Carrie so emotional over Dance
Carrie Bickmore is worried she will get too attached to the young dancers on TEN's new Reality series.
- Published by David Knox
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By Carrie Bickmore’s own admission, TEN may have chosen the wrong person to host So You Think You Can Dance Australia.
Her problem is she may be too emotional, and she fears getting attached to the dancers.
“I’ve already started getting attached to some of them which is dangerous for me because I will have to be the one telling them to go home,” she told TV Tonight.
“One of my friends was in London and he bumped into (US host) Cat Deeley at a stage show. He said ‘One of my friends is hosting the Australian show.’ And she said ‘I hope she’s not the emotional sort. You get very attached to them and it’s really hard to say goodbye. You have to keep your emotions in check.’ And he said ‘Wow they may have picked the wrong person!’
“I’m not great at keeping my emotions in check, so I don’t know how I’m going to go!”
But being herself is one of Bickmore’s best assets, even when it means speaking her mind or getting teary on The Project.
“I don’t think about it too much, I just kind of do it,” she admits.
“I’m in a really comfortable place but it is a live show, so when we go to air whatever comes out of my mouth there’s no ability to take it back! But it’s a good thing as well. I say what I think.”
Viewers have responded to her natural persona, including previously nominating her for a Gold Logie. Now as the host of TEN’s upcoming Reality series, she is looking to stretch herself in a show she never expected to be part of.
“When I heard it was coming back I was like, ‘Oh I love that show!’ and when it was on years ago I used to think, ‘I would love to be on that show!’ Not ever thinking it would be a reality,” she says.
“Funnily enough I thought, ‘They should get Cat Deeley to host the Australian version.’ Because I watch the American show all the time and I think she’s wonderful.
“So when the idea of me doing it came up I was ‘Oh! You should have got Cat. But ok, I’d love to do it!'”
Prior to media Bickmore nearly followed a dream of dancing full-time. But a high school careers advisor in Perth set her on another path.
“I did dancing 4 nights a week all through high school. I look back now, with no iPhone and nothing to distract us so I’d just dance around the room for hours on end. So it was 4 nights a week and all day Saturday,” she recalls.
“I was in Perth and there was the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, I always thought I would love to go there. But we had a Careers Advisor in about Year 10 or 11 and I told her I wanted to be a dancer, but she said ‘You’re never going to make a career out of dancing.’ But that’s a lot of rubbish. You can make a career out of dancing. I would never have made a career out of dancing -I was never good enough. Even though she had never seen me dance she somehow instinctively knew. So she set me on the path to journalism because I’d told her how I liked talking and the media.
“In the end it’s weird that it’s all come back around.”
Joining her on the series are judges Paula Abdul, Jason Gilkison, Aaron Cash and Shannon Holtzapffel.
“They’re a great bunch and Paula and I hit it off straight away. You never quite now how you’re going to get along but for a show like that to work the chemistry is important and that isn’t always something that happens quickly, or even at all sometimes. Going into it I was wondering what they were going to be like but we got on like a house on fire,” she says.
“I think you’ll be blown away. They’re incredibly good dancers. I just stood there with my mouth open most of the time.”
But Bickmore also knows the show has its work cut out against heated competition and plenty of choice for viewers.
“There’s great shows on all networks. My son is obsessed with The Voice and I have to say ‘Dude you’re on the wrong channel!’ she laughs.
“TEN’s had a great start to the year and the Big Bash has been awesome. So I think it’s given us a lot of faith that we can do some good things at TEN this year. I’d be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t nervous about the ratings. Anyone going into a new show wants it to rate.
“But all I can do is the best I can do and hope it resonates with the audience at home, and I think it will.”
So You Think You Can Dance Australia premieres 6:30pm Sunday on TEN.
19 Responses
Looks like my prediction for ratings was right on the money.
You can donate my price to the RSPCA.
Yet another sloppy piece of programming from 10 bites the dust.
Awful promos, bad casting, stale format, niche audience appeal, etc.
Next contest – guess how many weeks before it is shifted to a week night slot in favour of Modern Family repeats?
I say three. That’s how long the Sarah Murdoch vanity piece lasted.
Maybe they’ll just bone the whole thing like they did with Everybody Dance Now?
I actually think this show might have a chance. At least it is based on skill and talent unlike the competition. Nothing skillful about MKR and the block. Carrie has to be a better host than ms Murdoch.
And if it gets 700k. That’s not bad for ten to build on
@ PJC – you have a point – they must run something – but with ten’s history, their damaged brand, their audience that have voted with their remotes, and the countless hundreds of thousands of people that may never switch back to ten due to their bad decisions in the past, than nothing they play is likely to hit the mark ….
One thing they already know, as well as the viewing audience of Australia, is that more reality television is not the answer… and yet, this is what they are doing ……
Out of curiosity – is the project tanking now because of the absence of Dave Hughes? I don’t watch it so Im not sure …..
MKR may be rating really well, but a lot of the fans aren’t as loyal as they appear. It tends to rate between 1.6 and 2.2 million, meaning there are a lot of casual fans who are willing ✔️ miss episodes here and there.
Big Bash games have sometimes had over 700k viewers, so the grand final should be higher, and it will be coupled with the opening of the Sochi games. Plus, the games are on Friday and Saturday, where 7 and 9 tend to be weaker, so they have the potential to bring in solid figures, which will be used as a platform to launch.
I don’t SYTYCDA will best MKR, but I don’t see it being like TBL. Biggest Loser is a format that has run 9 different seasons, with one every year since 2006, so the format has become a bit stale. SYTYCDA only ever did 3 seasons, the last of which was almost 4 years ago.
This will bomb even without the competition on 7, 9, and ABC.
Tired and stale and playing the desperate “emotional host” press release card.
Will be lucky to get 450K.
Appointing ms Bickmore is as bad as Tarsh/Tash on the breakfast show. Lazy casting.
Gold Logie nod indicates Carrie has a good fan base, as did the story. Ratings will reflect a lot more factors than host.
I love it how everyone goes on and on about TEN shooting themselves in the foot by scheduling programmes against MKR and The Block.
What should TEN do instead? Just give up for four months and run a test pattern..!??
I can’t wait for SYTYCDA to start.. Carrie is a great presenter and this show is full of positivity. Unlike the constant manufactured nastiness of the other two.
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Was Mrs. Murdoch not available?
Great to have SYTYCD back but I don’t think Carrie is a good choice for host – way too over exposed on the network, and I think these shows need someone who can match the energy – putting a newsreader in to host a reality show is like getting Peter Hitchener to host The Voice – its ridiculous
Also the fact its up against the big powerhouse shows on the big 2, it will do 500k like The Biggest Loser if its lucky
I don’t give a ratz about carrie, but I wish this show well.
Carrie Bickmore may be a lovely person, but as a news reader she is a shocker. As a host or presenter I can imagine she would be just as bad.
Cue all the whinging that Carrie is a terrible host and this show will flop…. its getting tired
I wish her, and the show, the best of lcuk
This is not really a news story David. If she can’t do the job she shouldn’t – there’s 100 other people who would gladly take her place.
I agree this will be one of the biggest flops of 2014 if for no other reason than they are putting it up against the highest rating show on TV (MKR). Remember what happened when they put The Bachelor against X Factor? They’ll be lucky to get 700k on Sunday while MKR will get 1.7m easily.
Has Carrie Bickmore danced before?
Shoudy I’m not sure you have read the story….?
This will flop!
Launching it against MKR and The Block is just plain suicide. Such bad programming! They should have waited until later in the year when the 7:30 competition is a little easier. I predict it will do no more than 700K. TEN desperately needs an executive with television experience to stop these type of dumb decisions.
I have to say it’s been a while since I’ve actually been excited for a show to start on Ten. SYTYCD has got me really excited!
I do watch TBL, but I think I watch it because I’ve always watched it, but SYTYCD is different.
Can’t wait till Sunday!!!
I don’t watch MKR. I do watch the block, but I’ll record it to watch later.
I would love to see SYTYCD succeed but I think it will be smashed by MKR and The Block. Ten need a hit.
For me, I’ll be watching this live and recording MKR. But I think it is doomed to fail against it. Which is a shame, because I absolutely love the show.