Shaun to host Just For Laughs All-Star Gala

Sydney’s annual comedy festival Just for Laughs returns, with the centerpiece being the All-Star Gala at the Sydney Opera House. And the Gala host will be Shaun!

The Gala will have a lineup of local and international comedians, including Reggie Watts, Melanie Bracewell, Wil Anderson, Joel Creasey, Celia Pacquola and Preacher Lawson.

Just for Laughs Sydney is a local offshoot of the namesake festival held in Montreal.

The show will be Saturday 15th of November – more details at the website.

Origin Odyssey returning next year

It’s been confirmed that Shaun Micallef’s Origin Odyssey will return in 2026 on SBS TV and OnDemand.

Origin Odyssey sees Shaun travelling with young comedians and discovering their family roots with them. The first season aired in 2024. The second season will feature a new batch of six comedians, although we’re yet to learn who, and filming will occur next year.

Interview and travel shows might be the typical fare for a “semi-retired” comedian, but Shaun has put his flavour on it, and the first season had a great mix of Shaun’s humour and genuine moments with the guest. And great to know we’ll have Shaun on our screens next year!

Second Prize for Dancing

The Dancing with the Stars Season 22 final has been run and won; and Shaun came… second!

Which is actually a fantastic effort, given Shaun’s dancing skill probably placed him in the middle of the competition. But his entertainment value was enough to sway the judges and the audience. And it’s what we love about him – he really seemed to enjoy his time on the show and especially his last dance, which had so many little personal touches.

After it was whittled down to a final two, the public was able to vote for their favourite. Kyle Shilling, from Home and Away, was chosen as the winner.

Congratulations to Shaun and Ash-leigh for a brilliant season and effort!

Eve of Destruction returns!

The (slightly reworked) Eve of Destruction is back August 13th!

Shaun will be back asking guests what they would save from their home if it was about to be destroyed, and what those items mean to them.

John Safran, Lisa McCune and Frank Woodley are among the guests, so there should be some very fun conversations.

You can watch it on ABC (8pm) and ABC iView (anytime after the 13th).

Dancing to the Finals

Shaun has survived the first three eliminations of Dancing with the Stars to make it to the final six and the Grand Final this Sunday!

Two weeks ago Shaun went full Richard III to dance the Paso Doble to Queen’s We Will Rock You!

In the semi-finals, it was the Cha-cha meets a day at the races, to the soundtrack of James Brown’s Get Up Offa That Thing. The horse pose was a delight to everyone, although everyone did think it was a T-Rex pose.

Although the judges are a little critical of some of Shaun’s technique, his entertainment quality, facial expressions and the joy he seemed to be having weighed in his favour, as did the audience’s vote.

The Grand Final will be next Monday 3rd on Channel 7 and 7+

Shaun dances through his first two routines

It has felt like a long drawn out process, but after four weeks, we’ve finally managed to see Shaun perform his first two routines in Dancing With The Stars. And he was… enjoyable to watch.

First up was the the Quickstep, with Shaun and his partner Ashley dancing to the story of sailors returning from abroad.

This week we were treated to the Foxtrot, with the dance story being related to a thief attempting to steal his partner’s necklace.

The judges gave Shaun middle-of-the-pack scores for both dances – an average of 5-6 out of 10 from each judge – they enjoyed his enthusiasm and the way he played the character he was dancing as, but noted there was technical improvements required.

The show has 12 “celebrities” overall, currently split into groups of 6, who appear in alternating weeks. Seems that Channel 7 know they are getting some extra viewers from Shaun’s inclusion, because he does usually make a quick cameo in the weeks he doesn’t dance.

Shaun has been his usual cheeky and playful persona on set, playing to the camera, the hosts and the judges, and that’s added to the show overall.

So after two dances, Shaun escaped the first elimination – he should survive a few more, but it will get tougher when the two groups inevitably combine in a few weeks and it gets closer to crowing a winner.

You can watch the episodes on 7Plus catch up, or every Sunday night at 7pm on Channel 7 – or catch highlights on the Instagram account.

Shaun starts dancing June 15

It’s been a quiet first half of 2025 for Shaun watching, but it’s about to change: Dancing with the Stars begins June 15th, and Shaun is one of the stars!

Shaun will be sashaying his way through a number of different dances, at least for as many weeks as the judges will allow him, WHILE filming starts on Season 2 of Eve of Destruction.

You can watch it on Channel 7 at 7pm on Sundays.

Still on the Eve in 2025

We have confirmation that Shaun will be back on our screens in 2025, with another series of Eve of Destruction to air on the ABC.

The first series put Shaun in the interviewer seat as he spoke to a wide range of comedians, entertainers and sports people about the things that were important in their lives, symbolised in item form. However the ABC has indicated that season two will have some tweaks to the format – what they look like we’ll have to wait and see.

In the mean time, there’s a special Christmas Eve of Destruction – on Christmas Eve! Sam Pang and Courtney Act will be the guests.

So if the idea of Shaun dancing and interviewing (although not at the same time) appeals to you, next year will have what you need!

Shaun to dance with the Stars

You did read that right: after many years of speculation that Shaun would appear on a celebrity reality show, Shaun will be on Dancing with the Stars in 2025!

The show will air on Channel 7. The announcement was made at an industry preview, so we can expect more information to come. We’ll also find out if Shaun has been hiding another skill or if he has two left feet…

The Late(est) Shaun Micallef (Book)

With the release of Shaun’s third book in three months, Shaun appeared at The Capital Theatre as part of The Wheeler Center’s Spring Fling.

The night became a-somewhat Mad As Hell reunion combined with a mock tribute for the not-so-departed-Shaun, and featured:

  • Sammy J recounting the influence The Micallef P(r)ogram(me) had on him, how it encouraged him to do work experience with Ted Emery (the show’s director) but only briefly saw Shaun, who mistook him for Ted’s son.
  • Stephen Hall reading a eulogy for Shaun, only later being made aware that Shaun was not actually dead.
  • Mark Humphries speaking about Micallef Tonight, and how wonderfully wrong it was to enjoy.
  • Veronica Milsom holding a “quiz” about Shaun with two audience participants
  • Shaun and Emily Taheny reading a chapter from “Slivers, Shards and Skerricks”
  • Christie Wheelan-Browne speaking of Shaun’s supportive nature and singing Xanadu (which she described as a purposeful ill-fitting choice)

It was brilliant to see how many others spoke of Shaun as fans, and Shaun seemed almost taken aback by it all. A great night and now a new book to read!