Marnie’s Facebook fury 

These days, it’s not just retirees and casual complainers taking to Facebook to voice their frustrations. Even former ABC Radio hosts have joined the chorus of discontent on social media.

Simon Marnie, who was removed from his role as the host of Sydney Weekend Mornings in late 2024, has been vocal about his grievances. Initially, he lamented the lack of a proper farewell from management, and now he has taken to Facebook once more to express his displeasure.

This time, Marnie’s target is the Sydney Morning Herald.

He criticized the newspaper’s CBD column for what he perceived as an exaggerated critique of the superannuation fund, UniSuper. The column had commented on the fund’s decision to host an International Women’s Day event featuring guest speaker Claudia Karvan at The Ivy, a well-known Sydney venue.

The column highlighted what it saw as the irony of choosing a Merivale venue, given past controversies regarding the treatment of female staff, allegations the company has denied.

Marnie, however, sprang to the defense of those organizing events at The Ivy, condemning the column, which was co-authored by John Buckley and Stephen Brook. He described it as a “gutless smear from pompous individuals who believe this is a story worth inflating.”

And like any ABC lifer, he also couldn’t resist taking a potshot at the commercial media for daring to run ads.

‘I’ve always thought the CBD segment in the Harvey Norman Herald is one of the lowest, guttersnipe, cheap examples of journalism,’ he typed furiously.

‘They love drawing long bows with smug innuendo to blow a story out of all proportion.’

When contacted for comment, Brook said: ‘Here at CBD, we always welcome feedback, even shrivelled, bitter musings such as this.

‘We implore our colleagues at Inside Mail to run an item on this. You’ll save us the trouble of having to.’ 

Tantrum reporter’s time-out

The hot-headed 7News reporter who stormed out of a media conference last month after clashing with her cameraman looks to be taking a much-needed break.

Inside Mail is told that Inga Neilsen has worked fairly sporadically since the incident, though we note she has been filing stories.

Word is she left the office at midday on Monday and then took leave.

That same day, she posted on Instagram documenting her 12km harbourside run. Sweating out the stress?

We’ve heard that Neilsen is ‘infuriated’ that industry colleagues leaked against her to Steve ‘Jacko’ Jackson at The Australian (late of this parish).

Privately, she believes she is a victim of a cameraman boys’ club.

Channel Seven declined to comment on the record. 

Give Danika a break

Today show sports presenter Danika Mason raised eyebrows on Wednesday after appearing to slur her words during a live cross from Livigno during the Winter Olympics.

There may well be an innocent explanation – but viewers could be forgiven for experiencing a sense of déjà vu.

Who could forget Karl Stefanovic‘s famously woozy post‑Logies broadcast in 2009? The clip practically made his career.

If Mason did simply have a big night, here’s hoping Nine shows her the same generosity it afforded Stefanovic all those years ago.

For a network already battling a culture scandal, the last thing it needs is to be accused of holding its male and female stars to different standards.

Nine was contacted for comment. 

Why you so obsessed with us?

You’d think with all the developments out of Yunta in the case of missing boy Gus Lamont that the Adelaide media would have plenty to write about without resorting to industry navel-gazing.

Not so for the Advertiser.

That newspaper seems obsessed with referencing an October 31 incident during which Gus’ grandparent Josie Murray waved a shotgun in the direction of Daily Mail reporter Jonica Bray when she door-knocked their homestead. 

Indeed, in one piece highlighting the ’11 key people’ in the mystery, a ‘Tiser reporter dedicated most of the 100-word section about Josie to the brief run-in with Bray. 

While it’s nice to be talked about, we humbly suggest they direct their journalistic resources to the actual news, rather than lingering on their favourite subplot. 

Brucey’s back

Former political staffer Bruce Lehrmann has quietly resurfaced on social media – though quiet is hardly the word for his new pastime.

Lehrmann has effectively reinvented himself as a full‑time reply guy to his former media adviser and self‑styled ‘Shaman of Australia’s Radical Right’ John Macgowan, popping up under posts with quips, barbs and digs at the Liberal Party whenever the mood strikes.

This week, Macgowan shared a News Corp interview with new Liberal Leader Angus Taylor, recorded during Taylor’s leadership challenge against Sussan Ley. The clip was marketed as an ‘exclusive sit‑down’, which Macgowan promptly mocked.

‘Guys, it’s 2026. This is called a podcast now. No one cares you sat down with a legacy journoid,’ he wrote.

Lehrmann immediately joined the pile‑on.

‘Did they pay his rent?’ he replied – a pointed nod to the now‑infamous 7News Spotlight arrangement, where Seven covered Lehrmann’s rent for a year as part of securing his televised interview. The deal later became a flashpoint in defamation proceedings, placing the network’s conduct squarely under scrutiny.

Lehrmann’s re‑energised online presence comes after he was accused of raping former Liberal staffer Brittany Higgins inside Parliament House in 2019, then saw his 2022 criminal trial collapse due to juror misconduct, and then tried – unsuccessfully – to claw back his reputation by suing Channel Ten.

In another post, he took a swipe at former PM Malcolm Turnbull while responding to Sky News commentator Rowan Dean, who had been cheering Jacinta Nampijinpa Price‘s return to the frontbench.

‘A good day all round to hopefully reignite the Liberals and its core values, the real problem the Libs have is why Malcolm Turnbull hasn’t been expelled.’

He then mocked the size of the Coalition’s newly expanded frontbench, suggesting it resembled a participation‑trophy ceremony.

‘Everyone in the party gets a gong,’ he wrote.

‘It’s very reminiscent of a modern day woke primary school athletics carnival. Ribbons all the way to 20th place and it’s based on screen time in the Canberra Sky News studios in the week prior to the spill.’

And just in case his intentions weren’t obvious, Lehrmann spells it out in his bio, declaring he’s ‘here for the John Macgowan tweets’.

Angus’ alumni advantage

St Andrew’s College at the University of Sydney wasted no time celebrating one of its most decorated alumni, Angus Taylor, after his elevation to the federal Liberal leadership.

The elite residential college, famous for its polished traditions and sandstone‑soaked influence, shaped much of Taylor’s early trajectory.

Taylor arrived at St Andrew’s in 1986 and quickly embedded himself in college life. By 1989, he had risen to Senior Student, the college’s highest student leadership role. 

His ties didn’t end at graduation. Between 1999 and 2014, he served on the powerful college council, helping steer St Andrew’s through its historic transition from an all‑male institution to a co‑residential one.

The college’s reputation has always leaned toward the exclusive. With annual fees topping $40,000, St Andrew’s has long attracted aspiring political operators, ambitious engineers, elite athletes and future powerbrokers. 

Alumni include former NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance, Sydney Harbour Bridge designer John Bradfield, Olympian Rohan Browning, and a long list of Wallabies players and captains.

But prestige hasn’t shielded St Andrew’s from controversy.

In 2024, the college made national headlines after a St Paul’s College student allegedly had part of his ear bitten off during an altercation on its grounds following an event at its bar, the Highlander – known to generations simply as ‘The Lander’.

And in 2021, the college faced scrutiny over claims of partying and rule‑breaking during Sydney’s COVID‑19 lockdown, with the student head of college at the time reportedly calling public‑health movement restrictions ‘stupid’.

Adding a dash of global glamour, St Andrew’s recently welcomed Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway, the 21‑year‑old future queen, who is living on campus while studying a Bachelor of Arts degree.

Labor strategists are already eyeing Taylor’s gilded college history as ammunition, framing him as an out‑of‑touch elitist.

But one Liberal insider argues the attack line risks backfiring, given Labor’s rhetoric celebrating university education, and Taylor’s impressive academic record – which includes the University of Sydney Medal, given to the top student, as well as a Rhodes Scholarship.

Grace period over 

Grace Tame has been in the headlines again recently, which can happen when someone with her profile decides to lead a ‘globalise the intifada’ chant at a rally that turns ugly. 

Not that anyone can be certain that one thing led to the other, of course.

But she’s also behind on her paperwork – or at least the charity that she founded, The Grace Tame Foundation, is.

Its 2025 financial report and annual information statement are both listed as ‘overdue’, according to the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).

There’s nothing exotic about a charity being late with its official and legally required paperwork. It happens. And the due date only passed at the end of last month. 

To be fair to Grace, she might have been busy practising her intifada chant in front of a mirror ahead of returning to a public stage.

We’re not sure who specifically is responsible for filing the charity’s paperwork, because the foundation’s website only lists a board of four (which includes Tame), with no executives or employees to speak of. 

And because it’s late with its paperwork, we don’t know who, if anyone, has replaced Tame as CEO.

While she’s still on her namesake’s board, Tame resigned as CEO in July 2024. They advertised for a replacement, but 18 months later who knows what’s happened. There is no public record we could find of a new CEO having been appointed.

We went on the charity’s website to try to contact someone – anyone – to find out what’s going on. However, all that appears when you click on the ‘contact’ link is the dreaded ‘404 page not found’.

Perhaps any new CEO’s first task will be to get the website properly working, assuming the four-person board is too busy sorting out the overdue paperwork.

Fact-check fail

It’s not surprising to learn that the son of the ABC’s news director doesn’t get his news from the ABC – but it is a little weird for that information to become public courtesy of the news director himself.

That’s right, Justin Stevens decided to out the fact that his kid doesn’t bother watching, reading or listening to the ABC during a media panel at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology.

The younger Stevens prefers Channel Seven and the Daily Mail. (If you’re reading this, squire, thank you for your patronage.)

It’s well known that younger generations are turning off the ABC in their droves, but who knew it’d become a family problem for the person responsible for the ABC’s core business.

While Stevens Jr makes wise decisions, his old man just couldn’t help himself when offering up his family confession on stage – having a dig that because his son gets his news where he does, fact-checking is important. How very droll.

Oddly, the example he gave was a factually accurate story about the ABC’s Facebook page being hacked. While the ABC itself doesn’t appear to have reported the hack, it did acknowledge it happened via a statement. Make of that what you will. 

If Stevens Sr wanted to highlight an inaccurate story, he’d have been better off picking on the erroneous claim that following his Australian Open victory, Carlos Alcaraz is now ‘the youngest player in history to complete the career Grand Slam’. That honour in fact goes to Steffi Graf, who did it at 19.

The only problem for Stevens Sr is that the sexist error was made on the ABC’s website!

Premier pest control

Former NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro has quit politics but is still dealing with pests of a different kind. 

The erstwhile Nationals leader is now a building and pest inspector, as you can see from the website selling his services. So if you’re in the market for a home and want the peace of mind that comes from having a former Deputy Premier check it for creepy‑crawlies, John’s your man.  

‘Prior to entering politics, I spent 20 years in the building industry, running my own building, manufacturing, and building materials businesses,’ Barilaro told Inside Mail. 

‘Post-politics and now in semi-retirement, rather than returning directly to what I did before, I chose a different path. I’ve purchased a building and inspection business in Sydney, where I work directly with buyers as they navigate the home-buying journey.

‘Buying a home is one of the largest financial decisions most people will ever make. If I can help provide clarity and confidence at that moment, that gives me a real sense of purpose.’

Shortly after quitting politics, Barilaro was appointed as the New York trade commissioner for Investment NSW, but withdrew from the plum $500,000-a-year gig when it was immersed in a ‘jobs for the boys’ controversy. 

A subsequent inquiry found the process was flawed, with concerns about ministerial interference and poor transparency around how decisions were made. 

That said, the NSW corruption watchdog ICAC ultimately said that it found no evidence of corrupt conduct. So if your house needs a pest spray, be confident that Barilaro has your back. 

Ley of the land

All eyes are firmly fixed on the electorate of Farrer, where the political rumour mill has been in overdrive ever since former Opposition Leader Sussan Ley was sensationally rolled by Angus Taylor – and is now expected to bow out of politics altogether within weeks.

Although Ley hasn’t yet formally tendered her resignation, the race to replace her is already heating up.

Parties and prospective candidates are quietly circling, preparing for what is expected to become one of the most fiercely contested regional battles in recent memory.

For the first time since 2001 – when Ley wrested the seat from the Nationals following the retirement of former Deputy Prime Minister Tim Fischer – the Liberals and Nationals are poised to face off against each other in Farrer.

In the scramble, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson was among the earliest to make a move, declaring she would run a candidate within hours of Ley signalling she wouldn’t recontest.

But there was one small, and rather persistent, hitch…

During her press conference, Hanson repeatedly referred to the seat as ‘Fowler,’ not ‘Farrer’, and never corrected herself.

For clarity: Farrer sits in regional NSW; Fowler is a suburban Western Sydney seat, roughly 550 kilometres away.

Fowler is currently held by Independent MP Dai Le, who famously took it from Labor in the 2022 upset against former NSW Premier Kristina Keneally.

Speaking to Inside Mail, Le said she heard Hanson’s mix‑up and found it more amusing than offensive.

‘We live in a democracy, anyone can contest any seat they like. Perhaps Senator Hanson mixed up Le and Ley… it happens. But if she’s thinking about Fowler instead of Farrer, she’s very welcome.’

Le also slipped in a measured swipe at Hanson’s infamous maiden‑speech warning that Australia was being ‘swamped by Asians’ – a remark that lingers in political memory, especially in Fowler, which is home to a large Vietnamese‑Australian community.

‘If she does come to Fowler, she’ll see our community isn’t swamping Australia – we’re helping build it.’

And finally… guess who, don’t sue!

Which Sydney journalist known for being prickly on the road used to sell specialist dildos online?

The Instagram page for her web store is long gone, but industry sleuths were able to put two and two together by comparing photos from the account with images on the reporter’s social media.

We won’t reveal her name – that would spoil the fun… but here are a few penetrating clues: she used to be very active on Twitter, and she really hates the Daily Mail.

• The subject of this blind item is not mentioned or pictured elsewhere in this column.

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