Adelaide entertainer Matt Gilbertson, aka international cabaret star Hans, still seeking justice after 2022 cruise ship fall

The beloved SA entertainer is still dealing with ‘physical and emotional’ scars as he continues to fight for justice, almost three years after a terrifying cruise ship incident.

SA entertainer Matt Gilbertson says he’s still dealing with the “physical and emotional” scars of his terrifying 2022 cruise ship fall which left him in hospital for two months.

Gilbertson, better known as his alter ego, Adelaide international cabaret star Hans, sustained horrific injuries to his spine and right foot in the incident, which happened during a performance aboard a Royal Caribbean cruise liner almost three years ago.

The all-singing, all-dancing “Boy From Berlin” told The Advertiser that he’s still seeking a “measure of justice” with legal proceedings against Royal Caribbean and promoter Atlantis Events still unresolved after two years.

“This August will mark three years since this horrific incident. Though I strive not to let it show, the physical and emotional consequences remain a part of my daily life and they will be with me for the rest of my life,” he said in a statement.

“With that reality in mind, I remain committed to seeing this case resolved in court as swiftly as possible, so that a measure of justice can finally be achieved.”

Matt Gilbertson as cabaret star Hans. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Matt Gilbertson and friend Adam Montagu, associate professor of nursing and the director, who happened to be with Gilbertson on the fateful trip. Picture: Supplied

It comes as Gilbertson’s management, Watercooler Talent, launched its own lawsuit against the cruise liner and promoter, it’s been reported.

David Wilson, managing partner at Watercooler, is claiming their negligence has cost the talent agency its cut of Gilbertson’s fees in the years since the injury, reports say.

Mr Wilson, who also manages music icon John Farnham, declined to comment to The Advertiser as “there is a legal matter currently in progress”.

Gilbertson shattered the bones in his right foot, fractured five vertebrae and broke his coccyx after plummeting four metres while performing aboard the Atlantis Events gay cruise on Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Sea in the Mediterranean in August 2022.

He spent a harrowing week in a Turkish hospital before being airlifted to London, where surgeons worked on pinning his broken bones before beginning a gruelling regimen of physiotherapy and rehabilitation.

Hans is put into the back of an ambulance after the fall. Picture: Facebook

Channel 10 entertainment reporter Angela Bishop with Matt Gilbertson aka Hans in a London hospital. Picture: Supplied

The America’s Got Talent star was performing on a stage fitted with three hydraulic lifts that could raise and lower sections of the floor as needed.

Court documents claim that Royal Caribbean Cruises and Atlantis breached their duty to Gilbertson to use “reasonable care” in safely operating those lifts during his performance.

The court documents, lodged in August 2023, say Gilbertson – described as an “internationally recognised and acclaimed entertainer” – has been unable to work, resulting in a “significant loss of income”.

“The plaintiff’s ability to carry out his performing duties will in any event be curtailed by a significant number of years due to the early onset of degenerative changes due to the injuries sustained,” the documents say.

Gilbertson spent a week in a Turkish hospital before being transferred to London Bridge Hospital for surgery on his shattered foot.

While in London, he received visits from many high-profile friends, including then Sunrise TV hosts David Koch and Natalie Barr, and entertainment reporter Angela Bishop.

He eventually returned home to Adelaide about two months after the incident.

“Relieved, and happy to be alive. It’s not an experience I’d ever want to repeat,” he said in an interview with The Advertiser in May, 2023.

Gilbertson is currently on his ‘Hans: Young, fun and 21’ national tour, which includes shows in NSW, ACT, Tasmania, Victoria and Queensland.

Tickets available at hansofficial.com

Originally published as Adelaide entertainer Matt Gilbertson, aka international cabaret star Hans, still seeking justice after 2022 cruise ship fall