Eddie McGuire was ‘hurting for a while’ before Triple M breakfast radio exit

Eddie McGuire will wrap up 11 years on Triple M Melbourne’s The Hot Breakfast on Friday 27 November.

And the Nine personality has revealed he put off the announcement for weeks as he pondered whether ‘to keep going’ with the top-rating radio show.

Speaking to the Herald Sun on Sunday, Eddie claimed he had been ‘hurting for a while’ with the weight of the decision.

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Eddie joined Triple M in 1988 as a young journalist and has been on the Hot Breakfast show since 2009.

‘Always in the build-up to any announcement like this you convince yourself five times over to keep going, to not go, to keep going, to not go, because you love doing the show, but it has been hurting for a while,’ Eddie admitted, adding that he was originally going to reveal his exit from the show on October 29.

‘To be honest the constant feeling of jet lag you have when you are doing breakfast radio, it compounds the longer you do it, and you also get a bit older,’ he said.

Eddie also added that his various other personal and professional commitments regularly kept ‘massive slabs of [his] diary blocked out’, which left him ‘tired’.

‘So that is where it is at. I’m looking forward to being a bit more relaxed, to be perfectly honest,’ Eddie reasoned of his career move at 56.

‘It’s time for me to finish up a wonderful 11 year run with a 4am alarm,’ Eddie told listeners on Wednesday, adding his plan was to ‘reflect and recharge’ ahead of 2021.

‘This year has been a year like no other for all of us. We found ourselves able to broadcast six hours a day and on weekends when COVID-19 hit. Whilst gruelling, it has also been a true honour and pleasure for us to be with Melbourne every step of the way and the most important year in our show’s history,’ Eddie said. 

The Millionaire Hot Seat host said with his youngest two sons now finished at school, he is looking forward to his next chapter without an early 4am radio alarm.  

‘I plan to take some time to reflect and recharge with my family and after a good, long break have a look at what the next project for Triple M looks like in 2021, building on new ground we forged back in 2009,’ he added.

Eddie hosts The Hot Breakfast with Luke Darcy, who also addressed the show ending on Wednesday.

‘The last 11 years has been the most enjoyable experience you could imagine. Sitting next to the man in the suit, Triple M royalty Rosie Walton and comedy giants Mick Molloy and Wil Anderson every morning has been the greatest gift,’ Luke said.

Meanwhile, SCA Chief Content Officer Dave Cameron said in a statement: ‘I’d like to sincerely thank Eddie and Darce for what has been a wonderful 11 years in the toughest spot in radio with Triple M Melbourne.’ 

Luke Darcy will stay on as part of the AFL footy call team and Eddie will be back in 2021 with exciting new projects for Triple M.