Q+A - Season 1 / Year 2008

The Q&A season kicked off on May 22nd with the man in the top job. Kevin Rudd was in the hot seat with our sharp and always on-the-pulse audience including our SMS and online community.

Tony Abbott and Tanya Plibersek are back in the boxing ring for Q&A's second episode. Joining them are Bob Brown, Warren Mundine and Louise Adler for their first grilling by the Q&A punters.

The headliners for June 5 were Deputy Opposition Leader Julie Bishop, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Tony Burke, author and lawyer Randa Abdel-Fattah, founder of Crikey Stephen Mayne and The Australian newspaper's foreign editor Greg Sheridan.

The headliners for 12 June, 2008 were the Defence Minister Joel Fitzgibbon, Senator George Brandis, associate professor Kate Crawford, Liberal MP Pru Goward and the Chaser's Charles Firth.

Freshly back in Australia, former leader of the Australian Democrats Cheryl Kernot joined Assistant Treasurer Chris Bowen, Shadow Minister for Justice Christopher Pyne, Ashfield Liberal council member Nick Adams and television presenter, radio host and comedian Julia Zemiro.

The Young Guns…Two rising stars from the federal parliament, Labor's Bill Shorten and the Liberals' Greg Hunt, joined the Q&A panel this week. Find out how the new generation from each side of the political divide approached the issues of the day.

This episode of Q&A saw the Minister for Health and Ageing, Nicola Roxon and her shadow Joe Hockey go head to head. Joining them were leading Indigenous scholar, Marcia Langton, writer and Assoc.

Environmental apocalypse now or never? Green's Senator Christine Milne was up against Herald Sun columnist and climate change sceptic Andrew Bolt, with Minister for Small Business Craig Emerson, former Communications Minister Helen Coonan, and author, essayist and playwright Linda Jaivin holding the casting votes.

This week's panel were: well traveled former Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, Minister for Finance, Lindsay Tanner, author, journalist and critic of the Howard government, David Marr, columnist, Angela Shanahan and rising star of Young Labor, Rose Jackson.

With the Independent Senator, Nick Xenophon, the National's Senator Barnaby Joyce and Labor Senator, Mark Arbib, on Q&A this week, we only have one thing to say…welcome the Senate. Joining them were journalist and author of "Inside Kevin 07", Christine Jackman, and Chief Executive of the Australian Industry Group, Heather Ridout.

Joining Q&A this week were: the Minister for Climate Change and Water, Penny Wong, Shadow Treasurer, Malcolm Turnbull, scientist and global warming activist, Tim Flannery, businesswoman, Catherine Harris and the Director of the IP and Free Trade Unit at the Institute of Public Affairs, Tim Wilson.

This week's Q&A had something for everyone: Peter Garrett, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts went head to head with the Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs Bronwyn Bishop. Joining them were the Chaser's Julian Morrow, the Director of the Indigenous Law Centre at UNSW, Megan Davis and a columnist for the Australian, Imre Salusinszky.

On Q&A this week the writers dominated. The show featured author and academic, Germaine Greer, former NSW premier and author of My Reading Life, Bob Carr, deputy opposition leader Julie Bishop, The Australian newspaper's foreign editor, Greg Sheridan and curator and critic, Marcus Westbury.

On Q&A, star graduate of the NSW Labor Left Faction, master strategist and now Minister for Infrastructure, Anthony Albanese and former barrister and current Shadow Attorney General, George Brandis were joined by Blanche D'Alpuget, biographer and wife of former PM, Bob Hawke. They were mixing it up with doctor and author, Cindy Pan and former chief of staff to John Howard, Grahame Morris.

Another exciting episode of Q&A with author and journalist John Pilger on the program, he was joined by Minister for Small Business, Craig Emerson, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Sharman Stone, Political Editor for the Sydney Morning Herald, Peter Hartcher and Opinion Editor for The Australian, Rebecca Weisser.

Episode 16 of Q&A features a stellar panel. Labor's rising star and Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services, Bill Shorten is joined by Shadow Minister for Justice, Christopher Pyne, former leader of the NSW Liberals, Kerry Chikarovski, Crikey.com.au publisher, Eric Beecher and advertising guru from the Gruen Transfer, Jane Caro.

Taking the stage this week are: Shadow Minister for Defence and leader of the opposition in the Senate, Nick Minchin, the Minister for Housing and Status of Women, Tanya Plibersek, political journalist and author of "Poll Dancing" - a satirical look at the 2007 federal election, Mungo MacCallum, the Director of the IP and Free Trade Unit at the Institute of Public Affairs, Tim Wilson and author, essayist and playwright Linda Jaivin.

Q&A feeds your brain this week with a great assortment of guests. Rhodes Scholar with an Oxford Blue in boxing and one of the better performers in the House, Shadow Minister for Families and Indigenous Affairs, Tony Abbott makes a welcome return to the program.

The Parliamentary Liberal Party has chosen a new leader. As Tony Abbott said in a Q&A program, "...the king is dead, long live the king.

Q&A wrapped its debut season with a cracking line up to take your questions. Audiences tuned in to see Australia's longest serving Treasurer and soon-to-be civilian, Peter Costello, Minister for Health and Ageing Nicola Roxon, former leader of the Australian Democrats, then a Labor MP and now an academic, Cheryl Kernot, author and journalist, David Marr and former editor of the Op-Ed page of The Australian and a former Liberal adviser, Tom Switzer give us a closing show to remember.