Former senator and veteran broadcaster Derryn Hinch is in hospital with an infection.

A post on Hinch’s Facebook page, attributed to his executive assistant, showed a photo of Hinch propped up in bed.

“Hinch in hospital with infected legs after a fall. No post for awhile (sic),” it read.

Hinch, 81, was elected to the federal Senate as a representative for Victoria in 2016 following a long media career.

He served until 2019, but failed in his bid for re-election.

Hinch boasts an extensive media career across print, radio, and television, having been inducted into the Australian Commercial Radio Hall of Fame in 2010.

The controversial figure has faced three criminal convictions. Two were for breaching suppression orders, and one was for contempt of court.

The sentences were all related to court-suppressed disclosures concerning alleged offenders, including information about the criminal history of Jill Meagher’s killer, Adrian Bayley.

Hinch spent 12 days in prison for contempt of court after disclosing details of then-accused pederast and priest Michael Charles Glennon’s previous conviction in 1987.

In 2014, he served 50 days in prison after refusing to pay a court-ordered fine regarding his revelations about Bayley.