It was a 2nd go to try and get a talent show up and running. The previous year they had Search For A Star with Jimmy Hannan. IIRC, it was also on Fridays at 7.30.
If Sydney followed the same timeslot as Melbourne it’s probably no surprise these attempts didn’t work, as TCN9 used to run New Faces with Bert Newton on Fridays at 7.30.
Canberra/Southern NSW, Mon 5 Mar 1984
from TV Week
ABC Canberra/NSW/Victoria
8.00 Sesame Street
9.00 Larry the Lamb
9.15 Noddy
9.30 Play School
10.00 For Schools: Watch
10.20 For Schools: Personal Development
10.40 For Schools: A Search for Solutions
11.00 For Schools: Flip, Slide, Turn
11.20 For Schools: Walrus
11.40 For Schools: Infinity Limited
noon Four Corners
12.30 Weekend Magazine
1.00 News/Weather
1.11 For Schools: Words Fail Me
1.35 For Schools: My Place, Your Place
1.55 For Schools: After the Ouch
2.15 For Schools: Our Multicultural Society
2.30 Countrywide
3.00 Sesame Street
3.55 Captain Cookaburra’s Australia
4.00 Play Schools
4.30 Mr. Squiggle & Friends
5.00 Star Blazers
5.25 Danger Mouse
5.30 Metal Mickey
5.54 Come & Get It
6.00 Home
6.30 Doctor Who
6.54 Regional News
7.00 News/Sport/Weather
7.30 Yes Minister
8.00 Fawlty Towers
8.30 Nationwide
9.00 Jemima Shore Investigates (AO)
9.50 News/Weather
10.00 All-Star Soccer
11.00 close
WIN4 Wollongong
6.30 Facing the Week
6.35 Jazzercise
7.00 Today
9.00 Fat Cat & Friends
9.25 Courageous Cat
9.30 One Day at a Time
10.00 Young Doctors
10.30 Donahue (PGR)
11.30 News
noon Mike Walsh
1.30 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
2.30 Young & the Restless (PGR)
3.30 Ace
4.00 Wonder World [C]
4.30 Flipper [C]
5.00 New Price is Right
5.30 Get Smart
6.00 News/Weather
7.00 Sale of the Century
7.30 60 Minutes
8.30 A-Team (PGR)
9.27 Go Lotto
9.30 Dallas (PGR)
10.30 Movie “21 Hours at Munich” (AO)
12.30 News
1.00 Movie “A Taste of Evil” (AO)
2.15 Reflections
2.20 close
NBN3 Newcastle
7.00 News
7.30 Cartoon Carnival
9.05 Romper Room
9.35 Here’s Humphrey
10.30 Eight is Enough
11.30 Family Feud
11.55 News
noon Mike Walsh
1.30 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
2.25 Community Notice Board
2.30 Sons & Daughters
3.55 Go Health
4.00 Wombat [C}
4.30 Flipper [C]
5.00 Happy Days
5.30 New Price is Right
6.00 News/Weather
7.00 Sale of the Century
7.30 TV Bloopers #3
8.30 News
8.35 Cop Shop (PGR)
9.35 Go Lotto
9.40 Dallas (PGR)
10.40 Today’s FBI (AO)
11.35 Dick Emery
mid. close
CTC7 Canberra
7.00 Today
9.00 Here’s Humphrey
9.55 Cartoon
10.00 Jazzercise
10.30 Coronation Street (PGR)
11.00 Eleven AM
noon Mike Walsh
1.30 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
2.25 News
2.30 Restless Years (PGR; premiere)
3.35 New Adventures of Batman
4.00 Follyfoot [C; finale]
4.30 Lassie [C]
5.00 Get Smart
5.25 Community Billboard
5.30 Hogan’s Heroes
6.00 News
7.00 Sale of the Country
7.30 A Country Practice
8.27 News
8.30 Carson’s Law
9.30 Dallas (PGR)
10.30 Cagney & Lacey (PGR)
11.25 Movie “Betrayal” (AO)
1.15 close
CBN8 Orange/CWN6 Dubbo/MTN9 Griffith
9.00-9.55 Here’s Humphrey
11.00 CBN/CWN Around the Schools
noon Mike Walsh
1.35 News
1.45 Sullivans
2.15 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
3.05 Young & the Restless (PGR)
4.00 Flipper [C]
4.30 Wonder World [C]
5.00 He-Man & the Masters of the Universe
5.30 Price is Right
6.00 CBN/CWN Market Report
MTN Regional News/Weather
6.05 CBN/CWN Regional News/Weather
6.30 News/Weather
7.00 Sale of the Century
7.30 Believe It or Not!
8.30 Weather
8.35 Dallas (PGR)
9.30 Lotto Results
9.35 Hill Street Blues
10.30 Meet Your Member
10.35 Alice
11.00 CBN/CWN Market Report
MTN Regional News
11.10 CBN/CWN Regional News
11.30 CBN/CWN Epilogue
MTN close
11.35 CBN/CWN close
RVN2 Wagga Wagga/AMV4 Albury
10.29 Program Highlights
10.30 Here’s Humphrey
11.30 News
noon Mike Walsh
1.30 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
2.30 Sons & Daughters
3.00 At Home
3.10 Family Feud
3.35 Smurfs
4.00 Wonder World [C]
4.30 Jackanory Playhouse [C; premiere]
4.55 Cartoons
5.05 Fraggle Rock
5.35 Videobreak
5.40 Little People
6.10 Regional News
6.30 News/Weather
7.00 Sale of the Century
7.30 A Country Practice
8.30 Dallas (PGR)
9.25 NSW Lotto Draw
9.30 Cop Shop (PGR)
10.30 Meet Your Member
10.35 High Chaparral (PGR)
11.30 News
11.55 Teletext
mid. close
GMV6 Shepparton
10.25 Morning Meditation
10.30 Here’s Humphrey
11.25 Here’s Lucy
11.55 Regional News
noon Mike Walsh
1.30 Days of Our Lives (PGR)
2.30 Community Corner
2.35 Restless Years (PGR)
3.30 Popeye
4.00 Children’s Hour {C; Skippy and Wonder World]
5.00 Muppet Show
5.30 New Price is Right
6.00 Regional News
6.30 News/Weather
7.00 Sale of the Century
7.30 A-Team (PGR)
8.30 Dallas (PGR)
9.30 Prisoner (PGR)
10.30 Outlook (PGR)
11.00 News
11.50 close
Network 0-28 Canberra
4.10 Follow Me
4.30 On the Ball
5.30 Everybody Here UK
6.00 Rock Around the World
6.30 Jack London in the Great North Italy
7.00 International Sports Magazine
7.30 News
8.00 The Traditional World of Islam UK
8.30 Movie “The White Rose” Germany
10.35 News/Weather
10.40 The Life of Puccini Italy
11.50 close
Strange they describe it as a variety show, which I always associated with interviews and the odd performing guest, when it was more in the vein of New Faces and Australia’s Got Talent. Sadly, I can still remember the theme song from that Tim Webster talent show.
Star Search with Greg Evans in 1985, produced by David Lyle, was another one of Ten’s attempts at a talent show. It must’ve been moderately successful because it got a second season. There was also Star Search: The New Generation with Mike Hammond in the Shanks era. I don’t think they had huge success with the genre until Australian Idol came along in 2003.
Tim had been a radio DJ in Sydney (2SM, 2GB, 2MMM) and Melbourne (ABC and 3XY) for years before Ten chose him to be the first Good Morning Australia newsreader because of his voice and good looks. He co-hosted that show with Kerri-Anne Kennerley for a period in the early 1990s.
I like Tim Webster. He’s a Swiss Army Knife personified. 
I think Star Search got a bit of a reprieve when Nine axed New Faces, and Ten responded by putting Star Search into the old New Faces timeslot of Sunday 6.30. This was in Melbourne, not sure about other states.
There was also another Star Search with Jeff Phillips, or maybe he just took over from Hammond?
Then when Ten got Bert Newton on board they tried to revive New Faces but I think the only memorable part of that was that it was being mocked by Fast Forward
YouTube: jamesparth.
I’d forgotten about him. Thought he was an odd, obscure choice at the time considering his music success had come 20 years earlier and he’d kind of dropped out of sight in search of success overseas and as a stage performer. Perhaps Hammond took over from him as a way to appeal to a younger audience.
Just did a quick research, Jeff Phillips hosted Star Search when it began in February 1991. By May, he was replaced by Mike Hammond and the show moves to Friday 7.30pm. The show came to an end in November 1991, replaced by the New Faces revival with Bert Newton from February 1992. And Hammond then went on to host Good Morning Australia.
What was CBN in the 80s
What is now known as Prime7 Orange.
For most of the 80s, CBN was a member of MidState Television.
I didn’t see The Dismissal but remember it was very popular. Back when Ten and Kennedy Miller were banging out the hits.
And, the Birdman Rally yet again… must have not had any local talent to host so they got in Jonathan Coleman and Sheridan Jobbins from Wonder World.
The Kennedy Miller mini series always seem to do well for Ten. This aired the same weekend as the federal election.
They were huge at Ten but then they did a deal to partner with the Nine Network and nothing really eventuated from that.
Today’s TV: 7.3.1975, Melbourne
Source: TV Times
The TV Week Logie Awards are broadcast in colour for the first time.
Wow ATV0 didn’t sign off that night.
they used to run movies all night on Fridays in those days
And with the fashions at the time it would have been very colourful.
