Host Paul Henry has proved a divisive figure on the show. Source: The Sunday Telegraph
TEN'S morning TV experiment, Breakfast, is in total turmoil - both on and off the camera.
Fed-up producers have left, one host couldn't get out of there fast enough - and one day last week only 1000 viewers tuned into the 6am show. In TV terms it is an unmitigated disaster.
Despite a makeover, with the departure of founding co-host Andrew Rochford, the weekday ratings have been abysmal and show no signs of improving.
Last Tuesday, more people were tuned into SBS's Al Jazeera News.
Insiders say the ailing TV show is imploding with two senior producers quitting in the past two weeks.
"It is an absolute disaster," said one source close to the production. "I've heard pretty much everyone on the show is looking for another job."
From the outset, the show's original executive producer Majella Wiemers -- who quit just over a week ago in the wake of Rochford's departure -- declared ratings were not an issue and Ten told her time was on her side to make it work.
In February she said: "At no stage was it ever bandied about because we wanted to make it different. I haven't been given an amount of time to get it right."
Wiemers has been replaced in the executive producer role by Sarah Bristow, who was her deputy. But consistently low viewing figures, which are assessed nationally by OzTAM via a metering system in volunteer households, have taken their toll on the show.
Breakfast has been attracting an average daily national audience of around 32,000 people in recent weeks, with no viewers registered for Perth on two occasions.
To compare, Seven's Sunrise regularly attracts more than 300,000 viewers while Nine's Today is at about 260,000.
Rochford's departure means controversial New Zealand presenter Paul Henry now shares hosting duties with Kathryn Robinson.
Insiders say ongoing tension between Henry and Rochford forced the line-up change.
Viewers noted friction between the pair from the outset, with one commenting online: "I wonder how long it will be before Paul says to Andrew, 'I don't like you!'."
A spokeswoman for Ten said: "As we have said many, many times, we are committed to Breakfast."
Regarding producers leaving the show she said: "Production staff are always changing. Recently, one Breakfast producer has been promoted to a new role in Ten. Another Breakfast producer has resigned to travel overseas."
She denied there were any issues, saying it was "completely wrong" and Rochford had moved on to other projects, including The Project.
But our sources maintain there was friction between the pair: "Paul and Andrew couldn't stand being in the same room as each other, which is part of the reason Andrew moved from being on the couch with Paul and Kathryn to roaming around the building and then leaving."
Henry has made no secret of problems on set; in an interview with media website Mumbrella last month, he said: "Where do I begin? You want everybody to be on the same page at the same time. If it is truly going to evolve properly it will take a long time to get to its best. It's a long, long way from its best now."
In the wake of her departure, Wiemers has gone to ground, blocking her Facebook page and refusing to respond to interview requests. Bristow is a long-term ally and friend of Henry and the pair worked together on New Zealand's TV1 Breakfast show, where she was associate producer.
TV commentator David Knox said Ten executives should start again. "As with prime-time news, breakfast TV audiences are creatures of habit," said Knox, of TV Tonight website. "You can't turn around the QEII overnight. Ten should already be plotting a relaunch for 2013."
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