Peter Ford has come under fire after announcing he was leaving Melbourne for the Gold Coast.
The veteran entertainment reporter, who has also been a host on Melbourne’s 3AW for 40 years, decided to leave the Victorian capital six months ago.
On Tuesday, he revealed in the Herald Sun that he will take his first day off since starting at 3AW to officially relocate to the Gold Coast, citing rising crime as a big reason for the move.
However, it seems that many social media users, particularly those who reside in Melbourne, did not take too kindly to Ford’s comments about their beloved city.
The article elicited a flurry of comments when it was shared on X, with Ford eventually chiming in on the drama.
Reposting the article, Ford revealed that he had been the subject of ‘hateful’ and ‘abusive’ messages in the wake of the revelation.
Peter Ford has come under fire on social media after announcing he was leaving Melbourne for the Gold Coast, citing rising crime as a factor in the move
‘Unsure why this makes people so angry & abusive. A choice I have made for myself. Not advocating anyone else should,’ he wrote.
‘Thankfully I don’t need anyone’s approval but weird people are triggered by it.’
This did little to lower the temperature, with one X user accusing Ford of ‘grandstanding’.
‘Peter Ford loves talking about himself. For six months he’s been banging on to anyone who’ll listen that he’s leaving Melbourne,’ one wrote.
‘F*** off, mate. Go. No one cares. You’re moving to a city with higher crime. Go. Move. Stop with the grandstanding.’
Another user, sharing a separate news story about Ford’s move, was also full of invective.
‘Just hurry the f*** up, mate. Do us all a favour and p*** off to the Gold Coast. You’ll raise the average IQ of both places,’ they said.
A third suggested that Ford was announcing his move from Melbourne in an attempt to generate attention.
However, it seems that many social media users, particularly those that reside in Melbourne, did not take too kindly to Ford’s comments about their beloved city
The Herald Sun article elicited a flurry of comments when it was shared on X, with Ford eventually chiming in on the drama. Reposting the article, Ford revealed that he had been the subject of ‘hateful’ and ‘abusive’ messages in the wake of the revelation
‘Peter Ford told 3AW six months ago he was leaving Melbourne and then made the exact same announcement this week via the Herald Sun,’ they commented.
‘What Peter was really doing, though, was just piggybacking on the back of Melbourne for attention.
‘A crumb, caught out the bag.’
It didn’t end there either, with former 2UE host Mike Carlton also slamming Ford.
Reposting the article, Carlton claimed that he ‘got rid’ of Ford during his tenure providing entertainment reports for the station.
‘A nasty, sour piece of work,’ Carlton wrote.
‘A purveyor of 2nd hand, 3rd rate gossip and confected scandal. Had him on my program for a bit but eventually got rid of him.’
Replying, Ford refuted Carlton’s version of events, claiming he left Carlton’s show after comments he made about broadcaster Stan Zemanek on air on the day of his funeral.
This did little to lower the temperature, with one X user accusing Ford of ‘grandstanding’.
Daily Mail has reached out to Peter Ford for comment.
It comes after Ford told the Herald Sun he was excited for a ‘new chapter.’
‘Crime is a big problem in Melbourne and I just hate some things going on. I’ve never ever missed a show, but I’m excited for a bright new sunny chapter,’ Ford said, the Herald Sun reported.
While the radio star admitted security in the CBD had improved over the last few months, Chapel St had turned into ‘wrack and ruin’ with a large homeless population.
‘I don’t leave with bad vibes, I just think there are issues going on in Melbourne that need to be fixed,’ Ford said.
‘I don’t want to walk over people to get to Coles. You would never see an empty shop on Chapel St and now there’s empty and dirty shop windows everywhere.
‘Every real estate agent I went to up north said, ‘Oh, you’re another one from Melbourne’, so certainly there are things that have prompted that.’
While Ford is best known for his radio work, he has been appearing on screens around Australia since 1988 – prominently on Nine and Channel 7.
It didn’t end there, either, with former 2UE host Mike Carlton also slamming Ford
Reposting the Herald Sun story, Carlton claimed that he ‘got rid’ of Ford during his tenure providing entertainment reports for the station
His appearances on Channel 7’s The Morning Show will continue.
The network has set up a new studio for him, where he will appear for the first time on Friday.
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