He was once in the running to be Prime Minister, now Mark Latham’s defending himself from allegations of sexual videos once again | Samantha Maiden

Best remembered for his infamous handshake with former Prime Minister John Howard, Mark Latham had a chance at the country’s top job, but is once again defending himself of a sexual harassment claim, writes Samantha Maiden.

A long-forgotten anniversary in the life and times of former Labor leader Mark Latham was marked without fanfare this month.

It’s 21 years since he fronted up to a press conference to tearfully deny to the existence of a raunchy video at his buck’s night, rumours of a sexual harassment claim and claims he kept a scorecard of how many women he bedded at Parliament House.

On Wednesday, Mr Latham labelled the media “sick puppies” for asking him if he was filmed having sex with his ex-lover in his NSW parliament office. Photo Jeremy Piper

“Nothing happened [at my buck’s night] that would cause me any embarrassment today, looking back on it 13 years later, even if there was a video to look at,” Mr Latham said.

“Things have been put to me about my sisters, my mother, my father that are not true and they don’t deserve it.

“Say whatever you like about me but leave them out of it please.”

It was 2004 and Mark Latham was a real shot at becoming prime minister.

Instead, Australian voters showed their usual impeccable taste and political judgement by giving him the flick before he promptly shaved his head and disappeared for a while at least into political obscurity.

The infamous video of his bone-crushing handshake with John Howard was how he was best remembered.

The infamous video of his bone-crushing handshake with John Howard was how he was best remembered.

But eventually he re-entered NSW state parliament with Pauline Hanson’s One Nation before falling out with her too.

This week, he was back in the headlines and sure enough allegations of sex videos are once again front and centre.

Say what you like about the media being “sick puppies” as Mr Latham is fond of saying, the poor bloke does appear to be absolutely dogged by baseless rumours of sex videos.

Why is this in the news again? This week, we learned that his ex-lover Nathalie Matthews, 37, is seeking an order preventing Mr Latham, 64, from going within 100m of her, alleging an “ongoing, reasonable fear of harassment, intimidation, and potential harm”.

It is not suggested the allegations are true or in any way proven, only that they have been made in the pursuit of obtaining a no-contact court order.

“Throughout our relationship, the defendant engaged in a sustained pattern of emotional, physical, sexual, psychological, and financial abuse, including defecating on me before sex and refusing to let me wash,’’ her application states.

“Forcing degrading sexual acts, pressuring me to engage in sexual acts with others, demanding I call him ‘master’, telling me I was his property, and repeatedly telling me that my only value to him was for sex to demean and control me.

“The defendant has held intimate photos and videos of me, and I have been afraid he would expose them to shame and control me if I attempted to leave or resist his demands.”

On Wednesday, Mr Latham labelled the media “sick puppies” for asking him if he was filmed having sex with his ex-lover in his NSW parliament office, insisting whatever did or did not occur, it had “nothing to do” with her allegations of abuse.

“I had a sex life that I’ve got to say was fantastic,’ Mark Latham.

“The big news is I have a private life,” he said. “I had a sex life that I’ve got to say was fantastic,’’ insisting he was guilty of nothing more than being “male” and “human.”

For good measure, he also offered a range of sexist and disparaging comments about Labor’s Penny Sharpe.

“And I mean to say if you’re sitting there listening to Penny Sharpe droning on and then a woman who looks like Natalie Matthews sends you a message, which one would you pay attention to?’’ he said.

“Yes, I am guilty of that on a regular occasion, guilty too, of being human. In that regard. And male.”

In the wake of those allegations, hundreds of sexually charged texts were leaked, many of them unprintable in a family newspaper.

On Wednesday, Mr Latham shared on X a text message from Sydney Morning Herald crime reporter Perry Duffin slamming the media as “sick puppies.”

“Apologies in advance for the sensitive message,” Duffin wrote.

“We are being told that there’s a video of you/your partner involved in sexual activity in your parli office on your desk. Wondering if you dispute that?”

“You’re asking me to dispute something I haven’t seen put to you (and maybe you haven’t seen it) by ‘we are being told’,’’ Mr Latham replied.

“This is becoming a regular media request to me: From the rag Sydney Sexy Herald,’’ he added.

Mr Latham earlier labelled his ex-lover’s allegations of coercive control as “comically false and ridiculous” in a post on X. Photo: Chris McKeen

“Nothing to do with the court case. No suggestion of any law or rule broken. Sick puppies. Today’s media.”

In his first interview on the scandal, Mr Latham confirmed he was sexting in parliament but insisted his work output was unaffected.

“The big news is I had a private life. I had a sex life and I’ve got to say it was fantastic,’’ Mr Latham said.

“If I’m the only person in Australia who in a work environment engaged in a bit of playful sex talk with their partner, then I’ll buy everyone a lottery ticket tomorrow.”

Mr Latham earlier labelled his ex-lover’s allegations of coercive control as “comically false and ridiculous” in a post on X.

“As the old saying goes, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned,” Mr Latham said.

The breakdown between the pair is also detailed in more recent messages after the relationship turned sour.

“The heinous monster I saw and that physically attacked me that Tuesday night is responsible for any heart issues you might have,’’ Mr Latham wrote on June 6.

“Yes, I imploded on the person I love the most due to various external factors, and I never recall a physical attack,’’ Ms Matthews responds.

“I reported the attack on me and the other threats you made that night to parliamentary security, as I am obliged to do,’’ Mr Latham says.

“You obviously don’t understand what you did, drunk, covered in mud, a monster screaming.”

It’s as messy, ugly and unedifying as Mark Latham’s periodic explosions on the national stage frequently are.

The matter will be mentioned at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on July 30.

Originally published as He was once in the running to be Prime Minister, now Mark Latham’s defending himself from allegations of sexual videos once again | Samantha Maiden