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Micallef comedy rolls in Melbourne

The Ex-PM, a six-part half hour comedy created, written by and starring Shaun Micallef, began filming in Melbourne today.

Micallef plays Australia's third longest-serving Prime Minister, Andrew Dugdale. He dined with Presidents and Kings, hosted world summits and changed the lives of millions of his fellow Australians.

But now he's retired, the not-so-elder statesman has far too much time on his hands and no one to waste it on.

The ensemble cast includes Nikki Wendt, Kate Jenkinson, Lucy Honigman, Nicholas Bell, Francis Greenslade, Jackson Tozer, Ming-Zhu Hii and  veteran John Clarke.

Sian Davies (Offspring, Mr & Mrs Murder) directs. Nick Murray (House of Hancock, Stupid Stupid Man), who is producing for CJZ, says: “It’s a rare pleasure with such a great cast and Shaun’s scripts are wonderful.”

Micallef says, “I am very much looking forward to stepping in front of the cameras for my new series The Ex-PM. Hopefully they will be switched on”.

After blowing the advance for his memoirs but writing nothing in return, Dugdale has to accept a ghostwriter, Ellen (Honigman), into his dysfunctional household, which includes a wife in name only, a grown-up daughter with father issues – plus her son, a bodyguard who watches too much Person Of Interest on his iPhone, a PA who knows where all the bodies are buried, a chauffeur with a metal plate in his head and a heart of gold – and a cook on a 457 Visa.

So begins a comic tango between truth and spin as Ellen and Dugdale take to the dance floor. A tale of redemption somewhere between House of Cards and One Foot in the Grave.

ABC head of comedy Rick Kalowski said, “Not too sure who this Micallef kid is, but we’ll give anyone a go at the ABC.”

The Ex-PM is a CJZ production in association with ABC TV and Film Victoria. It will air on ABC later this year.