Albanese Admits Bush Deep Podcast Was an Error Amid Melons Controversy

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks during a press conference at Australian Parliament House in Canberra Australia, on Aug. 19, 2026. Hilary Wardhaugh/Getty ImagesPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has admitted his appearance on the Bush Deep podcast was “an error” and said he would not do it again if given the chance.Albanese said he had learnt that he always needs to do better, and that’s why he initially made a “very clear and unequivocal apology.”“And of course, if I had my time again, which you don’t, then I wouldn’t have done that podcast,” he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.The Prime Minister shed light on his media strategy, explaining he tries to engage with a wide range of media outlets.“We have a view which is trying to talk to as many people as possible, but clearly that was an error.”The comments come more than a month after Albanese’s July appearance on Australian comedian Nikki Osborne’s podcast.During the interview, he referred to two royal melons gifted by Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during her May visit to Australia.Gesturing near his chest, he said she had brought “a couple of melons” that were “beautiful.” The host compared the Japanese leader to Pamela Anderson.Separately in the interview, he took part in a game of “shag, marry, date,” nominating singer Kylie Minogue for “all of the above.” He later issued an unequivocal apology for those remarks.The melon exchange later drew criticism, including from former Japanese Ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami, who called the comments “sexist.”“Although Albanese recalled [the gift of melons] as ‘quite strange,’ there is nothing strange about Takaichi’s gesture,” Yamagami said.“A crown melon is the most prized fruit in Japan and treasured as something special. Moreover, this particular fruit was painstakingly nurtured under intensive care in a special greenhouse. A single melon costs more than 30,000 yen (A$270).”Meanwhile, Liberal MP Andrew Wallace said the prime minister’s admission highlighted the risks of politicians “trying to be cool.”“It was never going to end well, and unfortunately this is … the trap that some politicians, even PMs of his experience, fall into,” he told News 24 on Aug. 21.“He should never have gone on that podcast.”