"Urzila was saying some really unsavoury stuff, sexually explicit stuff. Some of it was verging on sexual violence, about my political relationships. Like, she was saying certain politicians had their hand up my bottom. The whole general tone was really distasteful."
However, Seymour says he found the overall experience good-hearted, and shook hands with each comedian on stage when his segment wrapped.
"When I stopped to shake Urzila's hand, I said 'you're useless'. It was just carry-on banter, a passing comment really. No offence was intended."
Carlson's partner, Julie, heard Seymour's quip and took to Twitter to vent.
"Great night at 7 Days Live. Upside: Ben Hurley bringing back the bush. Downside: David Seymour calling Urzila Carlson 'f****** useless'."
Seymour hit back online to correct her. "Total misrepresentation, I said 'you're useless' in light-hearted way after spirited battle."
"Well that's not what we heard in the audience so you might want to rethink your mic technique," Julie responded.
The MP hit back: "Keep backing down."
Then Carlson launched in, labelling Seymour a "dick". Her wife called him "a douchebag".
Neither Carlson nor her partner was willing to comment about the furore. But 7 Days producer Jon Bridges says the nasty Twitter exchange was an unfortunate conclusion to what had been a successful evening.
"It's a shame because I thought everything was pretty amicable on stage between David and the comedians," he told The Diary.
Seymour says he bears no ill will towards Carlson or her partner for calling him pejorative names.
"I'm a pretty reasonable guy and I can laugh at myself - trust me, there's a lot to laugh at. I'd love to sit down with them and have a few beers and a laugh."
Kudos for Cormack
Danielle Cormack
Congratulations to actress Danielle Cormack, 43, who has been nominated for her first AACTA Award. It's a huge coup for the Kiwi thesp who is taking the Aussie acting industry by storm.
Cormack is up for best actress in a TV drama for her gritty performance as Bea Smith in Foxtel series Wentworth, but she tells The Diary just being recognised by the Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts is an honour.
"It's wonderful to be recognised for my work. I've been working for 25 years. To be a working actor and to keep getting great roles is an achievement in itself. But I work with so many great people, and it's not lost on me that I wouldn't have this nomination if it wasn't for them. I feel very grateful."
There's no word yet on whether Wentworth or Rake, another high-profile TV series which Cormack stars in and which has been nominated, will return to screens next year.
Snub for Duco
Frankie Adams
Actress Frankie Adams, a noticeable no-show this week at Duco's press conferences and media showings plugging Fight For Life, was instructed by irate bosses at South Pacific Pictures (makers of Shortland Street) to snub the publicity blitz, a rep told The Diary.
They are furious a Duco staffer leaked a story to the Herald on Sunday last week that Adams is leaving the show. Duco says they didn't realise the information was confidential. It wasn't exactly a state secret, but needless to say SPP, which runs a tight ship on publicity and avoids revealing early storylines to fans, is irked. They issued a fatwa: no more promotional work for Duco. A story planned with this columnist was suddenly pulled.
Millie Elder-Holmes, Frankie's opponent, has been left to front media alone this week, making it a tad one-sided. We hope it will be less partisan in the ring tonight. Although, with Elder-Holmes fighting in memory of her boyfriend who was slain four months ago, public sympathy is hers. An Adams win will knock the empathy wind out of the sails.
Kiwi angel model puts feminism on back burner
Stella Maxwell
Former Otago University student Stella Maxwell graced the Victoria's Secret stage this week at Earl's Court in London, but has the part-Irish model, who was born in New Zealand only set feminism back?
Wearing padded bras, g-strings and lashings of fake tan, the "angels" sashayed down the runway, and with every stiletto step female empowerment edged backwards.
Do modern women really feel this is not demeaning?
