About this season
Hosted by Hamish Macdonald, Q&A puts punters, pollies and pundits together in the studio to thrash out the hot issues of the week. It's about democracy in action - the audience gets to ask the questions.
Episodes (43)
1. Q&A Returns
Aired 6 February 2012 • 60 min
Joining Tony Jones on the panel are: News Limited columnist and blogger, Joe Hildebrand; Shadow Treasurer, Joe Hockey; economist and businesswoman, Judith Sloan; and founder of the left-wing think tank CPD, Miriam Lyons.
2. Celebrities, Leaders and the Speaker
Aired 13 February 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Jenny McAllister, ALP National President; Helen Kroger, Liberal Senator; Mikey Robins, comedian; Robert Manne, writer and academic; and Tim Wilson, Institute of Public Affairs.
3. The Labor Leadership
Aired 20 February 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Julie Bishop, Eva Cox, Annabel Crabb, Daniel Hannan.
4. After the Ballot
Aired 27 February 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Government Leader in the Senate, Chris Evans; the Nationals' Senator, Barnaby Joyce; former Queensland Premier, Peter Beattie; Deputy Leader of the Greens, Christine Milne; Kevin Rudd's former advisor, Lachlan Harris; and opinion columnist for The Australian, Janet Albrechtsen.
5. Live from Adelaide
Aired 5 March 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Amanda Vanstone, former Howard Government Minister; Mark Steyn, conservative commentator and writer; Natasha Stott Despoja, one-time Democrats leader; Jianying Zha, writer and adviser to US President Barack Obama; and Paul Grabowsky, Director, 2012 Adelaide Festival.
6. Katter, Kony and the Climate
Aired 12 March 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Health Minister, Tanya Plibersek; Shadow Communications Minister, Malcolm Turnbull; former Farmer of the Year, Michael O'Brien; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Mick Gooda; and Feminist writer and broadcaster, Clementine Ford.
7. Politics and Porn in a Post-Feminist World
Aired 19 March 2012 • 60 min
Panellists Germaine Greer, celebrated Australian intellectual; Toby Ralph, marketing and political strategist; Benjamin Law, writer and journalist; Christa Hughes, cabaret artist; and Craig Gross, America's contentious porn pastor.
8. The Qld Election
Aired 26 March 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Craig Emerson, Trade Minister; George Brandis, Shadow Attorney General; Larissa Waters, Queensland Greens Senator; Grahame Morris, political strategist; Liberty Sanger, labor lawyer.
9. Live from Hobart
Aired 2 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: former Violent Femme, Brian Ritchie, now director of Hobart's MONA Festival of Music and Art; The Minister for Community Services, Julie Collins; Liberal Senate Leader, Eric Abetz; Outspoken Independent and anti-gambling MP, Andrew Wilkie; author and academic, Natasha Cica; and CEO of the Forest Industry Association, Terry Edwards.
10. Religion and Atheism
Aired 9 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell and British atheist, Professor Richard Dawkins.
11. Philosophy and the World
Aired 16 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Attorney-General, Nicola Roxon; shadow education minister, Christopher Pyne; humanist philosopher, A.C. Grayling; human rights lawyer, Geoffrey Robertson and Middle East analyst, Lydia Khalil.
12. Bob Brown joins Q&A
Aired 23 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellist: Bob Brown, outgoing leader of the Australian Greens.
13. Q&A Climate Debate
Aired 26 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Social researcher and writer, Rebecca Huntley; former Liberal Minister, Nick Minchin; founder of the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, Anna Rose; mining magnate, Clive Palmer; Chief Executive of the CSIRO, Dr Megan Clark.
14. Live from Dandenong
Aired 30 April 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Mark Dreyfus, Cabinet Secretary and local Labor MP; Sophie Mirabella, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science; Victor Victor, Sudanese youth leader; Ged Kearney, President of the Australian Council of Trade Unions; Peter Reith, former Howard Government Minister; and Diana Nguyen, actor and comedian.
15. Show Me the Money...
Aired 7 May 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Graham Richardson, Labor powerbroker turned commentator; Mark Butler, Minister for Mental Health and Ageing; Kelly O'Dwyer, Liberal MP; Mark Bouris, leading Australian businessman; and Kate Miller-Heidke, singer songwriter.
16. Morals and Politics
Aired 14 May 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Penny Wong, Finance Minister; Joe Hockey, Shadow Treasurer; Tim Costello, CEO of World Vision Australia; Judith Sloan, economist and businesswoman; and Stephen Mayne, Crikey founder and shareholder activist.
17. Sydney Writers' Festival
Aired 21 May 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Jeffrey Eugenides, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex, Kathy Lette, Australian author, commentator and self-confessed "demented mother"; Glenn Carle, former CIA interrogator and analyst; Masha Gessen, Russian journalist and Putin biographer; and Greg Sheridan, Foreign Affairs Editor, The Australian.
18. Barry Humphries joins Q&A
Aired 28 May 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Barry Humphries, celebrated Australian writer, satirist and actor; Miriam Margolyes, star of Harry Potter and champion of English novelist Charles Dickens; Jacki Weaver, Academy Award nominated actress; David Marr, journalist and commentator; and John Hewson, former leader of the Liberal Party.
19. Live from Toowoomba
Aired 4 June 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Simon Crean, Federal Minister for Regional Australia and the Arts; Barnaby Joyce, Queensland Senator and Shadow Federal Minister for Regional Development; Christine Milne, Leader of the Greens; Georgie Somerset, Kingaroy farmer and President of the Queensland Rural Women's Network and Jeremy Marou, Torres Strait Islands musician and grand nephew of Eddie Mabo.
20. Prime Minister Julia Gillard joins Q&A
Aired 11 June 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Prime Minister of Australia, Julia Gillard.
21. Life, the Universe and Everything
Aired 18 June 2012 • 60 min
Joining Tony Jones on the panel are: NSW Minister for Community Services, Pru Goward; English comedian, Lenny Henry; News Limited columnist and blogger, Joe Hildebrand; Age Discrimination Commissioner, Susan Ryan; and academic and writer, Professor Brian Schmidt.
22. The Great Boat Debacle
Aired 25 June 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Kate Lundy, Minister for Sport and Multicultural Affairs; Tim Freedman, lead singer of The Whitlams; George Brandis, Shadow Attorney General; Dr John Lee, foreign policy academic and China expert; and Louise Adler, CEO of Melbourne University Publishing.
23. After the Carbon Tax
Aired 2 July 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Greg Combet, Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency; Sophie Mirabella, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science; Simon Sheikh, National Director of GetUp; Lenore Taylor, National Affairs Correspondent for the Sydney Morning Herald; and Grahame Morris, political strategist.
24. Artistic Politics
Aired 9 July 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Chris Bowen, Minister for Immigration and Citizenship; Malcolm Turnbull, Shadow Communications Minister; Nahji Chu, one-time refugee now successful restaurateur; Thierry de Duve, internationally acclaimed art theorist and critic; and Liz Ann Macgregor, Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art.
25. Random Violence
Aired 16 July 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Richard Ford, Pulitzer Prize-winning author; Joel Fitzgibbon, Government Whip; Greg Hunt, Shadow Climate Minister; Sarah Hanson-Young, Greens Senator; Jennifer Hewett, political journalist; and Peter Craven, literary critic.
26. Teachers, Schools and our Education System
Aired 23 July 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Simon Sheikh, GetUp Director; Nicola Roxon, Attorney-General; Christopher Pyne, Shadow Education Minister; Michael Spence, Vice-Chancellor of Sydney University and Jane Caro, social commentator.
27. A Q&A of Olympic proportions
Aired 30 July 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Shane Gould, Australian swimming legend and triple Olympic gold medal winner; Louise Sauvage, multi gold medallist wheelchair racer; David Pocock, incoming captain of the Australian Wallabies rugby team; John Alexander, tennis champion turned MP for Bennelong; and Michael O'Loughlin, former Sydney Swans' star.
28. Manners, Mining and the Can-do Attitude
Aired 6 August 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Katie Noonan, singer-songwriter; Craig Emerson, Minister for Trade; George Brandis, Shadow Attorney General; Bob Katter, political maverick and leader of the Australian Party; and Debbie Kilroy, prisoner rights advocate.
29. Big Ideas and Big Society
Aired 13 August 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Peter Singer, Ethicist and philosopher; Phillip Blond, British political thinker and theologian; Dr Cassandra Goldie, Head of Australian Council of Social Service; Mark Butler, Minister for Mental Health and Ageing; and Pru Goward, Member for Goulburn.
30. Assange, Asylum & Human Bondage
Aired 20 August 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Graham Richardson, Labor powerbroker turned commentator; Doug Cameron, Labor Senator for New South Wales; Janet Albrechtsen, Opinion columnist for The Australian; Simon Birmingham, Liberal Senator for South Australia; and Mandy Nolan, comedian, author and mother-of-five.
31. Mutilation and the Media Generation
Aired 27 August 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Simon Callow, Celebrated British actor and writer; Germaine Greer, Feminist icon and provocateur; Anthony Appiah, Ghanaian-British-American philosopher and novelist; and Sefi Atta, Nigerian Author.
32. Trolls and Trawlers
Aired 3 September 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Tony Burke, Minister For Environment and Sustainability; Tara Moss, Author and former model; Angry Anderson, Rock singer and conservative political activist; Fiona Nash, The National's Senator and Nitin Sawhney, British Indian musician and composer.
33. Seek and Ye Shall Submit
Aired 10 September 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Peter Jensen, Anglican Archbishop of Sydney; Chris Evans, Minister for Tertiary Education; Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Shadow Minister for Mental Health and Ageing; Anna Krien, Journalist and author; and Catherine Deveny, Writer, comedian and social commentator.
34. Protests and Palestine
Aired 17 September 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Clover Moore, Newly re-elected Lord Mayor of Sydney; Robyn Davidson, Acclaimed Australian author; Ilan Pappe, Israeli born historian; Irving Wallach, Prominent Australian barrister; and Greg Sheridan, Foreign Affairs editor of The Australian.
35. The Future of The Future
Aired 24 September 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Tanya Plibersek, Minister for Health; Kelly O'Dwyer, Liberal Member for Higgins; Mark Carnegie, Venture capitalist and philanthropist; Elliot Perlman, Australian novelist and screenwriter; and Jason Silva, American futurist and film maker.
36. Sorry, Lust and Free Will
Aired 1 October 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Jane Bussmann, 'Bob and Bono - Get Out of Africa!'; Shiv Malik, 'The War of Young against Old'; Jianying Zha, 'China Hearts America'; Jesse Bering, 'We're All Sexual Perverts!'; and Simon Laham, 'The Joy of Sin'.
37. Bullying, Education & Purpose
Aired 8 October 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Kate Ellis, Minister for Employment Participation; Christopher Pyne, Shadow Education Minister; Lindsay Tanner, Former Finance Minister; Nilaja Sun, American actor and playwright; and Piers Akerman, Political commentator.
38. Super, Sexism & Surgery
Aired 15 October 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Pamela Stephenson, Author and psychotherapist; Bill Shorten, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations; Charlie Pickering, Comedian and television presenter; Sophie Mirabella, Shadow Minister for Innovation, Industry and Science; and Catherine Fox, Deputy editor of the Australian Financial Review's Boss Magazine.
39. Folk Music, Five Years & Funding
Aired 22 October 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Billy Bragg, Singer-songwriter and activist; Peter Garrett, Minister for School Education, Early Childhood and Youth; Amanda Vanstone, Former Howard Government Minister; Scott Morrison, Shadow Immigration Minister; and Julia Baird, author, broadcaster and journalist.
40. Forgiveness and Reconciliation
Aired 29 October 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Kate Lundy, Minister for Sport and Multicultural Affairs; Eric Abetz, Liberal Senate Leader; Archie Roach, Indigenous singer-songwriter; Sekai Holland, Zimbabwe Minister for National Healing & Reconciliation; and Grahame Morris, Political adviser.
41. James Price Point and beyond
Aired 5 November 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Colin Barnett, WA Premier; Bob Brown, Former Leader of the Greens; Alannah MacTiernan, Former Labor Minister; Hannah McGlade, Indigenous human rights lawyer and Bob Cronin, Editor in Chief, The West Australian.
42. Elephants On Parade
Aired 19 November 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Judith Sloan, Economist and businesswoman; Kevin Rudd, Former Prime Minister; Malcolm Turnbull, Shadow Communications Minister; and Heather Ridout, Reserve Bank of Australia board member.
43. Happy Endings
Aired 26 November 2012 • 60 min
Panellists: Penny Wong, Finance Minister; Barnaby Joyce, Queensland Nationals Senator; Jonathan Biggins, Playwright and Satirist; Stella Young, Comedienne and disability activist; and Janet Albrechtsen, Columnist for The Australian.