If you give someone enough rope...

Jenny and I headed up to the ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Ultimo studios in Sydney to attend a taping of Enough Rope with Andrew Denton. It was my first time ever being in a studio audience and was relatively painless, except for the warm-up guy who made things a bit uncomfortable because of his obsession with the fact that Jenny and I were American.

Anyway, Andrew Denton hosts a very popular weekly program here in Oz. He interviews notable figures--everyone from athletes, entertainers, authors and politicians.

They wanted the guest to be a surprise, but the producers did mention it was a "high-profile" guest who required lots of security. They moved to a more intimate studio than usual and we all had to go through metal detectors before even entering. Sounds pretty mundane for an American, but by Australian standards, this was a big deal. You could really tell that the staff weren't used to such protocol.

The guest for our taping was Jose Ramos-Horta, who is the second president of East Timor. The country only very recently gained independence from Indonesia, so Ramos-Horta has dealt with his fair share of tumultuous times during his leadership. It's actually amazing he was even able to show up for the interview, considering he was seriously injured during an assassination attempt last February.

Admittedly, I was disappointed when the guest was announced. The Pope is in town, so I was expecting him or possibly some big movie star. But by the end of the interview, I was thrilled to be at this interview. I didn't know a single thing about East Timor before the show, except that it sounded dangerous. However, I gained a wealth of information in the two-hour interview. Denton mentioned that Ramos-Horta isn't a typical politician. And he's not. He's warm, personable, approachable and has a great sense of humour. I really enjoyed myself.

Sure, it would've been great to hear Hugh Jackman talk about his upcoming film, "Australia," but this was better.

On a final note, it's a true shame Andrew Denton's work isn't shown in America. You don't have to be a journalist to appreciate his interviewing talent. I don't believe there's a single journalist in America who puts the same effort into each subject. Actually, Denton doesn't make his subjects feel like subjects. As a viewer, it's almost as if you're eavesdropping on a really great conversation between friends. Interviewing is certainly one of my professional weaknesses, so it's really exciting for me to watch a true master of the craft.

In other words, I've already signed up for another taping.