Oprah set to film in Sydney
Updated: Oprah Winfrey stuns audience by giving them all a trip to Australia in an episode to screen in Oz on Wednesday.
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Oprah Winfrey is set to film two episodes of her talk show at the Sydney Opera House in December, bringing her audience with her,
“This is really my last chance to do something really big,” Winfrey told audiences at her season premiere. “And if you want to do something big, you would want to take along your ultimate viewers.”
“I started to think about where would I most want to go. Maybe I should take all of you with me to the other side of the world…We’re going to Australia! We are going to Australia! You and you and you and you, are going to Australia!” she added.
John Travolta then drove a makeshift Qantas plane onto the stage as confetti fell and the audience began screaming.
Updated: “We’ll sail Sydney Harbour, some will sample shiraz in Aussie wine country and others will shop ’til they drop in trendy Melbourne,” Winfrey told the delirious audience.
“We’ll get up close with kangaroos and koalas, kick back on some of the world’s most beautiful beaches and experience one of the seven wonders of the world – the Great Barrier Reef.
“Then we’ll all meet at the spectacular Sydney Opera House, where thousands of our Aussie ultimate viewers will join us for an unforgettable, once-in-a-lifetime Oprah Show experience.”
As the first episodes of The Oprah Winfrey Show to be filmed outside the US, it will form part of her last ever season.
Aussie guests are tipped to include Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, Cate Blanchett, Cathy Freeman and Baz Luhrmann.
Julia Gillard could also be interviewed, plus Jessica Watson, astronaut Andy Thomas and writers Thomas Keneally, Peter Carey and Tim Winton.
The audience will participate in an “Australian adventure” in the Outback.
The NSW Government is said to be contributing more than $1 million towards the accommodation costs of the 450 people that will accompany Winfrey, including the audience.
UPDATE: TEN has fastracked this episode, set to air at 1pm Wednesday. Entertainment reporter Angela Bishop will also interview Winfrey this week for TEN News, The Circle and The 7PM Project.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJrQIsqvoCM[/youtube]
Source: Daily Telegraph, Hollywood Reporter
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- Tagged with TEN News, The 7pm Project, The Circle, The Oprah Winfrey Show
37 Responses
I have written a book and i would like very much to send it to oprah how do i go about it? Please let me know the address.renate
I hope they realise there aouldn’t be many aussies behaving like that if they were told they were getting a trip to the united states!! Haha
@Craig (7:59pm): A Gold Coast radio station has been trying for six months now, to bring Ellen to Australia, including setting up a facebook page: “Bring Ellen Down Under” with 25,000 fans…
They were saying on the 7pm project that Oprah averages 40 million viewers per episode in the US alone let alone globally. 1 million dollars seems pretty cheap for that number of viewings! They also said the money is Not going to Harpo and that it is just covering the cost of getting the audience/crew here etc. The audience alone would cost half a million at about $1500+ a seat on a plane.
@David S – it’s not what the audiance will spend, it’s the priceless advertising to millions of people in the US and around the world, they will get their moneys worth.
@GuanoLad – ITA, you think the Ellen audiance are crazy they are nothing on the Oprah ones!
Speaking of, now will Ellen come ‘down under’ but go to Melbourne or Perth?
@Johnson Argh! I’ll lay low until she’s gone.
Her show would be way more entertaining if the audiences weren’t borderline insane.
I would assume it’s because it’s beneficial for Tourism NSW as well
@David S This is pretty much the biggest, cheapest ad campaign the country has ever had. Our tourist commission has a history of paying big dollars for terrible ad campaigns which rarely even get seen, whereas this one has a target audience and is completely splashed all over the US media today. It would already be worth well over $1million in ad dollars.
If you did any research into the products – including over 60 best selling books – that Oprah shifts you would be aware that she has pretty much the highest earning viewers on daytime TV.
Despite all the negative comments – some making reference to tax dollars and various political parties – it can’t be discounted that Oprah makes news. I’m probably one of the most cynical, but really…she throws her cash around and does some pretty amazing things with it. 1M is barely anything for the potential revenue and promotion for tourism that this jaunt will bring. 1M input to Oprah in Australia is what some would call a pretty good ad deal considering the costings of prime time ad space. What can never be denied – by watching that clip – is the sheer joy and excitement of someone who walked into a show and perhaps expected some surprise, not a trip to the other side of the world – all paid for and flown by Cap’n Travolta. Some times, with so much crap in the world, you just cant help but smile at someone else’s happiness.
Just saw the clip on 10 news then. Its good to see them go to other cities to. I think its great but surely oprah could have put the bill in for accomodation for the guests. Its not like she is short of the cash.
Who is forking out the bill when they are in melbourne and at the Great Barrier Reef. Also better tell them that kangaroos will not greet them at the airport and they dont roam around the streets.