WEBVTT - Bonus: Leigh Sales' Surprising Dream Guest

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<v Speaker 1>Our next guest was the host of ABC seven thirty

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<v Speaker 1>for over ten years and is known for her fiery questions.

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<v Speaker 2>N the either of you, I suggest you chief mister

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<v Speaker 2>Harri's got nothing to heart. I'm just wondering why you

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<v Speaker 2>can't answer a question relating to the point you just made.

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<v Speaker 1>She's now hosting a new show called The Assembly, where

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<v Speaker 1>she's mentoring fifteen autistics journalism students in the ways of

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<v Speaker 1>seeking truth.

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<v Speaker 2>Please welcome to the show, Lee Ells.

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<v Speaker 3>So Sunday night was the first good made of ours.

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<v Speaker 3>Andy Lee was on there, reduced to tears, actually one emotional.

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<v Speaker 4>It's quite powerful, wasn't it.

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<v Speaker 3>The lovely lady behind it all joined us this morning,

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<v Speaker 3>Lee Sales, Welcome to the show.

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<v Speaker 4>Good morning, Thank you so much for having me. Hey,

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<v Speaker 4>congrats on the Assembly. But for those who haven't seen

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<v Speaker 4>her before, can you tell us about it?

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<v Speaker 2>It is basically a group of about fifteen to twenty

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<v Speaker 2>people with autism and I work with them to teach

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<v Speaker 2>them some journalistic skills how to interview people, and then

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<v Speaker 2>one celebrity, politician sportsperson comes in and then the group

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<v Speaker 2>interviews them all together at the same time. And the

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<v Speaker 2>rules are kind of no questions off the table, and

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<v Speaker 2>so they can ask some pretty out their stuff.

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<v Speaker 3>I find it joyful to watch. Yeah, there's just a

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<v Speaker 3>real innocence to it.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, I agree, because the students don't really have any

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<v Speaker 2>agenda other than they tend to just follow what they're

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<v Speaker 2>curious about, and because they haven't worked in mainstream journalism newsrooms,

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<v Speaker 2>they don't sort of, I guess, conform to all of

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<v Speaker 2>the usual ways that journalists ask questions. So it can

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<v Speaker 2>be a real rollercoaster when you're watching, because one minute

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<v Speaker 2>they might be asking a really serious question like what's

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<v Speaker 2>the most significant lesson you ever learned from your parents?

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<v Speaker 2>But then the very next question might be have you

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<v Speaker 2>ever owned a budgery?

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<v Speaker 5>Gu So, as one of Australia's most respected and fearless

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<v Speaker 5>journals yourself, do you sit back and go geez, that

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<v Speaker 5>was a bloody good question.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, and I do. And the thing that often gets

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<v Speaker 2>me is that they've got the guts to ask things

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<v Speaker 2>that I think we'd all kind of like to know

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<v Speaker 2>the answers to that would feel a bit socially awkward

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<v Speaker 2>to shut.

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<v Speaker 5>So.

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<v Speaker 2>I remember in season one, one of the guys asked

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<v Speaker 2>Hamish Blake, how much money do you have in dollars

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<v Speaker 2>and cents? And how did Aymys to answer that? One?

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<v Speaker 2>L He was actually pretty honest. He kind of was

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<v Speaker 2>a little taken aback, and then he said, look, I'll

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<v Speaker 2>just be honest. I've got I've got millions. I'm a

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<v Speaker 2>really lucky person. And I think you know, the thing

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<v Speaker 2>with it is when the person asks it. It's not like,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, if a journal let me ask that, you'd

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<v Speaker 2>be worried, where's this going?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah?

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<v Speaker 2>Is it a trap? And people going to see it

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<v Speaker 2>and they're going to write up a piece about, oh,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, how to touch rich entitled person blah blah

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<v Speaker 2>blah something like that, whereas actually in this space, they're

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<v Speaker 2>just genuinely curious to know, like how much money do

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<v Speaker 2>you have it? And what interests them is dollars and

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<v Speaker 2>cents or in the case of that guy, that was

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<v Speaker 2>what interested him.

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<v Speaker 3>Also, it's just getting them to drop their guard, Like

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<v Speaker 3>you know, I've known Andy for years and to watch

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<v Speaker 3>him on Sunday Nights tip get emotional like that. I've

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<v Speaker 3>never seen him in a situation like that where he's.

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<v Speaker 2>Drop totally totally. And I think that that partly is

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<v Speaker 2>triggered by the sincerity of the people asking the questions

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<v Speaker 2>and their vulnerability as well. They tend to put the

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<v Speaker 2>guests at ease, you know, very readily, and then that

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<v Speaker 2>tends to open up emotion.

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<v Speaker 4>I saw on socials that there was some people saying

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<v Speaker 4>that it's obviously set up. The celebrities are given the question.

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<v Speaker 4>There's no way they would open themselves up like this

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<v Speaker 4>to these wild questions without being prepped on it before.

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<v Speaker 4>And I love that you jumped on the socials and

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<v Speaker 4>just bit back and explained exactly what goes on behind

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<v Speaker 4>the scenes totally, and.

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<v Speaker 2>It's honest to god, they get no prep whatsoever. And

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<v Speaker 2>even if I did try to prep the guests, when

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<v Speaker 2>you're working with a grief of twenty autistic people, they

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<v Speaker 2>are going to do what they want. It doesn't really

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<v Speaker 2>plans you might have put in place in the moment,

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<v Speaker 2>they'll respond as they respond. And that's why, particularly you know,

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<v Speaker 2>this is season three that we're doing now season one.

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<v Speaker 2>I was so grateful to everyone who appeared because you

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<v Speaker 2>can imagine the brief because you're like, yeah, all right,

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<v Speaker 2>well it'll be you twenty people asking questions. I've got

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<v Speaker 2>limited control over what they'll ask, and they might ask

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<v Speaker 2>you absolutely anything happening.

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<v Speaker 5>Any appetite to get some politicians in the chair, because

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<v Speaker 5>those questions would be perfect to try and make a

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<v Speaker 5>politician from either side of the political spectrum squirm.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, well we had in season one, we had the

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<v Speaker 2>Prime Minister Anthony Albanezy and I guess we're looking for

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<v Speaker 2>people that are kind of well known nationally to fill

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<v Speaker 2>the space. And so sort of since then, you know,

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<v Speaker 2>the opposition's gone through Peter Dutton Susan Land. Now we

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<v Speaker 2>kind of need to like them to settle down to

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<v Speaker 2>see if something sort of bubbles up into the leadership.

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<v Speaker 2>But yeah, it is a great format. I saw one

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<v Speaker 2>with the French Prime Minister, Emmanuel Macro French President or

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<v Speaker 2>i should say, and he got asked a question about

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<v Speaker 2>his wife, who used to be his teacher, and he

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<v Speaker 2>said he said something it was kind of awkward but intriguing,

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<v Speaker 2>and he said something like, oh, you know, I want

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<v Speaker 2>to be clear, she was not the you know, mede

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<v Speaker 2>real teacher. She was my drama teacher. And then the

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<v Speaker 2>guy sitting next to him just started clapping his hands

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<v Speaker 2>really loudly and rocking back and forth. And just going

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<v Speaker 2>over and over again. But he's real teacher, he's drama

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<v Speaker 2>and so that was just so magic because it was

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<v Speaker 2>like it exposed the kind of political spin in such

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<v Speaker 2>a brilliant way.

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<v Speaker 3>With that in mind, who would be at the top

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<v Speaker 3>of your list that you'd love to get on?

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<v Speaker 2>Oh? I mean I I just am obsessed by Harry Style.

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<v Speaker 3>You know what, He would actually be a great guest

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<v Speaker 3>in this situation, don't you reckon?

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<v Speaker 2>I keep it.

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<v Speaker 3>I think it place he would come.

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<v Speaker 2>I think he'd be absolutely fantastic. The students always they've

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<v Speaker 2>always been obsessed with Chris Hemsworth since season one, so

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<v Speaker 2>they really want Chris Hemsworth. But almost anyone actually is

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<v Speaker 2>kind of interesting in this format, Almost anyone would fit in.

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<v Speaker 2>But yeah, I'd be personally pretty happy if Harry showed up.

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<v Speaker 5>Lee Sales as a political animal that you are or were,

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<v Speaker 5>I don't know how much interest you still take in

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<v Speaker 5>federal politics, but Harry Styles as the last person. Are

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<v Speaker 5>you a big fan?

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<v Speaker 2>I'm just look, I'm a bit of a lover of

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<v Speaker 2>pop culture and low brow tracks. I'm deep into the current.

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<v Speaker 4>Do you think Harry really is engaged?

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<v Speaker 2>Then? I don't really know, but I just think that

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<v Speaker 2>he is such an intriguing guy. But strangely, every time

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<v Speaker 2>I see him at my friend Annabel Crab always teases

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<v Speaker 2>me about this, I always feel like I want to

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<v Speaker 2>mother him. I'm like, oh, he's just he's looking a

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<v Speaker 2>little bit thin. He's a little bit thin at the moment.

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<v Speaker 2>To come around and I'll feed him in his band Heyleah.

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<v Speaker 3>Four years ago, someone tapped on the shoulder when you're

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<v Speaker 3>leaving the seven thirty Report, saying you'll be on Nova,

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<v Speaker 3>critiquing Harry styles as relationships.

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<v Speaker 2>That would have actually had the ring of truth to it. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 3>Well, we love you, We love the show and so

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<v Speaker 3>feel good. I watch it with the kids. The Assembly

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<v Speaker 3>returns It's Back Sunday. Andy was on It's Back this Sunday,

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<v Speaker 3>seven thirty on ABC TV, with all episodes streaming for

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<v Speaker 3>free on abc I View. We love you, Lee sales

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<v Speaker 3>us much, thank you gang, And if we get Harry on,

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<v Speaker 3>we'll call you.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, you call me straightaway, we will.

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<v Speaker 4>Lauren Lauren wake up feeling good following them on the Socials,