Bickmore said he didn’t know what he would do next, but confirmed he would not be leaving television. Her 15-year-old son, Ollie, who was a year old when Bickmore started the show, was in the studio audience for the announcement.
Bickmore’s co-hosts learned the news a few days ago.
“We don’t know what the future will look like,” Helliar told Bickmore. “But you’re the soul of this show.”
Part of the original lineup when the show launched in 2009 (then called The project at 7 p.m), Bickmore initially hosted the show alongside Dave Hughes and Charlie Pickering. before work the project, Bickmore appeared Rove for four years and was a member of the premier breakfast radio team with Nova FM.
Way back when. Carrie was the inaugural host of The 7pm Project alongside Dave Hughes and Charlie Prickering.
He quickly became popular with viewers and in 2010, Bickmore received the TV Week Logie Award for Best New Talent for his work on the show.
The following year, Bickmore took a brief hiatus after the loss of her husband, Greg Lange, who died after a ten-year battle with brain cancer.
In 2015, Bickmore won both the Silver Logie for Best Presenter and the coveted Gold Logie, using the opportunity to launch Carrie’s Beanies 4 Brain Cancer.
Carrie Bickmore launched Beanies 4 Brain Cancer during her 2015 Gold Logie acceptance speech.
“In 2010, my husband Greg was one of the unfortunates; after a long battle, he died of brain cancer; he was a great man, a great husband, a great brother and a great friend. No one should have to suffer this way, and until we find a solution, people will,” Bickmore said during his acceptance speech.
The charity has raised millions of dollars for brain cancer research through its hat sales. In 2019, Bickmore was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honors for her service to the media and brain cancer awareness.
During his 13 years at the desk, Bickmore has become a permanent fixture on the Australian television landscape delivering equal parts news, interviews and memorable moments.
She covered the 10th anniversary of 9/11 in New York, wrapped up a tense interview with Sex Pistols frontman Johnny Rotten and snapped co-host Peter Van Onselen in January this year after he called out the survivor of sexual assault Grace Tame immature.
News of Bickmore’s departure comes just a week after Network Ten announced the project would return to screens in 2023, although Bickmore did not appear in any promotional material.
Earlier this year, the 41-year-old took a three-month break the project to spend time in London with her partner Chris Walker and three children, Ollie, Evie and Adelaide.
“After 13 years the project desktop, it looks a bit like a long service leave️. I will miss you all,” he said at the time.
Before announcing his retirement, Bickmore had sold his five-bedroom family home in Melbourne. It was reported that the trip may have been a test for a permanent move abroad.
However, he returned to it the project in July and has continued to co-host her radio show, Carrie and Tommy, on the Hit Network.
Bickmore’s decision to step away from the show follows speculation about sustained ratings pressure. Earlier this year, on Sunday, March 20, The Project fell to a record overnight audience of 185,000 viewers, according to OzTam, in the five-city metro market.
Last year, OzTam revealed that the project’s national average audience in the five-city metro market had fallen to 367,000 for the year, prompting Network Ten to issue a public statement confirming the show was not In danger.
With Zoe Samios and Angus Dalton
Find out about upcoming TV series, movies and films to add to your must-sees. Get the watchlist every Thursday.