Jackie O demanded KIIS bosses stop ‘abusive relationship’ months before Sandilands’ blow-up

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Jackie “O” Henderson demanded ARN’s chairman and chief executive intervene to stop Kyle Sandilands treating her like they were in an “abusive relationship” after he berated her by claiming she was on “period time” six months before their working partnership blew up.

Documents released by the Federal Court on Wednesday show Henderson complained about Sandilands’ behaviour after broadcasts in August and September 2025 during which he berated her in similar terms to the February 2026 incident that ended their working partnership.

Jackie O Henderson criticised Kyle Sandilands behaviour in February in text messages to bosses at ARN.Artwork: Marija Ercegovac

In the documents, Henderson demands more than $82 million in compensation from KIIS’ owner ARN for tearing up her contract and claims the station breached workplace rules by effectively retaliating against her after she exercised her rights to complain about Sandilands.

Henderson’s lawyers also claim she was not offered a new show by ARN before the company terminated her contract on March 3, despite the network telling the stock market it had. And they argue that the radio network made no attempt to intervene during Sandilands’ on-air rant directed toward her on February 20. Henderson wants compensation for lost earnings, reputational damage, pain, distress, hurt and humiliation.

The document lists a number of communications showing senior ARN executives were aware of Henderson’s complaints by at least September last year, supporting her argument that the February 20 incident this year was not isolated.

Henderson’s lawyers recount a broadcast on August 20 last year when Sandilands made “offensive and degrading” comments about her personal and dating life, including that Sandilands said “you’ll never find anyone because there is, all of these requirements that you have…” Henderson walked out during that broadcast, and Sandilands said she was on “period time”.

Then the next month, Henderson alleges Sandilands made further remarks that the show’s censors blocked from going to air. Afterwards, Henderson had a text exchange with Derek Barwanna, KIIS’ head of network, who on September 10 asked if things were alright.

“Yeah it’s fine today,” Henderson responded. “But let’s make sure [chairman] Hamish [McLennan] and [then-chief executive] Ciaran [Davis] start to think about how to address this. We are getting a lot of complaints from listeners, calling it an abusive relationship, women especially. I can send you though [sic] some [of] the examples’.”

The same day, Bargwanna told Henderson that he was “all over that” and had spoken with both Davis and McLennan twice about the issue.

Then, in February, Henderson allegedly texted ARN’s new chief executive Michael Stephenson and Kerri Elstub, chief content officer, to make clear her unhappiness at Sandilands on-air remarks.

She said his broadside was “unfair, inappropriate and completely unprovoked” and asked what the network was doing to prevent it happening again.

Henderson filed the proceedings in the Federal Court of Australia last week, demanding compensation of “at least” $82,250,000 after claiming her contract was unfairly terminated. Her statement of claim alleges that the ASX announcement detailing her termination on March 3 included “misleading and deceptive statements” under Australian consumer law.

In a statement to the ASX last Tuesday, ARN said that Henderson had made “psychosocial health and safety and bullying complaints” to the station in relation to Sandilands’ conduct toward her both on February 20, the day of the pair’s now infamous on-air fall out, and before then as well. It told the market she had declared she could not work with Sandilands, effectively ending her contract.

The matter is the second lawsuit ARN is facing. Sandilands filed similar proceedings in the Federal Court last month after his own contract was also torn up over what the company said was “serious misconduct” relating to his behaviour toward Henderson on February 20 and before. ARN is defending both lawsuits.

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Sandilands’ own statement of claim said that the broadcast, in which he said Henderson was “off with the fairies” and that everyone in ARN’s offices thought she didn’t “give a shit”, was “congruent with the style, tone and nature of the Show” and the robust character ARN “desired” from them.

In a letter to ARN on February 26, six days after the on-air blow up, Henderson and her lawyers claimed the company had failed to implement any measures to minimise the health and safety risks posed towards her by Sandilands, including psychologically.

In the letter, Henderson said she was willing to continue under her then-current contract, but that the company would have to propose a new breakfast show. In its ASX statement on March 3, ARN said it had “offered Ms Henderson the possibility of an alternate show on the ARN network”, which Henderson’s lawyers say is untrue.

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In total, Henderson and Sandilands are demanding more than $170 million in payouts, around two-and-a-half times ARN’s entire market value as of Wednesday morning. ARN’s share price opened at $0.24 on Wednesday, having been as high as above $1 when the duo signed their 10-year, $200 million contract in mid-2023, announced later that year.

ARN, which has said it will fight both broadcasters’ claims, is expected to rely on correspondence sent by representatives for Henderson on March 3, the day Sandilands was suspended and Henderson’s contract was terminated. In this communication, Henderson is said to have made allegations of “prior conduct” by Sandilands, according to ARN’s lawyer Tom Blackburn SC in court last month.

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Calum Jaspan is a media writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based in Melbourne. Reach him securely on Signal @calumjaspan.10Connect via X or email.From our partners

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