The sledgers who wedged Australian politicians

Scott Morrison’s encounter with an irate voter got us thinking about the great hecklers who’ve taken on our politicians – and the leaders with the best comebacks.

Prime Minister Paul Keating had no qualms about hitting back at student protesters when he was prime minister.

How good is being flogged with a warm lettuce?

A seemingly innocent photo opp to a Newcastle pub turned into an nightmare for Scott Morrison, as a pensioner gave him an unscripted character assessment on Wednesday night.

“Listen to me for a change,” the man said, before demanding the Prime Minister “better f..king do something” and that he was “sick of your bullshit”.

At the same pub, a woman called Chantelle asked for a ScoMo selfie. As he looked towards the camera, she told him: “Congratulations on being the worst prime minister we’ve ever had.”

A fair shake of the shampaign (faux campaign) sauce bottle indeed.

But how does it rank among the most memorial political heckles?

Former education minister Christopher Pyne felt oblige to school student protesters on burning effigies.

10. Christopher Pyne, 2014

Tony Abbott’s education minister received some friendly fire from student protesters, over the government’s university reforms. After interrupting a live broadcast of Q&A, by unfurling an upside-down banner, activists attempted to burn a life-size effigy of Christopher Pyne. While chanting “f..k you, we deserve a future too”, the students couldn’t seem to get the plastic poster to catch alight. Prompting The Fixer to make a tongue-in-cheek jibe at students, offering to film a YouTube clip on how to burn his own effigy: use cardboard, not corflute. “Because everyone knows you need more cardboard and rag than … corflutes,” Pyne said.

9. Tony Abbott, 2011 and 2015

During his time as Liberal leader, Abbott became a bit of a sledge magnet. Two examples come to mind.

As Abbott addressed the cameras next to a Perth freeway in 2015, a voice shouts simply: “You’re all a bunch a wankeeeeeeers.” Perfectly timed to hit the crescendo as the car passed the press pack.

Another prime example occurred in 2011, as the then opposition leader walked through a hardware store, waving at customers and criticising the so-called “carbon tax”.

Abbott: “Good morning, sir. How are you?”

Man: “Dickhead.”

Abbott: “Oh, really?”

As the saying goes, brevity is the soul of wit.

8. Malcolm Fraser, 1981

Our 22nd prime minister was no stranger to an egging, having been pelted during the 1975 election.

Malcolm Frazer

He probably wasn’t egg-specting (sorry) to be hit while in Old Parliament House. As Malcolm Fraser answered a question about an upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in May 1981, a woman in the public gallery hurled an egg, missing him by about a metre. The woman was Kerry Alcorn, daughter of Labor MP Ken Fry. Alcorn said the egg had been a warning shot, and if she had wanted to harm the PM, she would have done so. Her main complaint? The high cost of CHOGM, which she felt could be better used elsewhere.

Kevin Rudd shortly after his election win in 2007. Picture: Patrick Hamilton

7. Kevin Rudd, 2007

John Howard famously claimed to get more hugs than heckles on the campaign trail. The same can’t be said for Kevin Rudd, who copped a serve from a 74-year-old choir member in 2007. The man called him an “ignorant bastard” for gatecrashing birthday party at a Tasmanian community centre.

6. Robert Menzies, 1949 and 1951

Robert Menzies

When Sir Bob found himself on the receiving end of a well-thrown egg, his famous wit didn’t fail him. When an egg missed him while campaigning in 1949, he quipped: “These people can’t think straight, and can’t aim straight!”

The 1951 attempt was slightly closer. At a Queensland rally calling for the banning of the Communist Party, an egg hurled at Menzies bounced off the podium and hit reporters. Our 12th prime minister told the crowd: “That kind of argument is the argument the Australian communist understands, and with eggs 4½d each I call that gross extravagance!”

5. Julia Gillard, 2013

Our first female prime minister faced two sandwich attacks during the 2014 campaign, thanks to high school students. The first was a vegemite sanger at a school in Brisbane, which hit Julia Gillard’s arm. The second was salami, chucked by a Canberra high school student. Gillard laughed off both incidents, saying whoever threw the sandwiches must have thought she was hungry.

4. John Hewson, 1993

Two days before losing the 1993 election, John Hewson held his last rally of the campaign at the Brisbane Town Hall. A crowd of 7000 supporters and 1000 opponents gathered to hear about his Fightback economic plan, in particular his unpopular idea of a goods and services tax. A group of students hurled eggs, soft-drink cans, apples, tomatoes and even broccoli at Hewson. As they pelted the stage, Nationals leader Tim Fischer and his wife, Judy, ducked for cover. Hewson caught one of the eggs. “Those cricketers have nothing on me!” he quipped.

Here, John Hewson demonstrates adept GST debate skills catching an egg thrown during weird 1993 rallies (nice catch) pic.twitter.com/HcaKaghAyR

— Samantha Maiden (@samanthamaiden) February 9, 2016

3. Bob Hawke, 1989

Bob Hawke. Picture: Getty Images

Cast your mind back to 80s – the golden age of political incorrectness – when a prime minister could call a pensioner whatever you wanted without being lectured by finger-waggers. That was when Bob Hawke encountered a curmudgeonly 74-year-old while on the campaign trail in Whyalla, South Australia …

Bob Bell: “You get more a week than we get a year.”

Hawke: “(inaudible) you silly old bugger.”

2. Billy Hughes, 1917

Billy Hughes

The Little Digger was touring Queensland, trying to drum up support for conscription in the lead-up to the second national referendum, having narrowly lost the first. As Billy Hughes made a stump speech at Warwick railway station, Patrick ‘Paddy’ Brosnan threw an egg at the prime minister and knocked his top hat off. Shocked and angered, Hughes reached inside his coat for his revolver, only to realise he’d left it on the train. He demanded the man be arrested. A policeman replied that he had no jurisdiction: “I deal only in Queensland law, this is a Commonwealth matter.” Which prompted the prime minister to create the Australian Federal Police.

1. Paul Keating, 1995

Australia’s 24th prime minister was not a fan of student protesters. While walking by a crowd chanting about lowering fees, Paul Keating heckled: “Go and get a job! Go and do a bit of work like the rest of us.”