''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' is an Australian comedy news television program hosted by Shaun Micallef. The show first aired on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

at 8:00 pm on Friday, 25 May 2012. The show was named as Most Outstanding Comedy Program at the Logie Awards of 2016. Its title is a reference to the 1976 American satirical black comedy-drama film ''

Network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...

''.

Cast

Micallef hosts the program, with at least five other cast members appearing, each as multiple characters, including Micallef. ;Notes

Broadcast

The program was commissioned without a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

and the first series of 10 episodes originally screened from May to July 2012. The show was renewed for a second series of 12 episodes which aired in 2013. A third was announced in January 2014 and consisted of 10 episodes, shown weekly from 12 February 2014.A fourth series was announced to also screen in 2014 A fourth series premiered later in the same year on 24 September 2014 and the fifth series premiered on 11 February 2015. A sixth series debuted on 11 May 2016. The show's seventh series commenced on 21 June 2017. An eighth series debuted on 31 January 2018, with a ninth series running from September 2018. A tenth series was confirmed for July 2019 by Micallef on Twitter in December 2018 and it debuted on 26 June 2019. At the ABC 2020 Upfronts, Micallef confirmed that two series would be produced in 2020, starting with Season 11, to air in early February. The second half of the eleventh season saw the show taping without an audience, due to

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dis ...

requirements amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. The twelfth season was scheduled to commence 5 August; and began by recording new episodes without an audience. A special Christmas episode was broadcast on 20 December 2020. In July 2022, news broke that the show would not be returning with its current cast. Shaun clarified that discussions were ongoing with the ABC regarding evolving the show, but confirmed that the "original version" with Shaun in the main chair would not be returning forever.

Recurring segments and characters

Bill Shorten's Zingers A regular segment during the early period of

Bill Shorten William Richard Shorten (born 12 May 1967) is an Australian politician currently serving as Minister for Government Services and Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme since 2022. He previously served as leader of the opposition ...

's tenure as Leader of the Opposition. Micallef would play a short video clip of Shorten delivering a pun, dad joke or similar, usually when he was criticising the government, after which "Zinger!" would appear in bold text on the screen with a roaring sound for humorous effect. The segment was noticed by Shorten himself, as he referenced it in a press conference when attacking the government on its funding cuts to the ABC, after which he said "I tell you what, I tell you Shaun Micallef, I'm as mad as hell and we’ll fight for your show." This was made a zinger in the subsequent week's episode of the show. Lamentable Puns Micallef and "junior sub-editor" of the ''Daily Telegraph'', Chris Lorax (played by Tosh Greenslade), go through a series of front page and article headlines of the newspaper. Micallef shows the headline in question for Lorax to explain, much to Micallef's bemusement over both the headline and Lorax's justification for it. Lorax usually responds to Micallef's bemusement with "It’s just a bit of fun." HYPERthetical A segment where Micallef moderates a debate between several people about a hypothetical issue. Topics discussed in the segment include euthanasia and

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

. This segment is a parody of the ABC show

Tomorrow Tonight (TV series) ''Tomorrow Tonight'' is an Australian comedy panel discussion television show hosted by Annabel Crabb, Charlie Pickering and Adam Liaw. The show features a panel of experts and comedians who discuss a hypothetical news story from tomorrow's headl ...

which was hosted by

Charlie Pickering Charlie Pickering (born 29 August 1977) is an Australian comedian, television and radio presenter, author and producer. Pickering currently hosts ''The Weekly with Charlie Pickering'', a weekly news satire television show on the ABC, as wel ...

and

Annabel Crabb Annabel Crabb (born 1973) is an Australian political journalist, commentator and television host who is the ABC's chief online political writer. She has worked for Adelaide's '' The Advertiser'', ''The Sydney Morning Herald'', ''The Age'', the ...

. Darius Horsham Spokesperson (sometimes stylised as "$pokesb0rg") for the Minister for Finance,

Mathias Cormann Mathias Hubert Paul Cormann (; ; born 20 September 1970) is a Belgian-born Australian politician and diplomat who currently serves as Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), having assumed the off ...

. He speaks in a thick Germanic accent in a parody of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Cormann himself, and often seen aggressively chewing on a cigar – in reference to controversy caused when Cormann and Joe Hockey were filmed smoking cigars after delivering the 2014 Federal Budget. When asked by Micallef to elaborate on a point made, or is otherwise criticised, he usually responds with "Don't be an economic girly-man" or some variation. Cormann himself, presumably in reference to the character, referred to Bill Shorten as an "economic girly-man". Dolly Norman The simple speaking and thinking speechwriter to politician

Jacqui Lambie Jacquiline Louise Lambie (born 26 February 1971) is an Australian politician who is the leader and founder of the Jacqui Lambie Network (JLN). She is a Senator for Tasmania since 2019, and was previously a Senator from 2014 to 2017. Lambie, an ...

. Often includes short film clips of Lambie saying something seemingly nonsensical or offensive, to which Norman responds by explaining what Lambie "really meant". Lois Price Played by

Emily Taheny Emily Taheny (born 1978) is an Australian comedian, television actress and singer known for her multiple appearances on the sketch comedy television series '' Comedy Inc.'' from 2003 through 2007, her role as "Kat" on the 2009 series '' The Jes ...

. A play on the "traffic chopper" on morning television programs reporting on traffic conditions, only Lois Price reports on current events. She usually signs off with an advertorial before saying "I'm Lois Price from Mad as Hell." Tosh Greenslade Played as himself. Micallef will usually introduce him as "Tosh Greenslade in a wig and glasses to talk about ..." (to which Greenslade's intro is usually "exactly right, Shaun") to explain the "reasons" behind government policy using novel concepts for humorous effect. In one episode, for example, Greenslade "explained" the government's asylum seeker boat turn-back policy using the layers of a

lamington A lamington is an Australian cake made from squares of butter cake or sponge cake coated in an outer layer of chocolate sauce and rolled in desiccated coconut. The thin mixture is absorbed into the outside of the sponge cake and left to set, gi ...

. Micallef then signs him out with a variation of the line "that was Tosh Greenslade in a wig and glasses talking about ...". Casper Jonquil Played by Tosh Greenslade. A parody of a talkback radio shock jock and listener who complains loudly and unintelligibly. Jonquil has appeared since Series 2, and is seen to have had various occupations, including one sketch in which he claims to be a qualified osteopath, and another in which he is a member of the local neighbourhood watch, claiming that the boyfriend of his love interest, Spakfilla Vole, is in fact a terrorist. He also is shown to host his own talk show, ''Right Minded'', and in one sketch, a quiz show, ''Why the Hell?'', a parody of the real ABC quiz show

Hard Quiz ''Hard Quiz'' is an Australian television comedy quiz show which premiered on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on 19 October 2016. Hosted by Tom Gleeson, the show is a spin-off of his "Hard Chat" segment on the satirical televisio ...

. Vice Rear Admiral Sir Bobo Gargle Played by

Francis Greenslade Francis Greenslade (born 3 October 1962 in Honiara, Solomon Islands) is an Australian comedic actor. He also teaches acting. Early life In the 1980s, Greenslade studied at the University of Adelaide where he first met Shaun Micallef. They per ...

. Sir Bobo Gargle is a Vice Rear Admiral in the Australian Navy. He appears on the show to discuss Australian and international maritime matters. Sir Bobo Gargle usually ends his interviews by releasing the Kraken (played by Michael Ward, one of the show's writers). Larry Sideburns Played by Francis Greenslade. Often appears as a plot character in sketches as well as other segments of the show and is portrayed as an entrepreneur trying to monetise his next big thing. Often featured alongside his wife who is often spoken over. Draymella Burt Played by

. Draymella Burt is a spokesperson for the Liberal Party. She is best known for her brutal quips at Shaun about his left-wing bias. Brion Pegmatite Spokesperson for

Peter Dutton Peter Craig Dutton (born 18 November 1970) is an Australian politician who has been leader of the opposition and leader of the Liberal Party since May 2022. He has represented the Queensland seat of Dickson in the House of Representatives sinc ...

. He finds it painful to show remorse, pleasure or compassion, and is often seen wanting vengeance against Scott Morrison and other members of the Liberal Party, especially when leadership is brought into question. Tamara Happenstance Tourism Australia ambassador. Portrayed as a character wearing an Australian outback hat with corks dangling off the sides, as well as an apron with 'G’day' written on it with an image of the Australian flag. She often ends her sentences with common Australian tropes such as "put a shrimp on the barbie you bastards" that become increasingly vulgar as the segment progresses.

Episodes

Series 1 (2012)

Series 2 (2013)

Series 3 (2014)

Series 4 (2014)

Series 5 (2015)

Series 6 (2016)

Series 7 (2017)

This was the final season to be filmed at the ABC Ripponlea Studios, with episode 12 being one of the last TV shows filmed at the historic studios.

Series 8 (2018)

Series 9 (2018)

Series 10 (2019)

Notes :a. Originally scheduled to air on 17 July, episode 3 was broadcast in error. The episode was subsequently released on

ABC iView ABC iview is a video on demand and catch-up TV service run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Currently iview video content can only be viewed by users in Australia. As of 2016, ABC iview attracts around 50 million plays monthly and ...

, and broadcast on 18 July on ABC TV.

Series 11 (2020)

Series 12 (2020)

Special

Series 13 (2021)

Series 14 (2022)

Series 15 (2022)

Awards

, - , 2013 , Peter Beck , AACTA Award for Best Television Comedy Series , , - , 2013 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' , Logie Award for Most Outstanding Light Entertainment Program , , - , rowspan=2, 2014 , Shaun Micallef , AACTA Award for Best Performance in a Television Comedy , , - , Shaun Micallef and Peter Beck , AACTA Award for Best Television Comedy or Light Entertainment Series , , - , 2016 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' , Logie Award for Most Outstanding Comedy Program , , - , 2017 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' , Logie Award for Most Outstanding Comedy Program , , - , 2018 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' ,

Logie Award for Most Popular Comedy Program The Logie for Most Popular Comedy Program is an award presented annually at the Australian TV Week Logie Awards. It recognises the popularity of an Australian comedy program, which over the years have included scripted comedy series, sketch comed ...

, , - , 2019 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' , Logie Award for Most Popular Comedy Program , , - , 2020 , ''Shaun Micallef's Mad as Hell'' , AACTA Award for Best Comedy Entertainment Program ,

References

External links

* * {{ABC Television programming Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming 2012 Australian television series debuts 2022 Australian television series endings English-language television shows Australian comedy television series Television series by ITV Studios Television shows set in Melbourne