With one nimble flick of the wrist, a humble Vegemite sandwich was catapulted into the headlines this week.

The schoolyard prank on Prime Minister Julia Gillard was dissected far and wide, and within a few hours lazy headline writers had delivered “sandwichgate”, a student was suspended, talkback radio was abuzz and everyone except Gillard herself seemed to think it was a big deal. The incident inspired Crikey to look back on some of the physical gaffes, faux pas and incidents which have seen our esteemed leaders come a cropper. And it seems a thrown sandwich (it didn’t even hit its target) pales in comparison.

The sandwich episode joins a small but well-publicised list of objects thrown at world leaders. This week’s schoolyard miscreant missed the memo that shoes are the best thing to lob at your PM, as John Howard learned in 2010 on Q&A. 

In the age of media immediacy, “sandwichgate” reminds us that every political gaffe and minor drama becomes part of an enduring canon of brouhaha. Gillard laughed off the sandwich incident and noted the media’s tendency to “err on the side of the dramatic”.

Who could forget Gillard’s infamous Cinderella moment as she was rushed from angry protesters after an Australia Day event last year –- or her unfortunate tumble in India after sinking a high heel into the grass (as many women have done, but usually not in front of so many cameras).

Australia’s prime ministers have a colourful history of incidents, pranks and gotchas. However, while the most recent are preserved for posterity on YouTube, many lurk in the faded pages of newspaper archives. In 1879, Edmund Barton was embroiled in international cricket’s first riot. The man who would become Australia’s first prime minister was co-umpiring a match between England and NSW when a controversial wicket led hundreds of fans to storm the ground. The British press blasted the rowdy crowd — yet Barton’s cool-headedness in diffusing the situation reportedly helped him on his path to the PM’s office 22 years later.

Bob Hawke earned the admiration of sports-lovers during a cricket match between the Prime Minister’s XI and the Canberra Press Gallery in 1984. Hawke took a bouncer to the face while at the crease, smashing his glasses. He retired hurt, but returned a few overs later to guide his team to victory.

Unfortunately for cricket tragic John Howard, his cricket antics made headlines for the wrong reasons. During a visit to Australian troops in Pakistan in 2005 the cameras captured Howard’s cringeworthy attempt at backyard bowling on a dusty plain. The PM delivered three lame bouncers then opted for quick slog with the bat instead, before deciding to retire.

Our PMs also have a dotted history of sleazy accusations, including Kevin Rudd’s 2003 strip club escapades. However, nothing can come close to Malcolm Fraser’s infamous 1986 “Memphis trousers affair”. Three years after leaving office, Fraser was found wandering around the lobby of the Admiral Benbow Inn, a popular haunt of pr-stitutes and drug dealers, wrapped in a towel and wondering where he left his pants. The former PM kept tight-lipped on the incident, but wife Tamie later claimed poor Malcolm had his drink spiked as part of a bad joke.

Paul Keating was no stranger to accusations of improper conduct. The UK press branded him the “Lizard of Oz” after he had the nerve to place his hand on the Queen’s back as she visited Parliament House in 1992. The Brits, and Australian monarchists, imploded with rage.

Keating had strong ideas for the future of Australia, but the same cannot be said for ex-PM William McMahon. Time called him a “man of limited vision” after he was asked for his thoughts on the future of Australia. Shuffling through a heavy briefing folder, McMahon told the stunned journalist there was nothing filed under F for future, so he couldn’t comment.

Our prime ministers have embraced the Australian love for a drink. John Grey Gorton (1986-1971) was a thirsty man, and inspired the phrase “Gorton’s flu” to describe a hangover.

However, Bob Hawke perhaps tapped into the Australian psyche better than anyone, earning fame for his beer-drinking antics, both old and new. And some claimed then governor-general William Deane had enjoyed a few when he gave the opening speech of the Sydney Olympics where he twice stumbled “Sa-saa-Sydney” before knocking the microphone over.

Indeed, governor-generals hold a particular place of infamy. Gough Whitlam will always be remembered for the dismissal, but his relations with governor-generals were off to a bad start before John Kerr even took office. In 1972, Whitlam threw a glass of water over then governor-general Paul Hasluck, after Hasluck told him “you are one of the filthiest objects ever to come into this chamber”.

These days, these kinds of incidents are more likely to be captured on camera and available for all to see. Yes, we’re talking to you Kevin Rudd. Who eats their own earwax during question time?