''The Dingo Principle'' is an Australian satirical comedy series created by

Patrick Cook Patrick St. John Cook (born 6 August 1949) is an Australian cartoonist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics w ...

and Phillip Scott which was produced and broadcast by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

(ABC) in 1987.

Cast

Jonathan Biggins Jonathan Martin Biggins is an Australian actor, singer, writer, director, and comedian. He has appeared on film, stage and television as well as in satirical sketch comedy television programmes. Early life and education Jonathan Martin Biggi ...

Drew Forsythe Drew Forsythe (born 23 August 1949) is an Australian actor, singer, writer, and comedian. He has appeared on film, stage, and television, as well as in satirical sketch comedy television programs. Early life Born in New South Wales to newsage ...

* Geoff Kelso * Antonia Murphy * Phillip Scott * Deni Gordon

Production

Only ten episodes were made and shown in a late night time-slot. Cook, Scott, and Kelso had also written and performed in an earlier satirical program, ''

The Gillies Report ''The Gillies Report'' is an Australian topical satirical sketch comedy television series that was broadcast on the ABC between 1984 and 1985. The program was best known for sending up politicians and media personalities of the day such as Pri ...

'', but Cook stressed that the only similarities between the shows was that they "were both about current affairs and were both on the ABC". The program was recorded in front of a live audience on Saturday nights, and broadcast on Monday nights.

Controversy

The program is remembered for causing several diplomatic incidents. On 20 April 1987, the program performed a mock interview with the

Ayatollah Ayatollah (, ; ; ) is an Title of honor, honorific title for high-ranking Twelver Shia clergy. It came into widespread usage in the 20th century. Originally used as a title bestowed by popular/clerical acclaim for a small number of the most di ...

Khomeini Ruhollah Musavi Khomeini (17 May 1900 or 24 September 19023 June 1989) was an Iranian revolutionary, politician, political theorist, and religious leader. He was the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the main leader of the Iranian ...

, resulting in two Australian diplomats being expelled from

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

and threats of trade sanctions from

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. Two weeks later, when the program lampooned

Mikhail Gorbachev Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev (2 March 1931 – 30 August 2022) was a Soviet and Russian politician who served as the last leader of the Soviet Union from 1985 to dissolution of the Soviet Union, the country's dissolution in 1991. He served a ...

and

Vladimir Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( 187021 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin, was a Russian revolutionary, politician and political theorist. He was the first head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 until Death and state funeral of ...

, the press attaché of the Soviet Embassy in Canberra wrote a letter of rebuke to the managing director of the ABC, David Hill: The letter also hinted that the ABC's proposed Moscow bureau could be jeopardised by the sketch. These incidents were raised in the

Parliament of Australia The Parliament of Australia (officially the Parliament of the Commonwealth and also known as the Federal Parliament) is the federal legislature of Australia. It consists of three elements: the Monarchy of Australia, monarch of Australia (repr ...

on 11 May 1987, when National Party MP John Sharp questioned the Minister for Communications Michael Duffy about the effect of the show on Australia's economy and trade relationships. Duffy stressed the independence of the ABC, and stated it would be inappropriate for him, his department, or the Australian government to intervene in ABC programming decisions.Questions Without Notice: The Dingo Principle Complaints
''House Hansard'', Parliament of Australia, 11 May 1987.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dingo Principle, The 1980s Australian comedy television series Australian satirical television shows Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming 1987 Australian television series debuts 1987 Australian television series endings