Magda Szubanski goes on a rant amid backlash over Jenny Morrison tweet

A defiant Magda Szubanski fired of a series of angry tweets on Wednesday morning amid growing backlash over her offensive Twitter post about Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s wife, Jenny.

She defended her post – which compared a conservatively dressed Mrs Morrison to a character from dystopian TV series The Handmaid’s Tale – by arguing the PM’s wife had ‘opted in’ to public life by offering her husband policy advice.

Szubanski also suggested the outrage was distracting from ousted Australia Post boss Christine Holgate’s scorching testimony against the PM at a Senate Inquiry – even though this has been covered extensively by every major news outlet.

But the 60-year-old comedian didn’t stop there, going on to accuse the press of ‘fat shaming’ her simply for publishing photos of her taking a walk on her birthday, with no commentary whatsoever on her appearance.

This is in contrast to her tweet about Mrs Morrison, which compared her to a character from The Handmaid’s Tale – about a totalitarian society in which women are treated as property of the state – and therefore implied she’s a traitor to her sex. 

A defiant Magda Szubanski fired of a series of angry tweets on Wednesday morning amid growing backlash over her offensive post about Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s wife, Jenny

Responding to criticism from Liberal MP Nicolle Flint – one of several conservative female politicians who took issue with her Handmaid’s Tale tweet – Szubanski wrote: ‘1) seriously, my comment is “appalling” says Flint. “Appalling”?! 

‘2) I never said a single word about Jenny. 3) why is this headline news when… Christine Holgate is testifying?! Blatant attempt to use “sisterhood” to distract. Now THAT’S appalling.’

She then addressed the paparazzi photos of her, taken on Monday, and denied any suggestion she was ‘walking back’ her initial comments about Mrs Morrison.

She defended her Twitter post – which compared a conservatively dressed Mrs Morrison to a character from dystopian TV series The Handmaid’s Tale – by arguing the PM’s wife had ‘opted in’ to public life by offering her husband policy advice. Szubanski is pictured in October 2019

Szubanski tried to justify her criticism of Mrs Morrison by saying the PM had ‘weaponised’ his wife by admitting he speaks to her about policy matters 

Szubanski tweeted: ‘Oh no you don’t! I’m not “walking back” from anything! Simply stating facts. Nor will I be forced into an apology for… nothing.

‘I see what the “Christian Soldiers” are doing here. They have drawn a “pink line” and I’m the Big Game. Let the fat shaming begin!’

She added: ‘THIS is what this is really all about. Well, I’m not backing down. The infiltration of the religious far right into Australian politics is… disturbing.

‘RE Jenny: the most powerful man in the country wheeled her into the political arena. She is his conscience.

‘So I’m going to stop tweeting or talking about this now coz I’m busy and there are some big news issues that should not be distracted from #ChristineHolgate. I salute you!’

Szubanski also suggested the outrage was distracting from ousted Australia Post boss Christine Holgate’s scorching testimony against the PM at a Senate Inquiry – even though this has been covered extensively by ever major news outlet 

She said of Mrs Morrison in another tweet: ‘The PM has weaponised Jenny. He has confirmed she is basically a quasi policy maker. “I spoke to Jenny about this… I spoke to Jenny about that.” She doesn’t deny this or ask it to stop.

‘First Ladies have the right to opt in or out. Thérèse Rein [Kevin Rudd’s wife] opted in; Margie Abbott [Tony Abbott’s wife] opted out.’  

Once again referring to the paparazzi images, she continued: ‘One last thing… I will be taking my regular morning constitutional on the beach so paparazzi if you wanna find me, that’s where I’ll be. Plenty of opps to get more pics of me looking [emojis] or just generally living while being fat.’

She concluded by thanking her ‘beautiful tweethearts’ who’d supported her through the ‘orchestrated bit of bulls**t pile-on’, adding: ‘Now go read about the real news.’

Responding to criticism from Liberal MP Nicolle Flint – one of several conservative female politicians who took issue with her Handmaid’s Tale tweet – Szubanski wrote: ‘1) seriously, my comment is “appalling” says Flint. “Appalling”?!’

She then addressed the paparazzi photos of her, taken on Monday, and denied any suggestion she was ‘walking back’ her initial comments about Mrs Morrison

In the wake of the Twitter backlash, Szubanski strangely invited the paparazzi to photograph her at the beach or ‘just generally living while being fat’

A glum-looking Szubanski had celebrated her 60th birthday on Monday by taking a solo stroll in Melbourne, after being criticised by female politicians for comparing Mrs Morrison to a character from The Handmaid’s Tale.

The left-wing comedian had retweeted a photo of Mrs Morrison in a high-neck black dress as she watched her husband sign a condolence book for the late Prince Philip.

Szubanski captioned the image: ‘I genuinely thought this was a photoshopped Handmaid’s Tale meme. But no. It’s 21st century Aussie life.’

Based on the novel by Margaret Atwood, HBO series The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a totalitarian society in which women are treated as property of the state.

A glum-looking Szubanski had celebrated her 60th birthday on Monday by taking a solo stroll in Melbourne, after being criticised by female politicians for comparing Jenny Morrison to a character from The Handmaid’s Tale in this Twitter post

Szubanski had retweeted the photo with a message from a left-wing Twitter account, which read: ‘Good morning to everyone else to whom this feels creepy, chilling, terrifying, ominous, enraging, despairing and utterly, completely f**king depressing.’

She faced widespread backlash for her commentary, which suggested Ms Morrison was subservient to her husband and part of the machinery of a misogynist society. 

The actress – who played loveable misfit Sharon Strzelecki in ABC sitcom Kath & Kim – is now facing backlash from a growing number of conservative female politicians over her controversial tweet.

Dystopian: Based on the novel by Margaret Atwood, HBO series The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a totalitarian society in which women are treated as property of the state. Pictured: actors Yvonne Strahovski and Elisabeth Moss in The Handmaid’s Tale

NSW Liberal Senator Hollie Hughes told The Daily Telegraph: ‘Ms Szubanski has herself been the target of obscene trolls, yet the hypocritical nature of the Left is here on display.’

Liberal MP Nicolle Flint also launched a scathing attack on Magda, saying her tweet represents a ‘double standard’ in the way female politicians are perceived.

‘I cannot believe the appalling personal attacks on Mrs Morrison, especially by Ms Szubanski, a woman who has received one of our nation’s highest honours,’ she said.

‘Ms Szubanski’s completely disrespectful comments are yet another example of the double standards demonstrated towards women on the centre-right of politics.

‘The sisterhood need to stop picking and choosing which sisters to protect; all women deserve to be treated with respect.’

Szubanski had also re-tweeted an image of the Morrison family posing with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, zooming in on Mrs Morrison’s hand which showed her forefinger and thumb joined.

While many understand the symbol to be a benign sign for ‘OK’, darker corners of the Internet allege it’s been appropriated as a way to signify ‘white supremacy’. 

‘What’s this little hand signal thingy??’ Szubanski tweeted.

While her question may have been innocent, it prompted a string of replies questioning if the hand gesture was somehow sinister – which it wasn’t.

Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting Jenny Morrison’s hand gesture was in any way signifying ‘white supremacy’.

More backlash: Szubanski had also re-tweeted this image of the Morrison family posing with Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, zooming in on Mrs Morrison’s hand which showed her forefinger and thumb joined. While many understand the symbol to be a benign sign for ‘OK’, darker corners of the Internet allege it’s been appropriated to signify ‘white supremacy’

On Tuesday afternoon, Szubanski took to her social media platform again to address the backlash against her controversial Handmaid’s Tale tweet.

‘Let me be clear…’ she wrote, ‘I’m not actually making a disparaging comment about Jenny. I just genuinely thought it was a meme!’

After one follower called her ‘bitter and twisted’, she replied: ‘I know, right?! I’m terrible Muriel. A bitter twisted wreck of a once talented (debatable) funny gal.

‘Sigh. So do yourself a favour and spare yourself the awful spectacle and don’t follow me or read my tweets. Actually, I’ll save you the effort and just block you.’

Response: On Tuesday afternoon, Szubanski took to Twitter again to address the backlash against her controversial Handmaid’s Tale tweet