First Review: TEN in 2007

TEN’s year was something of a disappointment, but like all good PR spinners, they managed to focus on the good stuff: The 2007 AFL Grand Final, Thank God You’re Here a revived Rove, it’s best 18-49 figure, a win in daytimes overall and another win in 16-39.

What it tactfully left out was that it lost the demographic it said it was pursuing, 18-49, to Seven.

TEN had barely finished celebrating New Years Eve when it copped TV’s first controversy of the year. Matthew Newton’s lewd behaviour during a music special was the start of a bad personal year for him. Given the special was actually pre-recorded the network had some trouble defending its choices. More bawdy references during the Sydney Fireworks telecast didn’t help.

The Biggest Loser was the first of TEN’s three big reality juggernauts. But American fitness trainers Bob and Jillian attacked aspects of the show in a radio interview, claiming it encouraged contestants to ‘cannibalise’ one other. They openly dubbed its producer “the bane of our existence.”

New local shows Celebrity Dog School and Teen Fit Camp (retitled after the bad press over Teen Fat Camp) both failed spectacularly. The UK’s Torchwood was a bright hope, but quietly ended in midnight timeslots. For The 4400 it was much worse in an apologetic, if synonymous, 4am timeslot. 2006’s Jericho, famously launched simultaneously with the US in 2006, quietly imploded. It was also axed then revived in the US, but remains snubbed by TEN.

Andrew G’s new game show The CON Test didn’t fire either. Gunsberg was also caught-out telling waiting Idol auditionees in Queensland to lift their personal hygiene.

There was good news from Rove McManus who made a welcome return to television in April following the death of wife Belinda Emmett in 2006. Revamped to Sundays with a new studio, set and sidekicks, it was a good year for McManus. His family game show, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader? performed respectably too. His two appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno were well received, he started dating actress Tasma Walton and managed to ask guest Kevin Rudd who he would ‘turn gay for?’ “There’s only one person for me, my wife Therese,” was the surprising answer.

Neighbours had a makeover, its first significant re-launch since Bouncer went to that great kennel in the sky. New credits, new sets, new digital format, new cast members, new writers -same ratings. By year’s end the show had appointed a new Exec Producer too. Channel Five in the UK however, did cough up for a fee the BBC wouldn’t –said to be three times its current asking price. The BBC has now lost a long-term favourite but in the process given life to a new $15M Sydney soap with Southern Star’s Out of the Blue.

TEN continued to dabble with local telemovies in Murder in the Outback. Two more are set for 2008. American soap The Bold and The Beautiful shot scenes for its 20th anniversary in Sydney.

Sketch comedy The Wedge found nobody laughing and saw out its local content value peter out at 11pm on Saturday nights. It was the exact opposite for improv darling, Thank God You’re Here, despite the fact the US series didn’t fire. By year’s end reluctant heroes Working Dog were talking down any seasons for 2008 –the last thing TEN needs.

In a long-awaited website revamp, TEN embraced free downloads. It had been so successful with Thank God You’re Here offerings that it uploaded US sci-fi Supernatural as soon as it had aired. In a move opposite to its rivals, TEN sought to build brand loyalty through individual products rather than via its main portal umbrella.

Where to start with Big Brother? After 2006 controversies the show tried to tone down the adult content by dropping its Adults Only (aka Uncut)” edition. It only replaced them with others. The biggest controversy was in not telling a housemate her estranged father had passed away while she was in the house. ‘Emma’s’ family had advised it was her father’s dying wish not to jeopardise her happiness in the house –a lose / lose situation for producers if ever there was one.

It also clumsily staged a challenge in which housemates were expected to nurse baby dolls, distressing a housemate who had lost a child through pre-eclampsia. BB even managed to offend Mexico, after housemates threw ‘goo-filled’ balloons at their (incorrectly depicted) flag. After sliding ratings, TEN excised long-time host Gretel Killeen for a 2008 makeover headed by shock jock Kyle Sandilands and ‘kiss of death’ TV hostess Jackie O.

But sexy US drama Californication upstaged BB in the offence stakes this year. After its opening scene of a Catholic nun depicting oral sex, religious and conservative groups protested. It led to an ACMA investigation. With its tail between its legs TEN then began to edit scenes, most notably a female orgasm during a scene with cunnilingus.

After failing to find a buyer, owner CanWest opted to retain TEN, requiring several overseas board members to resign in favour of Australian residents.

In sports a battle broke out with V8 boss Tony Cochrane calling TEN “unreasonable and un-Australian” for preventing races to air live in Adelaide. At the heart of the brawl was an overriding AFL scheduling agreement. TEN blamed the problem as the mistake of contracts V8 had with Seven. The V8s threatened not to turn up for the 2008 Grand Prix if TEN is to telecast their races. More positively, the AFL Grand Final was the top rated show of the year. Next year it’s on Seven.

TEN was the first of the big 3 to announce a new HD channel, but a miffed Seven beat them to the punch. TEN also jumped into bed with Foxtel, Optus and Austar, effectively leaving Seven as now the lone network no longer accessible to viewers via subscription TV.

TEN Publicity and their selectively worded Press Releases that focus on 18-49 demographics in 6-10.30 timeslots (primetime is 6pm-midnight) came under attack. One journo with the Daily Telegraph was so angered at continual story denials she wrote the network was “Seriously full of crap.”

Australian Idol held on in its fifth year, despite Hillsong Church allegedly lobbying for many of its finalists. Seven’s Today Tonight waged a war on the show. Dogged by technical hiccups the Idol finale forced a reunited Divinyls to perform their song twice. It was Idol’s lowest finale yet. Similarly, crowned champ Natalie Gauci failed to reach #1 on the ARIA charts, a first for any season winner.

Tragedy struck close to home when newsreader Charmaine Dragun sadly took her own life. Said to suffer from depression, Dragun is believed to have felt isolated working in Sydney, far away from Perth family and friends. She is remembered as a “vibrant and caring person, universally liked and admired by her colleagues.”

TEN HD launched on December 16 bringing back missing shows Smallville, Veronica Mars and Battlestar Galactica to the new channel. But it is already copping flak, firstly for the size of its imposing HD watermark, and secondly in suggestions HD is a dumping ground? At least it’s showing the shows.

TEN pins its hopes for 2008 on four big reality shows: The Biggest Loser, Australian Idol, Big Brother and So You Think You Can Dance. The latter is already being criticised by the MEAA for contracts that stipulate dancers cannot appear on another network for 12 months after appearing on TEN.

Sunday: SBS in 2007

But as Neighbours wanes, the way TEN continues to avoid taking a chance on a new local drama series is, seriously, perplexing.

Nine in 2007
Seven in 2007
The ABC in 2007