INSIDE HIS WILD BUCKS WEEKEND!

The Today host has been spotted partying – but wasn’t he ‘unwell’?

Karl Stefanovic has been caught out on a wild 48-hour bucks party on the Sunshine Coast – just hours after he chucked a sickie on Today.

The “unwell” breakfast TV host went straight from Nine studios to Sydney airport and boarded a flight to Brisbane, before meeting up with a small group of mates in Mooloolaba for a “sedate affair”.

“It was very low-key,” blearyeyed Karl told Woman’s Day

‘I was very sick yesterday… I don’t feel too bad now’

when he was spotted boarding a flight back to Sydney on Sunday, despite one of his guests revealing that he didn’t get more than three hours sleep during the 48-hourlong bachelor party.

And video footage of Karl and his mates, including radio host Tim Blackwell, musician Michael Tramonte and A Current

Affair producer Steve Marshall drinking, yelling and toasting Karl’s happiness proved it was anything but sedate.

The 44-year-old’s guests were caught on film partying on the balcony of ironman Grant Kenny’s Minyama Island mansion, where the first stage of the final night of the bucks weekend was held.

The celebration will certainly come as a shock to fans of Today, after Karl walked off the set just 40 minutes into the early morning broadcast on October 26, claiming he was too ill to continue – and then flew straight to Brisbane to begin his epic celebration.

Karl’s coughing and sniffles so concerned co-host Georgie Gardner she gave him “permission to go home”, before newsreader Deborah Knight stepped in to replace him.

The following day, sick Karl competed in the 17km Lifeflight Ocean Paddle with Grant, telling The Courier

Mail “a good sleep” helped his miraculous recovery.

“I was very sick yesterday but had a good sleep and don’t feel too bad now,” he said.

Karl was chaperoned by Jasmine’s dad Bob Yarbrough, who picked him up from Brisbane on Friday morning and drove him to Mooloolaba, where he had booked four $200-a-night twin-share rooms for his mates and a threebedroom apartment for himself at the Mantra Zanzibar Hotel.

While Friday night was relatively tame, Karl let his hair down after the paddle event the following day, drinking and watching the horse races, including Winx’s fourth Cox Plate win, with his mates at Grant’s house. Karl was heard boasting that he cleaned up with a $5000 bet on Winx.

“We wrapped things up at 8.30,” confused Karl claimed, despite leaving Grant’s at 10pm before continuing the party in his suite at the Mantra Zanzibar.

Radio host Ben Fordham – who was widely tipped to replace Karl before Nine’s shock announcement he’d remain on – and one-time close mate Richard Wilkins didn’t make the trip.