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A beloved newsreader who was fired and replaced by his network’s weatherman has reinvented himself as a wedding officiant.
Newcastle personality Paul ‘Lobby’ Lobb had been reading the NBN 6pm news bulletin for over a decade when it was taken off the air just days before Christmas 2021.
NBN owner Nine Entertainment sacked Lobb without warning, announcing he would be replaced in the newsdesk by meteorologist Gavin Morris.
Hunter Valley viewers were so outraged by Lobb’s sudden departure that they launched a social media campaign for his reinstatement.
Beloved Newcastle newsreader Paul Lobb, who was fired and replaced by his network weatherman, has reinvented himself as a wedding celebrant. Lobb read NBN’s 6pm bulletin for more than a decade when it was taken off the air just days before Christmas 2021.
Nearly two years after her unceremonious abandonment from the airwaves, Lobb revealed her new career move in a joyful video posted to social media. “Hello, it’s Lobby here, with some breaking news,” he says to the camera. Lobb is pictured with a young couple
Morris, a popular personality seen as a long-term asset by Nine, continued to present the weather and read the news alongside Natasha Beyersdorf.
The move stunned Lobb’s loyal following in northern NSW, who launched a petition on change.org demanding his return three days after his dismissal.
Some of the petition’s signatories unfairly attacked Morris, who has a larger-than-life man-of-action image, with one complaining about the way he pronounces “satellite.”
Lobb’s wife Alison urged her social media followers to contact NBN to complain about her husband’s treatment – and published the network’s phone number for them to call.
Angry viewers threatened to boycott the station as they mourned the loss of a “true gentleman”, a “well-respected newsreader”, a “born and bred Novocastrian” and a ” good guy.”
“I just want to say that NBN has lost the ground,” one social media commenter wrote at the time.
NBN owner Nine Entertainment sacked Lobb without warning just days before Christmas and announced he would be replaced by meteorologist Gavin Morris to read the news alongside Natasha Beyersdorf. Morris and Beyersdorf are pictured
Nearly two years after her unceremonious abandonment from the airwaves, Lobb revealed her new career move in a joyful video posted to social media.
“Hello, it’s Lobby here, with some breaking news,” he says to the camera.
“Since my last visit to your salon, I have worked hard to become a wedding celebrant.
“I now use all these decades of storytelling experience to create unique wedding ceremonies for couples in love.”
The former journalist, who called his business “Married by Lobby,” offers a “bespoke ceremony package” for $1,650 or a “short and sweet” wedding for $850.
He will also carry out marriage vow renewals and baby naming ceremonies.
“I’m so excited about my new career,” Lobb says in the video.
“Thank you very much for all the interest and support over the years. And remember, if you’re getting married, call Married by Lobby. It’s ringing.
Angry viewers threatened to boycott NBN as they mourned the loss of a “true gentleman”, a “well-respected newsreader”, a “born and bred Novocastrian” and a “good kind “. Lobb is pictured left with meteorologist Gavin Morris and colleague Natasha Beyersdorf
Among those who congratulated Lobb on his new career was the wife of retired NBN presenter Mike Rabbitt, the face of TV sport in Newcastle for 30 years.
“Lobby, you will be fantastic in your new role,” Sue Rabbitt wrote on Facebook.
“Many couples will begin their journey knowing that they had a wonderful person presiding over their big day. Congratulations Paul. Rabbs and Sue.
Another fan wrote: “Oh that’s great news. NBN news isn’t the same without you.
One woman even addressed her husband in a message asking: “Can we get a divorce so we can remarry and have Lobby as our officiant.”
Lobb’s dismissal from NBN, where he had worked for 23 years as a journalist, was seen as part of a cost-cutting exercise imposed on the regional station by leaders in the capital.
The former journalist, who has named his new business “Married by Lobby,” is offering a “bespoke ceremony package” for $1,650 or a “short and sweet” wedding for $850. He is pictured center with a couple renewing their wedding vows
Among those to congratulate Lobb on her new role was the wife of retired NBN presenter Mike Rabbitt, who was the face of TV sport in Newcastle for 30 years. “Lobby, you will be fantastic in your new role,” Sue Rabbitt wrote on Facebook
The high-level NBN bulletin is broadcast via Hunter and covers northern New South Wales, inland New England region and parts of the state’s northwest.
Kylie Blucher, Nine’s general manager in Queensland and northern NSW, described Lobb’s sacking at the time as a consolidation of NBN’s news presenter lineup.
In an email to NBN staff, Blucher said the decision did not reflect Lobb’s significant contribution to the station and had been “difficult to announce”.
“Paul has been front and center in living rooms across northern NSW telling the local, national and international stories our audiences depend on,” she wrote.
“Over the past decade, Lobby has built an enviable relationship with our viewers, based on trust and its renowned commitment to news.
Lobb began his career at the NBN in 1993 as a trainee librarian and chyron operator – responsible for the text that appears at the bottom of the screen during news broadcasts.
He became a journalist in 1998 at the Port Macquarie station office.
In 2008 he was named Journalist of the Year at the Northern NSW Journalism Awards for his reporting on the grounding of the cargo ship Pasha Bulker on Nobbys Beach the previous year.
Lobb served as a substitute newsreader for several years before joining Beyersdorf in the office permanently in December 2010, when local broadcasting legend Ray Dinneen retired.
Dinneen had been at the news desk since joining Murray Finlay in 1975, and over the decades he was associated with Anna Manzoney, Tracey Reid, Chris Bath, Melinda Smith, and then from mid-2006, Beyersdorf.
Lobb will also host wedding vow renewals and naming ceremonies. “I’m so excited about my new career,” he says in promotional video