in which i gush, just a little

so here's the link to my appearance on back benches last night. it was a great experience. i watched the show regularly last year, not so much this year. i'm a big fan of wallace chapman, who has a lovely way of managing the discussions so they stay focussed, without any real nastiness. he's a genuine nice guy, as much in person as he appears to be on screen.

also lovely to meet damian christie, who i "knew" from reading his blog & from watching the show. it was so much easier for me to say what i needed to say, knowing i had an interviewer who was sympathetic and not looking for a "get". this is why publicly funded television is so much better than commercial - it's much about letting people speak, more about the interviewee than the interviewer, which means that any issue is covered in much more depth. i mean, it's just refreshing to actually be able to finish an answer without having the interviewer interrupt.

the women working behind the scenes were also lovely, and supportive. really helps when you're feeling a bit nervous.

the best part was having my most favourite of MPs, charles chauvel and grant roberson, participating. these are two of the most genuine guys i know, heaps of integrity and a passion for the work they do. if only the rest of parliament was like these two, the country would be a wonderful place.

i have to admit that on this particular issue (though not on the others that were discussed on the night), i was really impressed with hekia parata. her contribution was really positive.

so on the whole, a very nice evening.