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Australia’s Worst Journalist

12/04/2026 Emelia May⭐

Australia’s Worst Journalist Rating

★★★★★

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For years, journalist Sweeney Preston issued dating advice for a major news conglomerate while his own love life was the stuff of noncommittal nightmares. Now, at this year’s Melbourne International Comedy Festival, Sweeney’s comedy-turned-conference-turned-confessional ‘Australia’s Worst Journalist’ broadcasts his story in full, excruciating detail (slideshow presentation included).

I questioned what exactly I’d signed up for as a guy in chinos ushered showgoers inside a glorified pantry beneath the Motley WhereHaus known simply as ‘The Vault’, but my worries were (mostly) put to rest as said chino-wearing guy made his way onstage. It was Sweeney Preston, armed with but a microphone and a clicker. With little preamble, he dove into a gritty self-exposé delivered via PowerPoint: harrowing retellings of Tinder dates, romantic getaways for one, radio-broadcasted roasts and roasting sage when all else failed. ‘Australia’s Worst Journalist’ put Sweeney in the proverbial stockyard, exposing his own articles and the ironic stories behind them to an entire pen of onlookers. As a writer, I felt a sick sense of survivor’s guilt, but as a writer whose work wasn’t up on that screen? Couldn’t be more entertained.

Sweeney was hilarious. Highly in tune with the room, he bantered off the cuff and even finessed the audience into the material itself, but this didn’t surprise me in the least. He’s a journalist—they’ll do anything for clicks (IYGIYGI). Even when veering off on baffling tangents, his stage presence and command of the narrative brought with it complete faith that there was always a line to be punched at the end. A tightly written, cheeky hour of non-stop self-deprecation served by a natural storyteller.

‘Australia’s Worst Journalist’ toes the line between public humiliation and raw honesty to create an incredibly relatable confessional piece, not just for fellow journalists and writers but anyone ever guilty of trying. Curating the persona of ‘you’ takes trial, error and a fair amount of bullshitting first. It also means you have to keep throwing that self at the wall to see what about it sticks and what sticks isn’t always what you’re most proud (or even capable) of. For all it’s a comedy show, ‘Australia’s Worst Journalist’ gets that and that’s why it works so well.

Sweeney Preston took control of his own narrative to deliver a show that was effortlessly funny, silly as hell, and with just a dash of heart (but not too much). Brilliant work and a pleasure to watch—I expect to see many more shows in his future. Be sure to tune in to ‘Australia’s Worst Journalist’ at the Motley WhereHaus until the 19th of April.

To book tickets to Australia’s Worst Journalist, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/australia-s-worst-journalist/.

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Daddy Daycare

11/04/2026 Caitren Sheather-Reid🥉

Daddy Daycare Rating

★★★★★

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Imagine: you walk into the Motley Bauhaus Theatrette (a place well renowned for its indie theatre) to the tune of the Playschool theme song, as well as other childhood classics like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and The Lion Sleeps Tonight. In front of you sits a cosy children’s set complete with plastic kids teapot and painted field back drops. That’s right, it’s Daddy Daycare time, a place where lost daddies go to get their working with womens check whilst discussing consent, anatomy and having fun all at the same time!

After sitting down, what followed was an hour of the most raucous children’s entertainment I have ever seen! Not only was our host (Steph Crothers) beyond hilarious, energetic and devilishly suggestive, but she also really, ah, took care of us, if you catch my drift.

Now heads up, this is a show that features a lot of audience participation. But if you are happy to moan, yell ‘YES MUMMY’ and sing songs about the more delicate parts of a woman’s physique, then you are in the right place. And as part of the audience, it was hard not to get swept up in the energy of it all. Crothers perfectly breached the line between suggestion and play, bringing forward act after act that had myself and the viewers around me gasping for breath in between laughter. Her skills with clowning and comedic timing left even me (one trained in such skills) a little bit speechless!

The tech of the show also strongly enhanced the whole experience. When things were light and playful, so was the sound. When things got darker, so did the lights. And the prerecorded sounds used in the show perfectly complemented what was happening on stage. It was a master class in not too complex tech and how it can truly bring a show together. Thematically, this show also explores that intersection between child and adult, taking me back to a nostalgic period with an adult twist. And boy, would I visit there again!

In total, this is a show that is great fun, but it has more substance than just this. It does bring up real questions of the consent culture within our society. And it did make me think afterwards, but I also just had a really excellent time with it. And my stomach and mouth hurt from smiling and laughing which is never a bad thing.

But look at that, it’s time on the rocket clock for this review to end! As a general rule, do go see this show, bring your friends (especially those of the sheltered persuasion just to watch their little minds be blown) and get up on stage! This is a show that deserves a whole lot of love.

To book tickets to Daddy Daycare, please visit https://www.eventfinda.com.au/2026/daddy-daycare/melbourne/carlton.

Photographer: Nick Robertson

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Lots of Pop – Just Not Enough Snap or Crackle

11/04/202610/04/2026 Kat Skarbek🌟🦉

The Breakup Variety Hour Rating

★★★★★

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Ariana & the Rose arrives at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival with The Breakup Variety Hour – a wry cabaret-style journey through the six stages of romantic recovery and she brings with her genuine charm, vocal talent and the kind of infectious energy that makes you root for her from the moment she walks on stage. The Trades Hall, with its intimate rooms and slightly scuffed historic charm, is a fitting venue for a show about the unglamorous business of losing love.

The show’s structure is clever: six stages, neatly framed, moving from the wreckage of a relationship toward something that resembles wisdom. Ariana guides us through each with a mix of comedy banter, personal anecdotes and occasional audience participation, the familiar toolkit of the solo festival show. But it’s in the final stage – a philosophical, even quietly spiritual, reflection on what breakups really reveal about us – that the show finds its most resonant ground. It was a genuinely satisfying way to close, offering unexpected psychological depth after the performance and pizzazz, leaving the audience with something to carry home beyond the glitter.

Where The Breakup struggles is in finding its identity. The original songs, (written by Ariana herself and available to buy on CD), are genuinely good and surprisingly moving but they are almost at odds with the rest of the show. They don’t quite gel with the comedy banter surrounding them and the collision between the two never quite resolves. We found ourselves watching what felt like two shows running in parallel – a moderately entertaining comedy set and a mini pop concert – each quietly undermining the other’s momentum. The songs, which we expected to be more snippy, funny comedic offerings instead spoke of genuine feeling and heartache; the comedy parts were too brief and held the audience at too much of a distance. Holding these two different styles at once is a difficult ask of any audience and on the night we attended, it created a sense of awkwardness that the show never fully settled.

Comedy, as anyone in the industry will tell you, is brutally hard work. The hours behind a single hour of stage time are extraordinary – the writing, the refining, the killing of darlings, the courage required to simply show up and do your thing in front of strangers and hope it lands. The fact that The Breakup has sold out in Ariana’s native New York and toured major international festivals, including our own Melbourne Comedy Festival, speaks to a genuine audience connection that is clearly working somewhere. On the night we attended, the crowd was small and a little cool and she handled it with professionalism and grace, working the room with warmth even when it didn’t quite warm back.

But for those of us who came hungry for laughs, the show could lean further into personal storytelling – the messy, specific, mortifying anecdotes of dating life that make comedy truly land. What we got felt, at times, more like a vehicle for the music than a cabaret style comedy show. The personal glimpses Ariana did share were genuinely engaging, we simply wanted more of them. More of that rawness, more of those stories – the ones that make an audience wince in recognition and laugh in relief and then the balance would tip in a way that could make this genuinely special. It probably didn’t help that in our audience most people were happily coupled, so for a comedy that’s all about break-ups and needs to bounce of the singletons in the room, it wasn’t quite able to find its mark. Nonetheless, the bones of something very funny are here. They just need more flesh on them.

As it stands The Breakup is an enjoyable, well-intentioned romp through familiar romantic territory, performed by someone with good stage presence, a strong voice and a lot to offer. Ariana & the Rose is a performer still shaping her show into its fullest form – and if the philosophical heart of that final act is any indication of where she’s heading, the best may well be yet to come.

To book tickets to The Breakup Variety Hour, please visit https://www.comedyfestival.com.au/browse-shows/the-breakup-variety-hour/.

Photographer: Sidewalk Killa

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Umm…What Else? Mitch Dale Entertains Everyone at The Comedy Store Too

07/04/202606/04/2026 Linda Lokhee🏆💎🦉🎭😂

Umm…What Else? Rating

★★★★★

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I imagine that being a comedian would be quite a challenging job. Some people are naturally funny, but that doesn’t necessarily make them a “born comedian”, as one may think. To do this for a living, comedians need to be multitalented – they are both specialty writers and actors (cue the timing and the delivery of a joke) with a certain amount of bravery to be up onstage with a microphone. They need to have a quick wit and response time when interacting with an unpredictable audience. I watched Mitch Dale at The Comedy Store Too at Moore Park in Sydney, and he had all of these talents! His one hour set for Umm…What Else? was a hilarious!

Mitch’s comedy style for this show varied from quick quips/ play on words/ short funny interactions with the audience, to delivering longer amusing tales about growing up in Australia. He is a talented storyteller who captured my attention from the beginning. For example, when he talked about casseroles and how after being slow cooked by the end of day, everything has turned to mush, yet the potatoes still have some crunch! And rugby. The interesting thing about Mitch’s delivery of his material was that he did it in a very understated manner where he cleverly picked a point and wove it into his story. It was like a dropped hot chip surrounded by seagulls – there’s a small beat as the audience listened to his words, and then once we realised his point, we jumped on the joke, laughing! “I played rugby, because I’m from Queensland, and I have a dad.”

The topics of the night were ones that were aimed to amuse all ages in the room. Mitch talked about personalised number plates, uber drivers and his trip to Japan – all of which was relatable to most of the audience, going by their enthusiastic responses. Mitch also catered for the older generation. It was interesting that he mentioned his childhood and how his parents had him answer the home phone as if he were in an office. It’s amusing because it’s true – back when families had landline phones, some parents made sure everyone answered in a formal manner. I remember calling my friend on their landline, and the younger five year old sibling of my friend answered the phone like this, it was very cute. I suppose there is a generation now who wouldn’t have had the experience of this, or of waiting a few weeks for a computer to be built so that it could go into it’s own special room in the house lovingly nicknamed “The Computer Room”.

Mitch also talked about how he got his name and shared some experiences with his health, and amazingly, he managed to turn even these more serious subjects into something funny. He had the knack of telling a life situation with honesty and humour.

During this set, Mitch was quick to respond to the audience. Instead of picking on that person and teasing them mercilessly, he interacted in a respectful and humorous manner. He clearly has a talent in quick thinking and response situations. In the lead up to Christmas last year, when he was working for a company, his entire job that weekend was to get busy people out of any social commitment they were trying to dodge. The company set the challenge for people to head into a particular store and Mitch will deliver an excuse for them. “He’ll make the hard call – you get the clean break and a guilt-free afternoon back.” From watching Mitch in Umm…What Else?, I am sure that he would have risen to this challenge.

Keep a lookout for this comedian Mitch Dale. Although this was a one-night show in the lead up to Sydney’s Comedy Festival, it won’t be the last you’ll hear about him. It was a sold out event at The Comedy Store Too tonight, so next time be sure to buy your tickets quickly so you don’t miss out.

To book tickets to Umm…What Else?, please visit https://www.neuralle.com/talent/mitch-dale.

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