Bill English explains his own 'Pizzagate'

The more the better on pizza, Bill English says (Bill English / Facebook)

They say there's no such thing as bad publicity.

That's a mantra Prime Minister Bill English appears to subscribe to, defending his somewhat controversial Facebook post with his spaghetti and pineapple pizza.

His post on Facebook polarised the nation which is already deeply divided on the pineapple on pizza issue.

The PM's cooking skills (or lack thereof) even made international news including the Daily Mail, Huffington Post Australia and CBS.

But he's explained how that now infamous and cheesy post came to be - and it seems his children are to blame. 



He claims he wasn't sure what reaction he'd get from his post, taking a classic Bill English 'wait-and-see' approach.

But he was surprised at the response.

"You never know what's going to divide the nation."

The veteran politician was philosophical about whether posting the photos was a politically wise move or not.

"In politics, wise or not wise, if they're paying attention, I suppose that was the right decision."

Some had criticised the pizza, including a top chef, as not even being pizza - a point Mr English conceded.

But the good news is that while he was a conservative, penny-pinching finance minister, when it comes to food he believes in going for it.

"You get those proper pizzas, they're not always satisfying because they don't always have enough stuff on them," he said of his pizza which was overflowing onto the oven tray.

Bill English explains his own 'Pizzagate'