June 11th, 2006

A Gossip Columnist’s Life ..

After hanging out with Jen and Vince at Monday night’s premiere of The Break Up (nah, don’t bother seeing it at the movies - wait until it’s out on DVD), the least I could do was to go and watch Russell Crowe accept the keys to the Souths football club at the Blue Hotel in Woolloomoolo, on Thursday. As we know, in a controversial move Crowe and the patrician Peter Holmes a Court snapped up Crowe’s beloved Rabbitohs club for around $3 million. (“They needed to find $30 mill to turn that club’s fortune’s around,’ sniped one of this town’s leading CBDers). The invitation which landed on my Sunday Telegraph’ desk was impressive and the dress code was cocktail, so how could a girl resist?.

There was no mistaking that something hugely glam was taking place at the Blue hotel and it wasn’t just the team’ themed green carpet (red has, quite frankly been done to death) or the swarm of snappers - even the women in full length evening gowns. (What was that about ? Fashionista Jackie Frank would have set them straight on what is appropriate cocktail gear - heavy black and grey layers). It was the buzz of excitment which is always around the mercurial Crowe.

He was late of course, but as a bonus he did arrive with his beautifully pregnant wife, Danielle along with a small blonde child, who looked remarkably like his son, Charlie scampering about. Meanwhile a lot of blokes with powerful chests set about demolishing the designer canapes which included risotto balls in a tangerine dipping sauce. “These aren’t bad, what are they,'’ asked a rotund footy manager, who was finishing off his second. “Risotto balls with courgettes,'’ explained the waiter. “Erk I hate vegetables,'’ he yelped and almost spat the lot out.
Bianca Dye was the MC for the evening and did a good job - although some of her 30-something-girly jokes fell flat and there were a lot of speeches. True Rabbitohs believer Andrew Denton was impassioned, Peter Holmes a Court went on for too long and didn’t say a lot and Russell Crowe outdid himself with a few humble words from the heart. It was almost like watching The Cinderella Man again especially with Anthony (Chock) Mundine in the crowd.

Quite a few people turned up to hob nob with Russell Crowe including a well known talent manager who tried to ingratiate himself with the actor but din’t get anywhere. TV exercise queen Kylie Jaye hogged the cameras in her red, floor length evening gown while divine cosmetics diva Tali Shine worked the room with acting hopeful Tim Holmes a Court.

All in all, it was much more fun than the Premiere of The Break Up and as an added bonus, this weekend the Bunnies ended a very long drought to actually win a game of footy against the highly rated Panthers. They did it for Russell. Maybe they don’t need that 30 mill after all?

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