The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-09-16 · by Louise Rugendyke
Shaun Micallef, 64, and his son Gabe are hosting a new quiz show called "Shaun Micallef’s Parents’ Evening," which adapts a UK format where Romesh Ranganathan hosts with his mother. The show features three teams of two, each consisting of a celebrity paired with either their parent or child. In anticipation of nepotism accusations, the first episode directly addresses the topic, with Shaun supporting Gabe's case against being labeled as a "nepo baby." Guests include Ray Martin and Jenna, Amanda Keller and Jack, Miranda Tapsell and Barbara, and Tom Walker and David.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-17,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Gabe Micallef remembers the first time he saw his dad on screen – not on a TV mind you, but on YouTube, where he had unearthed old clips of Shaun as Milo Kerrigan, his famously punchdrunk boxer from skit show Full Frontal.
asserted
he → remember → show
“Well, I was born in 2000, so my …” says Gabe, before Shaun cuts in.
asserted
Shaun → bear → 2000
“Heyday was over,” says Shaun.
asserted
Shaun → say → ?
Gabe continues: “I mean, it coincided with not the afterlife, but the second act of television where it entered an archival form on YouTube.
asserted
it → continue → YouTube
And I remember, I think, seeing Milo Kerrigan, maybe around age eight, and not knowing it was him until it got to the end credits, and then being like, ‘What? That’s my father?
asserted
That → remember → credits
What on earth is he doing?’”
asserted
he → do → earth
Adds Shaun: “Fair question.”
asserted
Shaun → add → ?
Fast-forward 18 or so years, and Shaun and Gabe are hosting a new quiz show together – Shaun Micallef’s Parents’ Evening – in what is perhaps one of the more unexpected TV pairings of the year.
asserted
what → forward → year
“I’d never done a [imported TV] format before and Gabe’s never done television before,” says Shaun.
asserted
Shaun → do → television
“So we had that in common.
asserted
we → have → that
We’d never done this thing before, and that was really the appeal.”
asserted
that → do → thing
Parents’ Evening is adapted from a UK format hosted by comedian Romesh Ranganathan with his mum Shanthi as his sidekick.
asserted
Evening → adapt → sidekick
And where Shanthi brings a lot of BME to her role – Big Mum Energy – Gabe plays the straight-ish guy to Shaun’s more eccentric style.
asserted
Gabe → bring → style
And before you get to the nepo baby accusations, well, that’s really the point of the show.
asserted
that → get → show
“What we usually do when we’re worried about accusations … we deal with in the very first episode,” says Shaun, 64.
asserted
Shaun → do → episode
“And I think I might even refer to Gabe as a nepo baby – ‘Well, you might think he’s a nepo baby, and here’s my argument as to why he isn’t’ – of course, all I do is support the argument.
uncertain
I → think → argument
“But of course, that’s natural to the show.
asserted
that → ’ → show
You can’t bring on someone else’s father or mother.
asserted
You → bring → father
You can bring on your own [mum or dad], or your daughter or son.
asserted
You → bring → mum
That’s the point.
asserted
That → ’ → ?
But also, as Gabe points out, when you have a parent who is so prolific – Shaun has appeared in everything from rom-com SeaChange to the drama BlackJack, as well as hosting numerous comedy shows, the Logies and now documentaries on SBS and the ABC – it can be difficult to find something they haven’t done.
asserted
they → point → something
“The problem with you,” says Gabe, talking to his dad, “is that not only are you a comedian, but you’re also an actor, a screenwriter, a novelist, a playwright.
asserted
you → say → dad
In other words, he’s left very little uncontaminated territory for me to try anything in.
asserted
me → leave → anything
So this felt like a good opportunity just to jump in with both feet and see how it went because I do want to work in this kind of stuff, but I don’t feel like I’m competing with you, which is good.
asserted
which → feel → you
The show features three teams of two, each made up of a celebrity with either their parent or child as a teammate.
asserted
show → feature → teammate
Guests include journalist Ray Martin and his daughter Jenna, radio host Amanda Keller and her son Jack, actor Miranda Tapsell and her mum Barbara and comedian Tom Walker and his dad David.
asserted
Guests → include → Martin
Each team competes to see which parent/child combination knows each other the best, with each team bidding on the number of questions they think their teammate will be able to answer correctly.
Confused?
asserted
teammate → compete → questions
You’re not the only one.
asserted
You → ’re → ?
During the taping I watched at Network 10 in Sydney recently, champion racehorse trainer Gai Waterhouse and her daughter Kate were among the contestants, and it took Gai a couple of rounds to figure out how it worked, even though Kate kept begging her mum to stop bidding (clearly, the competitive streak runs thick and fast in one half of that family).
asserted
streak → watch → family
And it is that dynamic – the public face versus the personal face – that interests Shaun the most.
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that → interest → Shaun
“Peter Helliar can’t be Peter Helliar as we know him, because his son Aidan is sitting next to him,” says Shaun.
asserted
Shaun → know → him
“And he can’t pretend with Aidan.
asserted
he → pretend → Aidan
And Aidan is going to call him [out] if he [Helliar] tells some story that’s not true.
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that → go → story
“And I think that’s the fun.
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that → think → ?
It’s that gentle chiding that happens between family members that makes them more real.
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them → ’ → members
That world exists online, supposedly in terms of rawness and honesty, and something genuine that you don’t get on so-called slick television.
asserted
you → exist → television
“So this is a smashing together of the worlds, and there’s an intersection within which both things can happen at once.
asserted
things → smash → which
And I think the way they orbit each other is interesting.
asserted
they → think → other
I see it as like a series of plates we’re spinning, and Gabe’s spinning three, and I’m trying to move four, and the guests are, ‘What are we doing now? Where are we?’
asserted
we → see → What
”
And while it’s a bit more of a rarity here, the father-son TV duo is more common overseas – think Canadian comedy pair Dan and Eugene Levy, who starred in Schitt’s Creek together and hosted the Emmys, or UK TV hosts Bradley and Barney Walsh, who co-host Gladiators, or UK comedian Jack Whitehall, who has spent five seasons taking his dad Michael on holiday for his Netflix series Travels With My Father.
asserted
who → ’ → Father
…and 46 more, not listed.
The Aporia
