Today's Phoenix provides one of the first attempts at telling the final days and hours of the OTB5 on the national airwaves and includes details of two phonecalls between O'Brien and the former OTB presenter. After what they describe as an 18 month discussion process where the lads pitched for the 6 o'clock hour for a 'sports and current affairs' mix, the lads apparently put 8 weeks notice in last January only to be placated with promises from management.
After talks of a revised schedule at the station stalled last week, O'Brien allegedly rang McDevitt on Friday "giving him a lecture about how not to business". O'Brien also apparently proposed that OTB could go online at 6pm. O'Brien and McDevitt allegedly spoke again on Monday. Neither side would budge and McDevitt received another phonecall telling him that his services were no longer required.
Here's proof that the decision to can the OTB5 went straight to the top, to arguably the most powerful person in contemporary Ireland.
More details in the Phoenix. Screengrab via Broadsheet
