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Seven to reboot Man O Man with Dr. Chris Brown

First project for Seven's hunky new recruit has leaked. And it's a doozy.

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Dr. Chris Brown’s first TV project with Seven has been leaked: a reboot of ’90s light entertainment show, Man O Man.

Brown recently announced he was leaving Network 10 to join Seven for new projects, the first of which is a return of a show once dubbed a “male beauty quest.”

When it screened in 1994 with host Rob Guest, Man O Man flipped the traditional beauty quest on its head with hunky men in Hawaiian shirts or dinner suits strutting their stuff before a crowd of rowdy women sipping cocktails.

As they voted for the hottest bloke, eliminated men were pushed into a purpose-built swimming pool -which can still be found under the studio floor at NEP in South Melbourne.

The new version set for 2024 offers a new car as prize, leaning into the eligible bachelor’s chiselled good looks and versatile hosting skills, whilst reviving a broadly-appealing game show set to lure in primetime viewers.

But there are no plans for Brown to get shirtless and be dunked into the pool.

Seven’s Chief Content Officer, Entertainment Programming, Angus Ross, said: “Man O Man will be event television when it returns for its 30th anniversary. It has the wow factor, heart and humour that we know will captivate viewers around the country. Dr. Chris Brown is the perfect host who isn’t afraid to have fun or offer a little mouth to mouth to a Shetland pony.”

“I am so excited to bring back this flagship show,” said Brown. “In challenging times with rising interest rates, housing affordability and climate change, a splash in the Man O Man pool is the perfect antidote to lighten the mood. It’s Australia’s greatest wet dream.”

The new-look series will also see Sonia Kruger poolside as one of six network faces who will dunk eliminated men into the drink. Joining her are Sam Armytage, Kylie Gillies, Natalie Barr, Rickie-Lee Coulter and Lynne McGranger.

Man O Man will also feature reunion episodes in which eliminated contestants will front for a dinner party where nothing is off the table, except actual food, to be replaced by copious amounts of alcohol and promo producers ready to edit the shit out of the thing.

Brown’s other projects which TV Tonight understands are part of his deal with Seven include Dancing with the Vets, Guinea Pigs Make you LOL, Bringing Sexy Dogs Back and a clip show of Russell Gilbert’s Favourite Roast Chooks.

Seven execs are understood to have baulked at one other idea, a 2024 revival of reality diving show, Celebrity Splash.

“Get real. There’s no way we’d bring that belly flop back,” said Ross.

Update: Happy April Fool’s everyone. Thanks for playin’!

Photo: Roberto Parlavecchio.

78 Responses

  1. I was so annoyed that this was an April Fools joke.
    I thoroughly loved watching this when I lived in England, with Chris Tarrant as the host. It was the highlight of alot of us girls’ weeks!

    It’s different to just a dating show, or The Bachelor, there’s humour, and some cheeky fun. I’d really love to see this revived again!

  2. Seriously, people here…same as in Facey….just read the headline and dont bother reading the whole post….before commenting….Does my head in 🙄

  3. Channel seven are taking a lot of risks with new shows and reboots of old shows, some work some don’t but they should be commended for taking the chances.

  4. LOL! That’s a pretty funny story. But I wish it had been true. Man O Man was a pretty good show. The thing I remember about that show were the guys being pushed into the pool.

  5. I knew that this had to be the traditional April 1st joke, but you never know with Ch7!!
    I worked on this show with Rob Guest. He was one of the nicest people to work with and the crew would always end up having drinks after the 2 Monday night recordings in his dressing room.
    The show itself was a hoot to work on too.

  6. … I know this is a gag, but I don’t think 7 would/could contemplate another go at Man O Man … this from a friend of mine:

    Every time I was in Melbourne working at HSV7 and the show was recording, there were drunk women staggering down Dorcas or Coventry Streets making their way home! And the next day you’d find empty champagne bottles in the bushes beside the studio wall in Wells St. Occasionally, the next morning, you’d actually find a lady or two from the audience asleep in the bushes! Apparently they used to wait outside for the hunks to leave after they were ushered out of the studio!!! Today, in a world of OH&S, you’d never be able to ply the audience with so much booze and you’d possibly have to supply transport.

    1. Seven would have cut way down on the booze if if were to reboot Man O Man. They would need to serve non-alcoholic beverages. Water and tea wouldn’t be “fancy” enough for television. However, there are sparkling beverages and ciders that might work.

  7. On Saturday 6pm Channel 7 news just before an ad break, they had a preview of a story coming up regarding April Fools jokes.

    On the very quick teaser, I am almost certain they showed your Chris Brown photo.

    There was no mention of it however in the actual story.

  8. So the best 7 can come up with is reviveing a 30 year old show that didn’t do well back in 1994!
    Chris Brown must be thinking what hashe done! Don’t see it lasting too long!

  9. Excellent Mr. Knox. But is it just me or is this worth seven considering. MAFS is trouncing any and everything before it and shows no signs of tiring. It may not be water cooler programming but would probably do ok on 7day numbers and would be cheaper than Idol. David, perhaps a side hustle for you in programming consulting?

    1. This format could be Seven’s answer to MAFS, but only if the two aren’t directly competing with each other as they have a strong potential to attract much of the same audience.

  10. I was working as the clock struck midnight last night and all I could think of was “What’s David gonna spring on us this year?”. Love your work! #longtimetvtfan

  15. The pool bit was a real LOL! Good one, David. I still reckon your Lisa Wilkinson-BB one is the greatest ever, seem to recall that going viral and even tricking many within industry/media!

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