Four Corners ‘meltdown’ two hours before going to air. Plus, blind gossip hints at media Lothario’s dark side… and which TV star has meth on his mind? INSIDE MAIL

Sore corners

In case you missed it, Four Corners poured a steaming bucket of s*** on Melbourne neurosurgeon Greg Malham this week, digging up plenty of (alleged) dirt on the man who was infamously filmed tearing down a Monique Ryan corflute.

But Professor Malham wasn’t the only one in a bad mood after Monday’s broadcast.

Sydney doctor Yumiko Kadota was interviewed for the program, sharing her experience of the ‘toxic culture’ she witnessed first-hand in hospitals while a neurosurgery resident.

But Dr Kadota, who is now a cosmetic physician after burnout ended her career as a young surgeon, was quietly edited out of the program when it went to air – surprising, as she’d been included in the trailer.

She was upset by the snub, having only been told two hours beforehand.

Dr Kadota said that while she understood the ABC’s investigation had taken a different direction since she filmed her interview on the King’s Birthday public holiday, being ‘cancelled… [at] the last minute’ nonetheless triggered her rejection-sensitive dysphoria (RSD) and caused an ‘autistic meltdown’.

She described filming the interview only for it to be cut as ‘unpaid emotional labour’, and also bemoaned what she saw as the lack of diversity among healthcare workers featured in the broadcast.

An ABC spokeswoman pointed out that Dr Kadota was in the Four Corners digital story – even though she didn’t make the episode – and that the program’s makers had spoken to her at length prior to the broadcast.

The investigation was fronted by Louise Milligan – an ABC veteran who never misses an opportunity to tell you she used to be a model before finding her calling as a reporter… or so we are told.

Interestingly, Milligan had shared a friendly interaction with Dr Kadota on Instagram the day the show aired, so it’s quite possible even she didn’t know the good doctor had been left on the cutting room floor.

Inside Mail contacted Dr Kadota for comment via her cosmetic clinic’s reception.

A star is born 

The Liberals may be stuck in the political wilderness, but over at Sky News HQ, the conservative star factory never stops.

Network insiders say there are ‘big plans’ for contributor Freya Leach, who has been filling in on The Late Debate since Liz Storer was shown the door seven weeks ago.

The rumour is she is getting her own show. We’re told the timeslot is Sunday at 6pm, but we’ve had no confirmation about the format. 

So, who is Ms Leach? Dux of St Andrew’s Cathedral School class of 2020, her right-wing credentials are second to none. 

Her father is Reverend Mark Leach, the man behind Christian Zionist outfit ‘Never Again is Now’, which rallies non-Jews to take a stand against antisemitism.

When she’s not firing off conservative talking points on Sky News, Freya moonlights for the Menzies Research Centre as its director of the ‘Centre for Youth Policy’.

When we reported last week that Leach was filling in for Storer after her axing, we heard she was gobsmacked to see her name in the headlines.

She apparently told friends it must have been a ‘slow news day’ at the Daily Mail.

She sells herself short. We keep hearing from Sky News sources that she is a ‘rising star’ and they ‘like her a lot upstairs’.

Bash the Bishop 

Former Foreign Minister and self-styled fashion queen Julie Bishop is copping heat for living it up at Dubai’s five-star Atlantis Hotel – where rooms go for upwards of $1,000 a night – while the university she leads plunges into crisis.

Now Chancellor of the Australian National University, Bishop shared a glitzy Instagram reel from her birthday soirée, just weeks after ANU announced $250million budget cuts that left dozens jobless and sent shockwaves through campus.

But not everyone was loving Bishop’s ‘let them eat birthday cake’ moment.

‘Dear ANU, your leadership is with you – just let me finish this 10-course supper in Dubai,’ one commenter wrote.

‘Fifty-nine ANU staff lost their job this month because of… your leadership. Cheers to that, Julie,’ another chimed in.

Lucy Chapman-Kelly, co-convener of the ‘No Cuts at ANU’ campaign, didn’t mince words when speaking to Inside Mail.

‘Julie Bishop and Genevieve Bell deserve to be sacked for putting profit over our education. ANU students and staff won’t stop fighting until we achieve a reversal of [the cuts],’ she said.

But amid the fury, a little birthday glitter did land in the comments – courtesy of America’s Next Top Model star and newly minted Sydneysider Tyra Banks.

‘Happy YOU Day, Julie,’ she wrote.

We can hazard a guess that ANU staff and students won’t be smizing at Bishop’s holiday snaps.

Blind gossip trouble

There’s an old saying in this business: today’s gossip is tomorrow’s news.

So Inside Mail notes with interest that a certain media identity – who shall remain nameless – is now the subject of damaging blind gossip on the shadier corners of the internet.

What are the rumours? Nothing criminal, but we’ve heard this individual likes to try his luck with younger women starting out in the industry.

He isn’t the first – won’t be the last.

However, one of these women has spoken out anonymously to say her encounter with this man had a profound effect on her. She claims she’s not the only one.

We can’t say who it is – yet – but this isn’t the sort of story that stays quiet for long.

• The subjects of this blind item are not mentioned or pictured elsewhere in this column.

‘Cheap and nasty’

With parliament returning this week for the first set of new sittings, the Governor-General held a BBQ at her Canberra residence to welcome the newly elected MPs.

You might’ve expected her to put on a good spread. Not so, say our disappointed spies, who claim the sausage sizzle was ‘cheap and nasty’.

‘There were only sausages nothing else – not even a salad. They were cold and undercooked. I had to grab something to eat after I left, it was that bad,’ one newly elected MP tells us.

‘There wasn’t even any alcohol,’ another unimpressed new MP lamented.

Perhaps the GG wants to lead by example cutting costs in tough economic times? Or maybe she just wanted to get rid of all the unwanted guests as quickly as possible?

Take-it-easy Albanese 

The prime minister was keen, ahead of the first sitting week, to claim undeserved credit for recalling parliament earlier than required – supposedly because his agenda was so full.

Really?

Officially, parliament must sit within three months of the election date, which means Albo brought parliament back just a week earlier than the latest possible date allowed.

Hardly an early start!

Especially when you consider how light this week actually is: Monday was a day off. Tuesday was all pomp and ceremony, with no Question Time. Parliament wraps up on Thursday. Then MPs and senators head home for another day off on Friday.

We know MPs work hard, including in their home states. But nearly three months on from election day, the first sitting week was about as slow a start as possible.

Seven’s bid to beat The Block

Seven is dusting off its toolbelt and heading back into the renovation game.

Inside Mail can reveal the network is officially casting for a brand-new reno show, with insiders dubbing it the network’s ‘most ambitious move in years’.

A casting notice circulated this week spruiks the yet-to-be-titled show as ‘bigger, bolder, and more life changing than any other reno show’ and calls for ‘dynamic duos who are either renovators, tradies or just ready to take on the ultimate challenge’.

It’s not just the houses getting a makeover – Seven is apparently forking out up to $18million on the series in a ‘major reinvestment’.

The network took a year off home renovation shows in 2025 after shelving Dream Home, hosted by star recruit Dr Chris Brown.

Despite a promotional blitz and a plum timeslot, the series failed to gain traction in 2024 amid reports of ballooning production costs and behind-the-scenes difficulties.

‘This new show has proper backing,’ said our Seven source.

Seven’s long-running renovation hit House Rules wrapped in 2020 after eight seasons. Attempts to revive it under a new banner – including the spin-off Apartment Rules, teased at the 2022 Upfronts – never made it to air.

But now, say insiders, Seven is hoping its new format can do what House Rules never could: challenge The Block on Nine. We’ll believe it when we see it.

‘I should know this’

He may be a Twitter villain, but we love the ABC’s David Speers here at Inside Mail.

And while we acknowledge he is one of the best political journalists around, he clearly needs to work on his knowledge of parliamentary procedures – judging by his lacklustre performance on Tuesday covering the opening of the new parliament.

While providing commentary on pictures of the official opening, Speers sounded less knowledgeable than a Year 10 student about to start their compulsory civics course.

His lack of knowledge about parliamentary formalities and procedures was somewhat staggering.

‘Is this the bit where they bang the door?’ ‘Who is the Black Rod?’ Seriously, this is a gallery veteran who has covered this for decades.

‘I really should know this stuff,’ Speers added in a moment of self-reflection.

At least he was honest.

Still, we’d rather listen to Speers stumbling his way through the dull procedural elements of parliamentary practice than be moralised to by some of his self-righteous colleagues.

Jackie O back in town after stalker hell

No one likes heading back to work after an overseas trip, but the post-holiday blues must be doubly hard on radio queen Jackie ‘O’ Henderson.

While she was in Fiji with her daughter, her alleged stalker David Gourlay, 38, was arrested while sitting on a bench outside her eastern suburbs home.

Police claim they found a 10-15cm bolt inside a sock after searching his satchel.

The investigation began after the KIIS FM presenter complained to police that Gourlay had bombarded her with messages on Instagram.

He has been hit with a raft of stalking charges and was refused bail.

Crystal mess

A few weeks ago, gossip columnist Lucy Manly was shocked to discover a baggie of crystal meth in her mailbox – sent anonymously from somewhere in Punchbowl.

After reporting the dodgy delivery in The Group Chat, she was in for another surprise.

Andrew O’Keefe – whose fondness for the glass barbecue is legendary – had just started following her on Instagram.

Now, we’re not suggesting Andrew sent the drugs in some roundabout pursuit of a good time – he doesn’t live anywhere near Punchbowl.

Still, if he was looking for a partner to share the ice pipe with, he’s out of luck. The suspicious package is now in the hands of the Bondi vice squad.

Dodged a bullet? 

The traditional church service on Tuesday morning, when parliament is sitting, sees the PM and Opposition leader in the front row – an opportunity to put political hostilities aside, if only briefly.

So when Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie was rushed to the frow to sit with Albo, it quickly became apparent the usher had mistakenly thought she was Sussan Ley.

McKenzie politely pointed out that she wasn’t Ley, but acknowledged she ‘gets that a lot’, easing some of the usher’s embarrassment.

Never one to miss the chance to chime in, Albo joked ‘they’re the same!’ a few times, before suddenly realising his comment could be taken as a reference to their looks.

He hastily covered up his gaffe by saying it was the Nationals and Liberals who were the same – a reference to the Coalition reconciling after their post-election divorce.

The question now is: was Albo backtracking from an offhand sexist remark about two women who look similar, or simply clarifying his original meaning? Only he knows.

When it comes to gender, the Coalition are the ones with all the problems, as the number of women they have in parliament and on the frontbench continues to fall. Labor, on the other hand, now has gender parity.

But squaring off against the Liberal Party’s first female leader, who is no shrinking violet, Albo will need to be particularly mindful of his words.

Election autopsy under way

Despite being trounced at the federal election, the Liberals are putting on a brave face upon their return to Canberra.

The beleaguered party held a fundraiser at the National Press Club on Tuesday to try to rally their supporters, reminding them how the political pendulum can swing back quickly.

We’ll see about that – given the latest Newspoll puts the opposition in an even worse position than it was at the election.

The commissioned authors of the official Liberal Party election review – which is still ongoing – were in town this week. They include former Howard government minister Nick Minchin and former NSW state minister Pru Goward.

The pairing means the factional right and left of the party are equally represented.

Neither Minchin nor Goward attended the National Press Club event, which is probably the right thing to do to maintain a semblance of independence while reviewing.  

We spotted Goward dining at nearby restaurant Chairman & Yip while the fundraiser was under way, where she also had a nice little chat with Labor’s deputy PM Richard Marles. No input for the reviews findings was offered by the Labor stalwart, we are assured. 

And no date has been announced for when the review will be finalised either, nor if it will be made public. Minchin and Goward are in Canberra this week to interview various political types as they work on their findings.

They’ll do the same again when parliament is back next week.

Mates’ rates 

On the first day of Question Time for the new parliament, the PM did one morning media interview.

Was it with Radio National? No. Perhaps a cross to Sunrise and Today? Wrong again.

The single interview Albo chose to give on the morning of his return to Question Time in parliament went to his friends Kyle and Jackie O.

It’s the surest sign yet that, in the modern media landscape, Canberra strategists see the most value in getting in front of audiences who pay very little attention to what politicians are actually doing.