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Craig Bruce Reucassel is an Australian television and radio comedian. He is best known for being a member of satirical team
The Chaser The Chaser are an Australian satirical comedy group, best known for their television programmes and satirical news masthead. The group take their name from their satirical newspaper, a publication known to challenge conventions of taste. Th ...
. He hosted the Australian version of ''Balls of Steel'', which premiered in April 2011. Since 2013, Reucassel and fellow Chaser
Julian Morrow Julian Francis Xavier Morrow (born 1975) is an Australian comedian and television producer from Sydney. He is best known for being a member of the satirical team The Chaser. As a member of The Chaser, he has appeared on several ABC Television ...
have been main presenters on the ABC program ''
The Checkout ''The Checkout'' was an Australian consumer affairs television series. The show's first series of 10 episodes premiered on 21 March 2013 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC TV. A second series consisting of ...
''. In 2017, Reucassel presented the four-part ABC TV series '' War on Waste'' which focused on clothing and
food waste Food loss and waste is food that is not eaten. The causes of food waste or loss are numerous and occur throughout the food system, during production, processing, distribution, retail and food service sales, and consumption. Overall, about o ...
in Australia, its environmental impacts and what can be done to help reduce waste. This was followed by a second series, Fight For Planet A: Our Climate Challenge in 2018, which focused on the use of plastics, and particularly 'single-use' plastics such as straws. Alongside publishing the program, Big Weather And How To Survive It (2020): an exploration of how to survive extreme weather events, Reucassel directed the two-part ABC TV series Big Deal (2021). The series presented by actor Christian Van Vuuren, investigated the influence of lobbying and donations on Australia's political system.


Early life

Reucassel was born in South Africa and moved to
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
at a young age with his parents. There, he attended Semaphore Park Primary School. The family relocated to the Southern Highlands of
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
, and Reucassel attended Bowral Public School and
Bowral High School , motto_translation = Higher , slogan = Exceptional learning opportunities for all , location = Aitken Road, Bowral, Southern Highlands, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map ...
. In 1993 he represented Bowral High School at ''
The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' Plain English Speaking competition. Also attending, representing St Aloysius' College, was future Chaser member
Julian Morrow Julian Francis Xavier Morrow (born 1975) is an Australian comedian and television producer from Sydney. He is best known for being a member of the satirical team The Chaser. As a member of The Chaser, he has appeared on several ABC Television ...
. Reucassel attended the
University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's ...
, and completed a
Bachelor of Economics The Bachelor of Economics (BEc or BEcon), or the "Bachelor of Applied Economics", is a bachelor's degree awarded by many universities and colleges for completion of an undergraduate program in economics, econometrics, or applied economics; th ...
(
Social Science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...
) degree in 1999 and graduated with a
Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Ch ...
degree in 2002. With a strong dedication to extracurricular activities on campus, Reucassel ran the arts revue and the canoe club, and was an editor of the student newspaper ''
Honi Soit ''Honi Soit'' is the student newspaper of the University of Sydney. First published in 1929, the newspaper is produced by an elected editorial team and a select group of reporters sourced from the university's populace. The name is an abbrevi ...
''. He also debated at several
World Universities Debating Championships The World Universities Debating Championship (WUDC) is the world's largest debating tournament and one of the largest annual international student events in the world. WUDC is held in the British Parliamentary Debate format (involving four team ...
, ranking 30th in the World at Manila in 1999 and 167th in Glasgow in 2001. In 2000 he competed in the Philip C. Jessup Cup international law mooting competition, his team winning the Australian rounds. He graduated from the
Sydney Law School Sydney Law School (informally Sydney Law or SLS) is the law school at the University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university. Sydney Law School began a full program of legal instruction in 1890 following the appointment of its first dean, havin ...
, along with Chaser colleagues
Julian Morrow Julian Francis Xavier Morrow (born 1975) is an Australian comedian and television producer from Sydney. He is best known for being a member of the satirical team The Chaser. As a member of The Chaser, he has appeared on several ABC Television ...
,
Dominic Knight Dominic John Sebastian Knight (born 26 January 1977) is an Australian novelist, comedy writer, radio host and media commentator. Best known as a member of the Australian political satire comedy Logie Awardwinning group The Chaser, he is also ...
and
Chas Licciardello Charles John "Chas" Licciardello (born 10 May 1977) is an Australian comedian and member of satirical team The Chaser. He's currently the co-host, with John Barron, of ''Planet America'' on ABC TV. Licciardello has appeared as a regular of '' ...
.


Triple J

In 2004 and 2005, Reucassel co-hosted the drive-time radio show '' Today Today'' on
Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...
with fellow Chaser Chris Taylor. The pair returned with their Sunday afternoon show ''
Bloody Sunday Bloody Sunday may refer to: Historical events Canada * Bloody Sunday (1923), a day of police violence during a steelworkers' strike for union recognition in Sydney, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia * Bloody Sunday (1938), police violence aga ...
'' to do relief shifts in mid-2006 and summer 2006–07.


''The Chaser's War on Everything''

Reucassel was a founding member of the satirical multi-media group
The Chaser The Chaser are an Australian satirical comedy group, best known for their television programmes and satirical news masthead. The group take their name from their satirical newspaper, a publication known to challenge conventions of taste. Th ...
team, and worked to produce their satirical newspaper, as well as television shows on ABC TV including ''
The Election Chaser ''The Chaser election specials'' are a number of Australian political satire based comedy programs produced by The Chaser. The shows, which have run under various titles, provide commentary on Australian federal election and has been produced s ...
'', ''
CNNNN ''CNNNN'' (''Chaser NoN-stop News Network'') is a Logie Award winning Australian television program, satirising American news channels CNN and Fox News. It was produced and hosted by comedy team The Chaser. ''CNNNNs slogan was "We Report, Yo ...
'', ''
The Chaser Decides ''The Chaser election specials'' are a number of Australian political satire based comedy programs produced by The Chaser. The shows, which have run under various titles, provide commentary on Australian federal election and has been produced s ...
'' and '' The Chaser's War on Everything''. He has been one of the main presenters on ''The War'' since the pilot episode. He and his wife Keisha have three children together, and their son Ollie has appeared on some of the sketches on ''The War''. Reucassel was often the one selected to confront former Prime Minister
John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
on his morning walks, most famously in the axe stunt (see below).


Speedos incident

On 19 March 2007, during a campaign appearance for the New South Wales State Election, the then opposition leader
Peter Debnam Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...
was confronted by Reucassel wearing nothing but
Speedos A swim brief or racing brief is any briefs-style male swimsuit such as those worn in competitive swimming, diving and water polo. The popularity of the Australian ''Speedo'' brand racing brief has led to the use of its name in many countries a ...
and a baseball cap, making fun of Debnam's campaign appearances in the swimwear. When TV cameras remained focused on Reucassel rather than Mr Debnam, he said, "Sorry, I'm not Peter Debnam, he's over there. Just because I'm wearing this doesn't mean I'm Peter Debnam". Reucassel stuck around for the press conference but failed to draw a response from the opposition leader, and was again ignored when he went to shake Debnam's hand.


The axe stunt

On 2 August 2006, Reucassel responded to a news story about a private school student who had hugged then-Prime Minister
John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
while holding a
screwdriver A screwdriver is a tool, manual or powered, used for turning screws. A typical simple screwdriver has a handle and a shaft, ending in a tip the user puts into the screw head before turning the handle. This form of the screwdriver has been repla ...
during one of Howard's morning walks. To test the Prime Minister's security arrangements, he approached Howard during a morning walk and asked for a hug while holding a large plastic
battle axe A battle axe (also battle-axe, battle ax, or battle-ax) is an axe specifically designed for combat. Battle axes were specialized versions of utility axes. Many were suitable for use in one hand, while others were larger and were deployed two-ha ...
. Reucassel did receive the hug, but a later approach while holding a running
chainsaw A chainsaw (or chain saw) is a portable gasoline-, electric-, or battery-powered saw that cuts with a set of teeth attached to a rotating chain driven along a guide bar. It is used in activities such as tree felling, limbing, bucking, pru ...
was not so successful. There was much debate surrounding whether to turn on the chainsaw and whether they would be shot at for doing this. Cut out from this segment was an unsuccessful attempt that took place between the axe and the chainsaw, in which Reucassel was holding a four-point-star mace.


Other work

In 2012 Reucassel was a patron of the Left Right Think-Tank, Australia's first independent and non-partisan youth
think-tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmental ...
. In 2019 he began acting as one of the hosts of The Drum on ABC TV.


Television

* ''CNNN'' - (2002-2003) *'' The Panel'' – (3 episodes) (2003, 04, 07) *'' The Chaser's War on Everything -'' (2006-2009) *''Spy Shop'' – (1 episode) (2007) *''
Good News Week ''Good News Week'' is an Australian satirical panel game show hosted by Paul McDermott that aired from 19 April 1996 to 27 May 2000, and 11 February 2008 to 28 April 2012. The show's initial run aired on ABC until being bought by Network Ten ...
'' – (3 episodes) (2008–10) *'' Q&A'' – (3 episodes) (2008–11) *''
Top Gear Australia ''Top Gear Australia'' was an Australian motoring reality television series, based on the British BBC series '' Top Gear''. The programme first premiered on SBS One on 29 September 2008. A second season was ordered following the high ratings ...
'' – (1 episode) (2010) *''
Balls of Steel Australia ''Balls of Steel Australia'' is an Australian reality comedy television series (based upon the UK series of the same name) which is hosted by The Chaser's Craig Reucassel. The show revolves around comedians who appear and present individual ski ...
'' – (20 episodes – Host) (2011–2012) *''
You Have Been Watching ''You Have Been Watching'' is a British comedy panel game presented by Charlie Brooker, produced by Zeppotron for Channel 4 and filmed at BBC Television Centre (pilot and series 2) and Riverside Studios (series 1) in London. It first aired on ...
'' – (1 episode) (2011) *'' The Joy of Sets'' – (1 episode) (2011) *''The Silic & Lee Show at the Logies: Red Carpet Special 2012'' – (1 episode) (2012) *''
The Checkout ''The Checkout'' was an Australian consumer affairs television series. The show's first series of 10 episodes premiered on 21 March 2013 on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC TV. A second series consisting of ...
'' – (2013–2018) *'' War on Waste'' – series (2017–2018) *''Fight for Planet A'' – series (2020) *''Big Weather (and how to survive it)'' – series (2020) *''Big Deal'' - two-part documentary series on the political lobbying industry (2021). Presented by
Christiaan Van Vuuren Christiaan Van Vuuren (born 1982), known as The Fully Sick Rapper in his first video series, is an actor, writer, director and video blogger from Sydney, Australia. He often collaborates with his brother, Connor Van Vuuren, and their YouTube ch ...
, this was Reucassel's directorial debut.


References


External links

*
August 2006 ''Sydney Morning Herald'' article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Reucassel, Craig 1976 births The Chaser members Australian television writers Australian television personalities Triple J announcers Australian male comedians Australian people of South African descent People from Adelaide Living people Sydney Law School alumni Australian male television writers