Hurt feelings alert

Some of us here at Inside Mail love our rugby league, which is why we noticed something unexpected on Monday night.

NRL 360 host Braith Anasta apologised in a scripted read of the teleprompter, having previously called Dragons chairman Andrew Lancaster 'weak as piss' over Lancaster's criticism of media coverage of the club.

Anasta said he was sorry for any 'personal criticism' and framed it as a peace offering - but it's hard to imagine lawyers weren't involved somewhere. 

What sparked the war of words? Lancaster had fronted a trainwreck of a media conference the previous week to announce the sacking of the coach, during which he also took aim at the media.

Anasta's language, while hardly elegant, may not have been the real problem. If Lancaster responded by firing off a legal letter demanding an apology, doesn't that rather prove the point?

At the very least, it suggests a fairly delicate epidermis for someone chairing a rugby league club currently doing a very passable impression of a bin fire.

The Dragons are a mess, no question. Coaches come and go, accountability is passed around like a hospital handball, and supporters are left watching another proud club explain away failure after failure, as though gravity, not governance, is to blame.

Lancaster is not just any footy administrator either, by the way. He is the CEO of WIN Corporation. A media man, in other words. Which makes any defamation sabre-rattling particularly rich, given media types are usually first in line to complain that Australia's defamation laws are too easy to weaponise against robust commentary. 

Anasta's phrasing was blunt. Too blunt, perhaps. But the substance was hard to dismiss. The Dragons have been badly run, and no chairman can airbrush himself out of that picture.

If the response to being called thin-skinned is to call in the lawyers, the comeback writes itself.

But maybe we've got the wrong end of the stick here, and no legal letter was sent. Maybe Braith just decided to script an apology, out of the blue, all by himself, with no arm-twisting to speak of.

In which case, we'd like to get on the front foot and apologise to Mr Lancaster too!

Rebel without a clue

After a long career as a comedic actress, Rebel Wilson saved her most supreme clownery for the Federal Court this week.

On Wednesday, Wilson took to the witness box for the second day in the defamation case brought against her by the lead actress in her directorial debut, The Deb.

Charlotte MacInnes launched civil proceedings after Wilson publicly accused her of complaining about sexual harassment by the film's senior producer, Amanda Ghost, after a sunset swim at Bondi Beach in September 2023.

Wilson also accused MacInnes of lying about making the complaint because she was then offered a record deal and a lead role in one of Ghost's other productions.

MacInnes denies the sexual harassment occurred, and also denies making a complaint and lying about making a complaint in return for a contract.

On Wednesday, the Pitch Perfect star warbled a note when she claimed that members of MacInnes's legal team - whom she described as 'Team Russian Oligarch' - flew to Sydney on the private jet of billionaire Sir Leonard Blavatnik.

We're told that not only did MacInnes' lawyer Sue Chrysanthou not fly in by private jet for the court showdown, but she is actually quite famous in legal circles for... walking everywhere.

And we mean everywhere. One source said, 'She does literally 30,000 steps a day.' With feet like that, who needs the Russians!

PR lessons learned

If anyone understands a public-relations catastrophe, it's Qantas. But after finally exorcising the ghost of Alan Joyce, the national carrier appears to have read the room. Better late than never.

During Joyce's tenure, which saw the once‑beloved airline's reputation nosedive into one of Australia's most toxic brands, flyers will recall Qantas enthusiastically backing a string of progressive social causes. Some argued that wasn't the job of an airline whose core remit is, ostensibly, to get passengers from A to B on time. 

First came the same‑sex marriage plebiscite - a position that made sense, not least because Joyce is gay and the vote ultimately reflected the will of most Australians. But Qantas' subsequent support for the Indigenous Voice to Parliament failed to capture the same zeitgeist.

When the Voice was rejected, the airline was left looking like it had backed the wrong horse - or, worse, had done a favour for a Prime Minister it had long courted.

But one progressive cause célèbre that Qantas isn't touching is the prosecution of Australia's most decorated soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith VC MG, for alleged war crimes.

It's long been understood that Victoria Cross recipients get access to the Chairman's Lounge, an ultra-exclusive club whose members include politicians, judges and captains of industry (and even the occasional prime ministerial offspring).

After Roberts-Smith was charged on April 7 with five counts of 'war crime – murder', allegedly committed while serving with the Special Air Service in Afghanistan from 2009 to 2012, a question soon arose within the notoriously gossipy world of aviation:

Would BRS and his partner, Sarah Matulin, both Chairman's Lounge members, have their privileges revoked?

Inside Mail makes no suggestion their membership should be revoked. Roberts‑Smith is entitled to the presumption of innocence. But the speculation was unavoidable.

We know from annexures to an affidavit sworn by Matulin and tendered at Roberts-Smith's April 17 bail application that the couple were both in the 'CL' as of February 3.

Our inquiries to Qantas were met with the usual reply: 'We don't comment on Chairman's Lounge membership or individual customers.' But that wasn't the end of the story.

Hours later, Inside Mail received an unsolicited follow‑up from the same Qantas press officer, pointing to a 7News report published on April 23 stating that Roberts‑Smith and Matulin were 'currently' Chairman's Lounge members.

You don't need to be a PR genius to decode the strategy.

Qantas clearly wants it known that BRS has not been ejected - a move that would risk alienating a large slice of mainstream Australia who continue to back him and would not hesitate taking their business to Virgin if they sensed a whiff of betrayal.

At the same time, the airline is avoiding putting that position on the record - aware that doing so would inflame those who believe a man facing such serious allegations has no place sipping champagne alongside the nation's elite.

After years of brand self-harm driven by clumsy messaging and corporate overreach, it seems the old Flying Kangaroo has stumbled upon a novel strategy: say nothing, do nothing, and keep out of it.

Rock and a hard place

Discovering you are the long-lost biological child of a reformed hedonist rock star isn't always the happy ending it's cracked up to be.

You might remember that two days before Christmas in 2024 - and mere hours after we contacted his management for comment - Cold Chisel frontman Jimmy Barnes announced he had welcomed another love child, Katy Lee Carroll.

She was the great-grandfather's third previously unknown daughter to emerge in recent years.

Far from a scandal, it seemed like a cosy reunion, with Barnsey inviting Carroll with open arms to his family alongside a frank Instagram post declaring she had 'been in our lives for the past five years'.

But a year later, reports emerged that Carroll, a former real estate sales associate from Coffs Harbour, had fallen on hard times and was living out of her car.

When the Mail first revealed her situation last December, three sources close to Carroll said that Barnes was aware of her circumstances. We put this to the singer's publicist at the time, who said: 'We will not be making any comment on this story.'

In another sad postscript to the story, she now looks to be in strife again.

An apprehended domestic violence order was made at Coffs Harbour Local Court on April 17 to protect Carroll from her husband, rugby player-turned-coach AJ Gilbert.

The order is made for two years, until 16 April 2028.

Gilbert, whose professional sporting career included playing two games for the Waratahs, is prohibited from going within 100 metres of where Carroll lives or works or contacting her unless through a lawyer. He also must not assault or threaten her; stalk, harass or intimidate her; or destroy her property.

Inside Mail does not suggest Gilbert is alleged to have done any of these things, only that these are the standard conditions of an ADVO.

Carroll had spent the first 15 years of her life wrongly believing her mother's husband was her father, only to discover after their divorce that he wasn't.

She later hired a private investigator and was told by her mother on her 32nd birthday in September 2019 that she believed Barnes might be her father.

It later emerged she was conceived during Barnes' marriage to wife Jane. The link makes her the half-sibling of the rocker's seven other children, including Today Extra host David Campbell, who discovered Barnes was his father at age 10.

I'll do anything for love 

Global real estate agency Savills is bracing for a wave of unwelcome headlines, as the husband of a high-profile influencer takes aim at the firm over his sacking.

In court docs filed in late March, Ben Azar - married to TikTok mega-star Indy Clinton - alleges Savills breached workplace protections when it terminated his employment.

Azar spent more than 22 years with the company, rising to a senior role, and is now pursuing an unfair dismissal claim under general protections laws – provisions designed to guard workers against adverse action for prohibited reasons.

Ordinarily, cases like this come with no shortage of off-the-record briefings, as both sides jostle to shape the narrative ahead of court.

Not this time.

Savills declined to engage, with a representative telling us bluntly: 'We won't comment.' Azar's side was no more forthcoming, his lawyer responding: 'Nah, I'm not sharing anything.' 

With both camps maintaining a vow of silence, legal gossips expect the case could eventually become a curious test of modern workplace norms: can you lose your corporate job for being, in effect, a 'TikTok husband'?

Clinton, for her part, previously suggested her husband's support of her career as an oversharing influencer hadn't gone down well in the office, and that he once 'copped flak' for appearing on her podcast.

We'd like to say this is 'one to watch', but knowing our luck they'll settle before it ever gets interesting. 

Real Housewives in Da Zone

While the Real Housewives of Melbourne would never be seen dead in old hand-me-downs, executives at Foxtel have no such qualms.

Inside Mail can reveal plans are afoot to bring back the series that turned Gina Liano, Jackie Gillies, Gamble Breaux and more into (sort of) household names.

The last original episode aired in 2021 and the Sydney version never really captured the hearts and minds of the nation, unlike its southern sister.

Foxtel has put the show out for tender to production companies. Matchbox Pictures used to be the production partner, but it is closing its Australian operation.

In television, everything old is new again, and ROHM is set for a glamorous return.

Well, we say 'glamorous' but the new season could look more like a bargain basement rip-off. Sources say the planned reboot will be shot on a shoe-string budget.

The show has always been done on the cheap. The stars aren't paid to appear, and they must supply their own clothes. As one insider quipped, 'You won't get rich doing this show.'

But you can find fame.

In a cluttered market where it's hard to stand out, this could be a sure-fire hit for Foxtel, which is trying to prove its sister streaming service Binge has legs after the company was taken over by sports-focused company DAZN (pronounced Da-Zone).

Binge/Foxtel is the only entertainment offering owned by the company, so it has to prove it is capable of drawing audiences and – more importantly – revenue.

The big bosses apparently believe a rebooted RHOM can do that. We'll see.

No bun in the oven 

Meanwhile, the good news for RHOM is bad news for fans of The Great Australian Bake Off.

Sources tell Inside Mail the culinary favourite is out and won't be returning to Foxtel anytime soon.

Does that have anything to do with ratings? Well, we don't know because Foxtel refuses to release ratings data, something new head of programming Dan Monaghan wouldn't be drawn on during a Q&A on Tuesday at the Screen Forever industry conference on the Gold Coast.

Monaghan also avoided directly answering questions from Inside Mail about any planned changes on the streaming platform. We asked whether old favourites were set to return and if he would be axing any shows.

He didn't know we already had the inside track on his plans for RHOM and Bake Off, so kept his answer vague (as is to be expected).

Tom Walker replaced Cal Wilson as Bake Off's co-host last year after her death, and many say the show suffered as a result - not specifically because of Walker, but viewers missed Wilson.

The news will come as a blow to those who worked on the show. Many have been waiting for the phone call to let them know about production dates.

The TV industry is getting tougher and local production companies are feeling the pinch. Once upon a time, they were able to dictate their own terms as networks desperately bid for their products. Now there is less money and networks are demanding everything be done much cheaper, but still have the same quality.

Shows can no longer expect another return just because they've always been around. Sure, heritage formats hold value, but if they're not delivering audience – and revenue – they're out.

That is, of course, until they're brought back in a few years after being 'rested'.

The only comfort for Australian Bake Off fans is that, in TV land, nothing ever truly dies - it's simply placed into a kind of induced coma.

Oh, ssh*t 

It is small fry, admittedly, but in politics the small things often tell you plenty.

The federal and NSW Young Liberals president, Cooper Gannon (aka Mr Freya Leach), has taken to Facebook to rally volunteers for the Liberal campaign in Farrer. The post urges YLs from across the country to help elect the party's candidate.

The only problem? Young Cooper misspells the candidate's name, and gets the by-election date wrong - not once, but twice!

The candidate is Raissa Butkowski. The post refers to 'Raisa'. Damn those first names with a double 's'. We wonder if Coops was confused by the spelling of the first name of the outgoing MP for Farrer, Sussan Ley? Or perhaps the spelling of the electorate itself? Or maybe Coops is just a little sloppy by nature?

The Farrer by-election is on May 9. The Young Libs' call-out says it's to be held on May 2, not once but twice, compounding the error.

Ordinarily, this would barely matter. Typos happen, dates get mixed up, campaigns are busy. Mistakes happen - our house is certainly made from glass!

Except this was a mobilisation post designed to get Liberal volunteers into the field for a by-election campaign. As campaign launches go, misspelling your own candidate's name and sending volunteers towards the wrong polling day is not ideal.

The politics of being vague 

The anticipated memoir of former Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, The Politics of Being Me, has landed with a thud.

While Palaszczuk is candid about many aspects of her personal life and political journey, some of the most consequential moments of her career are conspicuously absent. Most notably, the final chapter of her leadership.

The book offers little to no reflection on the internal unrest that marked the end of her tenure, including the moment senior figures within Labor's left faction turned on her, openly questioning her leadership and accelerating her exit from the premiership.

Perhaps the most eyebrow‑raising omission is Palaszczuk's treatment of potential successors.

While she lavishes praise on current Labor leader Steven Miles, another widely discussed leadership contender, Shannon Fentiman, is not mentioned once. 

Born into the Labor Party and rising to power by inheriting her father's seat of Inala, Palaszczuk remains, at heart, a disciplined party loyalist.

The memoir is clearly written with an eye toward unity, avoiding factional score‑settling or airing internal disputes that might embarrass the party she still identifies with.

That impulse is admirable.

But it also raises an obvious question: if a memoir avoids the messiest, and arguably most revealing, moments of a political career, what purpose does it serve?

However, politics aside, Inside Mail couldn't help but be utterly baffled by one particular passage in the book, an anecdote Palaszczuk includes while recounting the night she learned of Labor's internal unrest.

In a moment that feels oddly symbolic (Ed-that's generous), Palaszczuk recalls spotting a dead owl on the side of the road as she was driven home.

'As I was driving back along Fort Road at Seventeen Mile Rocks with my ministerial driver Alice, we noticed a dead owl on the right-hand side of the road,' she writes. 

'I was just completely devastated; it was such a shocking night and now there was a beautiful owl, dead on the side of the road. I'd never seen a dead owl before. I wondered if it meant something.'

It didn't, Anna.

'Never too much Queensland' 

Speaking of Palaszczuk, Inside Mail spotted another familiar Queensland political face dining in Sydney at the same venue where the former leader was hosting her media rounds for the book.

Seated just a few tables away was LNP Senator Susan Macdonald, enjoying lunch on her own. 

Inside Mail asked Macdonald whether there was 'too much Queensland' packed into the venue.

'There can never be too much Queensland.' Macdonald said. 

LinkedOut

The Albanese government's new plan to make Big Tech pay for Australian journalism has a curious omission: LinkedIn.

The official line is that it's a professional networking site, not a media sharing platform. Convenient, perhaps, but also rather hard to square with the way the Prime Minister and senior ministers actually use it.

Anthony Albanese has been happily posting media content to LinkedIn, including (with exquisite irony) The Guardian's coverage of his own media bargaining announcement. The very policy designed to stop tech platforms benefiting from journalism without fair compensation was itself promoted on a tech platform apparently exempt from the scheme.

Richard Marles is no stranger to the practice either. The Deputy PM has used LinkedIn to push media clips, including Sky News footage repackaged as part of his own political messaging.

Then there is Michelle Rowland, now Attorney-General but a former Communications minister too, who appears to have gone even further, again by posting an entire article to LinkedIn, complete with the text of the piece.

So which is it? Is LinkedIn merely a benign professional networking site, or is it a platform routinely used by politicians to distribute news content, build audiences and benefit from journalism without paying for it? In which case, why is it exempt?

The government cannot have it both ways. If journalism has value when Google, Meta and TikTok use it, it has value when LinkedIn does, too.

At the moment, this looks less like principled media reform and more like a carve out for the platform ministers find most useful.