TheRevue,now an independent production at the Seymour Centre,is devised by comediansJonathan Biggins, Drew Forsythe andPhillip Scott.
Arts Minister Tony Burke is a fan of the Revue.Alex Ellinghausen
The show’s No.1 fan is Arts MinisterTony Burke,who was in the audience for opening night and stuck around for the drinks and nibbles organised by producerJo Dyer(who ran as an independent for the seat of Boothby last federal election).
Burke did not feature as a character in this year’sRevue. At opening night drinks he told CBD that he was in it last year but “got off lightly this time”.
But CBD’s sources say Burke was actually really pleased to be in last year’s show,the first time he’d been “cast”.
He was set to appear as a character in this year’sRobin Hood skit,featuring Albo of Marrickville,Dreyfus of Mordialloc and Sarah Hanson of Young,but in the final week of rehearsals the team decided to replace Burke’s character with William of Shorten.
CBD hears they felt the need to break the news to Burke personally before opening night. But he did not seem too disappointed when CBDcontacted him for comment,saying,“In my line of work,you’d much rather be in the audience ofTheWharf Revuethan depicted on the stage.”
BARNABY’S BUSH BASH WEDDING
It was quite the scandal in early 2018 when it first emerged that Nationals MPBarnaby Joyce was having an affair with his stafferVikki Campion and she was having his baby,but if a week is a long time in politics,then five and half years is an eternity.
Yesterday,the couple tied the knot in what is being described as a “bush bash” with 80 guests at the family estate in Walcha in northern NSW.
Judging by the photos,the vibe appears to be akin to a Bachelors and Spinsters Ball.
Guests were encouraged to park their 4WDs side by side to create the aisle and reportedly many were staying overnight in their swags or utes.
Joyce and Campion wore matching Akubra hats and the bride wore knee-high cowboy boots under her gown.
The couple have two sons,Sebastian andThomas.
It is unclear whether any of Joyce’s four daughters were at the wedding. DaughterJulia Joyce posted an Instagram video last month wearing a bridal dress while her mother,Natalie Abberfield,makes a quick appearance wearing a veil. The video was captioned:“Getting ready to crash my dad’s wedding I didn’t get invited to … in my mum’s wedding dress”.
PERSONAL JOURNEY
Shark Tank judgeDr Catriona Wallaceis in New York City this week on official sharky business,but the visit will be a milestone for a personal reason.
The former police officer-turned-technology entrepreneur is filming something top secret with five of the six US sharks,and judges from the Brazilian,Indian,Canadian and Finnish versions of the show.
Shark Tank judge Dr Catriona Wallace.
The visit is slated to include a shindig in US IT entrepreneurRobert Herjavec’s penthouse apartment overlooking Central Park on Monday night (NYC time).
It will also mark the first time Wallace is interacting with herShark Tank colleagues while being fully out as a non-binary or gender-queer person (pronouns:she or they).
Wallace was happy to share her story with CBD because she believes it will help her live more authentically.
Since selling her ASX-listed software start-up Flamingo AI in 2020,Wallace has been on a journey of self-discovery.
Wallace says she spent the first seven years of her life wanting to be a boy called Tommy,until at eight an aunt told her it was time to be a “young lady” and social conditioning set in.
She says she is comfortable in a female body and happily in a relationship with a man,but at 58 she has come to the belief she is neither masculine nor feminine.
She first told her family,then a month ago shared it with the queer community at a party at the Bearded Tit in Redfern to screen theShark Tank episode where Wallace invests in trans-led start-up Sock Drawer Heroes.
When this episode aired she got a taste of the vitriol many trans people experience daily,and has opened a police investigation to deal with it.
If Wallace comes back as aShark Tank judge in 2024,she promises to “be fully in my queerness on the show”.
BISHOP DECLINES CHRISTMAS HAT
Which former NSW Liberal politician with the initials BB was at the Salvos’ annual Christmas lunch at the Four Seasons on Friday?
Former Liberal senator and MP Bronwyn Bishop accused the public broadcaster of aligning itself with Nazi policies.
You guessed it:Bronwyn Bishop was sitting at one of the tables in the front row. Salvos insiders say she is a longtime supporter of the charity.
When MCJoe Hildebrand drew attention to her presence by saying,“No,Bronwyn,you’re not on Sky News,you can’t interrupt me,” the erstwhile MP and senator laughed politely.
But when she pulled a Christmas cracker with a table-mate and won the prize,Bishop declined to put on the paper crown.
It’s not the gravest infraction but you’d hope that someone even as serious as Bishop might be able to let their hair down once in a while.
Bishop had to leave after the first course to chair a meeting and was later of the previous evening,in which she accused the ABC of following Nazi policies in its coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.
CBD imagines she didn’t want to squash her trademark coiffed hairdo by donning the hat. Despite our best efforts,CBD couldn’t reach Bishop to discuss this.
ASTON ‘MERCURIAL’,COSTELLO SAYS
Recently departedAFR columnistJoe Aston left a hole in the nation’s media landscape.
His departure came up at Nine’s AGM in a question posed by shareholder activist Stephen Mayne,who asked what the company,which owns this masthead,intended to do about his exit.
ChairmanPeter Costello sent Aston off with a compliment about his dogged,now-infamous pursuit of former Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce,calling him a “real investigative journalist”.
Costello alluded to a quality of Aston’s writing that made him thebete noire of Australia’s business community.
“Joe was a mercurial reporter. He did a lot of good,” Costello said. “People often complained about his stories,I can assure you of that.”
Aston declined to comment.
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