Joh: Last King of Queensland (2025)
Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen reigned over Queensland for 19 tumultuous years (1968–1987). Hugely popular, he presided over enormous growth, but corruption raged under his tenure, as did electoral manipulation and often violent suppression of dissent. This film tells Joh’s story through rare archival footage and revelatory interviews, exploring a life shaped by a hard yakka, god-fearing upbringing on his family’s farm. Trump’s spectre is evoked in Joh’s famously mangled and meandering way of speaking – brilliantly dramatised by Richard Roxburgh – alongside his unyielding execution of power and the desperate denial of his final days in office.
Director: Kriv Stenders
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Joh Bjelke-Petersen as Self (archival) |
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Matthew Condon as Self |
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Bob Katter as Self |
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Richard Roxburgh as Joh Bjelke-Petersen |
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Lindy Morrison as Self |
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Ed Kuepper as Self |
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John Howard as Self |
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David Littleproud as Self |
| Directing | Kriv Stenders | Director |
| Writing | Kriv Stenders | Writer |
| Writing | Matthew Condon | Writer |
| Editing | Karryn de Cinque | Editor |
| Production | Veronica Fury | Producer |
| Production | Alan Erson | Producer |
