‘Workin’ 9 to 9, 24/7’: political humour about Australian politicians and ministerial staffers during the Rudd-Gillard era

What is it about?

Between 2020 and 2021, numerous revelations would insinuate that Australia's Parliament House was an unsafe workplace, especially for women. This led the Australian Human Rights Commission to commission the landmark Set the Standard: Report on the Independent Review into Commonwealth Parliamentary Workplaces, by Sex Discrimination Commissioner Kate Jenkins In the previous decade, however, small screen political humour had challenged the sustainability of industriousness in government work. This article focuses on two influential television series: firstly, the skit comedy series Double Take (Seven Network, 2009), featuring musical sketches about Australia’s parliamentary work cultures at the federal level; and secondly, the comedy series At Home with Julia (Australian Broadcasting Commission, 2011), featuring the same actors portraying the Australian Labor Party prime ministers.

Featured Image

Photo by Michael on Unsplash

Photo by Michael on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Historians have paid little attention to the Rudd-Gillard era’s popular culture. This article historicises the process whereby political humour anticipated how Set the Standard and feminist political scientists would, by the 2020s, conceptually unite longstanding concerns about expectations that parliamentary staff work excessive hours with exposés about a sexualised work culture that is particularly unsafe for women.