The Project (Australian TV program)
The Project is an Australian news, current affairs, and talk show television panel program which was broadcast by Network10 in Australia, produced by Roving Enterprises. The show's final hosting lineup consisted of Waleed Aly, Sarah Harris, Georgie Tunny, Hamish Macdonald, Rove McManus, Sam Taunton and Susie Youssef with rotating daily panellists usually appearing once a week.
The one-hour show, formerly half-hour, premiered on 20July 2009 and aired live nightly excluding Saturdays, in the eastern states with delays in other states. It was broadcast Monday to Friday from Network10's studio in The Como Centre, South Yarra, Melbourne and Sundays from Network10's Sydney studios at Pyrmont. The Project drew its content and comedy from recent news stories and offered a sometimes alternative view to mainstream, sponsored news stories. It ran for 51weeks of the year, taking brief breaks during the Christmas and New Year period.
The Project has won numerous accolades, 11 Logie Awards, including the Gold Logie won by hosts Carrie Bickmore and Waleed Aly.
On 9June 2025, Network 10 confirmed that The Project would be replaced by a new current affairs program titled 10News+, as the network was preparing to phase out its long-running show effective 30June. The final episode of the series aired on 27June 2025.
Following the conclusion of the program, The Projects social media accounts remained active, with several posts being made in the weeks following the finale.
Format
The program's final hosting lineup consisted of Waleed Aly, Sarah Harris, Georgie Tunny, Hamish Macdonald, Rove McManus, Sam Taunton and Susie Youssef and featured other regular panellists appearing during the week. Regular panellists and contributors have included: Kate Langbroek, Steve Price, Nick Cody, James Mathison, Ruby Rose, Susie Youssef, Liz Ellis, Max Rushden, Hugh Riminton, Chrissie Swan, Elise Elliott, Narelda Jacobs, Dave Thornton, Tom Cashman, Kitty Flanagan, Nikki Britton, Nazeem Hussain, Chris Brown, Dilruk Jayasinha, Nath Valvo, Myf Warhurst, Jan Fran, Alex Lee, Claire Hooper, Jessie Stephens, Tara Rushton, Natarsha Belling, Tom Tilley and Sharyn Ghidella. The hosts were often joined by several special guests during the course of an episode.The main content of the show revolved around Aly, Tunny, Macdonald, Harris, McManus, Taunton and Youssef at the desk discussing some of the news events of the day. This discussion often involved live crosses to reporters or guests via satellite. Special guests, often of a celebrity nature, also regularly appeared in studio, usually during each show's final segments. In addition, the show featured pre-recorded interviews with celebrities, conducted by either one of the main cast or US entertainment correspondents Jonathan Hyla or Xavier Brinkman. Feature stories by the main cast, often of a humorous but insightful nature, were also prominent throughout each week.
Hosts
| Presenter | Role | Days | Tenure |
| Dave Hughes | Co-host | Monday–Thursday | 2009–2013 |
| Charlie Pickering | Co-host | Monday–Friday | 2009–2014 |
| Gorgi Coghlan | Co-host | Friday | 2015–2021 |
| Peter van Onselen | Co-host | Friday–Sunday | 2020–2021 |
| Lisa Wilkinson | Co-host | Thursday–Sunday | 2018–2022 |
| Carrie Bickmore | Co-host | Monday–Wednesday | 2009–2022 |
| Peter Helliar | Co-host | Monday–Thursday | 2014–2022 |
| Tommy Little | Co-host | Friday & Sunday | 2017–2022 |
| Michael Hing | Co-host | Friday & Sunday | 2023–2024 |
| Rove McManus | Co-host | Friday | 2014, 2023–2025 |
| Hamish MacDonald | Co-host | Sunday | 2016–2019, 2021–2025 |
| Susie Youssef | Co-host | Friday | 2025 |
| Waleed Aly | Co-host | Monday–Thursday | 2015–2025 |
| Georgie Tunny | Co-host | Thursday–Friday | 2022–2025 |
| Sarah Harris | Co-host | Sunday–Wednesday | 2023–2025 |
| Sam Taunton | Co-host | Sunday–Thursday | 2023–2025 |
On 8 December 2013, it was announced that regular host Dave Hughes was leaving The Project in order to concentrate on his stand-up comedy routine with a national tour in 2014. For his final appearance on the show on 11 December, Hughes was given an emotional farewell by co-hosts Bickmore and Pickering.
On 12 March 2014, Pickering announced that he would be leaving the show on 7 April 2014. McManus co-hosted the show from 18 August 2014 until the end of the year, alongside Helliar and Bickmore. McManus finished on the show on Thursday 4 December 2014.
Gorgi Coghlan co-hosted the show on Friday nights until 2017, she was replaced by Lisa Wilkinson. Coghlan remained on the show as a panellist on Friday nights and as a regular fill-in presenter until May 2021.
Hamish Macdonald regularly hosted The Sunday Project from 2016 to January 2019 until he was replaced by Peter van Onselen because of his Q+A filming commitments. Macdonald continued to feature as a panellist on the show, amongst his ABC commitments, and in June 2021 he announced that he would return as co-host of The Sunday Project in September 2021, while Peter van Onselen returned to his commitments as Network Ten's political editor.
On 11 October 2022, Carrie Bickmore announced her resignation from the show after 13 years and that her final appearance the regular host would be on 30 November 2022. Lisa Wilkinson also announced on 20 November 2022 that the she was leaving her hosting position on the show, effective immediately, after six months of "relentless, targeted toxicity". Peter Helliar announced on 22 November 2022 that he would be leaving the show, the third regular presenter to quit the show within the year. His last day presenting was on 7 December 2022. Tommy Little also finished up hosting the show at the end of 2022.
In November 2022, it was announced that Sarah Harris would join the show to replace Bickmore in 2023. In December 2022, it was revealed that Sam Taunton would join the show to replace Helliar and co-host on Mondays to Thursdays alongside Aly and Harris, while Michael Hing co-host on Friday and Sundays, replacing Little. Rove MacManus returned to a co-hosting position on Friday nights in early 2023.
In December 2024, Hing announced his departure from the program in 2025. He was replaced by Susie Youssef on Friday nights, with Taunton now hosting Sunday nights in addition to his previous days.
Substitutes
- Waleed Aly: Hamish Macdonald, Georgie Tunny, Liz Ellis, Michael Hing, Rove McManus, Max Rushden and Hugh Riminton.
- Sarah Harris: Georgie Tunny, Chrissie Swan, Liz Ellis, Rachel Corbett, Elise Elliott and Narelda Jacobs.
- Sam Taunton / Susie Youssef: Dave Hughes, Dave Thornton, Tom Cashman, Nikki Britton, Nazeem Hussain, Dilruk Jayasinha, Nath Valvo, Myf Warhurst, Alex Lee, Claire Hooper, Rove McManus and Nick Cody.
- Georgie Tunny: Rachel Corbett, Sarah Harris, Tara Rushton, Liz Ellis, Elise Elliott, Sharyn Ghidella and Susie Youssef.
- Hamish Macdonald: Waleed Aly, Michael Hing, Rove McManus, Rachel Corbett, Tara Rushton, Georgie Tunny, Max Rushden and Hugh Riminton.
- Rove McManus: Hamish Macdonald, Waleed Aly, Susie Youssef, Michael Hing, Tom Tilley, Liz Ellis, Tara Rushton, Rachel Corbett, Max Rushden and Hugh Riminton.
Panellists
- Ruby Rose – Entertainment reporter and panellist
- James Mathison – Reporter and panellist
- Scott Pape – Money Shot
- Rove McManus – Roving reporter
- George Negus – Panellist
- Denise Scott – Panellist
- Andrew Rochford – Panellist and fill-in presenter
- Kitty Flanagan – Eye on Tuesday
- Sam Mac – Roving reporter
- Natasha Stott Despoja – Panellist
- Mia Freedman – Panellist
- Todd Sampson – Panellist
- Jennifer Byrne – Panellist
- Gretel Killeen – Panellist
- Meshel Laurie – Panellist
- Anthony "Lehmo" Lehmann – Panellist
- Fifi Box – Panellist
- Ryan Fitzgerald – Panellist
- Gorgi Coghlan – Panellist
- Em Rusciano – Panellist
- Chrissie Swan – Panellist
- Julie Goodwin – Panellist
- Rachel Corbett – Panellist
- Steve Price – Panellist
- Kate Langbroek – Panellist
- Nick Cody – Panellist
Correspondents
- Lucy McDonald – UK
- Phoebe Bowden – UK
- Eammon Atkinson – US
- Jonathan Hyla – US
- Michael Williams – US
History
Series 1: 2009
The program premiered on 20 July 2009 and aired as a live broadcast on weeknights from 7:00 to 7:30 pm. Roving Enterprises, the production company owned by Rove McManus and Craig Campbell, produces the series. The promos of the show used musical samples of Hello from The Cat Empire.The premiere episode featured MasterChef Australia season one winner Julie Goodwin and an interview with Sienna Miller and Rachel Nichols. During the first season Ruby Rose and James Mathison were credited as part of the main cast, though their contributions were often limited to guest appearances and pre-recorded interviews.
During the 2009 summer, in order to increase the profile of the show, Monday and Friday episodes were extended to an hour and the program was repeated in a late night timeslot to attract late night viewers who may have missed the show earlier in the evening. In addition, from 30 November 2009, the show underwent a small visual revamp. With the lights getting brighter, the set was changed to accommodate a more "summery" feel with the background displaying a blue sky and the foreground featuring more orange and brown lighting, skewing away from the dark, night-time feel from the start of the show. New titles were also added to fit the feel. As of 8 February 2010, Channel 10 cancelled the late-night repeat of the show. Ten's summer late night repeats of 7PM were always a part of its strategy to win more followers for the show.