I wasn't nervous to start off with,
but now I'm getting really nervous.
Yeah, we just need to be normal.
Alright, here he is.
Here he is. Shh-shh-shh.
Hamish!
OK. Is that him? Yeah.
Shh-shh. Shh-shh.
Wow. This is big.
LEIGH: Hello, you! (LAUGHS)
Hey, mate.
How are you?
Yeah, good.
How are you?
Can't wait.
How fun.
Come on in.
Hello!
Hi, g*ng.
How are you?
Hello!
Hi, students. How are you going?
I'm such a huge fan
of the Lego Masters.
Oh, that's awesome. Thank you, mate.
Oh, come in, my friends!
Come in, join us.
Hi, everyone.
Come in, guys. Let'slet's do this.
Hi! How are you going?
Hello. Hi.
I keep saying "Come in,"
like I know what I'm doing.
But you guys know what you're doing.
I don't know what's going on!
It's so great
to have you here today.
We're all really thrilled
about that.
(STUDENTS CHEER, APPLAUD)
That's awesome.
Thank you, everyone.
MAN: You're in the gauntlet now!
(LAUGHTER)
Quiet on set.
Andaction.
For the first time in Australia,
autistic students are undertaking
an autism-friendly
Introduction to Journalism course.
WOMAN: They will attend classes
at university
So, these are our microphones.
Testing, testing.
..and be mentored by one of
Australia's best journalists.
LEIGH SALES: This is the chance
to work with people
who haven't really
had a voice in media,
and to help them kind of figure out
how to do it their way.
MAN: 1 in 40 Aussies
are on the autism spectrum
and it's time for those voices
to be included
in national conversations.
To test their skills,
the students will interview some
of Australia's most famous people
Hi, everybody.
Hello!
Yeah!
To get behind the spin,
to find the real person.
Who's the best-looking person
you've ever kissed?
(LAUGHTER)
What's it like
standing up for yourself?
What does confidence mean to you?
Oh!
What was it like meeting your dad
for the first time?
Oh
That's questions that
I've never got before.
ALL: We are The Assembly!
(LAUGHTER, CHATTER)
Morning, Bethany.
Good morning!
Good morning, starshine.
Good morning, Angy boy.
I'm feeling terrific.
Having fun, hm?
And building confidence
to learn everything there is
about journalism.
Morning, everybody!
Morning, Leigh Sales.
Hello, hello.
How are we all today?
Good. Not bad.
Yeah?
What have you been doing so far?
Just
Just chilling.
Just chilling.
Now, our next guest
Who is it?!
..has a long history
as a comic presenter.
Oh!
He's worked in radio.
He's had his own TV shows.
He's got two Gold Logies
for being the most popular person
on Australian television.
Yeah?
It is
Who is it?
..Hamish Blake.
What?!
(LAUGHS)
Oh! No way!
Hamish Blake.
Oh, my
Yeah, yeah.
That's who we're prepping today,
OK, is Hamish Blake.
Wow!
Wow. Hamish Blake.
That's insane.
I actually am so excited
about interviewing Hamish Blake
because I've been a fan of his,
like, pretty much my whole life.
Oh, thank god you're here!
Yeah. Oh!
The suspension
and the engine on this
Oh!
What have I done?
(LAUGHTER)
I've got all him and Andy's
Gap Year DVDs.
I've got the Caravan of Courage.
I didn't think I was gonna fanboy
about anyone on this show
but, yeah, you got me. (LAUGHS)
What's your impression of him?
Like, how would you describe him
from what you've seen?
I remember him in, of course, Bluey,
when he played Jack's dad.
Ah, Jack. What are we gonna
do with you, mate?
And he's, like,
really involved with his kids
and creating, like,
a beautiful world for them.
OK, Mitch?
He had a really rough past, um, time
during school and stuff.
Oh. He So he was asked
to leave school or something?
He got kicked out.
Got kicked out?
What?
He was begging to get back in.
Well, that could be a good question,
couldn't it?
Find out what he
what happened there.
I wonder if he would talk
about that.
I was sort of kicked out,
um, you could say.
I was going through
a tough phase back then.
A little mental health issue.
It really surprised me
when I realised that Hamish
had a rough time in school.
I just said to myself
in my head that,
"Oh, my gosh, I can relate to that,"
you know?
So, what we're going to do
is the same as we did last time.
I'll work with everyone
individually
to help you all
come up with questions
and to think about
what you want to ask.
A good question is one where
somebody in the audience,
their ears prick up,
'cause they think,
"Oh, I would love to know
the answer to that.
"What are they gonna say to that?"
Talk me through what you've got.
"Why do you think your fans
can't get enough of you?"
(LAUGHS)
You could ask him what it was like
to be stung
by a bajillion b*llet ants.
Is that one of yours?
No.
And it's also the question
that makes the guest feel engaged
and that they haven't been asked
8 million times before.
Are you writing a joke?
(LAUGHS) Yeah.
(LAUGHS)
A joke for Hamish Blake. OK.
Yeah.
Yeah, the only catch for me was,
I don't know Hamish Blake that well.
Yeah, fair.
Thank God You're Here,
it felt very, um
it felt very alien to me.
Thank God You're Here
felt alien to you?
I think just the whole concept
of improv.
Oh, true.
Technically,
every conversation is improv.
I gave improv comedy
less than five classes all up.
It involves a certain kind
of, um, skill set
that I was not quite ready for.
I struggle with either
taking things too literally
or, um, misinterpreting it.
Oh, that's a good one.
But he's never told a joke.
That's the thing.
He tells jokes all the time.
Mm.
Um
It's likewas it Andy Kaufman?
He's never told a joke.
He's an anti-comedian.
Yeah, that's not a thing.
I'm a very curious person indeed.
So, this is one of my favourite
sections - music and sport.
Well, knowledge is important
because it gets me through the day.
Just wanting to know a lot about
a lot about a lot of things.
I'm a big overthinker. But I do
tell myself, "Stop overthinking."
Oh, we're going
to the travel section.
It's the one about seeing all
the different places of the world.
Someone did say, "You've gotta
put yourself out there."
It's like, what does that mean?
There's a whole world
out there to see,
but it's not necessarily
where you go,
it's the people that you go with.
I don't make friends that easily.
I've got my guard up a lot,
and it comes
with a double-edged sword,
as in, you could gain,
like, a friend or whatever,
but you can also beend up
feeling disappointed or hurt
by other people too.
I'm hoping to reach out and network
and make friends here, yes.
(CHUCKLES)
I know of Hamish Blake,
but I don't know, like,
Hamish Blake, the comedian.
OK, so you often
have to interview people
that you don't know much about.
For example, I don't know
really anything about sport,
but I've had to interview
heaps of sportspeople.
So what you'd kind of look for is,
alright, well, I'm not kind of
interested so much in what they do,
but they're still a human being,
and so they might have had
interesting experiences
that I can relate to
as a human being.
So just remember, he's just a bloke.
He's just some bloke
who's coming in.
OK. Yeah. Yeah.
What about you, Evie?
What questions are we looking at?
Oh, I'm still writing. (LAUGHS)
MAN: OK.
The best questions are the ones
that just come randomly.
They are good, aren't they?
"Do you?"
Hang on, Dylan.
Wait half a sec. OK, hang on.
"Do you have kids?"
"Do you have your wife?"
What's this one here? "Can you?"
"Give me a Lego figure, please?"
(LAUGHS)
I wonder if he'd have one with him.
If he would have a Lego figure
with him on the spot.
Yeah?
I love being creative.
I'm having fun.
I'm a creative Lego people person.
This is Lego with tables.
This is a Lego wave.
This is my bedroom
full of Legos, toys.
More Lego bricks.
How are we gonna do it? Are we gonna
use the instructions, or just do it?
Use the instructions.
OK. Rightio.
We both like Lego,
but I like it more than Mum.
He knows he's different
than some other people,
but it doesn't stop him
doing anything.
He just does Dylan.
And, in a way,
that's a lovely way to be.
You know how you like the one
about the Lego Masters?
Yeah.
Yeah.
We could even ask about, like,
how it feels to be the host.
Yeah. (CHUCKLES)
Are we filming this? (CHUCKLES)
OK.
OK, everyone, let's, um
let's wrap things up for today.
How's everyone feeling about that,
and their questions? All OK?
Pretty good.
Pretty good.
Oh, good.
(MIMICS BORAT) Great success!
So it's Hamish coming in
tomorrow, alright?
(WHOOPING)
Big day.
Yeah. See you. See you, Dylan.
See you, Mitch.
See you tomorrow, mate.
I'm really looking forward
for tomorrow!
Oh, this makes me even more excited!
(CROSSING INDICATOR PINGS RAPIDLY)
HAMISH: There's a lot of buttons
on cameras.
I have no idea what they do, but
(LAUGHS)
Hamish, everyone's very excited
about you coming in.
That's awesome.
This is great. Thank you.
OK, everyone, we're good to go.
Anastasia, you're gonna
kick us off today.
Oh, OK. I'm probably gonna be
going off the script,
so I'm just gonna wing it.
Go, Anastasia! (CHUCKLES)
Hi, Hamish. We are a collective
of autistic journalists.
We are so happy
that you took the time
to come and have fun with us today.
Our rules are, no subjects
are out of bounds,
no questions are off the table,
and anything can happen.
So, on behalf of me,
um, Leigh, and all my friends,
welcome to the Assembly.
Thank you so much for having me.
That's awesome.
Abbey, do you want to kick us off
with your questions?
Oh! Easy.
Here. You can have my mic.
(CLEARS THROAT)
Hello, Hamish.
Hi.
Um, my question is,
what tattoos do you have,
and can you tell us about them?
Yeah. Great question.
I have some weird, bad tattoos.
Um, they're notthey're not cool.
Do you want?
They're only on my
I'd love to see.
You want to see them? (LAUGHS)
We'd love to see.
We'd love to see, Please.
Um, so, this
This You guys know
what a tattoo sleeve is?
Yeah.
That's the Olympics.
It's a bit of a short sleeve.
MAN: Oh, I remember that.
The Olympic Games!
Yeah.
Yeah. Olympic rings.
Don't know if we need
to blur those, to be honest,
if you need to get the rights
to show those, but
So, a lot of these were done
back, um, when I had
the radio show with my buddy Andy.
That is This frog that you can see
there on the skateboard,
that was done by Pink, the singer.
Yes! How How did she
design that tattoo?
Honestly, it came about
'cause, on radio, sometimes
you have to think of an idea
quite quickly.
And even if it's a bad idea,
you're just doing it
'cause it's happening
that afternoon.
So we had an idea for a segment
called Getting Ink With Pink,
because we knew she's good
with a tattoo g*n.
And so, before her concert,
we went
..like, in Melbourne,
at Rod Laver Arena,
we were backstage,
and so the idea was she would
give me any tattoo she wanted
while we interviewed her.
And she just chose a frog
on a skateboard, um, smoking.
And then, during the concert
'Cause then you have to have, like,
Vaseline and like a Glad Wrap on.
I'm sure, if you guys have got tatts,
you know the aftercare.
During the concert, she just stops,
like, between songs, and was like,
"By the way, Hamish,
"make sure you, like, wash it
with soapy water tomorrow,"
which made no sense
to, like, 20,000 people.
(LAUGHS) And I was just,
"Alright. Thanks, Pink!"
So, anyway, those are all my tattoos.
There's, like, kind of a weird
radio story for all of those.
Um, and honestly, I've got
something that will last forever
for a joke that lasted
six minutes, if that.
(LAUGHTER)
LEIGH: Jackson, you're up next.
Yes.
Thank you.
I am obsessed with Lego.
(LAUGHTER)
Great reveal. Great reveal.
Tada!
Do you have a favourite build?
Yes. The Death Star.
Ooh! Good.
I also have Ninjago, City,
Jurassic, which is Jurassic World
Yeah.
..and Super Heroes.
I think our houses would look
pretty similar, to be honest.
Yes.
At home, are you
a really annoying dad?
Probably.
(LAUGHTER)
I think we all have annoying dads
at some point in our lives.
And do you know what,
when you become a dad, you're like,
"I will be the cool one.
I will break the spell."
And I am a comedian, right?
Like, I work in comedy.
I'd like to think that I really
appreciate a well-crafted joke.
Even so, something genetically
clicks in you when you become a dad
and you know you're gonna get them
groaning, but youwant it.
(LAUGHTER)
And so, yeah, I would say,
unfortunately,
I wish I was a much cooler dad
but, to the audience
that matters, my two kids,
I'm probably
a bit of an annoying dad.
Great question. Great question.
And alreadyalready, I love this
because that's questions that
I've never got before, straightaway,
which is awesome -
that's the fun of this.
Got plenty more of those.
OK, Fletcher, your turn is next.
Do you want to pass the mic along
to Fletcher?
Good evening.
Hey, Fletch.
I notice you do a lot
of comedy in your time.
What is your favourite joke to tell?
(EXCLAMATIONS)
That's a good one, because I don't
..I don't really think I have
any great sort of 'joke' jokes.
The only one that ever comes
into my head,
which is another, like, classic
groaner for the kids, is
There's either thewhat did
the zero say to the eight?
"Nice belt." That's a classic.
But again, these are groan
these are groaners.
Um, or then the other classic
in our house is always,
what do youwhat cheese
do you use to hide a horse?
Mascarpone.
(LAUGHTER)
Not bad. I'll take it.
Because it does not get
a big laugh at home.
Explain it?
So, mascarpone is a type of cheese,
but then also 'mask a pony' -
to hide a horse.
I haven't heard
of mascarpone cheese.
Yeah. Oh, you do need
to know the cheese, too.
That's, like Fair enough.
Like, it does assume some,
like, obscure cheese knowledge.
Yeah, OK.
And one last question -
what was awesome
about being a Lego host?
It is a very fun job
to be a Lego host.
I would say
There was this one episode,
and people might have seen
this clip, where I
..there was a big Harley-Davidson,
like, a life-size Harley-Davidson.
I'm talking to the contestants.
I knock it over, it smashes.
So, that clip is on the internet,
and it's under
Like, I've seen it forwarded to me -
it's under like, you know,
"World's worst TV host, like,
ruins show." or something like that.
They're like, "You moron!
"You've destroyed
a beautiful piece of work!"
And all the comments are like,
"Look at this idiot!"
Like, "You had one job, man!"
Like, they're all like,
everyone's just piling in.
Yeah, it was on purpose.
It was on purpose.
But, um, not according
to the internet.
(LAUGHTER)
Nope!
Fletcher, do you want to pass
the mic across to Savannah?
Savannah, it's your turn.
Thank you.
First, to start off with,
I have a joke.
(EXCLAMATIONS)
Love it. Love it.
Here we go!
I made a model of my Jack Russell
dog, Audrey, a Lego model.
But I couldn't take it apart
because she suffers
from separation anxiety.
That is good. That is good!
(LAUGHTER)
That is good.
(APPLAUSE)
You can steal it, and you can have
your own go-to joke.
I clearly need one, so now
now that's gonna be mine.
What do you think of Leigh Sales?
(EXCLAMATIONS)
She's right there!
She's right there! (LAUGHS)
Did Leigh write these questions?
(LAUGHS)
Uh, I have a huge amount
of admiration and respect
and love for Leigh Sales.
I mean, she's a national treasure.
But also, you know, I'm lucky enough
to call Leigh a friend as well.
So II think Leigh
is a pretty remarkable human.
Can I ask, what do you guys
think of Leigh Sales?
(LAUGHTER)
I think she'sshe's amazing.
She's amazing.
And we're very lucky to have her.
Yes. We're very lucky.
And just like Coco's mum says
in Bluey, you're doing great.
That's so sweet. Thank you.
I think that's very well put.
She's gotshe's got
middle-aged-woman humour.
She's got middle-aged-woman humour?
Yeah.
(LAUGHTER)
And I'll get her to teach me
middle-aged-man humour.
(LAUGHTER)
Depends. Are you in your 50s?
I am not 50s yet.
Although my beard is screamin' 50s.
(LAUGHTER)
It's My beard's ageing
faster than I am.
I'm 42. I'm 42 at the moment.
You look like you're
in your early 40s still, but
Thank you.
That's my exact age.
(LAUGHTER)
But at leastat least I'm not
at least I don't look older.
That's good. I'll take that.
(LAUGHTER)
Andrew, it's your turn. Yeah.
WOMAN: Andrew!
There you go.
Thank you.
I have competed
in the Special Olympics,
and you have a tattoo
of the Olympics on your arm.
What does it mean to you?
You should have the tattoo, not me.
It's definitely
What it actually was
was from a radio thing
where Andy and I did
24 different sports in a weekend,
and we did this thing where,
if you have a team
we'll come and be part of your team.
And we were like, you know, playing
squash, doing, like, athletics,
surf lifesaving, jujitsu.
And we were pretty wrecked
by the end of it
so, again, because I was just getting
random tattoos by that stage,
I got the Olympic rings
to inspire
Oh, wow.
..Andy and I.
But I did check with an Olympian.
I was like
No, that's fine.
.."Is this offensive?"
Yes.
And then their answer was,
"Are you getting colour
or black and white?"
And I went, "Just black and white,"
and they went, "No, that's alright."
Thank you. Thank you very much
for explaining that.
So, can I ask,
what did you compete in?
Well, I did, um, basketball,
swimming, tenpin bowling
So many?
..soccer.
And I represented Australia,
and I have lots of gold medals
on my wall at home.
Mate! Well done. That's so good.
That's why I thought I'd ask you.
That's so good.
Thank you.
Well, if there was a non-painful way
to peel this tattoo off
Oh, thank you.
..and hygienically stick it
on your arm, I would.
Thank you very much for that.
LEIGH: Thanks, Andrew. Thank you.
Let's hand the mic to Mitch
and give Mitch a turn.
MITCH: Here we go.
Um, as a comedian, what would
you tell all the fans out there
who want to be like you?
Who want to be like me?
Yeah.
Um, well, you don't want
to be like me.
You want to be like you.
I mean, honestly, that's
that's sort of the secret.
You know, the beautiful thing
about every comedian,
great comedian you think of
is, like, they give you
a new perspective
or they have a really interesting
take on something.
You know, comedy, when we laugh,
it's 'cause we're surprised
and then we realise it makes sense
and we laugh.
And I think the best
comedians in the world
are the people that do that
in their own unique way,
and that's why we want to see them.
Alright.
Um, you and I have actually
had similar experiences as kids.
Um, I got kicked out of school
like you did.
Um, so what would you say
to someone
who is having a rough time
at school?
Yeah. Um, I was, like, 13 or 14.
And everyone's situation
is different
but, you know, honestly,
I think I was struggling
to figure out who I was.
And I think when kids are in that
..especially teenagers,
are in those years,
it can be really difficult
and it leads you to make some,
you know, bad decisions
and you try to fit in
and you're trying to do a bunch
of things that aren't you,
but you don'tright, you don't have
something to kind ofto hold on to.
It feels like everything
when you're at school.
Like, when you're in Year 8,
the whole world feels like
Year 8 is the whole world.
But it doesit does end,
you know, and life will move on.
Yeah, well, for me it was,
um, a bit of stress
and a bit of, um, psychosis
starting to build up.
So, mental health, really. So
And then you add
the stress of actual
This is the social side of things,
and then there's
the actual academic side
and it can feel, like, too much,
and that's not a nice place to be.
Yeah. I did, um, also like you,
um, beg to go back in,
because Ilike, I had lots of
friends there and stuff like that.
Yep.
But I made more friends
in my next school, so
That's also the tough thing,
isn't it?
Like, especially when
we're young and we're scared,
we just want to stay
with what we know,
even if it's not actually
a great situation for us.
But we'd rather stay
in the thing that we know.
But I'm so glad that circumstances
forced me into that new world,
because I met people that are
still my friends to this day,
and I was able to find my feet
and find myself.
Yeah. I'm glad we both
enjoyed our second school.
We did! We do have a lot in common.
Yeah.
Well, thank you.
Mate, thank you.
Thanks, Mitch.
Chau.
Hamish Blake,
I've given improv a try,
and I can't make head or tail of it.
Um, what is your preparations
to get you ready
in the right headspace
for performance?
For performance in improv,
did you say?
Yes. Yes. You're
They sometimes refer to, like, improv
as trying to build a plane
while you're flying it.
And I think that's
a really great analogy.
Like, it's just like
you start with hope,
and then as you're in midair,
you're trying to assemble a plane
and hopefully it gets airborne
before it crashes in a heap.
It's not easy.
Cool.
Second question. Um, in comedy,
you make people laugh.
Um, do you think making people laugh
is the same as making people happy?
And does it make YOU happy?
(EXCLAMATIONS)
Wow. Nice.
Nice.
No, to the first question
first bit.
I don't think laughing
is the same as being happy.
I think it's great,
and I love doing it
and it can help with happiness.
But you can also be happy and quiet
and happy to me is a much deeper,
probably more rounded feeling.
And sometimes laughing is what we use
to escape thinking of things,
and it's a distraction.
It's a welcome distraction, and I
love doing it and I like creating it.
But I think being happy
is in a
..probably a much more
three-dimensional feeling
about being content and being calm
and beingfeeling like
you're doing good things.
And, you know, there's a lot
of aspects to happiness.
Do I like making people laugh? Yes.
And does it make me happy?
It does. It does.
Thank you so much.
Thanks, Chau.
Angus, you're up.
So, um, one of my favourite shows
I watched growing up
was Hamish And Andy's Gap Year.
I don't know if you've heard of it.
Um
I've got aI've got
a DVD around somewhere.
I'm sure you have.
Um, one of my favourite
running jokes on the show
was Andy being single
and your Ultimate Wingman character.
(LAUGHS) Really good.
Was there a time
that it worked surprisingly well?
Yeah! Yeah, there was.
'Causehe's really attractive.
(LAUGHTER)
So
Must be nice.
Yeah. Must be very nice, right,
to have those cheekbones.
So, for people that don'tI'll
just give a very fast refresher here.
I played this character,
Ultimate Wingman,
and I would put Andy in a situation
where I'd pretend to be a stranger
and he would like, you know, help me
in front of a young lady.
And then I would goI would say,
"Wow, your wife is a lucky lady."
And then he would go, "I actually
don't have a wife. I'm single."
And then I would say, "What?!"
(LAUGHTER)
And then I would walk away,
hoping that this would then leave
a fertile ground
for them to have a conversation
where it's already established
he's single.
But afterwards, we would have to tell
people, "Hey, we were filming that,"
and they're, like, disappointed.
But then they're like, "Oh, hang
on a sec, he's making a TV show."
So then they're like,
"What ARE you doing later?"
Oh! There you go.
So all he had to do was tell them
he was making a TV show, basically.
Yeah, exactly. If he was just hon
I mean, who knew that if a handsome
guy goes, "Hey, I'm on TV,"
it might work.
Do you reckon Ultimate Wingman
will be his best man, then?
Ultimate Best Man Wingman?
Maybe, whether he likes it or not,
I make an appearance.
(LAUGHTER)
Bring the aviators out
one more time.
Just shadowing him
just shadowing him at the altar.
(LAUGHTER)
Thank you, Angus.
Thanks, man.
OK, Bethany.
Bethany, you're up.
Oh. Yeah.
Hello, Hamish.
Hi.
Good to meet you.
Um, you spend a lot of time
making sure
that your kids feel seen and heard.
Um, is that, like, because
of your own childhood
or, like, in spite
of your own childhood?
Yeah.
I don't really have a template
for bringing up my kids, even
..you know, like, 'cause
it's such a different scenario
than what my parents went through.
Like, you know, my wife and I
are like, alright, well,
we're in a family now where
Mum and Dad arehave a profile,
and if we run into people
on the street, people know our names.
And that is not a normal situation,
like, for kids.
So I make it a real point,
whether or not I need to,
but I always want
to make sure my kids know
that they're the most
important things to me.
So the thing I always say
to them is, like,
"That was just
a fan of Lego Masters,"
or, "That person was
a fan of the podcast,
"but, you know, I'm the biggest fan
of you guys, and you're my"
Yeah.
"..you're my mostyou're
my most important people."
Because I would hate
for them to be like,
"Dad was distracted with"
I don't know, "Dad was fame hungry."
I mean, I don't have teenagers yet,
but certainly, one of my parenting,
my fathering goals,
is to try and to always be
..not judgemental,
and just to be like,
"If this matters to you,
then it matters to me."
Yeah. Awesome.
Thanks, Bethany.
Thank you so much
for answering my questions.
Beautiful questions.
Stephanie, are you good to go?
STEPHANIE: OK.
Family is very important to you.
Can you tell us about
a memorable family holiday?
Oh. Good one.
Um, my favourite family holidays
that we do with my wife and kids
is we like to go
on family bike rides.
And I'm really lucky that happened,
'cause I love bike riding.
But I've loved bike riding
for 10 years.
And, you know, obviously,
10 years ago, I had one infant
and a wife that didn't
like bike riding.
So the fact that we now do family
holidays where we bike ride -
huge win for Hame.
(LAUGHTER)
Thank you.
Thank you.
Thanks.
OK. Dylan's next.
Hamish
..do you want to see
a picture of Lego?
I do.
(LAUGHTER)
It's my Lego.
Oh, wow. Oh, right.
You have a lot.
Yeah.
I would guess that that's
..10,000 bricks?
10,000.
Can we see, Dylan, please?
Uh-huh.
Hold it up so we can get an idea.
Can we see that?
Dylan, you can show everyone later.
What about your first question?
Yeah. Mm-hm.
OK, Leigh Sales.
(LAUGHTER)
Hamish Blake, I ask one question -
do you like your wife?
(EXCLAMATIONS)
(LAUGHS) I
I'm not just saying this
because I know she'll be watching,
but I really do, I really do.
ALL: Aww!
Yeah, well, she's an amazing person.
I Yeah.
Second question - how much money
do you have, in dollars and cents?
Will you transfer me some
on your phone?
(LAUGHTER)
Jeez, cents is gonna be hard.
(LAUGHTER)
Cents. Whoa.
Ugh. Just trying to add up
all the cents.
I got 17 cents in that account,
22 cents in that account.
Um, I have more money than I thought
I would ever have doing what I do,
'cause I actually left university,
which I thought was
my guaranteed path to earn
..like, to have a career.
And I left university
to go and do community radio,
which isn't traditionally
high-paying.
But I'll be really honest with you.
You asked an honest question
and I'll give you an honest answer.
Yes, we have millions of dollars,
which is a very fortunate position
to be in.
Can I transfer you some, is the
is the nextis the next element.
He's a gold digger!
He's a gold digger.
That's why you asked
if I like my wife!
(LAUGHTER)
Well, I didn't bring my phone on set.
But I tell you what,
if we're really into it,
whatever cents are left over
after we do the dollar amount,
I'll give you
I'll give you my roundings.
OK. OK.
I'll give you the cents.
Silas is up next.
(APPLAUSE)
Have you ever told a joke
that you've regretted telling?
Um
Oh, maybe Look, maybe
I can't remember a specific example,
but I would say any time
that it's, like, mean,
I would regret that,
definitely now.
And I remember early days,
too, like you
You know, when you
start out in comedy,
like, you're trying so hard
to be funny that
..there would probably be occasions
where you were funny
at someone's expense
that was unfair,
and it was a cheap laugh.
And you look back on that
and you're like,
"Well, I'm not proud of that,"
because you kind of
let the goal of being funny
overtake everything else,
which it shouldn't.
And so I'd regret it, A, because
you hurt someone's feelings,
but then also, comedically,
like, there's just a
probably a better way to do it.
Like it was a lazy
lazy way to get a laugh.
So professionally,
I would regret it.
And then as a human being,
I'd probably regret that.
You've interviewed a lot of people
over the years.
What answer to a question has most
changed your perspective on life?
Oh. Really good.
The first one
that jumps into my head is
we had Richard Branson on the show,
and one of the guys
on our radio show, Jack,
um, actually, not too dissimilar
to what happened today,
but he basically said
to Richard Branson, he was like,
"You are a billionaire.
"Can we just go downstairs
to the ATM? Just give me $1,000.
"Like, just give me
Like, it's nothing.
"It's nothing to you, and it's like,
this would change my month."
In the response to that,
Richard Branson was like,
"I'll tell you, there's something
I'd give you all my money for."
And Jack's like, "Really?"
And he's like, "Yeah, your age."
Ooh.
And so, we're like,
"That's interesting."
And I remember hearing that,
and, like, Jack's 22,
and we're like,
"What do you mean by that?"
And he's like,
"I would happily be broke and 22
"than a billionaire and 68,"
or whatever he was at the time.
And that's always stuck with me,
'cause I'm like, that's true.
And I think that would be true
for all of us,
especially as you get older
and you're like, OK.
Like, money'sa thing in life.
It's a tool that can make
..can certainly take
some bad situations,
like, some discomfort away.
But it's not happiness,
and it's nowhere near
the exhilaration
of getting to live.
And all the best stuff is for free.
And I think that's
what he was talking about.
I think about that all the time.
I'm like
Whatever age we're at,
like if we're 90,
and let's say we have $10 million
and we're 90 years old.
Of course we'd give $10 million
to go back to be 40
(SNAPS FINGERS) ..like that,
of course you would.
You wouldn't want your children
to inherit it?
No. No.
(LAUGHTER)
Good question. Good question.
But, as they saw me zooming
back in time,
they're like, "Where's our money?!"
I'll be like, "Make your own!"
(LAUGHTER)
That always stuck with me,
that idea that, like,
we've got something
immediately available to us
that, in the future, we would give
all our material possessions for.
Thank you.
LEIGH: Thanks, Silas.
Would you give the microphone
to Dale?
He's got his questions next.
SILAS: Brother.
Ahoy, Hamish.
Ahoy.
(LAUGHTER)
I saw a video on TikTok of
your Sydney house being shown.
Yes.
And everyone in the comments agreed
that you looked very out of place
in your own house.
Do you sometimes feel like
you look a bit rough in your house
when your house is really fancy?
Yeah, great.
Yeah. To be honest, yes.
Like, that is not the house
I grew up in,
um, nor is it very familiar to me,
like, compared to any of
the other share houses I lived in
previously to getting married.
It's a really beautiful home, and my
wife definitely took the lead on
Like, we renovated it.
And our friend Yas, who's
an amazing designer, she did it.
Like, none of it is me.
Sometimes I walk into the kitchen
and it feels like I'm on
like, at a fancy hotel.
But, yeah, I can't argueI can't
argue with those comments. Spot on.
Awesome. Thank you so much.
Thank you, man. That was awesome.
Um, Anastasia. You're up.
Oh, yeah. My mic.
Thanks, Dale. Alright.
My question is - what are
your pros and cons about Andy?
(EXCLAMATIONS)
I haven't done the list
for a while. Um
Like, the pros are,
you're so lucky to meet someone
that you kind of have
that chemistry with, that
And I'd say, like,
it's a friend chemistry,
but it's also a performing chemistry.
And it's different to, like
You know, it's obviously different
to a romantic chemistry.
But it's unique.
It's almost like a dance.
Like, you just don't really
have to think about it.
You're just very easy around
each other, and it's really fun.
One of the huge things
I'm grateful forto Andy
is, like, I wouldn't
I think he
..he'she provided a lot of,
you know, encouragement and courage
to kind of go and dotake risks
and do things when we were younger,
and I'm really glad we did that.
Mm-hm.
He also does a lot of admin.
That's a great pro. (LAUGHS)
'Cause I am not a fan of admin.
So he does a lot of that stuff.
Um, cons - he
..he's reallyhe's really
finicky about the time.
I would say,
"Let's meet at, like, 10:30,"
and it would be like
Oh, and then he changes
at the last minute?
He goes down to five minutes,
sometimes two-minute increments.
So you mighthe might be like,
"You cool to be there 10:27?"
I'll be like, "Come on, man, please.
"Like, give me
a little bit of wiggle room."
But, having said that, he also
that also comes with a pro,
which is, he never
has a go at me for being late.
So, it's a pro and a con together.
That's a lot of pros.
Thank you, Hamish.
Thank you.
Would you give the microphone
to Evie, please?
It's Evie's turn next.
EVIE: Thanks. I'm not in
(CHUCKLES)
Jesus. Oh, my God.
Don't worry, Evie. You got it.
Evie, zero rush.
Alright, I just
Uh, um Hi.
Hi, Evie.
OK. Um
Um
Timon.
OK. Um
I've masked my whole life,
especially at school,
hiding my humour and talents
from everyone.
And even since graduating
a few years ago,
I'm still frightened about
how other people will perceive me.
And you've been in the public eye
for a while now,
so how do you handle
all of that anxiety
without hiding your true self?
First of all,
I'm sorry to hear
that you felt like that.
And it's hard, because it's
When we talk about wearing a mask,
we're talking about
trying to connect with people.
And, you know, you can only connect
with who's there.
And if they're not your people
and if it's not feeling right,
that's a really hard thing
to go through.
And then And I think we all have
insecurities, right? We all
No-one likes having negative stuff
said about them.
No-one likes feeling judged.
You've got to remind yourself
that, you know,
it's the people that you care about,
that's all that really matters.
And most importantly, it's yourself.
Like, mostthat's the most
important relationship.
I've had 20 years to practise this,
but it's about not getting swayed,
not letting how other people
feel about you sway yourself.
Which is hard, 'cause I'm a really
I am a very sensitive person.
I would love to say
that I can just
..like, that I'm just
bulletproof, but
You know, honestly, like,
if someone was to be like,
"Mate, I hate you,"
Iyou know, at this stage
in the game, you
..you just have to be like,
"That's OK. That's totally fine."
If someone says, "I love you,"
like, that's awesome as well.
You kind of have to
meet them the same.
Um, and it's impossible
for it not to have an effect on you.
But I think if you remember
what's important to you, it's
..that kind of helps you keep going.
Yeah. Thank you.
Thanks, Evie.
Thanks, Evie.
(APPLAUSE)
Hamish, everyone
has been so delighted
that you were able to come
and spend time with us,
that they've actually
planned something
as a special sign
of their appreciation.
OK.
Angus, do you want to take over
Oh, yeah.
..and kind of explain the?
Is it another tattoo?
STUDENTS: No.
Yeah.
Firstly, congratulations
on making it
through the gauntlet of questions
we've thrown at you.
Guys, thank you. That was the best,
most lovely gauntlet I've ever had.
So, thank you.
Aww!
You deserve a round of applause.
Thank you.
However
(LAUGHS)
(LAUGHTER)
..there is one more thing
you need to do
in your test of initiation
here on The Assembly,
before you become one of us.
Anastasia, Savannah,
can you get the box?
ANASTASIA: We shall get the box.
SAVANNA: We shall get the so
the box.
The final trial of our initiation
into the Assembly is
..the walk of
plastic building pieces.
(PIECES CLATTER)
Oh, no! No! (LAUGHS)
No!
Yes.
While we prepare the course,
I'll invite Mitch to give you
the ground rules, Hamish.
The rules are, no shoes, no socks
No socks!
..no cheating, and no running.
Just walk.
Are you excited? Are you scared?
I'm definitely scared.
Like, I've never taken my shoes off
on Lego Masters, ever.
OK. Three, two, one.
And remember, no cheating.
Aagh! No, it's not
It's actually not
I'm not evenI don't even have
my full weight on it yet.
Walk.
Aagh! Aagh!
Oh! I heard that.
It's not
Jeez.
Aagh! Thanks so much
for having me, guys! (LAUGHS)
Aagh! Oh, my God!
What have you made other people do?
(LAUGHTER)
Agh!
Oh, no! Don't break your ankle!
Oh, my God!
Bad! Ow!
God! I love you for what you've
given me career-wise,
but I hate you right now.
Ow! Oh! Oh, my Oh, my God!
(CHEERING)
Yes!
Ohhhh!
Let's have a look at the feet.
(GROANING)
Oh! Ouch!
Yeah! Oh! I've done a hammy.
He's officially in The Assembly.
Yes! Thank you, guys.
Whoo-hoo!
Thank you.
Whoo!
Thank you.
WOMAN: I want an autograph.
I'm in.
Yeah! Sick! Sorry.
I was like, "Do you think
we're allowed to take photos?"
'Cause he's one of us.
(CHANTS) One of us! One of us!
One of us!
I forgot about that.
Thank you, Hamish.
Thank YOU.
Can I have a selfie?
Thank you.
Do you want a photo, Hamish?
Of course.
So good.
Thank you, mate. Great job.
Do you wanna sign my bottle?
Sure do.
The bottle!
Bottle!
Alright. Now it kind of looks like
it's my bottle.
Yeah.
I wanted just to thank you for all
your answers, especially the one
about the difference
of laughing and being happy,
'cause I 100% agree with that,
as someone who's quiet and can
still be happy and stuff.
That's exactly right. That's awesome.
I ran out of space,
so I went up the edge.
That's OK.
I hope that makes sense.
"Hope you keep going.
I know you will."
Aww! Thank you. (CHUCKLES)
Mate, you were so good, Angus.
Oh, thank you.
That was heaps of fun.
Like, he's myhe's, like,
my tween-age and teen-age
all rolled into one, right there.
And a lot of people say
I have Hamish Blake energy,
so I hope I'm in a similar position
to him in 20 years' time.
MAN: Looking at the lens. Perfect.
Hey!
Great work.
We could lunch.
This is the other thing about TV
you realise -
like, you're mostly going,
"When's lunch?"
OK, everyone, we've got
a very important person
coming in as our guest this week.
He's spent a lifetime in politics.
He is well known
for his love of rock music.
He recently got engaged.
It is
..the Prime Minister of Australia,
Anthony Albanese.
WOMAN: Wow!
ANDREW: This is amazing!
It's not very often you get to talk
to the Prime Minister of Australia.
ANTHONY: Hello. Hi.
This is the hot seat.
Be gentle on me.
Leigh isn't always gentle.
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01x02 - Hamish Blake
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A half-hour special where thirty-five autistic, neurodivergent and learning disabled people ask actor/director Michael Sheen any questions they want.
A half-hour special where thirty-five autistic, neurodivergent and learning disabled people ask actor/director Michael Sheen any questions they want.