Rove McManus has announced he is stepping down from his Channel TEN show.
“I’ve decided after ten years of doing the show tonight will be my last one,” he said.
“This is purely my decision. It’s not one I have made lightly or flippantly, or easily I must say. I just think the timing is right. I need to stop, take a step back and see what happens next,” he said.
“It’s something that has been sitting on my mind a little bit. Now after ten wonderful years I think we’re at the perfect spot to be able to stop and do it on our times, while we’re still on a high and ride off into the sunset hopefully.
“I know we’ve made jokes about this on the show before.”
“If you need to email, tweet or send off a carrier pigeon to let people know…. I would love for them to be on board to be able to say goodbye before the end of it.
“It is very short notice I do realise, but I only came to the decision recently and to be honest I didn’t want a whole lot of fuss going into tonight.”
His final show is currently airing on TEN.
“I also think tonight is the perfect night for it. We’ve got the best setting possible. All our cast is here for it.”
TEN has now issued a statement which says. “The strong relationship between Roving Enterprises and TEN will continue to grow with The 7PM Project and Before The Game, both on TEN through 2010.”
TEN, which initially indicated Rove would return in 2010, had denied the show was ending including in newspaper reports this weekend. It previously indicated it was yet to make a decision on Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? -absent from its latest statement.
McManus, who began his television career in community television, has had his own variety show on both Nine and TEN. He has won Gold Logies, been lauded by Jay Leno and continues to pick up accolades, last week winning two awards at the Kids’ Choice Awards. This year’s show performed well off the back of MasterChef Australia but had a trickier time following Australian Idol.
McManus this year married Tasma Walton in a surprise wedding in Western Australia.
Rove ended with its host thanking cast, crew, families, TEN and viewers with a hope to reacquaint at some time in the future.
“For the last time… say bye to your mum for me.”
This post updates.
Such a big shame. Now I have no variety weekly show to look forward to. Will definitely miss the show. Much love. Wonder what Rove & the others are going to do now. Gonna miss the stuff that Hamish and Andy showed on the show too.
If Hamish and Andy, Micallef or someone else doesn’t get their own show to replace this one, all the guest spots will be moved onto Good News Week, which will be bad for everyone.
Matt says:
November 16, 2009 at 7:08 am
“Rove probably left to join the ALP”
I doubt it, considering he launched The Greens’ Bob Brown’s new book ‘Earth’ the other day.
I guess it’s back to 10 hours straight of CSI/NCIS/VSIP/BNOP/L&O SVU/NCISISCA/NCISCSISMU…whoa the variety of TV today, it’s either crime or depressing medical shows.
Rove passed his used-by date about 4yrs ago so can’t say I’m sorry to see him quit. I will give him credit for jumping before he was pushed though.
A lot of people leaving comments here are saying that Hamish and Andy may be the new replacement for Rove next year.
I hope that this is definitely not true.
They’re not that funny.
Micalleff can fill the Sunday slot with a talk show, and retrospective on what has happened that week!
Looks like TV execs are looking at their desk calendar and going “wow a new decade” (maybe the PA did this for them but anyway) and decide to change content and lineup because it’s simply 2010.
I think this show ran it’s course but if you’re a fan it’s bad news.
Wonder if this leaves the door open for Hamish & Andy to get a gig or not.
Looking forward to the Hamish and Andy Show next year at 9pm, Sunday Nights on Ten
Thanks Rove for all the laughs over the years..Been to many tapings of his show, and they were fantastic, with Rove really making sure the audience had lots of fun during the commercial breaks.Will miss you..it was a real shock hearing the announcement,and we can only hope you can come back with another show you compare sometime next year.
When a show like this goes off air so many people are out of work
Thank god
Rove probably left to join the ALP
where are all of the people going to go?
Christie, Ryan, Pete.
Plus I wonder where H&A Will put their videos now?
The show was never the same since they got rid of what the?
Will miss the adventures of ruddy but.
Oh, won’t Rove be in our cars now? (Radio)
eeeeeeeeK!
If he targets the US market, he might be more of a success than over here.
We can see Letterman and even Leno have been going for it for the past 25+ years…. they not only do their own jokes but have others writing for them…!! Does Rove have that here? Shawn McAuliffe (Correct Spelling?) was fantastic on the Nine network years ago…. bring him back but he’s on TEN anyways… and somewhere on SBS… Newstopia.
Letterman and Leno probably have been going strong for so many years because of course there are more people in the US of A. More channels and Variety – but here in lil ol’ Aus…. we have a few main networks and kinda does get boring and old with the same jokes/faces on TV for so many years. Nothing really changed over the years with the segments or style of show. I do congratulate Rove on his work for the past 10 years and we can all learn and have seen someone do very well after starting off on Community TV!
The one time I miss Rove . . . and this happens.
Wow!!! In this day and age can you imagine any other show being on the air for ten years and not having a huge hoo-haa about it being the last episode ever in a last ditch attempt to get ratings???
I’ve never been a fan of Rove or his show. I’ve found him a medicore interviewer at best and hated his pandering to guests. He is extremely unfunny and I feel that there are so many more talented people out there who could do so much better. I understand people like him, but to me he was always boring and tried far too hard to be “cool” and “edgy”. That being said, I do see a Huge hole left by Rove, with international guests having no where to be interviewed when in town bar a morning show…
I hope that Ten really do consider where they’ll go from here, both on Sunday nights and with talk shows generally. Let’s hope they try something new and different for both!
As the show wasn’t funny, its Aus ratings were declining and Rove was always an abysmal interviewer, I’d say thanks Rove for doing Aus viewers a big favour (although I would’ve suggested Rove quit 2 or 3 years ago).
With respect Aus music performers and overseas film, TV and music celebrities visiting the country, needing a TV show to appear on, to plug their new album – music tour and/or new film, there isn’t any reason why there can’t be (from 6.30 – 7.30 pm, or even from 6 – 7 pm, where it’d have to be called The 6PM Project), a 1 hour Sunday night version of The 7PM Project, fronted by a team who don’t do the Monday – Friday night version (like Hamish, Andy and a couple other people).
If Rove wants to crack the US market, as he isn’t that funny, I don’t think he has what it takes, but if he wanted to have a serious crack at it, you can’t do it in a half assed way and would need to move to and base yourself in the US for at least
5 or 6 years.
Thanks for the last 10 years Rove it’s been great,even followed you on Channel 31.Was fortunate to go to his show about 4 years ago now gee it was a great night.Ashame the show could’nt go out with more of a bang,as they had to include the whole Rove team,with them doing there non funny segments.Judith Lucy,Hamish and Andy,also Pete have done a great job forget about the rest of them.It looks like Hey Hey might just be coming back the right time so we can see the overseas guests
With a tear in my eye, I say Thankyou Rove for 10 awesome years. Growing up watching you has been a fun ride. You started out in Community TV, I’ve started my career in Community Radio. You are my inspiration!
Be Good
Congratulations, to Rove Mcmanus, cast and crew of the show for providing variety television on Australian screens for the past 10 years and leaving on your own terms. I think Rove can now take his place amongst the great variety hosts such as Don Lane, Graham Kennedy, Bert Newton and Daryl Somers. Thanks for the laughs Rove, and say hi to ya mum for me!
such a mixed bunch of comments with the ones being about him doing radio shows or asking him to do a “before you go out show on cavill ave, gold coast” wtf?? the worst! he’ll put together something bigger than anything mentioned.
you can tell something has happened, he seemed switched off at times tonight.
what will the music and entertainment industries do without the publicity on rove in australia? he’s had some great guests! ;actors, writers, directors, comedians too
sad it’s ended… shame.
While I agree that Rove was better before it was on Sundays (it just doesn’t feel right), the show will be missed. Well done Rove, I have (overall) enjoyed having you in my living room. Say “Hi” to your Mum for me…
With all the late night talk shows on Foxtel these days, you’d think Rove could have kept stealing jokes & segments for many years to come.
Even though he says it was his decision to quit I somehow after watching him say it on tv, don’t believe it. I think he was told to quit or suggested by the network.
To all the cast and crew, thanks for the memories. xoxo
Rove always attracted major international (and local) guests/musicians, so it’s going to leave a rather large hole in the entertainment industry. What other show has the ability to attract the big name stars? I can’t think of a single one.
Micallef Tonight back in 2010?
so with fifth grader most likely not coming back, and rove not being on and when 7pm gets axed what will rove do. He must be thinking of a new show!
It is not like there is nothing to watch now on Sundays.. GO! has Curb Your Enthusiam, South Park and Weeds.
I think the show was getting a bit tired after so many years on tv, however I reckon they should have adopted a format similar to the Jay Leno show.
and also I am glad there is a delay here in Perth , now I will definitely be watching it in 30 mins.
I’ll really miss this show, I watched it from the very first episode on 10 and every one since for all 9 years and have also watched the dvd of the channel 9 stint. now what platform will visiting celebrities etc use to promote their new movies or projects? all that is left is the morning shows and young people don’t watch them. rove has always been very natural and genuine on tv, something that eddie mcguire and andrew o’keefe know nothing of, this quality will be missed on australian tv.
Have watched it the whole ten years you will be missed! thanks for the laughs rove and good luck with future projects! Hope to see you on tv again soon!!
Rove Mcmanus you’ve been a great entertainer and I’m really going too miss you! For the past 10 years you did a top job. I loved how you maintained yourself in tough interviews, how you made the awkward funny and the joy and laughter you brought into peoples lives! Thanks for the interviews and the good times! I’ll miss you mate!
@Kubz: Maybe, maybe not. As long as Before the Game and The 7pm Project are still on the air, then he still technically has a relationship with Ten.
Personally, I won’t be convinced until an official statement is made by Rove’s PR guys.
isnt it intersting to note though that Hey Hey and Rove have never really been on TV at the same time?
Oh joyful day
Rove is about the least talented person in the business and that’s saying something.
Good riddance to his stupid show.
The speculation that Rove has been snagged by a rival network has been dismissed ….
From The Sydney Morning Herald
Mr Mott said McManus would remain a part of the network.
“The end of Rove on Ten does not mark the end of Rove and Ten: a relationship that spans a decade is harder than this to switch off,” he said.
Nnnnoooooooo!!!
It’s so sad, I love Rove, It was a heaps Funny show, Rove was Australia’s talk show, now what will we have that has celebrities talking about there new projects, hilarious comedy, music artists performing live.
I do hope Rove live will be back on one day
It was awsome
Brenton: I made a facebook group page for that exact thing around 3 weeks ago… The group will continue even though Rove will now be off screen…
Thanks Rove for hosting a great show for the past 10 years. Sunday nights won’t be the same. You are one of the nicest guys around and I hope we see you do something on tv again. I will miss Rove especially Hamish and Andy and Judith Lucy and of course Pete.
It was a great finale tonight.
worst decision ever! we can thank ten’s loser program 7pm project! we all know in the end the whether its at the end of next yr or not that ten will realise 7pm does nothing for them and should have been axed 3 weeks after it started!!!
@ Dave: Interim replacement, sure, but unless he’s going to do a massive overhaul of the show, he’s just too expensive to do more than a handful of episodes.
@Jerome: Seems like a logical move. They need a big name to anchor the show, and all the existing Seven celebrities are far too overexposed. With the recent, and not so recent financial woes that Ten has been experiencing, I’d be shocked if they could do more than offer a feeble reply in a bidding war.
If played smart, it could be the smartest move Seven has made for a long while.
On the plus side for Rove fans, it would also free up enough time for him to also do morning radio. It would be an intense schedule he’d be juggling, but definitely doable.
Good decision. Probably best Rove made the decision rather than Ten. He’s just not funny anymore, and the show has gone downhill, so too have the ratings. I love Sam Worthington though, he’s so Aussie i love it.
LOL @ Nathan – how ironic!!
Wow. I moved here from the States a year ago and really enjoy(ed) watching Rove. He’s on par with Jay Leno. Good clean funny. He seems like a great guy and I wish him all the best and can’t wait for his new projects.
Thanks for the fun and very entertaining memories Rove! You will be dearly missed!
he new it was time to pull the pin i reckon. as long as they dont put that unfunny moron they call peter helliar on a show by himself. i will be extrememly happy. rove will pop up somewhere with a new show i reckon
Who wants to say that he’ll host atleast one episode of the 7pm project in the next 6 months?? I could actually see them trying Rove as a replacement for Charlie Pickering while he’s on vacation.
One experiment I would love to see Rove McManus and Channel 10 try next year is a Live Friday night program for after the 7pm project. Run Friday’s episodes until 8pm, then go Live to a location around Australia (one week Fed Square, the next Cavil Ave on the Gold Coast) and build a program that young people would want to watch before going out/while hanging out with friend’s on a Friday night. Include Live musical acts (maybe doing multiple songs through out the show), comedy acts, celebrity interviews followed by Autograph’s plus a “It’s a Knockout” style competition through out the night with the live crowd. Use the same contestants a few times in the episode…
Not only could you build a live crowd of around 200-500 people in one area, you would more than likely get higher ratings to a live program than to Simpsons & repeat movies.
Yes! The greatest news all year!
Rove will do Nova breakfast in Sydney in 2010 and Hamish and Andy will do TEN next year!
Hopefully one of the networks will start up another variety talk show and have it on a more regular basis with decent writing and actual celebrity guests.
Could this be a sign that rove is moving on to nova 969 in Sydney in the morning? I mean it has been rumored around and it would explain a direct exit from the show …
I’d personally watch a shaun micaleff (sp?) talk show though …
rove to host the 7pm project in 2010?
@Vic, a network poach is a real possibility i think. can hardly imagine ten giving rove enough work to stay around.
who knows, maybe 7 will make him The Marriage Ref?? word is that 7 is paid top dollar in a 3 way network bidding war at MIPCOM for those rights. they will be wanting the host choice to make a bit of a spash.
@Jane: Ten years ago, what else did Ten have to tout as its flagship programme?
In 1999 Rove comes, Hey Hey goes.
In 2009 Hey Hey comes, Rove goes.
About time. The show was never great, never rated well, and never deserved it’s flag ship status.
Wow, I thought he said he was gonna be back next year. If I knew this was the last ever one, I would have watched…hell I would have watched the last few weeks as well.
sorry to say it, but thank god.
OMG. This is insane.
I can’t believe this is actually happening – that I’m watching the last Rove ever. Sundays on TV without Rove are going to be sooo boring. Thanks for all the memories and for a fun show.
It has lost a lot of its genuine innovative comedy, and become quite lacklustre. To perpetuate it in this form would not have been a good plan.
Good luck to him and the team in whatever they choose to do. I am certain they won’t be off TV for long.
@Aaron: I feel like a fool that it never occurred to me that Micallef would take over. Personally, I thought Newstopia was a heap of trash, but something like this might fit him like a glove.
However, if I was a betting man, I’d say 2-1 odds that Hamish and Andy are quickly named as replacements.
Wouldn’t mind seeing Saturday Night Live slotted in place of Rove…
But I have to say, kudos to Rove. I’ve never liked his humour, and found his show awful at the best of times, but he did what he did well, and he garnered quite a following in his time. He deserves credit for the spontaneous quitting, rather than making a play for ratings (which I would not have blamed him for doing).
The only thing is, and I don’t know if it’s just the name of the article that’s making me think it, but I wonder if he hasn’t been poached by another network. With 5th Grader effectively dead, and The 7pm Project all but, it wouldn’t shock me if someone (who am I kidding… Seven) did the equivalent of a forcible takeover of Rove.
Peps I thought the same thing!
That sucks. Hamish and Andy for a talk show or Micalef for a talk show in 2010 please.
This really is surprising, the show has not really rated in years and in these economic times it was just a matter of when not if!!
Good – never really found him funny.
Interesting Ten have given Shaun Micallef a go hosting a tonight-type show for New Years, and now this has happened … …
Something tells me the breakfast show on Nova in Sydney next year replacing Rosso?
For once I’m glad Perth has a delay, I wasn’t going to watch tonight but now I definately will.
Rove is no fool. He knows when to get out. He also knows that his production company has the perfect replacement – Hamish and Andy. They were badlt letdown by 7 when they first tried their own TV show. They are now much more TV savvy and Rove knows just how popular they are with the demographics 10 are chasing.
Oh my lord. Why on earth didnt he announce it during the week in order to get ratings? Sad to see him quit.. Im sure he’ll still be doing something on TEN though.
I can’t believe this! Huh? Where will Rove be next? Is he not going to be on TV anymore? There should have been more talk about it if it is really the final show ever.
What was all the talk about rove returning later in the year next year (March/April) and now not ever? Maybe it’s a trick and rove will be back in some different format. Wasn’t there some talk of him changing the style?
If this really is the end, it truly leaves no place for local and overseas talent on TV (outside of very short appearances on the 7PM Project), which is really unfortunate. That is unless Hey Hey can come back permanently (and not just a few specials).
What a load of crap! he will be back but just with a different show as he had Rove, Rove Live and Rove again maybe Rove Tonight next year?
I actually thought he was joking.
Plus Sam Worthington is so aussie, i had no idea. Love him.
i knew he was takin a break…but wow this is interesting….hmmm what will this do to the television landscape
Rove should return Rove Live to Tuesday 9.30pm, that show was 100% better than Rove on Sundays
Not a moment too soon, I must say.
Rove (the show) has ranged from hilarious to complete shouse over the past decade, and IMO the past 3 years have been the least funny and entertaining.
I will tune in for the finale, however.
I wonder if he decided to step down just in the past few days or something since I’m quite surprised the promos didn’t say “Last show ever”
Good, maybe we can have the late show with dave earlier and follow up with some craig ferguson.
Such a shame…will definitely be missed.