Former AFL player and Logie winner Tony Armstrong said he has “mixed feelings” on his last day with ABC News Breakfast.
Armstrong earlier announced his last day would be Friday after working with the network since 2020, when he joined as a fill-in sports presenter.
The Gamilaroi man began full-time work in 2021 and has since gone on to win the Graham Kennedy Award at the 2022 Logie Awards for most popular new talent as well as the 2023 Bert Newton Award for Most Popular Presenter.
Speaking of his time with the program on Friday morning, Armstrong said his time with the ABC had been a “whirlwind”.
“Mixed feelings. You can tell by my body language, I don’t like talking about myself too much, despite being in a career where I’m in front of a camera,” Armstrong said on ABC News Breakfast.
“It’s been such a whirlwind three years. Believe it or not, I was nervous when I started.
“It didn’t last long. But yeah, that wasn’t all that long ago. And yeah, News Breakfast has given me everything, really. It’s given me… It’s given me a joy ride!”
Armstrong also said his time with the program had given him “so many lovely memories”.
“I wouldn’t be in the position that I’m in today to be able to walk out on my own terms, and into whatever is next,” he said.
“I don’t really know exactly what it is yet… I’m just very thankful to everyone who watches and everyone who said such nice things to me across the course of this week particularly.
“It’s been a funny old week. But yeah, people have been really, really nice to me.”
When asked if the “nice people outweigh the horrible people”, Armstrong said “of course”.
“I’m going to miss the News Breakfast family. And as we all know, Steph, and Michael, you guys know — it is more than just the people out here,” he said.
“We’ve got a bunch of producers and everyone, directors, people on autocue, who are doing the work of four or five people. And everyone does it so well.”
The comments come after it was revealed Armstrong had worked on private NRMA insurance adverts without getting permission from the ABC.
The ABC’s Media Watch host Janine Perrett spoke of the controversy in Monday’s episode.
“It’s a shame this moonlighting at the expense of the ABC’s integrity is what we’re talking about in his final week on News Breakfast,” Perrett said.
Source Agencies
