Caviar, missiles and Mar-a-Lago: Inside Panahi’s birthday bash

March 13, 2026 — 5:00am

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In this week’s On Background, Rita Panahi learns to stop worrying and love the bomb, an ABC news boss has a front-row seat to a reporter’s rant, and D-Day looms for The Kyle & Jackie O Show.

‘I’m in Miami, bitch’

One of News Corp’s top personalities, Rita Panahi, sure has been living it up recently. While she didn’t receive an invitation to Rupert Murdoch’s 95th birthday cocktail party last week in New York, she arranged a decent consolation prize for herself: a visit to Mar-a-Lago.

Panahi, whose parents fled Iran’s repressive theocratic regime for Australia in 1984, has had much to celebrate recently. She hailed the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last week by calling him a “son of a bitch” on her Sky News show, which promptly made global news.

But the celebrations didn’t stop there. Panahi jetted out to Florida the next day via the Qantas First Class Lounge in Melbourne to mark her 50th birthday. Enjoy the big five-oh, Rita!

The multiple Instagram stories tagging the Qantas First Class Lounge weren’t enough to nab her an actual seat in first class, however.

On Background got the tip-off last week Panahi would be making the dream trip and put questions to her. She didn’t reply, but just couldn’t resist flaunting it on Instagram.

It looked like some trip. Just mere hours after Rita and her besties were out documenting their bottle-serviced best lives, a gold-plated ballroom appeared on their socials.

The rococo palace has become a pilgrimage for anyone who is anyone on the right, but alas, President Donald Trump himself did not appear for Panahi and co.

Also on the itinerary, the Sky host had a luxury day out on 88-foot super yacht the Sirena 88. There was a full spread cooked by private chefs, a misspelling-riddled mock newspaper front page in honour of Panahi’s birth year, and caviar – the whole kit and caboodle!

Highlights in the paper marking 1976 include Jimmy Carter defeating “Gentil Ford” for the US presidency, the Sex Pistols........

© The Sydney Morning Herald