MICHAEL WIPFLI, HOST: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, welcome! Recently engaged to the beautiful Jodie.
ANTHONY ALBANESE, PRIME MINISTER: Yeah, thanks very much for the warm welcome. I've got to say, though, there's no champagne here, just to be clear, it's got a bit of a, given recent incidents with pot plants, we're not drinking at this time of the morning.
KATE RITCHIE, HOST: No. And you can celebrate without champagne, am I right?
PRIME MINISTER: Although we did have champagne, of course, on the night.
RYAN FITZGERALD, HOST: Albo, you haven't fallen over out the front of the Unity Town Hall in Balmain, any time?
PRIME MINISTER: No, no. You would know about it because all your mates in Balmain would have filmed it. They would have walked past, they wouldn't have stopped, they would have been all over it.
WIPFLI: How was the night after the celebration? Because I think it's always exciting once you do pop the question, to be able to go, wow, this is actually happening. Let's live in the moment. What did you do after that?
PRIME MINISTER: It was fantastic. So, we were by ourselves, obviously, at the Lodge on a balcony which overlooks - one of the side balconies - so it overlooks a whole lot of greenery, big trees so you could be somewhere in the bush. When things settled down, Jodie said ‘well, I'm seeing my parents on the weekend, so I'll get to tell them then’. Then I said to her: ‘Darling, have a look at where you are, I don't think it's going to hold. It's held pretty well, I didn't tell anyone beforehand’. So we Facetimed her parents, her mum and dad, Mr. And Mr. Haydon were up there on the coast there, Central Coast. We woke them up, and they were rapt.
RITCHIE: Did you have to ask for permission, even as the Prime Minister? Did you need to put in a call?
PRIME MINISTER: No. I think Jodie, as a very strong feminist, would have objected to me asking her dad for permission. But I think that was a sure thing anyway, given when Jodie told her dad that we were going out, she was seeing someone, she'd met someone, and she told him who it was, his first response was – ‘I've loved him longer than you’. They're good Labor people, former teachers, public school teachers, up there on the Coast. Yes, they're wonderful people.
WIPFLI: You know what I was trying to work out, has there ever been a child conceived in the Lodge?
PRIME MINISTER: I don't know, but that isn't going to happen.
WIPFLI: Right. I wasn't sure if you two were thinking maybe we could start a young family together. You and Jodie there.
FITZGERALD: Kirribilli House - has there been any conceived kids in there?
RITCHIE: There have been families live there with children, has there not?
FITZGERALD: Yeah, but I'm not talking about…
RITCHIE: I understand what you're doing, but I'm trying to soften and be more respectful.
PRIME MINISTER: Probably, probably over the years. Thanks, Kate. Someone's got to be around here, these boys. Good on you, Kate.
FITZGERALD: Albo - a lot of people were saying, though, cheesy to do it on Valentine's Day. What was the reasoning behind the Valentine's Day?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I did notice another broadcaster saying it was a suspicious day. For goodness sake, you got to work these things out. And what day do you ask? We'll never forget the date.
FITZGERALD: That's a good one.
PRIME MINISTER: And I just think we've been seeing each other for four years and it was time, both of us want to spend the rest of our lives together, so what better day than Valentine's Day?
WIPFLI: When are you going to get married, and where would you do it? I mean, your mind must have run - would you go back to Italy or something, a little village?
PRIME MINISTER: Since the proposal, I've been on the Central Coast, Newcastle, Nowra and Perth, and I got back last night. So, we haven't actually had a chance to talk these things through, but we'll talk.
WIPFLI: You give us a yell if we can help out, mate.
PRIME MINISTER: My diary is pretty full, I've got to say.
WIPFLI: Got a meeting with Dalton House.
PRIME MINISTER: But we'll work out a time and a place between us.
RITCHIE: What about the cricket match this year? We could kind of, like, you could have a nice ceremony in the morning, and then we could have a game of the cricket and a bit of a reception.
PRIME MINISTER: How romantic. Brett Lee coming in off the long run with the wedding ring.
WIPFLI: You have thought about it. You lied to us!
PRIME MINISTER: That's not going to happen at the cricket game. Don't push it too much.
FITZGERALD: You do have some new tax cuts. The other thing I wanted to ask you about Albo as well, it's a bit alarming at the moment with a lot of these music festivals, and I know you are funding a lot of the arts at the moment, but it's scary – Groovin the Moo just got cancelled and a lot of people are worried about these festivals, and if there is a future. Coming out of the pandemic, the music industry got absolutely decimated, Albo. And unfortunately now they're hearing that some of these festivals are getting cancelled as well. There's a lot of people worried.
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the pity about Groovin the Moo is that it's held in regional areas, in Maitland and Canberra and places that don't get access to the sort of artists - I know that Alice in Wonderland was headlining Groovin the Moo and I think King Stingray were playing as well, who are one of my faves. Amazing. My favourite album of last year was King Stingray. So, it is a real pity. I was in Newcastle on the weekend and they were really disappointed, there were all the surfers there, they had a big surf carnival and it got raised with me spontaneously by a few people - have you heard about Groovin the Moo being cancelled? Can you do anything about it? So, look, we're providing support for the music industry, we think it's really important. It's also a way of projecting Australia to the world, I mean, bands like INXS, and Midnight Oil, and Cold Chisel, and others have big fan bases internationally and it's a way of showcasing that. I gave the King Stingray album to Dave Grohl from the Foo Fighters. He gave me an album, so I gave him that one back.
FITZGERALD: What was his reaction Albo?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, I don't know, because I gave it to him - he didn't play it at the time he went on stage, of course, but how could you not like it? And it is a way of showing so much of Australian music is unique and it showcases, when you listen to a band like King Stingray, or Oils, or other bands, you feel that they're Australian, they couldn't come from anywhere else.
RITCHIE: It's not just about kind of projecting to the world, is it? It's about what music does for you.
PRIME MINISTER: Absolutely.
RITCHIE: Getting together as a community and some kind of outlet, like, it just ticks so many boxes.
PRIME MINISTER: And I've got to say, my son, who's 23, is a very big fan of going to the music festivals and he was at Laneway recently, and various things. So, it's a great way as well for an old bloke like me to keep in touch with the latest music because he'll say, this is who I saw and you'll look it up and listen to it.
WIPFLI: Prime Minister, can I ask in terms of - you talk about Dave Grohl - but when, say, the royals are here, obviously there's a meet and greet and you'd spend some time with them because it’s, you know, the colony that we are. But when you look at artists that come to town, how does that interaction happen? Like, Taylor's in town now, would you put in an invitation to an event for her to come along to meet, or how do those catch ups happen?
PRIME MINISTER: Well, the Dave Grohl one happened because, from Foo Fighters, because their management got in touch with us, and he was – I ended up having a chat with him, he was feeding the homeless, which is one of the things he does down there in Melbourne, at Fed Square. He brings across a barbecue cooker that does meat in that very American style that they do, and feeds people, for people who's coming up. It's just one of the things he does to give back to the community. It's something he does in California and he did it here and we had a chat on the phone and then he said, you know we'll catch up. So, we did catch up for a beer before the gig. But that's not usual.
WIPFLI: That's not how it normally happens?
PRIME MINISTER: No, but I do like music. I go back away. I got to see Nirvana at the first Big Day Out a long, long time ago. That's how old I am.
FITZGERALD: Imagine having Albo on your shoulders at Hordern Pavilion watching Nirvana. Now that is a moment in time. Wippa was just talking about Taylor Swift, she's in town. We've heard that you're a bit of a fan, you're a huge fan. Three and a half hours. That's a good effort. That's a long gig.
PRIME MINISTER: It is. It is a huge effort. That's like Springsteen of level of length of gig.
FITZGERALD: It is. Well, we've been giving away tickets all week, Albo, and the reactions that we've been getting from people to get tickets to these - there's mothers, fathers, kids to get tickets. Can you help us out here? If we gave away a couple of tickets, can you make the call for us, Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER: Mate, you're asking a politician - do they want to make someone exceptionally happy. The answer, my friend, is yes.
WIPFLI: Stick around. Anthony Albanese. The Prime Minister will make that call next.