This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia, which closed in 2021.

Sam Dastyari Dressed As 'Halal Elvis' For The Parkes Festival

'The hair is natural. Feel the bounce'.

Senator Sam Dastyari is famous as one of the real jokers in the federal parliament. He holds up memes at press conferences, quotes Taylor Swift in the Senate and mocks his opponents with children's maths books. He's been cooling his heels on the Labor backbench after the well-publicised controversy where he accepted money from a Chinese company to pay some of his travel bills, and in his time off before parliament starts up again, the NSW senator went to Parkes to become an Elvis impersonator.

As you do.

Dastyari, who had been one of the most consistently entertaining and effective presences on political social media before his resignation from the frontbench over the Top Education scandal, fired up the Facebook page once more to share his trip to Parkes for the town's annual Elvis Festival.

The trip, which the Senator stressed was "self funded travel", saw Dastyari walking the streets to meet fellow Elvis aficionados, learning how to dress and act like The King himself, and even participate in the festival's grand parade. Even before he started, it seemed like Dastyari had a natural leg-up on the competition.

"You're almost there," one lady remarked, pointing to his famous thick head of hair.

"You got the sideburns, the hair..."

"The hair is natural, feel the bounce!" Dastyari replied proudly.

He dubs himself "Middle Eastern Elvis" and "Halal Elvis".

ALSO ON HUFFPOST AUSTRALIA

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost Australia. Certain site features have been disabled. If you have questions or concerns, please check our FAQ or contact support@huffpost.com.