Frankly, we give a damn
What we shouldn’t see the ABC having to do is pick one under-represented group over another. All groups should get their... Read More »
Tag: Shaun Micallef
Vale sketch comedy?
The end of Mad As Hell begs the question: is this the last we’ll see of sketch comedy on Australian... Read More »
Vale Mad as Hell 2022
Well, we knew it had to end sometime. For a bunch of years and slightly more seasons, Mad as Hell has been an island of quality in a sea of mediocrity, the rare Australian comedy that was both Australian and a comedy. Times changed; it changed with it, going from a thinly veiled Newstopia rip-off... Read More »
And Now, the End is Near
Every day is a day closer to the last day when we have a new episode of Shaun Micallef’s Mad as Hell to look forward to. Sure, we could rejoice in the knowledge that at least we had our time together and that nothing in this world lasts forever. Counterpoint: The Weekly with Charlie Pickering... Read More »
Mad as Mad as Hell
Is it just us, or is Mad as Hell going just a little bit harder in its final season? We’re not exactly talking “the gloves are off” here. But there’s definitely a sense that, with not a lot left to lose, they might as well go right ahead and point out the many and varied... Read More »
The Kids Are Alright I Guess
Ok, so Shaun Micallef’s Brain Eisteddfod is a quiz show. Not a comedy quiz show – a good old-fashioned, we’re seriously keeping score so you’d better give the correct answer, quiz show. But is it funny? Two episodes in and we can safely answer that question with… kinda? It’s hosted by Shaun Micallef, a man... Read More »
Sad as Hell
Well, it may not be a surprise, but it’s definitely still a shock: (the bad news here isn’t the bit about there being a new season – keep reading) As Micallef himself points out, he’s pushing sixty – a perfectly reasonable age to decide to slow things down a little. Comedy is traditionally a young... Read More »
Celebration of a nation
The ABC’s 90th-anniversary program ABC 90 Celebrate! was a noble attempt cover nine decades of broadcasting but left some... Read More »
Vale Mad as Hell 2022 v.1
And just when the election campaign was starting to heat up too. Only joking! Like this election campaign will ever “heat up”: Scott Morrison is the kind of thuggish suburban bully everyone (outside the media) hates, Anthony Albanese is a submarine, and the media coverage is so meta you’d be forgiven for thinking there was... Read More »
And They’re Off!
One week into the official election campaign and… yeah. Remember when political satire was a central part of Australian culture? You do? Have fun down at Services Australia trying to claim the old age pension. Slightly less snarkily, these days any election campaign really drives home the shrinking opportunities for political comedy on Australian television.... Read More »