NAT BARR ‘THEY’RE JUST SO CRUEL’
Drama behind the scenes is taking its toll on the star
After weeks of uncertainty with rumours swirling that her beloved co-star David Koch might be set to walk from Sunrise – only for him to confirm he’s staying on for another two years – Natalie Barr should’ve been walking on air when she arrived back in Sydney after presenting the WA Telethon in Perth last week. But instead, the motherof-two appeared strained.
“Anybody who knows the situation at Channel Seven knows there’s been a lot of anxiety surrounding Kochie’s rumoured departure,” reveals an insider.
“Everyone’s been walking on eggshells, contemplating what a Kochie-free Sunrise would look like... especially Nat,” adds the source, who notes that the 54-year-old has been particularly rattled by the thought of braving the show without him.
And while the stress of worrying about Kochie, 66, leaving has thankfully disappeared, Nat is still feeling the pressure behind the scenes.
“Nat and Kochie have been doing an awesome job, but everyone knows breakfast TV is relentless,” says the insider. “This year alone she’s covered the floods, the Queen’s death, dealt with social media trolls and, on top of that, there’s the constant threat of keeping their top spot as breakfast TV’S number one show – it’s no wonder she’s looking worn out.”
FEUD REIGNITES
Worse than the everyday pressures of the job is the lingering threat of Nat’s nemesis – former Sunrise host Samantha Armytage.
In Nat’s first months on air, the journalist’s stint was overshadowed by a shock feud with Samantha, 46.
When Sam abruptly insisted Nat should get on with her job after she said she’d “wanted the job forever”, Nat didn’t hesitate to hit back. “You don’t have to be friends with everyone. Some people won’t like your style. Some people won’t like your ambition,” she told her social media followers amid rumours of a falling out between the Seven stars.
While Nat might have hoped Sam’s Sunrise departure would suppress tensions between the two, Sam made a sensational return to the network for Farmer Wants A Wife this year.
While she was initially meant to only join host Natalie Gruzlewski as a mentor, Sam has quickly risen to the top.
Last week at Seven’s upfront presentation, it was Sam, not Nat, who delivered the good news to audiences that the reality juggernaut would be back. She was also seen liaising with Sunrise executive producer Sarah Stinson at the afterparty, fuelling speculation that fans are about to see a whole lot more of the spirited star in 2023.
Insiders insist Nat is “somewhat wary” of Sam’s return, particularly given she insisted she had no intention of returning to TV after
accusing the industry of being full of “sociopaths”.
“The truth is, Nat wants to get on with it,” says an insider. “She can’t take being dragged into any more feuds and doesn’t want to be attached to Sam again next year.”
TORMENTED BY TROLLS
It’s not just been prickly co-workers getting Nat down, either. Earlier this year, an emotional Nat confessed she had been forced to “delete and block” cruel tormentors on social media. “I have blocked hundreds of people,” she told The Daily Telegraph. The TV personality also said she, at one stage, “felt like hiding in a corner” over the trolling she’s faced online.
“I’ve got screenshots of people saying, ‘Die b*tch, die!’ All the usual stuff,” she said of the vile comments.
“I get hate mail, I get death threats,” she said, before revealing she has been forced to turn off her notifications in order to deal with it.