Former First Bloke Tim Mathieson On Gay Rumours: It Was Hilarious
He isn't first bloke anymore, but it's unlikely he would be able to fend off gay rumours any time soon. Tim Mathieson, former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard's long-time partner, has laughed off rumours questioning his sexuality.
Last month, radio personality Howard Sattler was suspended from his job at Radio 6PR after he asked Gillard about the rumours that Mathieson was gay.
Sattler repeatedly asked the then PM if she could dispel the gay speculations surrounding her domestic partner of seven years. He claimed that people have been saying that Mathieson was homosexual, most probably due to his profession as a hairdresser.
6PR then released a statement following overwhelming negative reactions from Twitter users, saying that the radio jock was suspended for the "disrespectful and irrelevant" questions he posed to Gillard.
In an impromptu phone interview with Melbourne sports station SEN during the weekend, Mathieson, who had "just finished doing Julia's hair," addressed the controversy for the first time.
He said that he was staying with his parents in Victoria when he heard the news questioning his sexuality.
"We woke up at 6 in the morning and turned the TV on and mum goes, 'What's all this mean, Tim?'" I said, "I dunno, mum.'
"My father, he's a classic, you know, he gets up and says, 'my father was a barber in Shepparton. He must have been gay as well,'" Mathieson said.
"It was hilarious. Anyway, I go, yeah, okay, go to Melbourne and hide off for a couple of days."
The hairdresser also recalled one time when he bumped into media personality Molly Meldrum, who is openly gay, after Gillard's interview with Sattler.
"I said, 'G'day mate,' because I know Molly pretty well. He goes, 'Don't come anywhere near me they'll think you're gay!' It was a dead set classic. I was a dead set classic, fair dinky."
Meanwhile, in a separate interview with Nine Network, Mathieson, who was put onto public spotlight in 2006 when he entered a relationship with Gillard, revealed that his partner was "a little sad" that she was ousted from her position last week.
He was shocked that Gillard lost the Labor's vote to Kevin Rudd on Wednesday, prompting her to resign from politics, but they are "all good" now.
"She's really good, a little sad, the household is sad but probably slightly relieved as well," he said. She's done some incredible things which I'm sure in time will be shown in much better light than has been lately."
As for Rudd, Mathieson only has nice things to say.
"It's time to move on and I wish Kevin all the best as well and hope that he gets out there and gives Tony [Abbott] a really good run for his money."