There was an aspect of Bill Hayden’s character that you are unlikely to find mentioned in the many tributes and commentaries that have flowed since his death was announced on Saturday.

Hayden was an inveterate gossip. He loved hearing the behind-the-scenes tittle-tattle about his colleagues and others whom he shared the political space with in and around Parliament House, the more salacious the better. And Hayden’s favourite source of this information was the Canberra Press Gallery.