Australia’s Worst Journalist → Adelaide Fringe

 Sweeney Preston’s charming face pops up on many different boards come each Adelaide Fringe season. You most likely recognise him from In Pour Taste or The Late Nite Powerpoint Comedy Showcase alongside Ethan Cavanagh (both are a hoot!). This year, Sweeney also performed TWO solo shows. His newer work, One Man Stand Up Comedy Slam Poetry Supershow and Australia’s Worst Journalist. I managed to squeeze in the final show of the latter, which was added due to popular demand! 

Sweeney claims he is “Australia’s Worst Journalist,” because whilst he was writing dating advice articles, his actual love life was a walking contradiction. The message he unpacks is simple: we love dishing out advice but never heed it ourselves, and hey, that’s something we can collectively laugh at. In Australia’s Worst Journalist, Sweeney invites us into the chaos behind his byline in an hour of hilarious, oversharing storytelling!

Sweeney has a smooth and witty style of comedy that marks him as a natural at finding the humour in life’s messier moments. He has a hilarious self-deprecating sense of humour that has the audience completely on his side. Clearly at ease on stage, he effortlessly slides in the jokes and punchlines in a way that is just irresistibly funny.

His clever headlines flash on the screen throughout the show, from TikTok airport crushes, to holding plants in dating profiles instead of fish. Despite the killer views on these articles, Sweeney has no shame sharing what was actually going on in his personal life. From getting roasted on ABC Brisbane radio (hilarious!), trying to decipher the ideal commuting time to a hookup, to the dating saga of Grace from Adelaide, we are all fully invested. He pokes jabs at the reality of trying to date in this digital age that many in the crowd found far too relatable. 

Australia’s Worst Journalist is playful and disarmingly honest. It reminds us to laugh at our shortcomings and find humour in the contradictions we so often ignore. When Sweeney Preston returns, don’t leave this show on read Adelaide!
- By Sophie Tsoulos

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