Kyle Sandilands mocks Peter FitzSimons’ trademark red bandana

Radio host Kyle Sandilands tore into Lisa Wilkinson’s new autobiography on Wednesday, insisting the book sounded ‘boring’.

And while he was on the subject of trashing her memoirs, the shock jock also took a swipe at her husband, Peter FitzSimons, for his questionable fashion sense.

The author and journalist, 60, is known for wearing a trademark red bandana, which he previously said represented his emotional transition into middle age.

But Kyle clearly missed the memo.  

‘For five years I thought he had cancer,’ he said on The Kyle and Jackie O Show.

His co-host Jackie ‘O’ Henderson replied: ‘No, he just likes to wear a bandana, Kyle.’ 

Kyle added: ‘And then I saw him at a car wash somewhere and I thought, “He doesn’t look sick at all!” [He looked like] quite a tall, big, striking man.’ 

Not a fan of the do-rag? ‘For five years I thought he had cancer’, Kyle (left) said on Wednesday, adding: ‘And then I saw him at a car wash somewhere and I thought, “He doesn’t look sick at all!” [He looked like] quite a tall, big, striking man’

‘Yeah, some guys like to wear bandanas,’ Jackie added, to which Kyle responded: ‘No, they do not. That is not a thing in the guy world.’

‘Yeah, but I’m saying… some guys,’ insisted Jackie. 

Bursting into laughter, Kyle said: ‘Some guys? Yeah, very rare!’ 

The hosts also joked that it was ‘cultural appropriation’ because bandanas are associated with street gangs in Los Angeles. 

Lisa has previously defended her husband’s decision to wear a do-rag every day, saying she ‘deeply admires’ his confidence.

Accessory: FitzSimons is known for wearing a trademark red bandana, which he previously said represented his emotional transition into middle age 

Lisa wrote on Instagram in 2016: ‘[Peter’s] bandana was actually a very sweet thank-you present from our kids after a fabulous family holiday we all had in Cuba.

‘It was all they could afford and it meant the world to Pete that they went to the effort. And the kids are so chuffed that after all these years he’s still wearing it.’

Lisa said there was also a very practical reason why Peter insists upon wearing it. 

Origin story: Lisa (right) said in 2016: ‘[Peter’s] bandana was actually a very sweet thank-you present from our kids after a fabulous family holiday we all had in Cuba’

‘It also provides excellent sun protection in the harsh Australian sun,’ she said. 

‘And finally, simply, the reason he wears it is because he like it, and because – I love this – because he doesn’t give a stuff what anyone else thinks.

‘It puts a smile on his face – and in a world where criticism and judgement are too often the default positions of far too many, it’s an attitude I deeply admire.’ 

In 2017, Lisa let slip that Peter had purchased ‘around 30’ red bandanas in the years since receiving his first scarf as a gift.

Quite the collection: In 2017, Lisa let slip that Peter had purchased ‘around 30’ red bandanas in the years since receiving his first scarf as a gift

‘We have about 30 of them floating around the house now… and occasionally one of them makes it into a washload of whites,’ she said. 

Elsewhere on Wednesday’s Kyle and Jackie O Show, Kyle took a dig at Lisa’s forthcoming autobiography, which will document her rise to fame in the Australian media and dissect her bitter exit from the Today show.

Kyle acknowledged Lisa, 61, was ‘very good at her job’ as host of The Sunday Project, but claimed her book sounded ‘boring’ and even questioned why she’d written one, asking: ‘How exciting could her life be?’  

‘How exciting could her life be?’ Elsewhere on Wednesday’s Kyle and Jackie O Show, Kyle took a dig at Lisa’s forthcoming autobiography, calling it ‘boring’