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Lauren Phillips calls in a BIG favour from her celebrity mates as radio war with Kyle and Jackie O turns nasty

J.Thompson36 min ago
Kyle and Jackie O bill themselves as the radio show with 'cash, cars and stars' - but their Nova rival Lauren Phillips is determined to keep the stars as far away from KIIS FM as possible.

Phillips, one half of the Jase and Lauren show that KIIS punted to make way for Kyle and Jackie's expansion into Melbourne , is telling her celebrity mates to avoid doing any interviews with the Sydney-based shock jocks.

Despite already having a comfortable lead over K&J in Melbourne, Phillips, 41, wants to twist the knife by making her show with Jason 'Jase' Hawkins the No. 1 destination for celebrity interviews.

With a black book that includes A-listers such as Matt Damon , Zac Efron and Chris Hemsworth , sources say she has 'pleaded with her famous friends' to turn down any offers from Kyle and Jackie O and speak to Nova exclusively.

'She's asked them to say no to KIIS for the next few months. The plan is to block Kyle and Jackie O from gaining access to the Byron Bay set - of which she is a major player,' an insider told Daily Mail Australia.

'If Lauren can get these stars to turn down Kyle and Jackie O, that is a big advantage. Especially since KIIS prides itself on being the home of Hollywood stars.

'Kyle and Jackie O has really been the only radio show in the market to boast A-list guests consistently until this point .

'But Lauren's genuine connections to Byron Bay celebrity crew could be a threat to their monopoly if she can convince the Hemsworths and all their friends to boycott KIIS.'

The source revealed Phillips was continuing to build new contacts with A-listers while attending star-studded events with her fiancé Paul O'Brien, who flies stars all over Australia with his private jet business.

For example, she recently attended the wedding of personal trainer Luke Zocchi, Chris Hemsworth's best friend and right-hand man.

O'Brien runs the high-end aviation charter group AVMIN which boasts celebrity clients such as Matt Damon and his wife Luciana Barroso, as well as the Hemsworths.

'Lauren has been smart to mix with the Hollywood heavyweights and I bet she'll be networking like crazy to make these stars "friends of the show",' the source said.

When contacted for comment, a spokesperson for Phillips denied she had personally solicited her famous friends to not appear on The Kyle and Jackie O Show.

The Jase and Lauren radio show had the ultimate revenge last month when it was crowned Melbourne's most listened-to breakfast radio program .

'The battle lines have been drawn and at this point Melbourne has been less than impressed with what Kyle and Jackie O have delivered. These small wins actually could mean something,' the source added.

Jase and Lauren took home the coveted number one spot in the fifth GFK radio survey for 2024. It grew its audience by 0.3 points and rose to a 9.9 per cent share, giving it a clear lead over Kyle and Jackie O, which trailed significantly with a 6.1 per cent share.

Despite initial hopes the KIIS FM provocateurs would replicate their No. 1 success in Sydney with Melbourne listeners, the duo are only the city's fifth most listened-to breakfast show.

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