Logies host Sam Pang rips Lisa Wilkinson to shreds for her disastrous acceptance speech that caused Bruce Lehrmann’s rape trial to be postponed – leaving the celebrity audience gasping
Logies host Sam Pang is ripping Lisa Wilkinson to shreds over her disastrous acceptance speech that caused Bruce Lehrmann’s rape trial to be postponed – leaving the celebrity audience gasping
- Comedian Sam Pang attacks Lisa Wilkinson
- Logie’s presenter makes the audience gasp
The celebrity-filled crowd at the Logie Awards gasped when host Sam Pang delivered an extraordinary swipe at Lisa Wilkinson onstage during TV’s night of nights.
The comedian made a cheeky joke about how Wilkinson’s acceptance speech at last year’s ceremony had caused Bruce Lehrmann’s trial to be postponed.
Mr Lehrmann, a former political staffer, was at the time facing criminal charges for the alleged rape of his former colleague Brittany Higgins.
Comedian Sam Pang made a cheeky joke about how Lisa Wilkinson’s acceptance speech at last year’s ceremony had caused Bruce Lehrmann’s trial to be postponed (the journalist is pictured wearing her Silver Logie at last year’s event – she’s this year not present)
Ms Higgins had accused Mr Lehrmann of raping her in a minister’s office at Parliament House after a boozy night out in 2019.
He has always denied the allegations and the trial was eventually aborted due to juror misconduct. A second trial was set to proceed, but the case was subsequently dropped by the ACT Director of Public Prosecutions.
Ms Higgins first made her allegations public in a 2021 interview with Wilkinson that aired on Channel 10 current affairs program The Project.
When Wilkinson won a Silver Logie for that interview the following year, she went on stage and gave a speech suggesting that Ms Higgins’s claims were true – even though they had not yet been legally proven and Mr Lehrmann’s trial had been not started yet.
At this year’s Logies, while scrolling through a list of household announcements, host Pang said with a straight face to the audience, “A reminder to all the winners out there, make sure you don’t mix your acceptance speech with an active litigation .’
The joke elicited audible screams from the audience as two-time Gold Logie winner Georgie Parker leaned forward in mock shock, trying to suppress her laughter.
But there were no cameras rolling to Wilkinson’s reaction since she was not present at this year’s awards ceremony.
Wilkinson met Ms Higgins and her boyfriend David Sharaz in a Sydney hotel room in January 2021. Since then, recordings of the five-hour meeting have been leaked.
The Project host famously basked in her triumph at last year’s awards ceremony.
Because of her speech, the trial had to be postponed until October. It later collapsed after juror misconduct and the prosecution decided not to pursue the case for fear of Ms. Higgins’ mental health.
Wilkinson faced a wrath of public criticism in the aftermath, with thousands of Australians calling for them to resign.
There have also been increasing calls in recent months for Wilkinson to return her gong for Most Outstanding News Coverage of Public Affairs Report, which she was awarded last June for her explosive interview with the former Liberal staffer.
The calls were prompted by the emergence of a recording of a five-hour meeting between Wilkinson, her Channel Ten producer Angus Llewellyn, Ms Higgins and her boyfriend David Sharaz in a Sydney hotel room in January 2021.
The allegations that arose from the taped lunch meeting are that Wilkinson coached and exhorted Ms. Higgins about the rape allegations prior to her interview.
The group also spoke of the Labor politicians they claimed they could rely on to ‘fire off’ questions in Question Time and the apparent mockery of the Liberal Party’s pre-selection of Indigenous candidates.
Wilkinson was later forced to apologize to candidate Jacinta Nampijinpa Price after she appeared to compare her pre-selection to a white family “hiring a black cleaner.”
Pang captivated the Logies crowd with many risqué jokes at this year’s awards ceremony.
“I want to recognize a victory for diversity tonight. I’m the first host in the history of the Logies to be half and half – half Channel 7 and half Channel 10,” he began.
“Let’s face it, it’s just great to have an Asian on Channel 7 who isn’t trying to smuggle live birds through border control.”
Pang did a funny snippet about the number of other stars he claimed had been asked to host the awards.
“Karl Stefanovic said yes, as long as the show was held in a park in Noosa,” he said.
He added, “In the end it came down to two: and then Rolf Harris died and here I am.”
He also joked about Married at First Sight, claiming it “remained a judging juggernaut and another clear sign that we might not make it as a species.”