Gareth Cliff resigns from Idols SA

We can confirm Mr. Gareth Cliff’s resignation as a judge on Idols SA. Gareth made the shock announcement in a statement posted to his Facebook page on Monday.

“It’s time! After eleven seasons of Idols, it’s time for me to say goodbye. What better way to bring this chapter to a close than a trip to New York and meeting American Idols judge Harry Connick Jr and being on his post-Idols show – ‘Harry,'” Gareth wrote.

Gareth would not reveal what he plans to do next, only telling fans to “watch this space”.

Gareth’s relationship with Idols has been stormy, after M-Net announced in January that he had been fired from the show for comments he had made on Twitter.

Gareth had been embroiled in a heated debate around estate agent Penny Sparrow and had drawn criticism for commenting that: “People really don’t understand free speech at all.”

Gareth was fired from the show but he took M-Net to court over the decision and was reinstated, with M-Net ordered to pay costs.