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TEN grabs Out of the Blue

Well this is no surprise, but it’s also great news. Network TEN has picked up the rights to the new soap from Southern Star, Out of the Blue.

Ironically, it’s a show that springs to life as a result of the BBC losing TEN’s own Neighbours. Significantly, TEN also makes the announcement just a week after losing Head of Drama, Sue Masters.

TEN’s drama slate for 08 is pretty thin, I’d speculated last year that TEN should go and secure this series, made in Manly. Great to see that’s what they’ve done. It would be ideal in either the 6 or 7pm slot.

The BBC ordered 130 episodes of the five night a week soap from Australian production company Southern Star Entertainment – but no local networks were involved.

TEN executives are said to have liked early rushes and snapped the series up to air mid year.

The series will feature Sophie Katinis, Zoe Carides (Grass Roots), Clayton Watson (Always Greener) and Daisy Betts (Sea Patrol).

The series is about old friends gathering for a school reunion who become embroiled in a murder mystery when one of their own is murdered at the party.

“We are thrilled to have secured Out Of The Blue,” Ten Programming Chief David Mott said today.

“The BBC have a reputation for commissioning exceptional dramas and we look forward to working with them again after having formed a firm relationship over the years on Neighbours.

Out Of The Blue has a great script, exciting casting and is a fresh and engaging series from the very first minute.”

Press Release:

Network Ten secures the new half hour serial drama Out Of The Blue which starts production on Sydney’s Northern Beaches in February 2008.

Originally commissioned by BBC One UK, Out Of The Blue will be produced by Southern Star Entertainment whose production credits include Love My Way and The Secret Life Of Us.

Out of the Blue is set in the beach resort of Manly, Australia which is famous for the catchphrase ‘seven miles from Sydney, a thousand miles from care’. The story opens when a group of thirty something friends return to their home town for a high school reunion. However the celebrations are brought to an abrupt end when one of the group is murdered. As the remainder of the group get embroiled in a murder investigation friendships are challenged and loyalties torn. Whom amongst them is a killer? The question is going to baffle police, and when the answer is revealed, life in Manly will never be the same again. . . . .

Produced by John Edwards (Love My Way, The Secret Life Of Us, Police Rescue) and Julie McGauran (Home and Away) the series will star Zoe Carides (Grass Roots), Clayton Watson (Always Greener), Sophie Katinis (Stupid Stupid Man), Renai Caruso (Daybreakers), Noel Hodda (The Bet), Charlotte Gregg (Home and Away), Ryan Johnson (The Secret Life Of Us), John Atkinson (The Starter Wife), Kim Knuckey (Home and Away), Daisy Betts (Sea Patrol), Diane Craig (Never Tell Me Never), Basia A’hern (McLeod’s Daughters), Katherine Hicks (Heartbreak High), Maggie Dence (Look Both Ways) and newcomers Dylan Landre, Daniel Henshall, Nathaniel Buzolic, Aidan Gillett, Olivia Bonnici and Charlie-Rose MacLennan.

David Mott, Chief Programming Office, Network Ten: “We are thrilled to have secured Out Of The Blue. The BBC have a reputation for commissioning exceptional dramas and we look forward to working with them again after having formed a firm relationship over the years on Neighbours.

Out Of The Blue has a great script, exciting casting and is a fresh and engaging series from the very first minute.

This show is a perfect inclusion to TEN’s strong stable of shows for 2008.”

TEN will also have a range of digital rights for the show in Australia, including availability of full episodes on the web as “catch up TV”.

Southern Star Chief Executive, Hugh Marks:“With our shoot starting just around the corner and having now been able to confirm our cast it’s an exciting time for us to be able to welcome a great partner like TEN to this hugely ambitious project. We look forward to working with TEN and the BBC in realising our vision for Out Of The Blue”.

9 Responses

  1. And afternoon soaps always tank unless they are U.S. ones made for it. Neighbours died like this on 7 years ago, remember? And I think the failed soap you are talking about is actually “Echo Point”. An interesting fact is that the head writer on this flop, Susan Bower, has now been brought in to “save” Neighbours…

  2. They could always dump Neighbours in a daytime slot, or couple it with B&B for a soapie double.

    4.30pm Neighbours
    5.00pm B&B
    5.30pm Ten News
    6.30pm Reality Programming/Simpsons
    7.00pm Out of the Blue

  3. BarrieT do you mean Echo Beach with Jason Donovan, or another one?

    and this news doesnt surprise me, the show was always going to benefit from an aussie backer, im just worried that its TEN.

    I want my neighbours

  4. i reckon whack this at 6.30pm, its hard to see it doing worse than neighbours in the slot, bump neigbours to 6pm so that ten still meet the local drama quota and let neighbours continue dying its slow and painful death in a less damaging slot!

  5. Considering the DREADFUL, DREADFUL quality of Neighbours, surely this couldn’t possibly be worse (although piloting the soap with a murder mystery has been done countless times).

    The classification does sound a little heavy, but I’m sure they’ll keep it PG, and TEN will most likely air it at 7pm after Big Brother wraps up for the year.

    OR, Ten can play it at 7.30pm weekdays as they don’t have a lot of half-hour programs on TV these days.

  6. Remember when TEN tried “Echo Beach” at 7pm and that failed. You can’t have 2 similar soaps competing for the same audience. They should move Neighbours to 6pm as when I used to watch Neighbours I also watched the 5pm news and Simpsons at 6pm.

  7. Murder mystery, sounds similar to Headland…..wasn’t that about who was at fault in an accident which resulted in a death???

    Could be too heavy for pre 7pm, but I wouldn’t recommend airing it at 7pm, Home and Away is already an established hit, I don’t think this show will take away H&A audience, but definately use it at 630, pushing neighbours to 600, if the classification isn’t too heavy for this slot.

  8. This series should be good for Aussie actors looking for work. Let’s hope that this doesn’t take Neighbours’ place on Ten’s schedule. (Let’s also hope we don’t get an influx of ex-models and ex-reality stars either)

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