Chas Licciardello

Last updated

Chas Licciardello
Chas Licciardello (30 April 2007) 2.jpg
Licciardello in 2007
Birth nameCharles John Licciardello
Born (1977-05-10) 10 May 1977 (age 47)
MediumPrint, television, radio and stage
NationalityAustralian
Years active1999 –present
Genres Satirical comedy
SpouseJocelyn Laurence
Notable works and roles
Website chaser.com.au
abc.net.au/tv.chaser.war

Charles John "Chas" Licciardello (born 10 May 1977) is an Australian comedian and member of satirical team The Chaser. [1] He's currently the co-host, with John Barron, of Planet America on ABC TV. Licciardello has appeared as a regular of CNNNN , The Chaser's War on Everything and The Hamster Wheel .

Contents

Early life

Chas attended Sydney Grammar School where he produced and edited The Tiger, a small satirical school magazine, with fellow Chaser writers Charles Firth and Dominic Knight. [2] He graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Laws and a Bachelor of Science majoring in physics and computer science. [3] [4]

Television career

The Chaser

Licciardello is a member of the comedy crew, The Chaser. His television career began in 2001, when he appeared on The Chaser Decides . This show satirised the then-upcoming Australian federal election. He also appeared in two spin-off series, for the subsequent federal elections in 2004 and 2007.

He then appeared on the Chaser's CNNNN program, for two seasons, airing in 2002 and 2003.

Licciardello's appeared as part of The Chaser team in 2006. He appeared on The Chaser's War on Everything , for three seasons, airing in 2006, 2007 and 2009.

In 2010, he appeared on Yes We Canberra! . In 2011 and 2012, he also appeared on The Hamster Wheel .

Planet America

In 2012, Licciardello co-hosted Planet America on ABC News 24 with John Barron, covering the US election of that year. In early 2016 Licciardello resumed his hosting duties of Planet America, in the lead up to the 2016 U.S. presidential and congressional elections in November 2016.

In 2020, Planet America was moved to the primetime slot of 9.30pm on Wednesday evenings on the primary ABC TV channel, to cover the 2020 US election campaign.

Controversy

Bulldogs 2006

On 14 July 2006, Licciardello attended a National Rugby League football match between the Canterbury Bulldogs and the St George Illawarra Dragons as part of a stunt for The Chaser's War on Everything that was meant to satirise the then-recent violent actions of Bulldogs fans.

Dressed in a Bulldogs' jersey and beanie, he attempted to sell a "Bulldogs supporters' kit" containing fake knives, knuckledusters, and balaclavas in the team's colours. Licciardello was arrested by New South Wales Police and charged with Offensive Conduct. [5] [6] Licciardello explained that the skit "poked fun at the misbehaviour of Bulldogs fans" knowing that "a lot of people thought it was funny." [7]

Licciardello was quick to dispute his charges on the show. The following Friday, he appeared on The Chaser's War on Everything in a cage before referring to the NSW Premier Morris Iemma's own joke regarding residents of crime-riddled suburbs wearing balaclavas. [8] Iemma had described the Bulldogs stunt as "grossly irresponsible behaviour." [6]

On 29 August 2006, in Kogarah Local Court, Licciardello pleaded not guilty to the charge. The matter was adjourned until 12 October. [9] On 22 January 2007, magistrate Joanne Keogh said she would view an unedited video of the incident, totalling 50 minutes, to decide Licciardello's fate. Licciardello gave no evidence in the matter, letting The Chaser team's film speak for him. [10] He was subsequently found not guilty as the magistrate found that "while his behaviour could be perceived as silly conduct, it was not offensive." [11]

The decision was hailed a "victory for free speech". Licciardello was in the best of humour after the decision, and was reported as saying he would "appeal to the Supreme Court, the High Court, to the UN, the Jedi High Council and the Snickometer" before being reminded he had won the case. [12]

APEC 2007

One of the most controversial stunts in which Licciardello was involved was the APEC stunt in 2007. Fellow Chaser Julian Morrow claimed that he and Licciardello aimed to get a majority of their members arrested amid the high security surrounding the APEC Australia 2007 summit in Sydney, adding jokingly that they also aimed to get Licciardello shot. [13]

Footage aired on The Chaser's War on Everything on 12 September 2007 showed the fake "motorcade" consisting of two SUVs, a black Holden limousine flying a Canadian flag on the bonnet, four "runners" (one of whom was Morrow) carrying hand-held video cameras and two motorcycles. They passed through two security checkpoints without being stopped by police or asked for identification; at one point, the footage showed Morrow offering to present identification to a police officer, however he was waved through without this occurring. The motorcade reached a point 10 metres outside the hotel where U.S. President George W. Bush was staying. Police only realised that the motorcade was a hoax when Licciardello, dressed as Osama bin Laden, voluntarily stepped out of the limousine.

Licciadello holds a "thought bubble" over Malcolm Turnbull's head, satirising what politicians are really thinking. Pictured on 18 November 2007. Chas Licciardello and Malcolm Turnbull (18 November 2007, Sydney).jpg
Licciadello holds a "thought bubble" over Malcolm Turnbull's head, satirising what politicians are really thinking. Pictured on 18 November 2007.

Following the incident, Licciardello and Morrow were detained and questioned by NSW Police on 6 September 2007 outside the InterContinental Hotel, [14] [15] and were charged under the APEC Meeting (Police Powers) Act 2007 . [16] The charges were dropped in April 2008. [17] [18] They were dropped because his lawyers stated that he was waved through the blockades and he had to do what the police said. [1] [19]

Other works

During the Chaser recess, Licciardello appeared on the panel of My Favourite Album , an ABC TV special showcasing Australia's top ten albums as voted by the public. He also filled in on Triple M's drive time slot during the summer of 2007 with fellow Chaser colleague Dominic Knight with their show Chas and Dom from 'The Chaser' .

On 25 May 2008 Licciardello and Craig Reucassel were guests on channel Ten's Rove . Their interview concluded with the '20 Bucks in 20 Seconds' segment. When Rove McManus asked the only question that is asked to every guest, "Who would you turn gay for?", Chas responded in annoyance that everyone answered "I'd turn gay for you, Rove" but that nobody ever followed up on it. He then leapt on Rove and French kissed him, before licking Rove on the face. [20]

In 2009, for a stunt featured in the series finale of The Chaser's War on Everything , he received heavy dosages of botox, lip injections and spray tanning on the left side of his body so as to bear a similarity to Daniel Craig. [21] The amount of botox was so heavy that it lasted until he made his appearance on The 7 pm Project, over 3 months after the botox was injected into the right side of his face.

Personal life

He is married to Dr Jocelyn Laurence, formerly a research analyst at Foster Stockbroking, and they have two daughters. [22] In 2007, he lived in Croydon Park, in the inner west of Sydney. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>CNNNN</i> Australian TV series or program

CNNNN 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Taylor (comedian)</span> Australian comedian, writer and radio host

Christopher Thornton Taylor is an Australian comedy writer, performer and broadcaster from Sydney. As a member of The Chaser, he is best known for co-writing and appearing on satirical ABC Television shows CNNNN (2002–2003) and The Chaser's War on Everything. He formerly co-hosted the drive radio show Today Today (2004–05) on Triple J with fellow Chaser member Craig Reucassel, and in 2007, he wrote the musical comedy Dead Caesar. Taylor also hosted the mini documentary series 'Australia's Heritage: National Treasures'. In 2010, with his Chaser colleague Andrew Hansen, Taylor made a musical comedy series for Triple J titled The Blow Parade, which became the number one podcast in the country, and won the 2010 ARIA Award for Best Comedy Release. In 2019, Taylor was the creator and co-writer of the drama Upright starring Tim Minchin. The series screened to critical acclaim in both Australia and the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craig Reucassel</span> Australian writer and comedian

Craig Bruce Reucassel is a prominent figure in Australian entertainment, celebrated for his wit and satirical prowess across television and radio platforms with the Australian Public Broadcaster ABC.

<i>The Chaser election specials</i> Australian TV series or program

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 since 2001 for ABC TV. The first show, The Election Chaser in 2001 was the first ever television production of the Chaser team. In 2004 and 2007 they produced The Chaser Decides which won the Logie Award for "Most Outstanding Comedy Program" for the 2004 series. In 2010, the Chaser team produced a 5-episode series about the 2010 election, called Yes We Canberra!. A new series was produced for the 2013 election, called The Hamster Decides.The Chaser's Election Desk aired in the six weeks prior to the 2016 federal election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morris Iemma</span> Australian politician and Former Premier of New South Wales

Morris Iemma is a former Australian politician who was the 40th Premier of New South Wales. He served from 3 August 2005 to 5 September 2008. From Sydney, Iemma attended the University of Sydney and the University of Technology, Sydney. A member of the Labor Party, he was first elected to the Parliament of New South Wales at the 1991 state election, having previously worked as a trade union official. From 1999, Iemma was a minister in the third and fourth ministries led by Bob Carr. He replaced Carr as premier and Leader of the New South Wales Labor Party in 2005, following Carr's resignation. Iemma led Labor to victory at the 2007 state election, albeit with a slightly reduced majority. He resigned as premier in 2008, after losing the support of caucus, and left parliament shortly after, triggering a by-election. He was replaced as premier by Nathan Rees.

The Up-Late Game Show was a late night interactive television quiz program shown in Australia on Network Ten, written and hosted by Big Brother Australia 2005 contestant Simon Deering, commonly known by the nickname Hotdogs. The show's format had the host presenting simple puzzles which viewers could attempt to solve over the phone. Successfully solving a puzzle would result in a cash prize for the contestant.

<i>The Chasers War on Everything</i> Australian television satirical comedy series

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 Series. The cast perform sketches mocking social and political issues, and often feature comedic publicity stunts. The series is produced by The Chaser, an Australian satirical group consisting of Chris Taylor, Julian Morrow, Craig Reucassel, Andrew Hansen, and Chas Licciardello. Fellow Chaser members Dominic Knight and Charles Firth are not part of the regular on-screen cast. However, Knight is a writer, and Firth compiled roving reports for the show from the United States, until he left the group to start a satirical newspaper in mid-2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Firth (comedian)</span> Australian comedian

Charles Henry Danger Burgmann Firth is an Australian comedian, best known as a founding member of The Chaser.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julian Morrow</span> Australian comedian

Julian Francis Xavier Morrow 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 programs including CNNNN (2002–03), The Chaser's War on Everything and The Checkout (2013–2018), of which he was also executive producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominic Knight</span> Australian comedian and writer

Dominic John Sebastian Knight is an Australian novelist, comedy writer, radio host and media commentator. Best known as a member of the Australian political satire comedy Logie Award–winning group The Chaser, he is also an occasional writer, columnist and blogger for the Sydney Morning Herald, and a former host of Evenings on ABC Local Radio across NSW and the ACT. Along with fellow Sydney University students Charles Firth, Julian Morrow and Craig Reucassel, Knight founded The Chaser newspaper, launched in May 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">APEC Australia 2007</span>

APEC Australia 2007 was a series of political meetings held around Australia between the 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation during 2007. Various meetings were held across Australia from January to August 2007, with the event cumulating in Leaders Week, where the heads of government of each member economy attended Sydney, New South Wales from 2 to 9 September 2007.

The Chaser APEC pranks were a series of comic stunts coordinated and performed by the Australian satire group The Chaser for the television series The Chaser's War on Everything. Pranks were done at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders Summit in Sydney, Australia. The most prominent prank was the breach of an APEC restricted zone in the heart of Sydney central business district on 6 September. Julian Morrow directed a fake Canadian motorcade, which was allowed through the restricted zone by police and not detected until Chas Licciardello alighted, dressed as Osama bin Laden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lindsay pamphlet scandal</span>

The Lindsay pamphlet scandal was an Australian electoral scandal in which Liberal Party volunteers distributed fake election pamphlets, claiming to be from an Islamic organisation that was later found not to exist, that claimed the Labor Party candidate would support clemency for convicted terrorists and the construction of a mosque in the local area. The incident made national and even international headlines on 21 November 2007, three days before the 2007 Australian Federal election.

<i>The Chasers Age of Terror Variety Hour</i>

The Chaser's Age of Terror Variety Hour was a touring stage show by Australian comedian team The Chaser. It was produced by Laughing Stock and was the second stage show the Chaser team have produced.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Chaser</span> Australian comedy group

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. The group's motto is "Striving for Mediocrity in a World of Excellence".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Hansen</span> Australian comedian, actor and musician (born 1974)

Andrew John Hansen 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 ABC Television shows CNNNN (2002–2003), The Chaser Decides, Chaser News Alert (2005), The Chaser's War On Everything, Yes We Canberra! (2010), The Hamster Wheel (2011–12), The Hamster Decides (2013) and The Chaser's Media Circus (2014–2015).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stop the War Coalition (Australia)</span> Australian peace advocacy group (2003-)

Stop the War Coalition (StWC) is an Australian anti-war group initially formed in Sydney in 2003 in response to the US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the general "War on Terror" of which the Australian Government has been a strong ally.

<i>The Hamster Wheel</i> Australian TV series or program

The Hamster Wheel is an Australian television satirical comedy series broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC1. It is created and presented by the satirical group The Chaser.

Giles George Beresford Hardie is an Australian film critic, entertainment journalist, producer and television personality.

The Chaser's Media Circus is an Australian television comedy quiz show which was broadcast on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) television station ABC. The series was produced by the Australian satirical group, The Chaser, consisting of Chris Taylor, Julian Morrow, Craig Reucassel, Andrew Hansen and Chas Licciardello.

References

  1. 1 2 "Chaser APEC case dropped: DPP tells why". Crikey . A statement by the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions. 28 April 2008. Retrieved 25 March 2024.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. ↑ "Cutting to the Chaser". The Sydney Morning Herald. 16 September 2004. Retrieved 16 May 2007.
  3. ↑ "Alumni Grand Reunion Dinner" (PDF). Our Alumni Community newsletter. The Sydney Law School. October 2003. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 December 2005. Retrieved 27 July 2006.
  4. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. ↑ "Bulldogs prank not funny: police". The Sydney Morning Herald . 15 July 2006. Archived from the original on 17 October 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2006.
  6. 1 2 O'Dwyer, Erin; Dasey, Daniel (16 July 2006). "Chaser Canterbury joke gets no laughs". The Sun-Herald . Archived from the original on 17 October 2007. Retrieved 27 July 2006.
  7. ↑ Weaver, Clair (16 July 2006). "Footy Stunt Outrage". The Sunday Mail . Retrieved 27 July 2006.[ dead link ]
  8. ↑ "Joking Iemma says 'lighten up'". ABC News Online . 9 June 2006. Archived from the original on 8 December 2007. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  9. ↑ Gibson, Jano (29 August 2006). "Chaser star in court". The Sydney Morning Herald . Archived from the original on 1 September 2006. Retrieved 29 August 2006.
  10. ↑ Gibson, Jano (22 January 2007). "Chaser star lets stunt film decide his fate". The Sydney Morning Herald . Archived from the original on 9 March 2007. Retrieved 22 January 2007.
  11. ↑ "Chaser star cleared over Bulldogs stunt". ABC News Online . 23 January 2007. Archived from the original on 24 January 2007. Retrieved 23 January 2007.
  12. ↑ Gibson, Jano; Kontominas, Bellinda (24 January 2007). "Chaser court victory hailed as triumph for free speech". The Age . Archived from the original on 12 September 2007. Retrieved 24 January 2007.
  13. ↑ "Chaser team planning 'something extreme' at APEC". The Sunday Telegraph. 2 September 2007. Archived from the original on 4 September 2007. Retrieved 2 September 2007.
  14. ↑ "Chaser duo held over APEC stunt". The Age. Melbourne, Australia. 6 September 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
  15. ↑ "Police question The Chaser duo over APEC stunt". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 6 September 2007. Archived from the original on 8 September 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
  16. ↑ "11 charged over Chaser APEC stunt". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 6 September 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
  17. ↑ Ramachandran, Daniel Emerson and Arjun (28 April 2008). "Chaser's APEC stunt charges dropped". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  18. ↑ "Charges dropped over APEC prank by Australian TV show". CBC/Radio-Canada. 29 April 2008.
  19. ↑ "Police defend actions over The Chaser APEC charges". News.com.au.
  20. ↑ "The Chaser's Chas Licciardello springs kiss on Rove McManus". Courier Mail. 26 May 2008. Archived from the original on 26 May 2008. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
  21. ↑ "Chaser's Chas bows out with botox". The Sydney Morning Herald, 28 July 2009
  22. ↑ "Chaser's sober whippet ways". The Daily Telegraph. 6 October 2006. Retrieved 13 November 2007.
  23. ↑ Gorr, Libbi (Summer 2007). "Chasing Chas" (PDF). Selector Life Food Wine. Summer. 2007. Hunter Region MC NSW: 36–41. ISSN   1445-4343. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 March 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.