Ryan Phelan is being sued by his ex-girlfriend, who claims he still owes her a significant amount of money – tens of thousands of dollars – nearly six years after their very public and dramatic split.
Following accusations of assault by his ballet instructor, Chelsea Franklin, Phelan ended his relationship with her. The alleged incident occurred at their home in Frenchs Forest, a suburb in northern Sydney.
Just the day before, Phelan found out he’d lost his job when the Seven Network cancelled its afternoon show, The Daily Edition.
In June 2020, Phelan faced charges of assault causing injury and common assault. However, the case was dropped in September of the same year.
Franklin has filed a lawsuit against Phelan in a New South Wales court, claiming Phelan owes them money. The case, filed in the general division of the NSW Local Court, centers around a financial dispute.
The dispute involves a property and money, and reportedly stems from a previous agreement between Phelan and Franklin, both age 50.
Court documents state the lawsuit involves tens of thousands of dollars.
Franklin has confirmed to the Daily Mail that they’ve started legal action in the NSW Local Court to recover money owed to them.
Since this is now a legal matter, I’m not able to discuss the details publicly. However, I’m confident we’ll reach a resolution through the courts and I’m fully cooperating with the legal process.
Phelan, who has been married three times and recently married Sarah Wade, the owner of a sports management company, last August, declined to comment. He currently works as the head of media for Harness Racing Victoria.
‘I’m not speaking about anything to do with that person,’ he said.
The information doesn’t indicate Phelan owes Franklin any money; it simply states that Phelan has started a legal case against Franklin in the NSW Local Court.
Throughout his extensive time with Seven, Phelan contributed to many popular programs including The Daily Edition, The Morning Show, 7News, and Sunrise, as well as Weekend Sunrise. He also reported on major events like the 2016 Olympic Games.
He’s worked extensively in sports broadcasting, including roles with Fox Sports’ NRL coverage, Sky Channel, 2GB, ESPN, and Network Ten. He also hosted the Dally M Medal presentation.
When Phelan was 18 and starting his journalism career, he married his high school sweetheart, who was also 18. They had two children together, but later separated in 2001.
Oh my gosh, by 2005, Matthew Phelan was everywhere! I mean, I watched him every night hosting ‘Sports Tonight’ on Channel Ten – he just became part of my routine, you know? And then, then he won Cleo’s Bachelor of the Year! I totally understood why, he was just… perfect. Everyone was talking about him, and honestly, I was obsessed! It felt like he was made for television.
At the age of 30, Phelan won a bachelor competition, beating out 50 other contestants, including well-known figures like Chris Hemsworth, Ian Thorpe, and Guy Sebastian.
He mentioned he married young, but feels thankful for it, as it ultimately helped shape his career and life path.
I’ve always jumped from one relationship to another. Now, I need some time to focus on myself and enjoy being single.
In 2006, Phelan was briefly engaged to Trisha Broadbridge, whose husband, Troy, a professional Australian rules football player, had tragically died in the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami in Thailand.
In March 2015, Phelan announced on Twitter that he had gotten married, sharing a picture of himself with his bride in a wedding dress and writing, ‘Married the most amazing person on the planet today!’
That woman’s identity was never publicly revealed and the couple called it quits after two years.
In November 2017, Phelan quickly became involved with Amanda Goff, who was then working as an escort under the name Samantha X and earning around $5,000 per night.
After leaving her job as an escort to be with a newsreader, Goff now writes columns for the Daily Mail. However, the couple split up by February 2018.
Phelan and Franklin started dating quickly and soon became a couple, frequently seen together at horse races.
In late 2019, Phelan and Franklin purchased a five-bedroom house in Frenchs Forest for $2.16 million. This home would later be the location where an alleged assault took place the following year.
On June 19, 2020, Seven announced it was ending The Daily Edition, the show co-hosted by Phelan and Sally Obermeder. The last episode would air the following week.
Franklin stated that the announcement led to a violent argument between her and Phelan the next day. After the fight, Phelan left their home, and Franklin filed a police report against him.
Two days after the alleged assault, Phelan appeared on both The Daily Edition and Seven’s 6pm news program without informing the network about the incident. He then went to the Manly police station.
He faced charges of assault causing injury and a lesser charge of common assault, but strongly denied hurting Franklin and engaged prominent Sydney lawyer Margaret Cunneen SC to represent him.
The day after the accusations were made public, Natalie Barr, a newsreader on Sunrise, informed viewers that the network hadn’t known about the situation until the previous night and that Ryan Phelan would not be continuing his work at Seven.
Franklin later told the Daily Mail that the incident was a ‘terrible error,’ that she still cared for him, and that she’d been having a difficult week.
She was heartbroken. ‘I’m completely crushed,’ she said, explaining she’d lost the man she loved.
It was a terrible error in judgment. We’ve had a great two and a half years as a couple, and this is the first time anything like this has happened.
It’s been a tough time. Between him losing his job and a few personal problems we were both dealing with, it really started to wear us down.
I really love Ryan; he’s a wonderful person. It’s been a very difficult week, but he’s been incredibly supportive, and I cherish him. This whole situation is just a terrible error.
Franklin said she had communicated briefly with Phelan, but had no idea where he was living.
She mentioned receiving some emails the day before. She wasn’t sure if the relationship could be saved, but she believed he still cared for her and that what happened was simply a terrible error.
I’m incredibly worried about him and completely heartbroken. I never wanted this to become public; I hoped we could handle it privately.
‘I haven’t slept all night. I wake up and I feel worse for him.’
Phelan, with no prior history of violence or criminal convictions, entered a plea of not guilty. After appearing in Manly Local Court four times, both charges against him were dropped on September 25th.
Phelan stated that she has consistently opposed domestic violence and finds it deeply disturbing, following that decision.
I was deeply upset by these claims, which have significantly harmed my reputation. I’m grateful to the NSW Police for their careful and complete investigation.
Phelan and Sarah Wade first appeared as a couple in April 2021 at The Star Championships, held at Royal Randwick.
The next year, Phelan publicly complimented Wade, saying he was a trustworthy person. This happened while they both attended The Everest horse race.
‘We have long been friends and we have a lot of mutual friends,’ Phelan told The Daily Telegraph.
Sarah has been a wonderful support, and we’re both really happy together. We both share a love for sports.
We’ve known each other for a long time, and it was important to me to be with someone I already knew and trusted as we move forward.
In January 2023, Phelan proposed to Wade in Sorrento, a scenic location on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, surrounded by their loved ones.
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