Shaun Micallef has been making Australians laugh for over 30 years, with the veteran comedian and actor breaking into the industry in the 1990s.
He appeared on shows like Full Frontal, Newstopia and Jimeon, before branching out on his own and creating some of the most beloved comedy series on Australian TV, including Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell, Talkin’ About Your Generation and Micallef Tonight.
Now we’re about to see him take on a new challenge as he hits on the dance floor on Channel 7’s Dancing With The Stars.
Here’s everything we know about the comedian’s life, on and off the screen.
SHAUN MICALLEF’S FAMILY LIFE
Shaun married his wife, Leandra, in 1989. They have three sons together and are notoriously private about their family life.
The comedian spoke to The Fatherhood about how his life — and focus — changed after he had kids.
“In the beginning I started out [in comedy] with this insatiable appetite for performing and I was very, very needy,” he told the publication. “I always needed approval, I hungered for it in a pathetic way. Talk to people I worked with early on and they’ll tell you, I was dreadful. Because I came over to Melbourne to write and had nothing else to do and (wife) Leandra was back in Adelaide, we had no children.”
Shaun said he would get “frantic” if one of his scripts was rejected but once his sons entered his life, his perspective shifted.
“For me the breakthrough was the realisation that I wasn’t the centre of the universe or even the centre of my own world. That you and your work, your living, are not the only reason you’re here. Your role is to shepherd your children through to adulthood. That’s the point of life. Your own little sessions and needs and passions are just there to flavour you and help you do that job for your children,” he said.
“These days [in my work] I love the exquisite pleasure I get from crafting something as a writer or producer and then presenting it to an audience. Watching them unwrap it. As the performer it’s still hearing that laugh. It’s inherently endorsement and approval, so the same as when I started. I’m just not dependent on it anymore.”
Speaking to Kidspot in 2017, when his sons were 19, 17, and 15, Shaun said he’s glad his sons haven’t followed in his funny footsteps.
“My unvetted need for validation means that I have to take to the stage and get the approval of strangers, which is something I’ve inadvertently attended to with my own children to make sure they don’t feel that need,” he told the outlet.
“My wife and I, who is not in show business which is a good thing, we decided early on not to have our children participate in press or publicity because they’re too young and they don’t get the chance to make that decision.”
FROM THE COURTROOM TO COMEDY
After studying law at university, Shaun worked as a solicitor for 10 years before switching to comedy and acting.
One of his first gigs was as a writer and then a cast member on the 90s’ sketch comedy show, Full Frontal. The actor portrayed some of the most popular characters on the series including Fabio and Milo Kerrigan the boxer.
“[As an extra] I would sometimes be seen in the background of sketches with Eric Bana in them, holding an umbrella, and then I snuck on doing the occasional line,” he told The Senior.
Shaun then appeared in a range of TV shows before starring in his long-running satirical news series, Mad As Hell, on the ABC.
In 2022, Shaun wrapped up Mad As Hell after 14 years on air to make room for a new generation of comedians.
“There are resources here the ABC and I’ve enjoyed them for a long time. I think other people should use them, absolutely younger people,” he told TV Tonight at the time. “Mad as Hell I think is a good format. We’ve got a good team: writers, performers, crew. It would be great if it can continue and I see no reason why it couldn’t, with a few changes.”
“So we won’t be around next year but we’ll continue talking and maybe see what we can do. Whether they’re spin offs, or whether it’s something new. Maybe it’s better if it’s something new, or whether it’s a 2.0 version of Mad as Hell.”
When he returned to the ABC two years later with Eve of Destruction, he quipped that he had left to make room for young comedians but there “wasn’t any”.
DANCING WITH THE STARS 2025
As expected, Shaun has been having a lot of fun on the set of Dancing With The Stars.
Speaking to New Idea, the 62-year-old said he decided to give it a go now that his schedule is clearer after wrapping up 14 years of Mad as Hell.
“I began my career at Seven on Full Frontal 35 years ago … I might as well end it there!” he told New Idea.
“My friends and family are staggered that I’ve agreed to such a thing,” he continued. “I think the program makers at Seven were staggered that I’d agreed, too. Which made me think, ‘maybe I shouldn’t be doing it? Why is everyone so surprised?’ Clearly I have a reputation.”
“I don’t know what that reputation is, but perhaps it does not involve having ‘being able to dance’ in my wheelhouse.”
As for his abilities on the DWTS dance floor, Shaun believes he can take on the best of them.
“I won’t mince words; I’m excellent, and that’s a surprise because I’ve never danced before,” he told The Senior. “No, I don’t know how I am.”
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