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Thank God You’re Here switches to Seven

Channel Seven has swooped once more, this time on TEN's hit comedy, Thank God You're Here, poised to return in 2009.

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Thank God You’re Here is switching from Network TEN to Channel Seven.

It will return in 2009 with Shane Bourne as host and Tom Gleisner as judge.

The hit improvisation show has previously enjoyed three seasons on TEN.

The shift from networks, which follows Seven’s acquisition of Kath & Kim from the ABC, is a major coup for Seven and a huge blow to the TEN Network. It was sorely missed as part of TEN’s Sunday line-up.

“Having taken a year off it felt right to try some new things with the show,” said Tom Gleisner, “including a different home. Moving will give us the opportunity to expose Thank God You’re Here to a whole new audience, while also allowing Shane to continue using his City Homicide parking space.”

Seven CEO David Leckie said, “We see this as being the first of many shows in a long term relationship with Working Dog. They are the best in the business at what they do and that’s why they’ll fit in just perfectly at Seven.”

TV Tonight hears March is a potential starting date…

Press Release:
The sensational comedy series Thank God You’re Here is poised to join Australian TV’s best prime time line-up on Channel Seven.

Thank God You’re Here, an award-winning creation from Working Dog Productions, will join Channel Seven’s 2009 schedule for its fourth season of unscripted mayhem.

Shane Bourne will remain the show’s host in addition to his role on the hit Channel Seven police drama City Homicide.

Judge and co-creator Tom Gleisner:

“Having taken a year off it felt right to try some new things with the show – including a different home. Moving will give us the opportunity to expose Thank God You’re Here to a whole new audience, while also allowing Shane to continue using his City Homicide parking space.”

Thank God You’re Here is a huge hit locally and overseas.

Channel Seven chief executive David Leckie is ecstatic to add another Aussie hit to the network’s stable:

“I have wanted to work with the Working Dog team for years and I’m happy that we waited long enough for it to be for the right show – Thank God You’re Here is a fabulous show and it will be even more fabulous on Seven.

“We see this as being the first of many shows in a long term relationship with Working Dog. They are the best in the business at what they do and that’s why they’ll fit in just perfectly at Seven.”

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119 Responses

  2. People will think that I’m being overly dramatic, but I am honestly really saddened by this news. Talk about kicking someone when they’re down. TEN have been good to Working Dog over the last ten years…i know television is big business and all, but this makes me lose faith in a lot of things. The whole situation is just…depressing. And it’s a double blow for TEN, because not only have they lost one of their best shows, but Seven will probably use it against them to destory another one of TEN’s hits.

    I won’t be watching the show any more.

  3. woking dog are very prestigious, i think there was one point where they were not going to make anymore thank god just so that they could finish on top.

    my take on this situation is:
    with the state of ten, TGYH wanted nothing to do with it so “wanted a new home” and 7 was the obvious choice as it is the #1 network, and has connection with shane, the actors, and out of the question. i doubt 7 paid a significant amount more than 10 ever did. and if this is right, poor 9 was completely left out of the equation. and magical things happen when a show is on 7, the ratings will not be an issue.

    i still feel sorry for 10, the encore series was just about the only show that was consistent on 10 they probably only kept it for investment value and now it is going to work against them. i hope they pick up daisies and chuck to get their spirits up.

  4. Anyone who doesn’t think that TEN (after the car crash of a second half) would have put every effort into trying to reach an agreement with Working Dog for another season of TGYH, is seriously deluded.

    What you have here is a case of a notoriously difficult production company turning into a notoriously greedy production company. TEN has never treated them with anything but respect, allowing them total creative control and taking a chance on them with an idea that could just have as easily flopped if Australians didn’t think performers bumbling their way through scenes was funny.

    They’ve now taken themselves off to Seven to get a “whole new audience” and while I have no doubt that it will be a success, I wouldn’t be at all disappointed if the series lost its zip and died in the arse.

    Granted, this is business and it’s not the first or last time that a network is going to actively pursue a hit property on a another channel, but it just leaves a foul taste in my mouth.

  5. Why are you all whinging ??

    1: CH Ten is a business
    2: CH 7 is a business
    3: Working Dog is a business.

    Good luck to CH 7 !!

    Oh, and I notice that some entries reckon that only the oldies watch CH 7 and they won’t get TGYH………Get real, I’m an oldie and I love the show. I don’t care which Tv station shows it because I’ll be watching……Luv it !!

  6. Channel 10 if you’re reading this – Who’s Line is it Anyway…

    Steal it off whoever has the rights here. It’s so much funnier, and the original!

  7. I have to say this about TGYH. It is a Working Dog program and its got nothing to do with TEN. Sure it was home of the show for 3 seasons but things change. Ten spent all this money on a Sports Channel and to a point this is KARMA. Ten got what was coming to them IMO.

    Shows can change channels at any time. They are run by companies and look at Kath and Kim, the producers wanted a broader audience and they put the offer out their to the FTA and Seven were the lucky ones to pick it up and i believe the same is with this case.

    People you all have to get over it. Sure its a shame its not on TEN (not really) but hey at least it will be returning, i thought that after not airing this year the show wouldnt be returning at all. Ten in 2008 in a way was forceful in the fact they wanted a new series, WD said NO! and now look where its at.

    Also for those who say that it will be inundated with Seven celebs is up themselves. Sure there will be a few but Working Dog is the company and they protect there shows and wouldnt want Seven having full control over this, except for the timeslot. I believe most of the usual suspects will be back including Hamish and Andy, Ahn Do, Angus and probably Fifi Box. Glenn Robbins may make an appearance and hey wouldnt it be funny if Kath and Kim made an appearance now that would be good television. I am sorry but this show is just going to get better on Seven. You all need to stop whinging about it. Seven are a company as is TEN and TEN decided a sports channel is what they want so thats what they will get.

  8. Thank god it’s back! I don’t care where it lives. Unfortunately it’s the only show that would have brought 1m viewers back to ten any time soon.

    The good thing is we will get a whole new bunch of 7-contracted stars on the show. The only one on ten I will miss is Hamish Blake. Hopefully his contract will allow him to appear on the show still. But the other greats– Angus, Fifi, Shaun, Bob, Julia, and Frank, should all be able to appear. We probably would have lost Josh anyway since he is doing Wipeout for 9 now. 2 of their regular ensemble cast are now on 7 on This is Your Laugh anyway.

    Another shame though is that remaining on ten would have opened up the ability to get regulars from GNW on the show.

    I wonder if Ed Kavalee will return to the ensemble cast, or if he will now become a guest star since he is now more of a celeb himself.

  9. Ch10 lost half thier programming when they gave the arse to Big Brother,
    Now Ch10 have just lost 1/3rd of thier programming with TGYH.

    I just hope ch7 don’t screw around with the TGYH format that made
    It such a massive hit with ch10..

  11. Wow, people. Australia is a democracy with a capitalist system. People can do what they like. Ten picked up Neighbours years ago and turned it into an international hit. This kind of stuff happens in the US all the time. Things go where the money is. If you don’t like it, move to Cuba. There’s enough interference by ACMA in the broadcasting industry as it is.

  12. looks like working dog are letting the show get to their heads!! it failed in the u.s and was axed and opened this yr in britain and got bad ratings, so i dont know where they are getting the international success from. ten would also still have the rights to repeats so im guessing they will put them on around the time it comes back to deter viewers:) if a repeat gets around 650,000 than i doubt it would reach the 1.7m ten had

  13. This is surprising.

    I thought that when Working Dog/ D Generation weren’t doing shows for the ABC they were doing them on 10.

    I know The Panel hasn’t been a regular show on 10 for a while now for whatever reason, but they seemed to always return for The Panel Christmas wrap. Will that be on 10 again this year? Or does this announcement mean Working Dog have fully left Channel 10 altogether?

  16. Will you people get a life! This is not a Ten show, nor is it a Seven show. It’s a Working Dog show.

    Watch it or don’t watch it but STFU and stop complaining!

  19. Working Dog have had The Panel, TGYH and Russell Coight on TEN, Funky Squad, Frontline, A River Somewhere, Hollowmen on the ABC, prior to Working Dog they had The D-Generation and The Late show on the ABC with D-Generation moving to Seven for a bit, so really they have moved to Seven before nothing new in this at all (Seven also took Roy and HG from the ABC going back).

    Channel 10 took interest in 3 shows of Working Dog, the rest have mainly been with the ABC, sure Ten gave them some room to do as they wanted, however so did the ABC, perhaps it’s time for the Team to make a little more money out of something they do, they’ve put in hard yards.

  21. Good move by Seven. Leckie knew what he was talking about when he said “we are the only network with hit shows. Nine will tank and I don’t care about Ten.” I wonder if Ten will continue with the TGYH repeats now that Seven have the rights, it would just be cross promotion for another network.

    As for which network is the worst, we could go all day on this one, but Seven are the most consistent and reliable when it comes to finding enjoyable shows and watching them week after week. Sure, some of them are bumped to absurd time slots (LOST, Heroes, Prison Break, 24), but at least they still get aired, unlike Nine (PD, Chuck, Moonlight, Terminator, countless others) who either bumps shows to summer or doesn’t air them at all. As for Ten, they’ve been in the crapper for a long time now. The only show on that network I vaguely enjoy is Life, the rest is all disposable. Nine jumped the shark years ago.

  23. How did Ten ever treat Thank God You’re Here like crap? It was well promoted, had the same timeslot for it’s entire run and was only ever pre-empted on nights where the Rugby League State of Origin was opposite – which is standard practice across all networks.

    In 2007 they sought (and it was reported, got) a commitment for two more seasons of 10 episodes each, only one of these ever materialised with Working Dog claiming they would make the fourth 10 episode series in 2008, well 2008 has come and gone with no series only a big fat lie atop of some of that Seven brand private equity dough.

  24. After reading more into it i have completely changed my stance. I have always been a seven supporter for a long time now and i am glad that seven have struck gold again. I cant believe i felt sorry for them since these type of things happen all over the world. Recently scrubs going to ABC in america, neighbours and now out of the blue changing networks in the uk. Its common practice in the tv world.

    Ten brought this on themselves and i dont for one bit feel sorry for them anymore. Ten advertised in last years 2008 advertisements that tgyh will be back in 08, put the pressure on working dog who said no and now its on seven. I think there was a rift and i think it was bigger than people thought it was. But also on another side kath and kim were going to go to a commercial network last year if people liked it or not and it went to seven because it needed funds for their show not because seven were trying to poach them. Seven offered the best deal and they took it. Seven is leading the charge for 2 years running now and i believe it will continue to dominate for the next 5 years at least. Another prime example is when seven had friends remember that nine took seven on because of a studio agreement change and well the rest is history.

    Back to the issue of it moving channels who cares as long as its on thats all i care about. Besides ten is looking forward to showing sport sport and more sport. They will rot in 09. I dont care really in the end its their fault and thats that. They had a shocking year and lost big time.

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