The thin timber floorboards and sticky carpet were a thin shield from the noise at the pub downstairs. But a 17-year-old Dee Madigan was trying to drown it all out as she studied for her final high school exams. 

The room above a bar hardly qualified as optimum living quarters but moving back to the city on her own to get a good education was Dee’s best shot at getting into university. After years of ups and downs in her parents’ businesses, things had taken a turn for the worse, and Dee was determined not to let that get in her way. 

Little did she know how much worse things could get before they got better. Dee would live the equivalent of several lives before she became a regular on national TV, offering her opinions on her twin loves – advertising and politics.  

Now a political campaigner, author, advertising guru and Creative Director at Campaign Edge, in this episode of Curveball hear the moments in Dee Madigan’s life that really shaped this expert persuader. 

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Curveball is the show that leans into life’s messy moments! It’s a production of Deadset Studios.  

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This episode was produced by Grace Pashley. Executive producers are Rachel Fountain and Kellie Riordan. 

We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the land on which this show was made. 

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