly of his stints at newfm and was intent to display affection for the
way st.john in particular “CARRIED” him
through the last 3-4 months of the breakfast show there in ’08,when he was wrought with his condition.a gutsy admission for a guy who rarely shows his emotions,as needles in his eye over the last 2 years testifies.maybe there are those of us too quick to judge the newfm management structures as we are not privvy,first hand,to see what may or may have not taken place with someone like luke grant’s demise.vale luke grant.

as don mayo confided to me in that chat,
and i don’t have a clue where he got it from,but it went something like;
“BEING DEFEATED IS ONLY A TEMPORARY CONDITION;GIVING UP IS WHAT MAKES IT PERMANENT”.that statement says as much about newfm/2hd as it does about don mayo….or indeed luke grant.

ps. thank our lucky stars.carol duncan you are still on radio.my dear,what a treasure you are to listen to,sweety.

Totally agree with madam’sapple, Don Mayo is doing it tough, but soldiering on & doing well. He’s also a very generous man, (I won’t say what he did for me, but lets just say he didn’t have to, 99% of others don’t, & he went out of his way to do it).
I also think all who are still at 2HD/NEWFM are just following orders & doing the best with the little they’ve got, I’m not privy to first hand knowledge of the management structure, but believe it all comes from the top. The Big C. wont let his managers manage, he has to control everything & everybody, he’s really the one calling all the shots & his management are only puppets doing his dirty work for him.

Commiserations Luke in regards to your sacking but what a great opportunity for you to maybe….. turn to politics as a new career. Your common sense and fairness certainly puts you up there as a great independant candidate for Newie. You would be throwing a cat amongst the laborites who are disenchanted with state and federal labor. I’ll vote for you and as of today I won’t be listening to any of Kill Bill’s stations.

I cannot believe the stupidity of 2hd for letting a talented announcer like Luke Grant go.Since retiring from the “rat race” and moving to the mid coast,it was a pleasure to discover Luke on the air at breakfast.His professionalism,community caring attitude,ability with interviews,and his humour will be greatly missed.I considered his morning show the best in the state let alone the Hunter.Let’s hope he pops up locally again,he will certainly regain his followers

(deceased) former MMM jock jon kennedy was continually re-hired despite his penchant for narcotic usage,in the mid 90′s,andrew harwood hosting shows on 2ue despite reports of a rorting of the centrelink system,cameron williams hired for brekky
at 2hd despite court action pending against him when he worked at foxtel (for asking female colleagues to show him their breasts before he wnet on in front of the cameras) and in more recent times,hired at channel 9 to re-ignite his TV career,chris smith hired by 2gb despite a charge of harrassment hanging over his head from his days at channel 9
(and look how that turned out…see daily telegraph stories recently about the 2gb 2009 christmas party gropings).luke grant sacked for not playing enough advertisements ?? doesn’t really seem fair,does it ??

I agree with Glenn and madam’sapple. Caralis is pulling Ashford and St John’s strings. They have little to no say in the big decisions and yet when the ratings crash even further they’ll be the ones held accountable.

I have to disagree with some of the comments about Newfm’s jocks by Ted. The on air standard of the jocks has improved as to has the music. They still play some random obscure 80′s songs but overall there has been a huge improvement.

So do Brooke and Emma (Luke’s producers) still work at 2HD? Oh and what ever happened to the new studios at Sandgate that were supposed to be finished years ago? Revenue has probably dropped so much Caralis couldn’t justify the spend..

Has anyone ever told Caralis ‘you can go broke saving money’

Hey Dano… Your sorta right re: Ashford and St John, puppets in Bills game, to a point, but make no mistake they know how to play the game too. There’s PLENTY of string pulling at “The Swamp” Billy doesn’t know about. Bill is so easily swayed by someone he knows absolutely nothing about and yet show no trust in the people who already struggle to keep his sinking stations afloat. Keep looking over your shoulder fellas, your day is coming with Bill. It’s just a hunch, noting the sensational ratings result you’ve achieved in the last two years. I’m sure you both had the right intentions utilising your experience and market knowledge, but your promises of glory and gold is all he cares about and you’ve failed to deliver at great expence to others. Bill trusts no one, not even family… and definetly not you. Do yourselves a favour and get out while you still have some reputation, or stay and forever be fouled with the stench that is the Super Radio Network.

in the voiceover trade recently,my brother (dean) who knows both don mayo and luke grant very well,revealed this to me last monday (dec 21st).according to my brother,the opinion around newcastle is this.luke grant will be on a major cap city radio-station by the end of january next year.don mayo is doing very well both professionally and financially and hasn’t been offered any
position (at time of writing) and one surmises he’s probably not all that interested anyway.

the rumours around newcastle differ.one source says all luke grant has to do to get his position back is to threaten legal action.the same source is of the opinion that all don mayo has to do is throw his hat into the ring,seeing as he’s still close by,living in newcastle.
don was previously going to be doing a r’n'r lunchtime show on 2hd this year in tandem with the comedy and involvement he was contracted for on newfm.chinese whispers comment strongly that don was also approached,loosely,to take control of programming but coudln’t due to his eye condition at the time.

the strongest indication of what management will do is relay the entire show,networked from sydney,via the grant goldman brekky program out of 2sm.

my prediction ? get ready to have a saturation of country music blasting out of the 2hd speakers.

and my personal opinion ? luke grant is a tradesman with a frank rapport.don mayo is a lightweight with interviews but hilariously funny and more of an entertainer with a first-class music knowledge.2hd might want to bite the bullet and re-hire both…either back to back with 1 doing 6-9…the other doing 9-12.

otherwise grab a name from the big smoke and be done with it.that’s just one person’s opinion and as we all know,opinions are like arseholes,everybodys got one and everybody thinks everybody elses stinks.

2HD, I am begging you, please NO GRANT GOLDMAN. Stick with Richard King for the breakfast shift but not Grant Goldman, half an hour of his show in the morning is enough!

I feel very sad and disappointed I did not get the opportunity to say goodbye to Luke Grant and I know there are many listeners that feel the same. It is bad enough anytime of the year to hear you no longer have a job, but Christmas time!, 2hd you are a disgrace and I will not continue to listen. It was a delight to listen to you Luke and I want to say thank you and best wishes for a successful 2010. Come on 2NUR or ABC, pick him up. Let’s not lose Luke Grant to the big smoke.

Should be interesting reading the next week or two. I understand the big guy had a long lunch with a journo and his solicitor today. Priceless!

I just want to add my outrage to this blog, though it has somewhat strayed form its original purpose about criticising 2hd for sacking Luke. He was the only reason I listened ( purposefully past tense, please note). Not only did he give communications degree graduates a chance ( eg Emma and more recently Brooke)he got them on air talking. Their interaction with both him and Ian Crouch was some of the best radio in the mornings. I don’t care who they get in to replace him – I won’t be listening any more. Luke, if you are reading this, we hope to hear you back on air soon!

I drive each weekday from 7.40am till 9.00am locally and it was great to hear Luke Grant actually talking (and listening) so amicably with his audience. To put things as simply as I can. Now I listen to CDs.

Ex-Sydney Bob

I’m not really sure what you’re talking about. There was no editing of your comment, it was published as submitted. I only block comments that are defamatory, which yours clearly wasn’t. The rest are all published as submitted.

Bring Luke Back.

I would like to see 2hd become the ICON it once was in Newcastle and be part of Newcastle Not just for 3hours & 30 mins per week day
Drop all net working and be come Newcastle 24 hours per day. We are 2sm/2ue/supernet work, We are 2hd.Newcastle

BRING LUKE GRANT BACK.
If the powers in Sydney dont like it Sell the station back to the people of Newcastle

Arthur Shepherd.

Re:Jan.

If you aren’t going to listen to 2hd anymore,regardless of who they get as a replacement for luke grant,why bother writing anything in to this site in the first place.I listen to 2hd and i think who(ever) they get is absolutely vital for the community.

Re:Ex Sydney Bob.

It’s illegal to edit anyone’s post without prior consultation and warning.As Mr Wilson is a man of high integrity,i doubt he’d have a hand in anything as scurrilous as that.

BTW;I think Richard King’s doing a fine
job as a fill-in but he’s not the long-term answer as luke’s replacement.

listen to 2hd since 1981 when the labour party use to own it then sold to bill….., when he bought it since he owned it he has run it into the ground. David and Tanya leaving was a blow to the station leaving. Luke Grant was the best breakfast announcer they have had since David and Tanya.we would prefer local content not super network rubbish that has been fored upon the local listers.

Hey Frank,

I can highly recommend 1233 ABC to you. As another poster pointed out, Bill Caralis has awoken the beast.

1233 ABC will totally roll 2HD in 2010.

I have been a keen listener to Newcastle Radio all of my life. Having grown up here as a teenager in the 80s and this is just sad, 2HD had always been my favorite and New Fm when they started in 1989.

Bill Caralis is obviously somewhat bothered that people are waking up to his greedy penny pinching ways because I heard Carter Edwards praising Bill and the super network like you would not believe once again today as I was on my way to Christmas Lunch with family. Other posters have said that Grant Goldman does the same thing and yes, it sounds very sycophantic.

You could almost say it is comparable to an extremist Muslim Leader. Bill Caralis’s own form of propaganda, so I say:

IT IS VERY DANGEROUS FOR BILL CARALIS TO HAVE THIS POWER OF OVER 30 LICENSES. WHERE IS THE ACMA?

The control that he has over what a large proportion of the Australian population can hear it frightening. He is unfit for it and clearly believes that everything he does is right in his own mind. Radio plays a huge part in many peoples life’s and it is time for Caralis to be held accountable.

Again I call for the ABC to put this on 4 corners, or at least 60 minutes or A Current Affair do a story because we have all had enough of this after so many years.

And just on Bill about how much he wanted to create this super network, his vision. well to anyone from the super network who reads this, your super network has totally destroyed 2 former icons of Newcastle radio and wrecked the country stations in NSW as well which are no longer a local service to their communities thanks to the non-relevant Super Network Rubbish.

But what you have done to my once favorite Radio Station which I grew up with is UNFORGIVABLE.

Now that Luke Grant was so unfairly sacked (and what a joke to do it just before Christmas) Newcastle will not forgive you Bill.

Get ready to be rolled by the ABC in 2010.

Kevin.

I switched To Luke 6 years ago obviously because I found him the best out of all even though he seemed at that time to be biased towards the Labour Party and knocked the liberal party. This said a lot for Luke and team as I was a Liberal supporter at the time and took his criticism as constructive continuing to listen to his show and comments.
Luke lately has been exposing Labour’s short comings along with Steve Price creating a perceived alliance.
They are both axed without real reason. My thoughts are that the Labour Party still has a strong hold on this network as they did 30 years ago. I have read many comments and non have a real reason for these people to be sacked as they were. Notice the 9-12 show now has negligible political content. I’m not saying that’s good or bad however if the labour party has forced its hand to control content, then this is VERY BAD.

With regard to the above comment by Easyrider, you’re spot-on ! Even though he won’t pay his staff the correct wages and entitlements, Bill Caralis has been a long time benefactor for the NSW Labour Party, donating literally hundreds of thousands of dollars over a 20 year period. The fact that he paid $12.5m for the two Newcastle Licences to purchase them from the ALP when they had only been valued for $4.5m a year before, speaks volumes for his political leanings. That enabled the ALP to run a massive campaign in 1999 and subsequently win Government again.

Easyrider – 2HD had no say over Price being sacked, it was a Fairfax Radio decision, not an affiliate one. If 2HD wanted a Liberal Party blowhard, they only had to talk to Singleton about buying Hadley’s show like the regional Macquarie Southern Cross stations do.

@Easyrider – I don’t think your theory holds true. If the Labor Party had any control over 2HD/2SM, Graeme Gilbert would have been sacked years ago.

Graeme is by far the most one sided Liberal supporter on Australian radio (yes, even more than Alan Jones).

It’s got to the stage where each night people ring in to criticise him over his incredibly obvious Liberal leanings.

Frank – Whoopsie Daisy – I would be interested in your theory on why Luke was sacked.
I am getting long in the tooth and have held senior positions.
I have learned that if one of your Trump cards has a performance issue you either make sure you have a better performer or you have tried to correct the issue before you terminate them.
Terminating on the spot is either due to a serious breach, insubordination or a political decision (internal or external).
I liked Luke Grant and believe he did not know it was coming, nor did Brooke his producer (from her comment above).

Graeme Gilbert does seem to be biased but I don’t listen to him often. He is not in Newcastle (a strong labour seat) and I would assume he would not have the political power in Newcastle that Luke held.
If you don’t think this is beyond the Labour Party, without mentioning names, look at what the Party did to 4 of our local members and recently for pursuing a good cause in wallsend.

My question is not who gave the the news to Luke but by who initiated the action and why.

Like a soapy, I would like to know the truth and have a happy ending.

@Easyrider – In my opinion Luke was sacked because his latest ratings were deemed unacceptable by management (4th place, beaten even by the snooze fest on ABC for the first time in many years – maybe ever?).

However, the dreadful management of 2HD in recent years is no doubt the major cause of this ratings decline rather than the presenter and the production team.

I agree with most posters on this site – the manner in which Luke was sacked was dreadfully inappropriate and unprofessional. However, everything Bill Caralis does in radio is dreadfully inappropriate and unprofessional, so it was hardly a surprise.

The management of 2HD have no idea how radio ratings work. For example, Richard King was let go from the Drive Shift for alleged low ratings. However, 2HD management failed to realise that much of the decline in 2HD’s Drive percentage share was due to the huge success of Hamish and Andy, who target a completely different audience to 2HD. Richard’s average audience was 5000 listeners – the exact same number as the “successful” Graeme Gilbert in Newcastle (Gilbert’s percentage share is only larger due to the much smaller number of people listening to FM stations at night).

Derryn Hinch in Melbourne has experienced the same problem as Richard did. Derryn’s Drive share has fallen from 17% to 10%, however, his total numbers have remained fairly constant. It’s just that Hamish and Andy have brought many new listeners to the Drive Shift right across Australia, resulting in AM stations having a lower share of the audience (but still the same NUMBER of listeners).

This is just one of many examples of how 2HD management have failed to adequately interpret radio ratings in recent years.

I happened to be listening to the naive and brainwashed Carter Edwards the other day. There were technical problems he said and went on to say how the “best technicians in the world” were working on the problem. A ridiculous comment seeing as both 2HD and 2SM don’t even have a lone technician, let alone a Senior Engineer ! Does Carter not realise how being paid a few hundred dollars for working 12 hours each wekend is saving Caralis a fortune ? His programme is going out to 15 AM stations on a Saturday and Sunday night….Award rates for this timeslot is $400. Caralis saves himself $6,000 by putting Edwards in to all these regional stations.

@Mark – Carter would do the show for free if he had to because it gives him a platform to advertise his club shows.

Trust me – Carter gets more out of the radio show than Caralis.

as a former staff member of newfm (1989-1999) and 2hd (1999-2002) i saw many disgraceful decisions made by the management team(s).these included and involved the termination of john paul young from the new fm breakfast show;the lack of support for talented people like maynard,dave gorr,don mayo,alan cameron,greg pennington and kev kellaway from other network’s;the severing of leigh maugham and debbie spillane calling rugby league;incorporating john o’donnell for his experience and not letting him use them;then there’s the constant changing of the guard of the 2hd breakfast slot (david/tanya;luke grant/jodi mackay;
tony briscoe,summer arathoon,stefano lineburner[aka steve st.john},etc,etc).
when i was on the staff,i used to cringe at the thought of doing my tie up in the mirror in the morning and thinking to myself “i wonder what they’re (management)going to F**K with today” ?

i had that same thought today after 7am.when i heard “hi de ho de everybody” on the air on 2hd.when i rang to enquire about where luke grant was,i got some 16 (18 ??) year old bonehead answering the phone who wouldn’t have a clue what i was enquiring about let alone who.the short answer i received was “Mr grant no longer works here.have a good day” and was hung up on.tremendous customer service newfm/2hd.hasn’t changed a bit.

2hd is going to be more the poorer for
luke grant not being behind the microphone hence forth.maybe the powers-that-be in management at newfm/2hd should
look at their handywork of late and have the balls to own up and say they made a mistake,the latest in a long line of poor management decisions since these 2 stations merged and from newfm’s inception.but then again,what do you expect from them when one of the (so-called) management team is (allegedly) bagging the other constantly to (alleged) prospective advertising clients at Chinois restaurant and the other is in his 40′s and still lives with his parents ?

as Einstein professed…not everything that counts can be counted and not everything that can be counted counts.

PS btw,thanx to the newfm staffer with a pipeline to caralis and his staff because they’re a very accommodating bunch when they convene for Xmas parties at my brother’s pub in Darling Harbour.see you,in your capacity of loyal newfm/2hd staff member at THEE club,in Sydney,this week running off at the mouth again ??

Guy Ashford hang your head in sham.

I’m not sure what is going on inside the walls of that station but since you have been there everything has turned to crap. Luke was the only person on the network worth listening to. I’m not sure what idiot came to the conclusion it would be good to let Luke Grant go but you have opened the flood gates and made a bad decision. What kind of low life sacks some one 1 week out from Christmas. It’s a low act and an action on a coward. I will be advising every one I know not to advertise with you and will not be listening top the station any more as it’s a decrease. Guy Ashford you Maggot

What has happened to my ONCE favorite Radio Station?. First of all the dropping of Mike Rabbitt, for a gardening show which i hear they get for free.Then taking the most boring man ever to be on radio between 9 and 12. I was celebrating his decision to leave, when they make the biggest blunder of all time.Sacking the only announcer on HD
who has a great personality. All the best Luke, i hope you get another gig in Newcastle so we can all listen.We will see how HD goes in the ratings now, down i hope.

Luke Grant and Steve Price were the only two that had 2HD surviving. Even tho he was pushing bob baldwin a fair bit which brassed me off. Mind you it is absolutely super to have Grant Goldman as replacement BUT where 2HD will lose listeners is when that kim beasley of radio ,steve liebman, comes on – a nice guy but totally totally boring and his socalled interviews you can actually predict what his next question is. He is so mundane and it time for myself and others to change stations at 9AM. Wake up management as luk put in so much and got back nothing from you. You need a person who is contraversal and provocative not liebman who puts a person to sleep if you listen. You have lost me after 9 AM unless grant goes as well you will have lost me and hundreds of others as you are behaving like the NSW labor party and are imploding.

I awoke this morning to learn that Luke Grant had been sacked! I can’t believe your decision and I’am sure it is going to come back to haunt you. We have been loyal Luke fans but we will now be listening to another station. as will many others.

Luke, we wish you all the best and hope to hear you again real soon on another newcastle station.

I have just read in the Telegraph that Bill Caralis is close to signing John Laws for the super radio network. If this is so he would obviously have the 9-12 timeslot.

I am devistated that Luke Grant is not on the radio anymore. I listen to radio all day & half the night, it just so happens that the best reception in my area on my ‘no frills’ communication devices is 2HD, so that is all I listen to but now I am seeking a more superior system so that I can find other stations to listen too. I hope that Luke will get a gig on a Newcastle Radio station that can appreciate his talent and loyalty to the people of Newcastle

well its obvious that from all the other posts that 2HD and NEW-FM are dead in the water and many of the die-hard listeners think so —- and yes in 2010 both stations will find that not only the listeners will change stations but so will the advertisers — It seems to me that the entire Newcastle Breakfast Radio industry has gone a bit Blah!!!

That Goes for the Rubbish that spews out of NX-FM and the David and Tanya show where all they do is the same rubbish over and over …well in sick of it and believe it or not I listen to 981 2MN when i can pick up reception — how sad is that —Breakfast radio in Newcastle needs a rocket !!! Lets get the crew from 2MC ie June the Tea lady to make us smile — and break the same old crap that each station produces each day….

Maybe the people who are running the Station eg Guy Ashford and even
Steve St John should be next to go …

I think the Yellow Submarine is taking on water !!!!! fast

heres one for all to consider — Merryl Swanson for breakfast on 2HD ????

John Laws back on rado on the Super Radio Network??? Well knock me down with one of Bill’s Subway wrappers. It’s not the first time the King and and the Fool have had discussions about such a plan, but that was back when John was taken off some 20 odd stations belonging to DMG wasn’t it?? (someone will know the network)and replaced by Charles Woolley. Big John desperately wanted to make up the numbers again but Bill couldn’t see the value in Laws… “What doya mean I pay you to do all your Fu@king Toyota ads on my stations, F#%k off”??? One’s ego must be still pretty dented re being pushed from 2UE two years ago to consider a comeback on TSRN. Should be OK really… It’s only three hours a day Bill has to pay for, that’s all jocks work isn’t it? At the award rate $21 an hour, $60 a day, $300 a week… across 20 stations, what a bargain Billy, you’re a freakin genius! It’ll all go well untill big John looks for his first pay check in his bank account, or is he going to pay Bill to let him do it?. Even bigger freakin genius Bill. Laws could be good back on radio, at least he’ll be better than what’s being dished up by Radio 97. But how long will it be before Caralis does something stupid to burn Laws just like he burns everyone else with his penny pinching ways. You won’t be able to play songs Lawsy, gotta pay APRA fees if you do that. You’re a smart man John, you don’t need the $ don’t totally F@#k up your reputation, stay up in the cloudy valley away from this nutter.

fair dinkum.you people on this blog are kidding.with or without luke grant,radio in newcastle is the pits.i hear more entertaining dialogue in a reading of the koran and better music every time a pope dies !

the sooner nova opens its pursestrings and operates a radio station up here in newcastle the better.hopefully then most listeners would be able to cheer in the streets when we get the quintet of the abc being turned into public toilets (so there’d be somewhere to flush their laughable opinionated ramblings and incessant and boring waffle 24/7) and nx,ko,newfm and 2hd all playing lowlevel tone and going off the air fulltime with all its bullshit shows and low intelligence radio.then we’d have something decent to listen to.

In response to Little Johnnie’s last post, how absolutely true …. there’s no way Billy will pay the bucks needed to lure Lawsey back to radio – even if he did, John’s reputation would be far better served staying in retirement, or at least working for another network with some credibility. It’ll never happen! There’s no way Billy will foot the bill for the golden mic either.

Brent Bultitude takes over from Monday. Rumours Grant Goldman will do 9-midday with Leibmann dumped across the Super Radio Network.

2HD has lost 2010 to 1233 already it seems.

[...] breakfast replacement for Luke Grant revealed Following on from December’s dismissal of 2HD breakfast announcer Luke Grant, we can now reveal that Brent Bultitude will be his [...]

Whoopsie Daisy… really? Grant Goldman 9 – 12? That leaves a big hole for Billy to fill, 2SM network breakfast to all those poor bastards who already have to listen to GG. God I hope your info is correct. With BB on breakfast and the plastic vocals of Mr Train Stopper on mornings what a sensational year 2010 will be for 2HDisaster. So who’s likely to pick up arvo’s? Caralis will surely now network Talkin Shit from 3, what will happen 12 – 3? Maybe this is Richard Kings chance. He’d have been a better breakfast option anyway.

Little Johnny – I direct your attention to http://www.newmedia.com.au – a radio industry website which claims Goldman may be sitting in the chair until Lawsie comes on-board (the poor fool).

boy.newcastle listeners really copped it big time from the sandgate bunker in 2010.

steves st.bomb & brenton would-be-if-he-could be on spew fm & brent multitiude of mistakes on 2hgeek.

great radio guys…or should that be guy.

I don’t think one can say anymore than the numerous comments up to now. Ego’s it seems is responsible for the demise of these many talented radio personnel. Management need to forget their egos and put the stations commitment to the community first. Make decisions based on the success of the company, not for personal achievment and the right decisions will always prevail. This station has HAD many top announcers and ‘behind the scenes’ people, yet they still struggle. What does that tell us???

I no longer listen to 2hd. Luke Grant was always part of my breakfast routine. Although not knowing him personally, he came across as a person very passionate about the Hunter region. To me, he was very professional without being abrupt or wanting attention for himself alone. When speaking to the public he gave them airtime and unlike a lot of interviewers you hear on the radio, Luke had conversations with people – not just talked over them. I miss his show a lot!!

I have just been informed that there will be a story in tomorrow’s NEWCASTLE HERALD. Luke Grant tells all exclusive. Make sure you grab the herald tomorrow to get the full story from Lukes side.

Should be interesting.

How I hate politics…..Luke is so greatly missed by so many in the mornings 2hd will never ever be as good…maybe Luke was just the wrong religion?..they protect their own do they not.

don’t despair about luke grant.he WILL be back On-Air in Newcastle,sooner than you think.that’s just “1″ of the 1 (or 2) surprises coming for Newcastle radio liteners in the not too far distant future.

sorry.bad grammar.that should’ve been “listeners”,sans “liteners” in my last comment.

Used to listen to 2hd 24/7, not any more. Breakfast show is a lame duck. Not a patch on the Luke Grant show with Ian Crouch, Brooke and earlier with Emma. That team was fun and informative. What have you done 2hd management?

give me a break.people get canned in this business.luke grant wasn’t the worst or the first person to get the ARSE from a radio station.get over it.

[...] ex-2HD announcer Luke Grant [Newcastle radio]9Feb10 This statement just arrived via email  from Luke Grant dated 5 February 2010. I have spoken with Mr Grant to confirm that he was indeed the sender and [...]

what a disgrace.

Chalk up another one for the
‘FAT CONTROLLER’ who loves nothing more than to play with his stations.

Proof the man is an idiot, he’s not in it for the money.
How can ACMA allow this to happen to the industry? A vast chunk of the eastern seaboard has been taken over for the purpose of the fat controller to fullfill “control freak needs” with an iron fist and no respect for anything.

Does Poland need to be invaded again for ACMA to see the fat controller is not in it to improve the industry…..

What a sad sad life the fat controller must lead.

Brent is like a breath of fresh air as he made me realise that Lukes show was all about Luke and I didn’t mind Luke except for having his mate bob baldwin on with usually useless information all the time have baldwins name mentioned in the news bulletins usually mentioned 3 times. Good Luck Luke but your replacement is so much more entertaining but mind you I turn off 2hd when that totally boring steve liebman comes on as do alot of others BUT Stuart and Tracey who are replacing SL for the moment have brought myself and others back and once they are gone so are we.

I would just like to say that since Luke has gone I have not turned into 2HD I now listen to 103.7, 1233 and I will even listen to 107.7 from the cental coast as they have great music and you can hear them even up at the bay. Why would I come back.
As for the sacking of Luke I have a feeling it was more political than anything else as he was always pushing Local issues that the Labor party would rather see the people of the Hunter to roll over and accept there rulings as they tried to dictate to the people. Luke would not do this and allowed the listeners to have there say and he would invite the Local Member to come on and explain why they made that decision. Not one Labor politician came on his show as they new they would be at the mercy of Luke and the listeners. To me this shows they had no conviction in there decision in the first place.
He would criticise the fact the Premier or the PM would be in the Hunter and would not talk to the Local radio stations and why because they did not want to be asked the hard questions about the Hunter. The fact that many of the other political parties where willing go on his show and answer the hard questions why not the Labor politicians. To me this why he was sacked as he would not sit back and allow the Labor party to do what they wanted without explaining to the people why they have made a decision that affected there life.
Even Jodi Mackay that worked with Luke would appear on his show as she new she could not sit there and lie to Luke and his audience.
Good Luck Luke and hope that I see the demise of 2HD as for me I will never go back and I know a lot of people who are in the same boat.

Luke soon begins his 9pm – midnight shift on Melbourne’s MTR (Talk Radio)and Ian Crouch is to work for 2NUR FM.

Lately I am finding myself roaming the dial between 1233 ABC and KO-FM.

[...] continued its long slide but the biggest issue is their breakfast show. Luke Grant was controversially sacked as 2HD breakfast announcer late last year and his replacement Brent Bultitude has seen the show fall further in the ratings to [...]

Totally agree with Robert 30/3/10.
Dan the junction man missed Luke’s other interviews. Nathan Rees (Then NSW Premier Labor Party) had a perminant time slot till he pulled out.
Luke was good for our City.

[...] Breakfast announcer Brent Bultitude has resigned suddenly from Newcastle radio station 2HD. He has been Breakfast announcer on the Bill Caralis owned station since late 2009 when he replaced Luke Grant who was dismissed in controversial circumstances. [...]

Graeme Gilbert!! Please forgive my ignorance, but are we meant to take him seriously? This is no more than a far right wing shock jock (he, by the way, sees himself as a ‘news journalist’) who gets paid to ‘spread the word’ amongst the poor unfortunates that have had the dial stuck on 2HD since about 1971. I realise this may sound a little naive, but I’m not used to this sort of thing having come from Victoria a few years ago. I think its his calm, reserved tone that sets him apart from his more rambunctious shock jock brethren. If anything, it makes him even more creepy and depressing. eg. ‘All Afghan asylum seekers are cowards’. Great stuff from the 2SM sage. p.s. send him an email he doesn’t like, and you’ll certainly get a response! A very unpleasant egoist to say the least. Well worth ignoring.

To Mark who worked with Luke Grant at 2HD
Relcoate to Melbourne so that you can work with Lujke agian at MTR 1377.

To Debroah who was Luke Grant’s last Producer at 2HD In Newcastle
Why don’t you relocote to Melbourne and sign with Melbourne’s MTR 1377 and join Luke Grant and Steve Price and become Steve Price’s latest producer?

Easyrider
Steve Price was not sacked from FairFax Radio he resigned now Pricey and Luke are both on MTR 1377. and I would recomend to those People who currently Listen to and avdertise on 2HD leave Newcastale and drive to Melbourne then yiu can listen to Luke Grant and Pricy amongst other i mentioned in an earlier post.