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Friday Flashback: Still the One

On the back of Nine regaining the ratings crown, here's a look back to when it was "Still the One."

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On the back of Nine regaining the ratings crown, here’s a look back to when it was “Still the One.”

There’s a lot I could say about some of the images in these, but will leave that to readers.

I dig the big band one though…

31 Responses

  1. It was a bit arrogant. Sure they were number one at the time but we didn’t need to be told all the time. It isn’t a coincidence that the whole thing was dropped when Kerry Packer went on a so-called “cost cutting” spree in 1999 (as it was called at the time by the press). In reality it was a quest to cut the running costs of the network to a minimum so he could put the rest of that money into his own pocket to make himself even richer.

    The “cost cutting” spree involved the axing of The Midday Show, Wide World of Sports, Sports Sunday and Hey Hey It’s Saturday. It hit Nine badly and they lost their position at number one. I was glad about that because it showed that greed doesn’t always rule.

    1. That was what always irked me about it: all the self satisfied arrogance and smugness. I was relieved when Seven took the crown just so Nine would calm down. Seven hasn’t felt the need to make such a (literal) song and dance about being #1, even after all these years.

  4. I feel like the general population started to fall out of love with television around the time networks stopped investing in branding and idents like these. A coincidence?

  5. Nine copied the campaign from ABC US. “In 1977, “Still The One” was used as a jingle by the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) to promote the 1977-78 television season” (Wikip). Unfortunately these days presentation has been butchered, all in the belief that people won’t change channels if we cut credits and crash into the next program. 10 crashes into aerial shots of NYC for Blue Bloods when it’s not clear that L&O SVU has actually ended. Now every commercial break has to contain at least two promos, followed by hideously bright popups.

    1. Oh I hate the way they do that. Can’t tell when one show ends & the next one starts. Bring back end credits. Or at the start they used to have ‘the following programme contains violence, language, sex scene’ blah blah blah.

  6. Thanks David. They don’t make them like that anymore- or at all sadly. These were clever and catchy, unlike today’s generic offerings of deep voice overs and clips of shows “coming soon”.

  7. I really miss these, haven’t seen them around for what ten years now?
    Also, I love station idents. Channel nines were always the best, and the music showed complete class.

  10. I love that they were No 1 on the back of all the CBS dramas that are now standard on Bold. Also the video that came up on YouTube for me after this one was Seven 2002 called The One to Watch.

  11. I think that was Tracy Grimshaw’s first year presenting ACA? (The only year her and Naomi Robson went head to head, the latter easily accounting for her in the ratings).

    Tracy’s still there and for years now dominating the timeslot.

  12. Such a catchy jingle, and I used to love singing along to it. The talent all look so young in those promos, and I’d forgotten the extent of the crush I had on Larry Emdur way back when ?

  16. I think in order to bring back Still the One they would have to win next year too. Will be interesting to see if Nine do some rebranding and incorporate something over summer.

  17. The first video in your article is still my favorite and reminds me of the days when there was actually quite a lot on Nine to watch, these days it’s a rarity for me to watch their content.

  19. “I dig the big band one though…” Eddie hated that one and it come off air as soon as he became CEO.

    I agree that it’s pretty cool but my favourite one from Nine is this one

    youtu.be/L8s6jsVGPUg

    It makes no sense at all but screams lets spend alot of money!!

  20. It would be a great sense of nostalgia if they were to do one this year that was along the lines of “We’re number 1” instead of “We’re still the 1”

        1. … unless it’s the Logies … youtube.com/watch?v=ctv57JqM2qQ (PS Jamie Dunne and I created the “Agro and the Agrettes” bit together with the BTQ 7 studio crew …

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