The most memorable and shocking moments of The Logies

WHILE there’s a certain amount of customary cringe that comes with the Logies, there’s no denying that it’s given us some of the funniest and most memorable moments in Aussie TV history.

WHILE there’s a certain amount of customary cringe that comes with the Logies, there’s no denying that the annual awards ceremony has given us some of the funniest and most memorable moments in Aussie TV history.

Spanning almost six decades — the first ever Logie was presented in 1959 — television’s night of nights has become as well known for its trainwreck moments as it has for its triumphant ones.

Here are eight of the most shocking and most memorable gaffes in Logies history.

Rivers rips it up

2006 Logies. Logie Awards. Joan Rivers with her pink Logie.

Joan Rivers had the audience in stitches after a few drinks at the Logies in 2006. While on stage with Richard Wilkins, an inebriated Rivers told the audience: ‘’They don’t know who the sh*t I am. I don’t know why the f*** I’m here. I know him [pointing to Wilkins] and I know you’re all famous [gesturing to audience] and I hope you all win. I know I’m sitting with important people, I don’t know who you are.” When Wilkins then presented her with her own pink Logie award, Rivers wasn’t so humbled by the gesture. “I am so touched,” she said before flinging it

behind her shoulder. It’s the ugliest award I’ve ever seen. You can get it on eBay tomorrow.”

Karl gets ‘drunk’

Perhaps one of the most famous Logies moments in recent times actually happened the following morning. Karl Stefanovic’s drunk appearance on The Today Show in 2009 in which he appeared flushed, slurring his words and frequently giggling made international headlines and made him the subject of a story on Seven’s Today Tonight. At the time he said he “did not feel drunk”, but has since admitted he was. “It wasn’t any different to any other year — we all get smashed at the Logies and go to work the next day; we’d done it for years and years. But this was the first Logies when stuff really started working on the internet,” he said in an interview posted on YouTube. “I remember seeing it on Today Tonight and going ‘Oh god.’ I really was drunk, or at least I certainly looked and sounded drunk.”

Karl also acknowledges his wife’s ‘arse’

Karl also caused a stir two years later when he won the most popular presenter Logie in 2011. He also won the Gold that year, but in his first speech he proceeded to tell the millions of viewers at home that his wife, Cas, had “the best arse I have ever seen”. While some found it funny, others didn’t, including Better Homes And Gardens presenter Johanna Griggs who later told him what she thought of the comment. “Karl, we don’t have bum and boobs jokes — it’s just nice family viewing,” she said.

Bert’s ‘boy’ gaffe

Described as “the most infamous Logies moment ever,” by TV Week, Bert Newton found himself in a bit of bother with boxing legend Muhammad Ali in 1979 when he quipped ‘’I like the boy,’’ to the audience. Not knowing that “boy” could be taken as a racial slur, Ali looked at him in disbelief and said. ‘’Did you say Roy or Boy?’’ as the audience called out to Newton to correct the remark. He then went on to slam the Logie award itself, asking Bert: ‘’I don’t want to embarrass nobody, but is this real gold? What do you do to win one of these? Is this a big thing?’’ Newton replied: ‘’This is 23 years for me.’’ Ali returned: ‘’Twenty-three years for this?’’ Ali finished by telling Bert: “I love the award, I like your style, but this gift is so cheap, I won’t see you for a while.”

Sammy lights up

Sammy Davis Jr lights up a cigarette with Bert Newton.

It probably wasn’t as shocking in 1978 as it is now, but when American entertainer Sammy Davis Jr was on stage with Bert Newton to present the gold Logie, he lit up a cigarette and puffed away on it during the broadcast. While no one told him to stop smoking at the time, he sadly died of throat cancer 12 years later.

Morris’ nominee stuff-up

Julia Morris stole the show during the live broadcast of the 2015 Logies after she accidentally forgot to announce the nominees of the Outstanding Entertainment Program, and instead cut straight to announcing the winner. After Ricky Martin, Delta Goodrem and Darren McMullen from The Voice accepted the award, Morris realised what she had done. “Did I forget to talk about the nominees?” she said. “It’s live, don’t tell anyone, we can cut it out later!” “Let’s pretend it hasn’t happened, ladies and gentlemen, the nominees ... I wish I had my glasses,” she said as she read out the nominees. Come on, why did it have to be me, couldn’t it be someone groovy who did that?”

Tracey’s nude moment at Crown

Nine television presenter Tracy Grimshaw - Supplied

In 2013, the usually straitlaced Grimshaw confirmed she once drunkenly ventured naked into a Crown hotel hallway after a Logies ceremony believing she had stepped into her shower. Asked if she was “maggoted” by Kyle and Jackie O following the 1998 Logies, she responded: “Yeah I was, James and I used to do tequila shots back before he was married. Suddenly it was quarter to four in the morning, and I had done a few tequila shots and I was doing the Today Show that morning”. At 3.45am she decided to have a shower before the hair and make-up artists arrived at 4am to prepare her for her morning on national television, she recalled. “I thought I am going to

have a shower and get ready because the girls are going to be here in 15 minutes to get me all shooshed for the Today Show. So I took the dress off I was wearing and the finery and pulled out all the bits and bobs from my hair and went to have a shower and found myself in the hallway. At Crown. Yup.”

Irwin’s snake goes rogue

In 2003, Ten presenter Tim Webster left the Logies with more than a headache after he was bitten by a snake that Steve Irwin was handling and flinging around the stage. Webster suffered puncture marks and a bruise on his thigh after Irwin descended from the stage and into the crowd with the wayward snake. “I’m assuming it was all part of Steve’s routine because he was trying to get the thing to bite Eddie [McGuire] and tried to convince him it was a tiger snake,” said Tim, who took the bite as graciously as could be expected.

Originally published as The most memorable and shocking moments of The Logies