AFL player Oscar McDonald birthday post triggers Bridget Hustwaite response as she calls out bullying and shares breakup truth

Bridget Hustwaite has spoken openly about her breakup with AFL player Oscar McDonald, and this time, she is not holding back. The radio presenter shared a strong message on Instagram after seeing what she believes was a public dig aimed at her. The situation quickly picked up attention, especially because it came just days after she was in hospital recovering from a health issue.

The moment that triggered this response was a birthday post by McDonald. He turned 30 and shared a photo with the caption, “30. Tough age apparently!” Many people connected that line to Hustwaite’s recent book Figuring Out 30. While McDonald did not name her, the timing and wording led to speculation. Hustwaite later said she found out about the post through others, as she had already blocked him.

Bridget Hustwaite accuses Oscar McDonald of bullying after birthday post as she responds following hospital recovery

Hustwaite addressed the situation in a video on Instagram soon after leaving the hospital, where she had been treated for a ruptured cyst. She explained that she did not want to react at first, but felt she needed to speak up. She said, “I thought I was in for quite a peaceful day of recovery but I’ve been sent articles throughout the day of some social media posts that I can’t access, because I have this person blocked on socials.”

She continued, “I was going to ignore it because I don’t like how this kind of conversation and topic can be trivialised for online consumption, like, regarding relationships.” But then she made her stance clear. “I also can’t really just sit back and allow, like, blatant bullying and disrespect of me and my work.”

Hustwaite also pointed out that public figures should be careful about their actions. She said, “If you work in a public-facing role, and especially if you represent, you know, a brand organisation, a sporting club, this is not a good look on you, on who you work for, and it’s just mean.”

Talking about the breakup, she added, “I ended my relationship last year for reasons that are really serious to me … for me it’s much more serious than just airing dirty laundry.” She also said, “I don’t know why a birthday post had to be turned into just taking swipes at me but, you know, I’m not surprised. I just wanted to stand up for myself.”

Their relationship had once looked strong. Hustwaite moved from Melbourne to Perth in late 2023 to be with McDonald after he joined Fremantle. She later shared that she flew between the two cities nearly 60 times during that period, trying to make things work.

In a recent message, she reflected on that phase, writing, “I couldn’t keep abandoning myself, my health and my career.” She added, “No regrets because I know my heart, what I bring to all of my relationships and what I stand for both publicly and privately!” For now, Hustwaite seems focused on her recovery, her work, and moving forward on her own terms.




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