Weekend Today's Belinda Russell breaks silence on shock exit: 'Disappointing'

Former Weekend Today star Belinda Russell surprised viewers when she abruptly announced her exit from the show in March. The Nine presenter shared a “career update” on Instagram, thanking fans for tuning in to support her over the past year.

The TV personality was replaced in April, with Clint Stanaway and Jayne Azzopardi joining Weekend Today as co-hosts, alongside Sophie Walsh as the show’s news presenter. Now, Belinda has opened up about how “disappointing” it was to start 2023 off on such a sour note.

In an interview with Stellar, the 44-year-old host alluded to the fact that her departure from Weekend Today was both unexpected and tough.

“It wasn’t the start to 2023 that I was expecting, and that was disappointing,” she revealed. “It’s going to be a bit of a knock to your confidence and self-esteem but you do then think, well, what’s next? You’ve got to trust the universe and back yourself.”

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Belinda is a proud mum to three daughters, Maddi, 16, Tallulah, 13, and 11-year-old Coco. Instead of looking at the situation from a completely negative point of view, she told the publication that there is a silver lining.

“You have setbacks in life, but it’s how you bounce back that matters. [It’s good] for my girls to see that and learn about resilience,” she explained.

She has moved forward with her head held high, adding that her family is more important to her than her career.

“I work at Channel Nine and for Channel Nine, but I don’t think any particular role belongs to me. You hope your ability means you’re put in roles that you can shine in, but my eyes are wide open,” she admitted.

She also hinted at a possible exit in the future, saying: “If I don’t work in the TV industry any more or I leave Channel Nine, life is still going to be good.”

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Viewers still get to see Belinda on the network, as she currently presents the weather on Fridays and Saturdays. However, the star has a huge fanbase on social media, with many calling for Nine to utilise her talent in a bigger role.

“Belinda I do wish Channel Nine would take advantage of your great talent and great personality. Would love to see you with your own say lunchtime type show,” one fan declared.

“You’re the best Belinda — still can’t believe you’re not on Today!” another added.

“Belinda is the most fun-loving, happy, down-to-earth person I’ve seen on the TV in a long time. I think many of us agree that you have a nice and joyful energy. Really sad that you’ve left and hoping you can go back,” a third chimed in.

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