Ahhh classic Eddie. If that makes you uncomfortable, please read this piece I wrote for comedy website Chortle on gay jokes becoming hack.
Author Archives: Tom
29 – Van Badham
Van Badham exudes passion for political action. She’s a playwright, novelist, columnist for The Guardian, proud union member and vocal activist who’s appeared on Q&A, The Drum and Radio National.
Van outlined the case against the federal government’s approach to arts funding and spoke to me about the importance of the arts to a society’s understanding of itself, our lazy attitude to democracy, politicians’ failure to listen to the people, asylum seekers, education, taxes, why the marriage equality debate gives her hope and tackling trolls.
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at Phoenix Fringe, Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Soho Theatre
Van’s pieces for Guardian Australia
Article: Extremist groups wilt under public scrutiny by Van Badham
Jean-Paul Sartre’s Dirty Hands (Le Mains sans)
Richard Marles on Q&A, July 6th
Causes of the Week: Yes2Renewables (yes2renewables.org), Sisters & Brothers NT Launch Pozible campaign
Happy 250th Episode, Little Dum Dum Club!
(I’m not in the above photo).
This show was insane fun and was such a joy to celebrate the dickheadedry that is this podcast. Treat yourself and listen back to it here.
28 – Rod Quantock
Rod Quantock recently received a Medal of the Order of Australia for his 45+ years of being an outspoken comedian/environmentalist activist/shit-stirrer. He is a living legend of Australian comedy who has relentlessly used his work to explain, dissect and call out political issues that really piss him off.
In this wide-ranging chat, Rod told me about his thoughts on music, his political radicalisation, the origins of his groundbreaking shows Tram and Bus, the community campaigns he’s been involved with, being physically beaten at a protest at the 2000 World Economic Forum, his plans to close down the Murdoch press, how he keeps faith in the political system (or doesn’t) and how the realities of climate change colour his view of the future.
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at Phoenix Fringe, Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Soho Theatre
Catch CO2: A TedX Talk by Rod Quantock
What Happened Miss Simone? trailer
The Last Tim Tam pozible campaign
Save The Planet political party
Cause of the Week: Quit Coal (quitcoal.org.au)
27 – Tim Wilson
Tim Wilson is a former policy director at the Institute of Public Affairs, Australia’s Human Rights Commissioner, public commentator and tea-drinker. He describes himself as a economic and social liberal and a cultural and institutional conservative. He’s passionate about his principles and isn’t afraid to wade into whatever controversy those principles might him lead to.
Together we discussed the criticisms he’s faced since taking on his role at the AHRC, asylum seeker policy, what it’s really like at the IPA, his opposition to plain packaging cigarettes, the balance of marriage equality and religious freedoms, anti-discrimination legislation and his thoughts on the recent Q&A controversy.
My show Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at Phoenix Fringe, Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Soho Theatre
Tim on The Fifth Estate podcast with Sally Warhaft
The Australian Human Rights Commission
The Resilient Individuals Report
Article: Tony Abbott’s human rights man Tim Wilson racks up $77000 in expenses
Culture War Two: conservatives get high on their own supply by Jason Wilson
Tim Wilson: Freedom Fighter by Tim Elliott
Religious freedom and same-sex marriage need not be incompatible by Tim Wilson
Tim Wilson on Q&A episode Radicalisation, Religion & Recognition
Cause of the Week: The Australian Indigenous Education Foundation (aief.com.au)
Science VS The Gay Gene
Wendy Zuckerman interviewed me for this brilliant ABC podcast, allowing us all to laugh AND learn.
26 – Shatha Hamade
Vegan lawyer Shatha Hamade is a former prosecutor for the RSPCA and is now the Head of Investigations for Animals Australia. She’s passionate about advocating for animal rights and challenging social conditioning when it comes to the way we treat our fellow earthlings.
In this chat (recorded in the AA offices, where DOGS JUST RUN AROUND FREELY IT IS SO COOL) we discuss her “wake-up” moment, the kind of godawful abuses she’s witnessed, the law’s approach to animals accoridng to their “use”, inherited thinking, the links between animal cruelty and a myriad of other social problems, the live export and live baiting investigations and the non-humans right movement.
A warning: animal cruelty is described in explicit detail here, some listeners may find it disturbing.
The Wanda Sykes Gala at Just For Laughs 2015
Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at London’s Soho Theatre in September
My opinion piece: Eric Abetz is confused about marriage equality
Article: Pets at work policies proving beneficial for both humans and dogs
Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer
Article: How Lyn White rewrote the rules on animal welfare
The Conquest: A Cane Toad Documentary
Video: Restore your faith in humanity – humans saving animals
TED Talk: Chimps have feelings and thoughts. They should also have rights by Steven Wise
Cause of the Week: Animals Australia (animalsaustralia.org)
Wanda Sykes Gala @ JFL 2015
I’m on this line-up at Just For Laughs 2015 and I am terrified but I am telling myself it will be good and great fun.
If you’re going to be in Montreal come Thursday July 23rd, you can buy tickets here.
A fixture of great TV, comedy veteran Wanda Sykes brings her trademark wit, and larger than life personality, to the Just for Laughs stage on July 23. A celebrated author, Sykes was also the first African-American woman to be the featured entertainer at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.
With such a successful career under her belt, Montrealers will be tripping over themselves to get a ticket to her Gala. Her lineup is Keith Robinson, Nate Bargazte, Alonzo Bodden, Harland Williams, and Tom Ballard.
Eric Abetz Is Confused
Senator Eric Abetz wrote this silly opinion piece so I had a crack at one too.
Like a 15-year-old Tom Ballard catching himself admiring his friends’ bodies at the school swimming carnival, Senator Eric Abetz is confused.
The world is a confusing place: Ireland has voted in favour of marriage equality by popular vote, the US Supreme Court held that banning same-sex marriage was unconstitutional and now radical hippies like Warren Entsch plan to co-sponsor a bill calling for change to the Marriage Act.
Amid all this insanity, Senator Abetz wrote an opinion piece for Fairfax and was interviewed on ABC radio and Sky News about how the media has an agenda to silence critical voices on this issue.
(FYI newspapers, radio stations and TV networks are generally considered to be part of the media.)
25 – Dan Ilic
Dan Ilic is a political satirist who employs what he calls “evidence-based shit-stirring”. He loves taking the piss in all sorts of media; his sensibilities can be found in The Ronnie Johns Half-Hour, Can of Worms, The Mansion, Hungry Beast, his ads for GetUp!, his labour of love satire collective A Rational Fear and more recently his work for Al Jazeera’s AJ+.
In this chat (recorded in a very SPECIAL LOCATION featuring a SPECIAL CAMEO), Dan and I reflect on the furore surrounding Q&A and discuss his amazing family story, how his “inner rage” fuels him to do what he does, the saga surrounding his piece (that was originally titled) Beaconsfield: A Musical In A Flat Minor, why he recently got fired and where he sees Australian political satire going in the future.
My show at the 2015 Phoenix Fringe in London
Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred at the 2015 Edinburgh Festival Fringe
Article: ABC cowers in the face of Q&A fallout by Jonathan Holmes
Article: Democracy means even a jerk get a say by Annabel Crabb
The Saturday Paper Editorial: Furore over ABC’s Q&A mishandled
Article: Arrogant ABC’s left bias lets down taxpayers by Janet Albrechtsen ($)
Sketch: Where the bloody hell are you?
Sketch: David Hicks on MTV’s Cribs
Sketch: The National Muslim Hotline
Sketch: Corby’s Political Fix-O-Kit
Bad Ground: Inside The Beaconsfield Rescue by Tony Wright
Media reaction to Beaconsfield: The Musical
Cause of the Week: Sanfilippo Children’s Foundation (sanfilippo.org.au)