Fallen stars: Celebrity scandals that ended TV careers

With its supposed promise of glamour, fame and fortune, many people are attracted to a life spent in the spotlight.

But what happens when the spotlight turns its back on you?

Chef Pete Evans is the most recent celebrity who has discovered that fame doesn’t guarantee popularity.

Evans, along with his brother Dave, started out as regulars on the Sydney social scene thanks to their swanky celebrity Kings Cross hangout Hugos.

Evans turned this prominence into national fame and it landed him a spot as host on My Kitchen Rules, which was for years the No.1 TV show in the country.

But when Evans rebranded himself as ‘Paleo Pete’, things started to go pear-shaped.

First there were the activated almonds comments and strict no-sugar diet, which confused viewers of a cooking show.

However the more Evans started to position himself as a new age guru, offering nutrition and health advice that was contradictory to science and health professionals (like how sunscreen is poisonous or offering bone broth to babies), then his light started to dim.

The final straw for the Channel 7 came after Evans started selling a $15,000 BioCharger, which he claimed could help treat the coronavirus.

He was subsequently fined more than $25,000 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration.

Channel 7 ended their $800,000 contract with the chef, who will most probably step away from mainstream media.

He’s not the only celebrity to exit stage left from the spotlight for contentious reasons.

AJAY ROCHESTER

As host of The Biggest Loser for four seasons, Rochester was the poster child for empowerment.

However the TV host promptly ran away to America after she plead guilty to welfare fraud in 2009.

At the time, Rochester was on the single-parent pension and has said she “hadn’t noticed” the extra money was still coming in from the government.

She plead guilty to 23 counts of fraud and paid back $14,000.

But running away to the US to escape the controversy also ended Rochester’s time in the spotlight.

She’s tried to resuscitate her career with stints on I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Outta Here, but nothing has quite stuck.

VINCE COLOSIMO

The Underbelly star is one of Australia’s finest actors, having won an AFI Award and shared the screen with greats like Leonardo DiCaprio.

However Colosimo has failed to keep the drama in his life strictly onscreen and he’s been plagued with a string of personal controversies that have hindered his personal popularity.

Colosimo has made headlines for his messy divorce and custody battle with Jane Hall, to bankruptcy proceedings.