Tag: Shaun Micallef

Australian Tumbleweeds 2012 – The Results

The results of the Australian Tumbleweed Awards... Read More »

Reading the Tea Leaves

Is Q&A a terrible show or what? Answers accepted only in the form of a snappy tweet that we can run across the bottom of the screen as we co-op social media into not realising that the ‘debate’ we offer is nothing more enlightening than the dregs of the letters page in your local News... Read More »

A Presumption of Shared Humanity

If you’re going to be a comedian, you have to make a choice: do you make comedy designed to appeal to the masses, or do you follow your heart? On the one hand, appealing to the masses seems like the smart way to achieve mass appeal but idiots will call you a sell-out; on the... Read More »

When comedy reigned over us

The DVD Neighbours – The Iconic Episodes: Volume 1 isn’t the first place you’d look for Australian comedy, even if you’re the sort of person who finds late 80s fashions and mildly crap acting a cack. It’s more a DVD you’d buy if you have an interest in either Neighbours (obviously) or Australian social... Read More »

Thinking About Political Comedy?

Here’s a question: when exactly did Australian political comedy go soft? Put another way, when Shaun Micallef, cuddly game-show host and master of light-hearted surrealism, can moderately startle at least one of the hard-boiled Tumbleweeds team by confusing John Howard’s biography with Mein Kampf and making a Tony Abbott joke based on not quite calling... Read More »

Talkin’ ‘bout 31 Questions

Maybe it’s the Micallef-esque mannerisms of host David M. Green, or the unexpected interjections from the show’s Moderator Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall, or that the questions are written by comedy writers? Put it this way, we’d be surprised if the production team of 31 Questions aren’t Micallef... Read More »

Danger! Parody!

Making its TV debut on SBS last Monday was Danger 5, the cheesy 1960s action series send-up that pits five international spies against the Nazis. Oh, and they have to kill Hitler too. Sounds like a hoot,... Read More »

Roast the Host with The Most

Australian television doesn’t have comedians any more, it has hosts. Think about how many much-loved laugh-getters from radio and sketch comedy have, under the relentless all-bland pressure of Australian television, turned into little more than less competent versions of Larry Emdur. Think about all the “comedians” coming through now who, first chance they get, throw... Read More »

Australian Tumbleweed Awards 2011 – Worst Overall Channel / Network for Comedy

All three commercial networks have been doing their best to make Australian comedy a no-go zone for years... Read More »

Cause for cheer?

Last week's ABC 2012 launch and other recent announcements have made us feel pretty positive about Australian comedy, which is somewhat of a strange sensation. Here's the list of what's coming up next year, tell us what you think about it in the... Read More »