The ceremony of the 59th annual TV WEEK Logie Awards has kicked off and already there has been quite a few cringey moments thanks to regular funnyman Dave “Hughesy” Hughes.
1. Victim: Karl Stefanovic
His first swipe was at Karl Stefanovic, who to be fair was probably asking for it just being there.
“Lisa Wilkinson has never been nominated for a Gold Logie,” Hughesy started. “It’s ridiculous isn’t it? Karl’s already won one, so… he doesn’t need any more attention. Do ya, Karl?”
In case you’ve been living under a rock, Karl has been the centre of much media attention this year due to his scandalous divorce.
“Channel 10 said ‘Leave Karl alone’ and I agree ya know. The paparazzi followed Karl to America and that made me angry. I can’t even get them to follow me down the street!”
2. Victims: Grant Denyer and Grant Hackett
Two for the price of one this time. While bagging on his mate Grant Denyer, aka the host of Family Feud, he somehow spun it around and took a swipe at Olympic swimmer Grant Hackett.
“Grant Denyer… last month he crashed his car into a tree at 160km an hour, the only thing that saved him was the seven pillows he was sitting on… and the booster seat,” Hughesy joked and the audience very much appreciated because, obviously, Grant Denyer is quite a little man.
Hughesy then explained exactly why he was picking on Grant.
“[He] took the piss out of me on Family Feud a few months ago and survey says payback’s a bitch. Anyway I love Grant, he just gets injured and gets on with it… unlike Grant Hackett.”
“Grant Hackett ‘Oh I’m going to rehab again’… well listen this time!” he joked of the swimmer’s rocky past which includes numerous trips to rehab for addiction.
3. Victim: Shannan Ponton
The newly revamped Biggest Loser wasn’t safe either, as it was dumped from Channel 10’s prime-time spot after only a few episodes. Without Michelle Bridges and Steve “The Commando” Willis on board, it struggled to garner an audience.
“The Biggest Loser, didn’t work this year did it, Shannon? No it didn’t work out. You can still catch it at 2 o’clock in the afternoon.”
He also made comment to the controversial weigh-ins of the contestants which had many people claiming they weren’t “fat” enough to appear on such a show.
4. Victim: Masterchef’s George Calombaris
Last month it was revealed George has underpaid 200 of his staff by a whopping $2.6 million. The mistake was rectified but Hughesy wasn’t going to let is slide, not tonight.
“George said he was devastated to find out… had he not found out he wouldn’t have been devastated.”
The Masterchef judge wasn’t out of hot water yet though.
“In his defence he said he was a chef not an accountant so that’s why he cooked the books.”
5. Victim: Channel 7’s CEO Tim Worner
Perhaps the most savage of all the moments was when Hughesy threw rival network Channel 7 under the bus. Former 7 staffer Amber Harrison is currently suing the network, which is headed up Tim Wormer, as she claims she was forced to work with Worner despite their extramarital affair.
Amber was aware of the dig and tweeted Hughesy in the lead-up to give her okay.
“Jessica Marais… she’s up for Channel 7’s The Wrong Girl,” Hughesy started, purposely getting the network wrong.
“Oh Channel 10, sorry. Channel 7 were working on a pilot of The Wrong Girl that was starring their CEO Tim Worner. That was more a reality show, he picked the wrong girl to mess with. It was going really well but they thought it was too expensive so they tried to cancel it.”
Hughesy then wrapped up what we were all thinking: “I’ve never work on Channel 7 and I probably never will!”
6. The Bachelor: Richie Strahan and Alex Nation
While praising the big winnings contestants earn on The Block, Hughesy compared it to the winnings on other reality shows and the looks on Richie and Alex’s faces said it all.
“If you win The Bachelor, you get 20 dead roses and a dud boyfriend for 6 months.. and possibly a couple of cold sores.”
Hughesy even pointed out that Richie and Alex were in attendance and apologised for making them the butt of his joke.
“That’s Richie and Alex, they’re still together…. not sure how long they’ve got to go but good luck.”
