Bert Newton’s wife Patti breaks silence on controversial Logies speech
BERT Newton’s wife Patti has broken her silence on his controversial Logies speech, defending him against critics and thanking those who “took it for what it was”.
BERT Newton’s wife Patti has broken her silence on his controversial Logies speech, defending the TV legend and thanking their supporters.
Patti, 73, shared a photo on Instagram of her 79-year-old husband on the Logies stage, writing in the caption that “some people wanted to read into things that weren’t there”.
People were divided over Bert’s appearance at the awards ceremony, which saw him offer up an innuendo-laden anecdote about his late friend Graham Kennedy while presenting the award for Most Popular New Talent.
“He enjoyed giving young people a chance on television. He was a great mentor, he mentored a lot of young people. You knew if you went to his dressing room it was locked, he will be inside doing some mentoring,” he said, an eyebrow raised as the audience gasped.
During his speech, Bert also joked that younger viewers might see him on screen and ask “Where has this old p**f come from?”
Shortly after the event, the TV veteran told Nine: “If I did offend anyone, I apologise … I thought it went very well until after the show when I looked at comments on social media.”
He added that he “never set out to offend anybody”.
“I think it’s well known in the industry that I don’t prepare material … I just go for it,” Bert explained.
“If I did offend somebody, or anybody — or a lot of people — I apologise. But I can’t promise I wouldn’t do it again, because it’s the way I work. But then again, I may never work again.”
Originally published as Bert Newton’s wife Patti breaks silence on controversial Logies speech