Tonight’s The Checkout will be the last for now. Next week is the budget reply speech and then The Chaser’s Election Desk.
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That was the third episode tonight, right? From memory there were six produced for this season, including two compilation episodes
Edit: it was the fourth.
The announcement at the end of the show said to tune in for The Chaser’s Election Desk from Wednesday 8 June - so rather than taking The Checkout’s timeslot, it seems that the team can’t produce two shows at once?
At the end of this week show, it was announced that the next 2 weeks would be “factory seconds” episodes then the show would return in 2017.
What am I going to watch now 
###The Checkout Season 5
Empowering audiences with its mix of strident consumer advocacy balanced by comedy, The Checkout has transformed consumer affairs in Australia. Featured stories on everything from gendered marketing to health insurance coupled with interstitial favourites such as ‘product versus packshot’ have become compelling viewing. Featuring Craig Reucassel, Julian Morrow, Kirsten Drysdale, Zoe Norton-Lodge, Alex Lee and Ben Jenkins, the show is a crucible for upcoming talent. The Australian Consumer law has never been less dull.
Production Credits: Produced by Giant Dwarf
Runs for: Twelve x 30min episodes, plus four x 30min ‘best ofs’ and 20 x ‘snack size’ episodes of 4-9mins on ABC TV and ABC iview.
Coming to 2017
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###The Checkout Season 5
From Thursday 6 April at 8:00pm
The Checkout, ABC’s factual consumer affairs series, returns to our screens with 12 x 30’ episodes which aim to turn consumer TV on its head with its no-holds-barred, irreverent and entertaining approach to the subject at hand.
As in previous series, presenters will include Julian Morrow and Craig Reucassel from The Chaser team, Kirsten Drysdale, Zoe Norton Lodge, Ben Jenkins, Scott Abbot, Alex Lee, Andy Matthews and Kate Browne from CHOICE. The Checkout is a co-production between ABC TV, Giant Dwarf and CJZ.
Each episode will tackle issues that face all of us when we open our wallets - identifying ways consumers are being taken advantage of, manipulated and ripped off… even if there’s nothing illegal about it.
With support from Australia’s consumer group CHOICE, The Checkout aims to give viewers a healthy and/or dangerous mix of info and attitude that hopefully might lead to smarter spending decisions
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Sounds like CHOICE is going to be a lot more involved this year?
The Checkout Season 6
Returns Tuesday 30 January at 8pm
SERIES 6
PREMIERES IN NEW TIME SLOT
8PM Tuesday 30 January
Australia’s leading - and only - satirical consumer affairs show, The Checkout, returns to ABC with 12 new 30 minute episodes on Tuesday 30 January 2018 with:
● NEW LOOK! The Checkout has had an extreme makeover with new logo, show branding and theme music.
● NEW TIMESLOT! after 5 years airing on Thursdays, The Checkout moves to Tuesday nights 8pm
● NEW SEGS! like Shocking Savings, Craig Reucassel, fresh from the success of his War on Waste, hunts for practical ways to save you money on your power bills. Of course you’ll need to have your TV on to find out how, but you’re welcome to unplug it after!
And in What To Reject When You’re Expecting, presenter and expectant mother Zoe Norton Lodge explores the questionable products flogged to expecting couples and recommends cheap, effective alternatives that aren’t marketed to a Guilty Mum.
Series 6 also sees the return of old favourites such as Product vs Packshot, The Catch, Asterisk Man, Signs of the Times … and the outlet for viewer complaints FUtube.
And as always, the core of The Checkout will continue to be stories addressing all manner of consumer issues that directly affect your life… and will help save you money. Topics on the menu including buying a TV, bed sheets, and bread; aged care; life insurance in superannuation; and dealing with the challenge/horror of building your own home.
Each episode will tackle issues that face all of us when we open our wallets - identifying ways consumers are being taken advantage of, manipulated and ripped off… even if there’s nothing illegal about it.
Presenters for series 6 are: Mark Sutton, David Cunningham, Alex Lee (Choice), Scott Abbot, Craig Reucassel, Ben Jenkins, Kirsten Drysdale, Julian Morrow and Zoë Norton Lodge (L-R in photo).
Hate the new graphics…
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Thank god there’s new theme music.
Not sure that “product vs packshot” qualifies as a popular segment either.
My wife’s favourite actually!
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I find it really repetitive. Especially those few episodes where they’ve run three or four in a row.
Looks like they’re going for a bit more of a newsy, authoritative appearance.
Fingers crossed. The show’s “comedy” is a massive cringefest and often unnecessary.
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New logo
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The Checkout is the newest victim of ABC budget cuts:
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