The Chaser APEC pranks were a series of
comic
a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...
stunts coordinated and performed by the Australian
satire
Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming o ...
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 ...
for the television series ''
The Chaser's War on Everything
''The Chaser's War on Everything'' is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC1. It has won an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Television Comedy ...
''. Pranks were done at the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Summit (2–9 September 2007) in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...
, Australia. The most prominent prank was the breach of an APEC restricted zone in the heart of
Sydney central business district
The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or city centre is often referr ...
on 6 September.
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 ...
directed a fake Canadian motorcade, which was allowed through the restricted zone by police and not detected until
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 '' ...
alighted, dressed as
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his group is designated ...
.
Although pranks that involved public locations, figures, and organisations were always a feature of the series,
the APEC pranks yielded unprecedented local and international publicity, both positive and negative.
Some team members faced
charges
Charge or charged may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary
Music
* ''Charge'' (David Ford album)
* ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album)
* '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...
for breaching the APEC zone, but these were dropped because police had allowed their entry into the restricted zone. Other less controversial and less publicised stunts were also shown on ''The Chaser's War on Everything'', with ratings peaking at almost three million Australian viewers for the APEC wrap-up episode.
Background
APEC
APEC Australia 2007 comprised a series of political meetings between representatives of the 21 member governments of the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy, economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. . This culminated in a week-long summit meeting: Leaders Week, 2 to 9 September, when heads of the member governments gathered in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...
.
The significance of the APEC summit called for stringent and expensive security arrangements. The Protective Security Coordination Centre, of the National Security and Criminal Justice Group from the Australian
Attorney-General's Department, oversaw security planning through the APEC 2007 Security Branch, formed expressly for the APEC meetings. In order to secure and monitor the summit, the
New South Wales Police Force
The New South Wales Police Force (NSW Police Force; previously the New South Wales Police Service and New South Wales Police) is the primary law enforcement agency of the state of New South Wales, Australia. Divided into Police Area Commands (P ...
instituted the APEC Police Security Command. Many public roads in Sydney were closed, as leaders, officials, and personnel travelled in
motorcade
A motorcade, or autocade, is a procession of vehicles.
Etymology
The term ''motorcade'' was coined by Lyle Abbot (in 1912 or 1913 when he was automobile editor of the ''Arizona Republican''), and is formed after '' cavalcade'', playing off of ...
s around the city centre. Figures released by the state government at a
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
committee hearing show that security measures at APEC cost
$170 million.
The Chaser
The Chaser group's founding members were
Charles Firth,
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 ...
,
Craig Reucassel
Craig Bruce Reucassel is an Australian television and radio comedian. He is best known for being a member of satirical team The Chaser. He hosted the Australian version of ''Balls of Steel'', which premiered in April 2011. Since 2013, Reucassel ...
, and
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 ...
. In 1999 they started ''
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 ...
'', a
fortnight
A fortnight is a unit of time equal to 14 days (two weeks). The word derives from the Old English term , meaning "" (or "fourteen days," since the Anglo-Saxons counted by nights).
Astronomy and tides
In astronomy, a ''lunar fortnight'' is ha ...
ly satirical newspaper.
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 '' ...
,
Andrew Hansen
Andrew John Hansen (born 18 September 1974) is an Australian comedian, musician and author, best known for being a member of satirical team The Chaser. As a member of The Chaser, Hansen's television work includes co-writing and starring in A ...
, and
Chris Taylor later joined the group;
and in 2006, after various ventures in radio, stage, and television, this line-up created ''
The Chaser's War on Everything
''The Chaser's War on Everything'' is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC1. It has won an Australian Film Institute Award for Best Television Comedy ...
'', its most successful program, which screened on the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...
(ABC) station
ABC1
ABC TV, formerly known as ABC1, is an Australian national public television network. It is owned and operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and is the flagship ABC Television network. The headquarters of the ABC TV channel an ...
. By its second season in 2007, the show had forged a reputation for ambush-style stunts and deliberate controversy.
The group had been warned about the dangers of irresponsible behaviour during the Sydney lockdown for the APEC summit.
[
] According to New South Wales Police Minister
David Campbell, the police understood that "parody and satire are entertaining and fun", but The Chaser must understand the "seriousness of this matter
PECand take caution".
A later police statement reiterated that producers of ''The Chaser's War on Everything'' had been warned about the "ramifications of stunts during APEC".
The Chaser was unfazed by police warnings. Before the summit, Julian Morrow commented on radio that "the eyes of the world and the eyes of
Al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military targets in various countr ...
are on us".
[''Dangerous Fools'' Originally published on '']Today Tonight
''Today Tonight'' is an Australian current affairs television program produced by the Seven Network. It aired from January 1995 to November 2019 in Adelaide and Perth. Editions in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne were previously produced befor ...
'', Seven Network
The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air Television broadcasting in Australia, television network. It is owned by Seven West Media, Seven West Media Limited, and is one of ...
. Date: 6 September 2007.
Morrow hinted that their challenge was to perform a stunt that would "make
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his group is designated ...
feel a little incompetent".
Breach of APEC restricted zone
On 6 September 2007, eight members of the team (including five runners dressed as bodyguards) and three hired chauffeurs manned a fake Canadian motorcade consisting of two motorcycles, two black four-wheel drive vehicles, and a black sedan.
The group—including Chas Licciardello dressed as Osama bin Laden, and Julian Morrow—drove the motorcade through the Sydney central business district and breached the APEC security zone. The premise of the stunt was that bin Laden should have been invited to the summit as a world leader, to discuss the
War on Terror
The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...
, with another motive being to test the event's security.
The stunt was approved by ABC lawyers under the assumption that the motorcade would be stopped at the first security checkpoint and denied entry.
In the following episode of ''The Chaser's War on Everything'', the team emphasised that their only realistic attempt to disguise the vehicles was the use of a
Canadian flag.
Taylor later said that there was "no particular reason we chose Canada, we just thought they'd be a country who the cops wouldn't scrutinise too closely, and who feasibly would only have three cars in their motorcade—as opposed to the 20 or so gas guzzlers that Bush has brought with him". There were many deliberate indications that the motorcade was not genuine, particularly on the fake credentials used by the team; members' security passes were printed with ''JOKE'', ''Insecurity'', and ''It's pretty obvious this isn't a real pass'' all clearly visible,
while the ''APEC 2007 Official Vehicle'' stickers included both the name of the series and the text ''This dude likes trees and poetry and certain types of carnivorous plants excite him''.
[
] In addition, some of the runners were holding
camcorders
A camcorder is a self-contained portable electronic device with video and recording as its primary function. It is typically equipped with an articulating screen mounted on the left side, a belt to facilitate holding on the right side, hot-swap ...
and one of the motorcyclists was wearing jeans, both highly unusual for an official motorcade.
At 11.30 am (
AEDT
Australia uses three main time zones: Australian Western Standard Time (AWST; UTC+08:00), Australian Central Standard Time (ACST; UTC+09:30), and Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST; UTC+10:00). Time is regulated by the individual state ...
),
the motorcade began its journey towards the "ring of steel", a fenced area at the intersection of Bent and
Macquarie Macquarie may refer to: People
* Lachlan Macquarie, Governor of the British colony of New South Wales from 1810 to 1821.
* Elizabeth Macquarie Campbell, Lachlan Macquarie's second wife
Locations
* Division of Macquarie, an electoral district in th ...
Streets. The vehicle (or vehicles) stopped for a
red light and the police became aware of the motorcade's presence, but waved them towards the checkpoint. The convoy travelled through the first checkpoint without inspection and proceeded in a northerly direction to a second security checkpoint in the prohibited "red zone", just before Bridge Street. Both motorcyclists had by now separated from the motorcade,
which was waved through the second checkpoint by police officers. It travelled further into the restricted area before stopping outside the
InterContinental
Intercontinental is an adjective to describe something which relates to more than one continent.
Intercontinental may also refer to:
* Intercontinental ballistic missile, a long-range guided ballistic missile
* InterContinental Hotels Group (I ...
Hotel.
Morrow ordered the motorcade to turn around at the Bridge Street intersection because he realised that they had proceeded further than expected, and because the police officers were not going to stop them.
After partially turning the motorcade, Licciardello alighted onto the street and complained, in character as bin Laden, about not being invited to the APEC Summit. At this point, the police requested Morrow's identity. After inspecting his fake pass, officers realised that Morrow was from The Chaser and took all eleven members of the motorcade into custody. Surprisingly, as pointed out by the team on their television show, the officers initially ignored Licciardello (Osama Bin Laden) and only arrested Morrow.
The arrested cast and crew were immediately taken to
Surry Hills
Surry Hills is an inner-city suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Sydney. Surry Hills is surround ...
Police Station, where they were questioned and charged with entering a prohibited area under the ''APEC Meeting (Police Powers) Act 2007''.
[
] All were released on
bail
Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Bail is the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when required.
In some countrie ...
to appear in court on 4 October 2007.
Under the new legislation, the crew members would each face a maximum penalty of six months' imprisonment if they were convicted or up to two years if they were in possession of a "prohibited item".
Aftermath
Following the breach of the APEC restricted area, the actions of The Chaser became the subject of intense debate among sections of the media, senior police officers, and government ministers.
Public response
Despite strong condemnation from some officials, the stunt was mostly well received by the public. A Sydney correspondent for the
British Broadcasting Corporation #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
reported that the Chaser team had become "folk heroes" after the prank, while 87% of the 28,451 respondents to a ''
'' internet poll found the stunt "funny".
However, the ABC received more than 250 complaints, outweighing the 177 positive submissions.
A spokesperson for the national broadcaster said that the results were misleading because people who enjoyed the show typically do not make comments. Around the country, around 80% of callers to
were supportive; and one third of all calls regarding APEC mentioned the stunt.
There were many critics among politicians and officials. Representatives of the police force in Sydney were among the most severe, and New South Wales Police Commissioner
, the head of APEC's lead security agency, was angered because the comedians could have been shot by police
s, who were "clearly ... there because they mean business. They're not there for show."
In response, Licciardello expressed his faith in the snipers' professional ability: "They are highly trained, competent people and they're not going to shoot people if they're in an Osama bin Laden costume if they clearly don't pose a threat".
Many politicians, mostly from the
government of New South Wales, reacted to the security breach with concern and unease. Police Minister
expressed disappointment and concern over the stunt, arguing that there were "21 world leaders arriving in the city at the one time and it needs to be taken seriously". Then
said that while he was a fan of the show, those involved would have to face the full force of the law.
, also from the Labor Party, voiced similar concerns, saying that "I'm a fan of The Chaser ... but I think these guys have crossed the line."
government, was amused when asked to comment on the incident.
He said the arrests proved that the security system had functioned properly, adding that "whatever you think of the humour of The Chaser ... they were clearly not going to harm anybody in a physical way".
in the Senate.
The APEC security breach captured international attention and acclaim. A local newspaper in Canada saw the humorous side, despite the pranksters posing as Canadian officials. In the United States media reviews were mixed. Newsreaders from American networks such as the
either "raised their eyebrows" or "had smiles on their faces over the stunt". After the high ratings for the episode and international recognition derived from the stunt, the program began screening in countries such as
, began negotiating with the ABC.
.
analyses the prank's political significance as an important act of deconstruction in his book ''Pomo Oz: Fear and Loathing Downunder''.
aired a story headed "Dangerous Fools", specifically devoted to the APEC stunt. Host
asserted that The Chaser were wasting taxpayers' money, and will "need more of those funds
to defend their actions in court".