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Report: Hey Hey it’s Saturday axed

Update: Daryl Somers tells Facebook fans he is still in talks with Nine about plans for 2011.

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Nine is expected to announce within days that Hey Hey it’s Saturday will not be returning in 2011.

The Herald Sun reports network bosses decided the show would not be returning yesterday, but many of the cast and crew were yet to be told.

The signs for the show’s return have not been promising.

The show still enjoys solid figures in Melbourne, but elsewhere the numbers do not justify the expense of a live variety project. Yet it still generates enormous passion.

It was absent during the 2011 programme launch, as its status was still under discussion.

Daryl Somers and Nine’s Director of Television Michael Healy were due to meet on its future last week.

Facebook fans will be furious over the death of the show and likely to initiate fervent campaigns.

But it appears likely the show’s final hurrah at Studio 9 Richmond, will be its swansong.

UPDATE: Daryl Somers has posted the following information on Facebook:

You may remember my final line on our last show i.e. “We’ll see you real soon … hopefully … maybe … ask a journo.”

Sometimes there’s no need to ask them, they’ll tell you anyway.

This is what happened in the Melbourne Herald Sun yesterday when Kate McMahon wrote that Hey Hey was done and dusted.

The truth is we are still talking to Nine about 2011 and I will keep you posted as I’ve mentioned previously.

Source: Herald Sun.

93 Responses

  3. Would be good to see a number of specials, or times when Daryl didn’t need to host it. They could make it a big deal if it were possible like SNL in the US, with guest hosts (still loved the time Lano & Woodley hosted). I still want the live variety allowing for musical performances and guest stars, etc and not just quiz shows.

    @Patrick – you comment on ‘the fans should have watched it, yet they didn’t’. I watched it, I don’t have a ratings box though.. so as always it’d be the same for others. I watch all shows I like, but I don’t have a ratings box.

    @Haters – I don’t get why some celebrate over this? I mean I don’t have an interest in Home & Away or Funniest Home videos yet if they announce that that is ending, it is ending. No need to pop the champagne corks. I don’t see why the need to say this like ‘Yahoo! Greatest news ever.’ If you’re not interested, then just watch something else? Not like you were being tied down forced to watch it.

  4. I am sad to see Hey Hey It’s Saturday go because I never got to see the episodes early in the year when it was on Wednesdays against Masterchef.
    But I was glad to see my favourite band Human Nature on the final episode.

  6. Well I hope you “Hey Hey Haters” are happy , you got what you wanted , Instead of just not watching It If you did not like It , day In and out you would always comment on how much you hated the show .

    Enjoy your cheap and nasty T.V and
    vale to Entertaining Television.

  8. *somewhere off in the distance a dog barked*

    @Jason D – I agree…if they had really worked on the format and updated the sets, lighting, segments, and gags it could have worked. Instead, most of us are trying to put 1995 behind us while they were trying to revive it.

  9. Good riddance. I appreciate it makes lots of other people happy, but for me it’s so outdated and not even funny anymore. Daryl needs to learn to let things go.

  12. I know that there are one or two people who seem to yearn for the good old days of family variety but the numbers just don’t add up. When you can get more people watching the repeat to the fifth power of 2½ Spams (which costs paying someone to push a button), why would you spend all that money on Daryl and Co?

    Don’t fret – in a decade or so, when even sufferers of Alzheimer’s disease can remember seeing every ep of The Big Spam Theory, I’m sure Nine will dig them up again (presuming we’re not all sourcing our programming direct from the original content providers).

  13. After reading this info about the axeing of Hey Hey it’s Saturday. I must convey my absolute sadness and disapointment. 🙁
    I’m a Sydney based fan, and have just applied for tickets to be in the audience.
    I really hope that this awful decision can be recosidered????
    Tracey.

  15. Let’s face it, apart from the FB crew, this isn’t really a surprise to anyone. Daryl has somehow managed to turn himself into a much bigger story than this actually is. It’s really a lot like the career of Tony Lockett – it was notable and impressive for a very long time, but then when it came back after retirement for one more shot at the big league, the game had moved on and he wasn’t fit enough to keep up. Same with Hey Hey. Let’s all agree it was good in its day, and let’s all move on.

  16. Oh well.
    ’twas an awesome ride, but time to start moving on from the nostalgia rush i guess.
    I Loved Hey Hey, but I think that with the blindness of just having the program back, many peope (Specificaly from the facebook) didn’t realise, bringing it back on a full time basis, may have been it’s downfall.

    I would have loved to have seen it come back this year and next year, but with the same 2 reunion specials at the end of the year, much like they did in 2009. Just to keep it’s format fresh. But if this is true that they are leaving this time, i’m content now. It’s like the last time they left, we weren’t ready, even though we knew it was coming ‘cos it was announced on the show beforehand, and this time it wasn’t announced at all.

    But yes, I think i’m finally ready to let the show go into the history books now.
    Thanks Hey Hey, you provided alot of Family Memories for me that I will cherish forever.

  17. This honestly makes me sad. The show was successful, but TV these days is all about ratings and money factor. It’s just not fair. Give a show a chance to live and develop like tv used too do.
    We’re the viewers, we enjoy your shows, if we love it, we tell people about it. On the Facebook page we finally reached 600,000+ fans. All of which are passionate about the show, yes there are a few narks, but they’re outnumbered severely.

    Daryl and Somers Carroll need to start discussing with Channel 7 and 10 to see if they can find a new home. At least with 7 we’re likely to have Molly back!

    I hate channel 7, but I would tune in for Hey Hey. Nine has lost my respect now.

  21. Can’t they just air this in Melbourne then, and air Two and a Half Men repeats for the rest of the country?

    I guess its not surprising, it was never really going to last. At least we got another year out of it… but if its gone this time, its really gone for good…

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