Annette Sharp: Michael Slater, Andrew O’Keefe and Jodi Gordon in rehab at the same time

Three Australian celebrities checked into the same Sydney rehab centre in a month — and not all were popular with fellow patients, writes Annette Sharp.

As former Test cricketer Michael Slater returned to the news last week following his latest alleged assault and intimidation of a 36-year-old man at Northern Beaches Hospital in July, this column has learned of a remarkable convergence of events that saw Slater and two other Australian celebrities check into the same Sydney rehab centre in a month.

According to this column’s well-placed sources, staff and patients at Northside clinic on the lower north shore could hardly believe their eyes earlier this year when the cricketer, who has represented his country at sport and has fans across the globe, wasn’t the highest profile patient on the admissions list.

Also booked in for extended stays were TV game show host Andrew O’Keefe and actor/model Jodi Gordon.

From left: Andrew O'Keefe, Jodi Gordon and Michael Slater were all in the same rehab centre at the same time.

Said one clinic insider who spoke to this column on the condition of anonymity, if a poll had been conducted by Northside’s staff and patients to determine which of the three stars was most popular, Slater would have finished third, by a long way, trailing former The Chase host O’Keefe and Gordon.

Gordon would have topped the poll as she was said to have been “sweet and delightful” to all, if not a little embarrassed to be recognised.

O’Keefe would have come second, but while he was deemed “charming … if not a little fey” by insiders, he apparently lost points for wearing shorts that were considered “too short” by patients expecting to avoid high anxiety situations during their stay.

Slater, once nicknamed Sybil, won few fans during his stay, with his temperament described as “generally unpleasant” and “needs work”.