Former Victorian premier Dan Andrews’ long reign at the top of the political and business worlds could be over, insiders fear, as new details emerge about his neurological episode.
The 53-year-old was taken to Monash Clayton Hospital in Melbourne‘s southeast just before Christmas and reportedly remains in a ‘very bad way’ amid speculation he suffered some kind of stroke.
The notorious chain smoker has not posted an image of himself to social media since October 23, 2024 – 468 days ago.
In that image, Andrews’ face appeared a shade of red, with some insiders claiming it to be the telltale sign of health difficulties stemming from a stress-filled life and an appetite for vices such as alcohol and cigarettes.
‘It’s no secret he likes a drink and loves a smoke just as much,’ one insider told Daily Mail on Tuesday.
His only other recent public appearance was snapped in China while he was watching a huge Communist military parade in September.
Andrews was filmed being greeted by President Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan on a red carpet procession before the parade kicked off.
Andrews and Xi shook hands for several seconds as both men appeared to exchange warm pleasantries.
Dan Andrews’ last public post to social media in October 23, 2024 – voting Yes to the Voice to Parliament
Allies were alarmed when Dan Andrews did not issue a public statement marking the death of his friend Tim Picton. Pictured above with Picton’s wife Priya BrownÂ
He also happily posed for a ‘family photo’ alongside a rogues’ gallery of world leaders, including the  likes of Russian President Vladimir Putin, North Korea‘s Kim Jong Un and Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian. Â
It is understood that Andrews was attending in a personal capacity, plying his trade as a lobbyist after leaving political office.Â
Alarm bells about Andrews’ health were first raised last month when close friend and former Labor powerbroker Tim Picton died, and insiders noted Andrews unusually made no public comment.Â
Details about why Andrews was being treated have been tightly controlled, with one senior source telling the Herald Sun the secrecy was on par with that around former F1 champ Michael Schumacher’s condition after his ski accident.
In March 2020, as Victoria’s first lockdown began, Andrews warned Victorians that it was not appropriate to ‘have all your mates around to your house to get on the beers’.
He angered them even further years later upon releasing the state from what became the longest Covid lockdown in world history.Â
Asked if Victorians could finally ‘get on the beers’, Andrews scoffed at the suggestion.Â
‘I don’t know that I’ll be drinking a beer tonight,’ Andrews said. ‘I might go a little higher up the shelf.’
Dan Andrews (top right) sparked a fierce backlash when he attended a Communist parade in China alongside the likes of Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s Kim Jong-un
Ryan Meuleman, then aged 15, after he was struck by a car allegedly being driven by Dan Andrews’ wifeÂ
Andrews is loved by some in Victoria and loathed by many (pictured in 2024) over his polarising Covid leadership
He later posted an image to social media of a doughnut and a $119 bottle of whisky.
The former premier’s latest health scare revives memories of his notorious back injury during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2021.Â
While on a family holiday in the Mornington Peninsula, he suffered a nasty fall on slippery wooden stairs, resulting in a severe spinal injury that required hospitalisation, X-rays, and a lengthy recovery involving a spinal brace and gradual walking rehabilitation.Â
The incident sparked wild conspiracy theories at the time, but Andrews later confirmed it was a genuine accident that left him in significant pain.Â
Adding to the intrigue is his well-documented personal habits.Â
Andrews has long been known to be a smoker, with viral footage from September 2023 capturing him puffing on a cigarette outside a function – sparking speculation it was a sign of stress ahead of his surprise resignation shortly after.Â
The former Premier had been making headlines throughout last year on the back of the ‘Bike Boy’ incident.
That incident related to the now-adult cyclist Ryan Meuleman, who launched a high-profile lawsuit against former Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and his wife Catherine in the Federal Court of Australia.Â
Dan Andrews after his fall in March 2021
Dan Andrews is good mates with Anthony Albanese
The saga dates back to January 7, 2013, when the then-opposition leader was in a Ford Territory SUV with his wife and three children when she allegedly hit the 15-year-old.Â
Andrews has also copped heat on the golf course, with several high profile clubs declaring he was unwanted.Â
Then in November, former billionaire mate James Packer unleashed a blistering attack on Andrews in a wide-ranging interview published on Joe Aston’s Rampart Talks podcast.Â
In it, Packer branded Andrews ‘human filth’, called him his ‘least favourite person in the world’, accused him of betrayal, and claimed he had ‘almost ruined my life’ and ‘ruined Victoria.’
In the final weeks before Crown’s $8.9billion sale to United States private equity firm Blackstone, Andrews’ administration changed tax rates on Crown Melbourne.
Packer claimed the move ripped about $50million out of the company’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation, with ‘no compensation.’
Andrews had been reportedly linked to Blackstone leading up to the sale in what turned out to be baseless gossip.Â
Sources have suggested the former Premier had leaked the story himself in a move understood to have enraged Packer.Â
In a Chinese television interview in March last year, the former premier lauded Chinese president Xi Jinping’s record on renewable energy changes and declared he was ‘honoured to be an old friend of the Chinese people’.
In that interview, Andrews appeared to have gained weight, but appeared otherwise healthy.  Â
Daily Mail contacted the current premier’s office for comment but did not receive a response.Â