Decades before he was elected to the Australian Senate in 2016, outspoken media personality Derryn Hinch (1944–2026) appeared on The Mike Walsh Show in 1982 to talk politics.

At the time, he had a top-rating breakfast program on Melbourne radio (3AW after a stint on 3XY), and his hosting gig on the Seven Network’s Beauty and the Beast had boosted his TV profile. A few years later, he was presenting his own current affairs show (Hinch at Seven, then Hinch) on the Seven Network and Network Ten.

To Mike Walsh, he jokes that he wouldn’t consider a career in politics because 'the pay's lousy' and he’d rather comment from the sidelines. He eventually founded Derryn Hinch's Justice Party in 2015 and was elected to the Australian Senate representing Victoria from 2016 to 2019.

This clip is from The Mike Walsh Show: Episode 2161.