In what has been described by some as “bombshell” news, Sam Armytage has quit the Seven network.
In an interview with Armytage, who is a News Corp Stellar columnist, she told The Sunday Telegraph she wanted to stay with Seven and make more series of Farmer Wants a Wife. The interview also revealed Seven offered Armytage a new contract, presumably without FWAW duties, which she declined to sign.
The news comes just two months after a Seven “source” revealed that Armytage had signed a new two-year deal with Seven. That inaccurate report stated she had been working on FWAW as part of her existing Sunrise contract.
What Sam Armytage told The Sunday Telegraph
News Corp’s Karlie Rutherford reported Sam Armytage’s contract with the network expires in October. She added she was offered another Seven contract, which Armytage declined.
Armytage said: “It’s a little sad and it’s bittersweet, but the time has come. I leave with lots of goodwill in my heart and excitement about the future.
“I’m big on instinct. I listen to my instinct, I know when the time comes. I am proud of the fact that I back myself enough to say, ‘I’ve done what I can do here’ and I move on.
“This is not the end. It’s just the end of this chapter.
“I came to this decision on my own, it’s about what I want to do with my life.
“[Husband Richard Lavender] is very supportive of whatever I do, but this was about me wanting to feel fulfilled.
“I had to sit with myself here and ask, ‘What does my next 5 to 10 years look like?’.
“I’m 47, so it was a bit of a stocktake,” Armytage continued. “I’m still productive. I want to make good TV.”
Armytage singled out Seven colleagues for praise
“I was happy to do more. Farmer takes up six months of the year, so I had the time to do more but that wasn’t to be,“ she added.
“I’m very grateful. A special thank you to Kerry and Christine Stokes [Seven chairman and his wife] because Kerry has always supported me and been extraordinarily generous and I thank him for that.
“I’ve got to work with some extraordinary people. To work alongside legends like [journalists and presenters] Ian Ross and Bruce McAvaney, and also, many fantastic women, role models and true pioneers like [journalists and newsreaders] Ann Sanders and Sharyn Ghidella.
“It’s been an incredible time.”
FWAW series 13
Reunion in Hunter Valley
Seven’s TV boss Angus Ross on Sam’s “remarkable contribution”
Angus Ross, group managing director, Seven Television, said in a statement provided to Mediaweek:
“After 21 years, Sam Armytage has decided to leave the Seven Network in October this year. We fully understand and support her decision.
“Sam has made a remarkable contribution to Seven over more than two decades, from 7News and Sunrise to, more recently, Farmer Wants A Wife.
“Her genuine affection for the country lifestyle she’s grown up with and enjoys to this day has shone through her three seasons with the TV Week Logie Award-nominated series. It’s been a pleasure watching Sam share her pride of these communities with Australia as our incredible farmer love stories have unfolded.
“We wish Sam – and her farmer – every happiness and success for the future.”
Recent Farmer Wats a Wife co-hosts Samantha Armytage and Natalie Gruzlewski
Longtime host back in the picture
TV host Natalie Gruzlewski has long been associated with the Farmer Wants A Wife franchise. The series launched in Australia on Nine in 2007, when Gruzlewski hosted eight episodes across five years. The format ran twice in several years.
Nine revived the show in 2016 for one year with host Sam McClymont but it wasn’t renewed.
Seven took on the franchise in 2020, and it has run for five seasons. Sam Armytage appeared on-air alongside Gruzlewski in 2022 before becoming the main host for the next two years. Now Seven has revealed the original host will take the reins again.
“Natalie Gruzlewski will continue to play cupid for our new crop of farmers and their ladies when the new season of Farmer Wants A Wife arrives on Channel 7 and 7plus in 2025,” said Ross.
See also: How Seven’s Farmer Wants A Wife maintains its loyal audience