What’s going on here? Are these reruns of Price is Right?
Yes.
Surprised to see hour-long edits of The Sullivans as early as 1977. Perhaps Melbourne were still showing 30 minute episodes back then? I thought it was five nights a week for the first year or so, at least on it’s home station GTV9.
I think it was always produced as half-hour episodes but GTV9 looks like they aired it as 2 double episodes each week. Then when the weeknight 7.00pm timeslot suddenly became available after the axing of A Current Affair in 1978, The Sullivans shifted to screening five nights a week at 7.00pm as half-hour episodes.
When Sale Of The Century debuted in July 1980, it went to the 7.00pm timeslot so The Sullivans then went back to airing as 1-hour episodes twice a week at 7.30pm.
But other stations in other cities may have also varied in how they aired the series. (e.g. I believe that QTQ9 in Brisbane continued to always show it as 2 x 1-hour episodes a week)
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Today’s TV: 6.4.1967, Melbourne
Source: TV Week
- Channels 7, 9 and 0 all doing a fair bit of Australian made programming in the afternoons: Beauty And The Beast, Casebook, People In Conflict, Time For Terry, Concentration, The Tommy Hanlon Show, Letter Charades, Divorce Court, Girl Talk, Dita, Take A Letter, The Marriage Game, Noel And Mary and Gordon And The Girls and probably not one informercial between them.
- Australian comedy with My Name’s McGooley What’s Yours and The Mavis Bramston Show on Seven
- The battle of the tonight shows with In Melbourne Tonight and The Tonight Show With Jimmy Hannan
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Today’s TV: 7.4.1982, Melbourne
Source: Woman’s Day / TV Day
- Rival versions of Beauty And The Beast on two channels. Seven’s with Derryn Hinch and Ten’s with John Laws.
- Prisoner must have got a bit softer these days as it is now in the 7.30 timeslot, as Channel 10 was screening a movie every night of the week at 8.30
- Ford Superquiz with Bert and Patti Newton, a re-make of the old Pick A Box show, is on Nine.
- ABC is the Australian broadcaster for Top Of The World, a UK-based quiz show featuring local contestants and satellite links to contestants in Australia and the US.
- Channel 10 trying to crack onto The Mike Walsh Show audience with game shows $100,000 Moneymakers (Jimmy Hannan) and It Could Be You (Barry Crocker and Melissa Hannan). Both remakes of earlier shows of the 60s and 70s.
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I notice the 5-minute news summary at 6.55pm on ABC is labelled “regionals only”. I’m not really au fait with how ABC worked in country areas - did they opt out of the state/metro feed for local news?
Some archive footage I’ve seen suggests some regional ABC stations even had their own continuity/presentation. Where would local news and/or pres have been broadcast from?
Yes. Regional ABC stations essentially relayed the capital city station but would opt out for regional news. (and occasionally for other programming, such as test cricket in summer months, which ABC did not air in capital cities as Nine would cover those markets)
I don’t remember these bulletins all that well but AFAIK they were very basic rip-and-read news bulletins and no filmed reports. They were presented from the capital city and sent out on the links to the regional stations.
The only ABC regionals that I am aware of that had their own presentation etc was ABRQ3 Rockhampton and ABTQ3 Townsville which were established before the existence of microwave links between them and Brisbane. In all other cases the regional ABC station was a relay of their capital city.
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regional variations for ABC tended for the most part to disappear in the late 1980s/early 1990s with aggregation. ABC used to have regional variations for local news and cricket, but I think this is why we were to receive multi-channels, to save ABC money and not produce local news and other productions such as cricket (test series)
From this clip, it looks like ABKT King Island had its own presentation in the 80s. The announcer mentions problems with the microwave link from the “mainland” - presumably Tasmania, unless the problems originated earlier in the chain.
ABKT11 would have been a relay of ABT2 in Hobart which in turn would have relied on the microwave link to the mainland. The presentation and announcer would be based in Hobart
EDIT: Actually if you see to the end of that video it goes to a test pattern from ABNT3 Launceston. So ABKT was probably just a relay of ABNT Launceston which would have been co-ordinated from Hobart AFAIK.
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Today’s TV: 8.4.1981, Melbourne
Source: The Australian Women’s Weekly / TV World
Taxi Driver (modified for television) and The Sound Of Music both big movie screenings. Sound Of Music, which broke ratings records only a couple of years earlier, would have still been a bit rater for Nine.
Similar to most TV guides at the time, SBS listed separately to the other networks
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Unsure on whether this applied to Melbourne, but Taxi Driver was banned from airing on ATN-7 in Sydney, in which it was scheduled to air on Monday 6th April 1981, following the ABT ruling over the movie’s link of a recent assassination attempt on then US President Ronald Reagan.
Here’s a snippet of an SMH (who owned ATN-7 at the time) article from 4th April 1981 about it below, which was on the front page:
Taxi Driver eventually premiered on ATN-7 on 1st May 1984, and has since been aired on Ten, ABC & SBS over the years.
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Given it was the same week, Melbourne was probably the same
Was quite a strange one, sounded national at times but then also local. He also said something like “and from the boys at both mountains, it’s goodnight” which would be Mount Wellington and Mount Barrow I assume where the two broadcasts for Tas originate. I also like the “if you don’t like it, don’t phone up. Write to the general master of programming”. A real don’t care attitude from there, I can only imagine how many phone calls they used to get from people complaining over stuff that wasn’t their choice!
Interesting the anti drinking ad too talking about Real Mates - that’s a slogan been used the past few years with a series of ads too in Tassie. I think that might have also gone to some other states as well.
As for the 6:55 timeslot, I remember this one every night in Northern Tassie in the early 90’s I reckon it would have been, possibly late 80’s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V94Awpirdoo - this doesn’t seem to have sound, but this one does without the animation that was shown.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vrMvblpZFq0
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Melbourne, Tuesday 11 April 2000
from The Age Green Guide
ABC
6.00 Lifelong Learning: Exploring the World of Music (G)
6.30 Open Learning: Marketing (G)
7.00 Blinky Bill (G)
7.25 Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends (G)
7.30 Teletubbies (G)
7.55 Miffy (G)
8.00 Brambly Hedge (G)
8.25 Hairy Maclary (G)
8.30 Sesame Street (G)
9.30 Play School (G)
10.00 Schools: Spirits of the Jaguar (G)
11.00 Schools: The Face of Russia (G)
noon World at Noon
12.30 Australian Story
1.00 Four Corners
1.45 Media Watch
2.00 Parliament Question Time: House of Representatives
3.00 Bear in the Big Blue House
3.25 Koki (G)
3.30 Play School (G)
4.00 Wombles (G)
4.10 Animal Shelf (G)
4.20 Rocky & the Dodos (G)
4.30 Where’s Wally (G)
4.55 Zoo Olympics (G)
5.00 Rugrats (G)
5.25 Fly Tales (G)
5.30 Animorphs (G)
6.00 Flashback (G)
6.30 Something in the Air (G)
7.00 News/Sport/Weather
7.30 7.30 Report
8.00 Flight for Life (G/finale)
8.30 The Bill (G)
9.30 Foreign Correspondent
10.30 Lateline
11.15 2 Shot (G)
11.45 Parliament Question Time: Senate
12.45 Movie “Young and Innocent” (bw/PG)
2.05 Search for the Holy Grail (G)
3.00 Open Learning: Against All Odds (G)
3.30 Open Learning: Destinos (G)
4.00 Lifelong Learning: A Sense of Place (G)
4.30 Open Learning: The Global Economy (G)
5.00 Open Learning: Photography (G)
5.30 Open Learning: French in Action (G)
Seven
6.00 The Big Breakfast (G)
6.30 The Book Place [P]
9.00 The Morning Shift (PG; Prime ran Infobreak International and Victor Paul Home Shopping for the first hour, JIPing at 10)
11.00 Denise (PG; Prime opted for Sons & Daughters in the slot)
noon Movie “School Ties” (PG)
2.30 Ricki Lake (PG; Prime aired Mary Tyler Moore at 2:30, Our Sporting Country at 3)
3.30 Disney Adventures (G)
4.00 Wipeout [C]
4.30 Power Rangers Lost Galaxy
5.00 Keeping Up Appearances (G; Prime ran Wheel of Fortune in Albury)
5.30 Wheel of Fortune (G; local news aired on Prime Albury)
6.00 News/Sport/Weather
6.30 Today Tonight
7.00 Home & Away (G)
7.30 Better Homes & Gardens (G)
8.00 The Great Outdoors (G)
8.28 Oz Lotto
8.30 All Saints (M)
9.30 Cold Feet (M)
10.40 Buffy the Vampire Slayer (M)
11.35 News
mid. AFL Wrap (Round 5 highlights)
1.00 NBC Today (Prime aired Shop America at 1 and TVSN from 2 to 6)
3.00 Telemall Shopping
4.00 Danoz Direct
5.10 Promised Land (PG)
Nine
6.00 Early News
7.00 Today
9.00 Hi-5 [P]
9.30 Blue’s Clues (G; WIN dumped Blue for Telemall)
10.00 Martin Short (PG; more shopping on WIN)
11.00 News
11.30 Entertainment Tonight (PG)
noon Days of Our Lives (PG)
1.00 Young & the Restless (PG)
2.00 Movie “Spenser: A Savage Place” (PG)
4.00 Download [C]
4.30 Family Matters (G; WIN ran Full House)
5.00 Fresh Prince of Bel Air (G)
5.30 Burgo’s Catch Phrase (G)
6.00 News/Sport/Weather (WIN airs local news)
6.30 A Current Affair (Nine News on delay on WIN)
7.00 Sale of the New Century (A Current Affair on WIN)
7.29 Keno
7.30 Australia’s Funniest Home Video Show (PG; WIN airs Drew Carey here, with this show airing at 8)
8.00 Drew Carey (PG)
8.30 Water Rats (M)
9.30 Third Watch (M)
10.30 Nightline (G)
11.00 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (PG)
mid. Late Show with David Letterman (PG)
1.00 Entertainment Tonight (PG)
1.30 Space Island One (PG)
2.30 Hawaiian Eye (bw/PG)
3.30 Victor Paul Home Shopping
4.30 Shop America (G; WIN stays with this til 6)
5.00 20/20 (PG)
Ten
6.00 Aerobics Oz Style (G)
6.30 Sports Tonight (G)
7.00 Cheez TV (G)
8.30 In the Mix [P]
9.00 Good Morning Australia (PG)
11.00 Huey’s Cooking Adventures (PG)
11.30 News
noon Hercules: The Legendary Adventures (PG)
1.00 Judge Judy (PG: Ten Vic airs Danoz Direct)
1.30 Beauty & the Beast (PG)
2.30 Oprah Winfrey (PG)
3.30 Neighbours (G; early episodes)
4.00 Totally Wild [C]
4.30 Bold & the Beautiful (G)
5.00 News/Sport/Weather
6.00 The Nanny (G)
6.30 Neighbours (G)
7.00 Seinfeld (G)
7.30 Just Shoot Me! (G)
8.00 Love Rules (PG)
8.30 Charmed (M)
9.30 Above the Law (M)
10.30 News
11.00 Sports Tonight (G)
11.30 Pepsi Chart (G)
mid. Roseanne Show (PG; regional viewers see Danoz Direct)
1.00 Sunset Beach (M)
2.00 Telemall Shopping
3.00 Danoz Home Shopping (G)
4.00 Life in the Word
4.30 Kenneth Copeland
5.00 Marilyn Hickey (G)
5.30 This is Your Day with Benny Hinn (G)
SBS
6.00 Cantonese News
6.25 Mandarin News
6.55 Telegiornale
7.30 Das Journal
8.00 Ta Nea Ton Ennea
9.00 Le Journal
9.30 Sevodnia
10.10 Telediario
11.00 Siaran Berita
11.30 The Journal
noon Nightly Business Report
12.30 Movie “A Girl from Flanders” (Germany; bw/PG)
2.10 WeatherWatch/Music
3.00 TV Ed
3.30 World Sport
4.00 Futbol Mundial
4.30 Gourmet Ireland (Ireland; G)
5.00 NewsHour with Jim Lehrer
6.00 Global Village (France; G)
6.30 World News
7.00 World Sport
7.30 Front Up
8.00 On the Edge (PG)
8.30 The Cutting Edge: The Alzheimer’s Mystery (France; G)
9.30 World News Tonight
10.00 Movie “West Beirut” (Lebanon; Mlvs)
11.55 The Storm Rages Twice (Lebanon; PG)
1.00 Movie “Shameless” (Germany; Msa)
2.30 close
5.00 WeatherWatch/Music
5.30 Japanese News
C31 (the Age had two different approaches to C31 listings in those days…shoehorning them into the SBS column in the Green Guide, and not listing it at all in the Sunday TV magazine)
1.30pm RMIT General Pathology Lecture
2.30 Fishcam
6.00 Living Word
6.30 Slovenian Magazine
7.00 Macedonian Program
7.30 Buone Notizie
8.00 Eastern News Beat
8.30 Hawk TV
9.00 The Bike Show
9.30 In Pit Lane
10.00 Gwyneth’s Head
11.00 Flipside
11.30 Fishcam
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Today’s TV: 22.4.2003, Melbourne
Source: TV Week
And just for a little bit of context. This series final of The Bachelor from the US had aired there in November 2002. We were almost six months behind.
The only digital multi-channels were SBS World News Channel and I think ABC Kids/Fly TV was still going but about to get the chop.
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…and of course, it was the Easter non-ratings period so Nine were probably airing The Bachelor from the US while McLeod’s Daughters (which I’m sure was Nine’s main Wednesday 7.30pm show of the time) was on a break. May also explain the repeat-heavy lineup Ten had that night.
It would’ve been school holidays time too, with the ABC airing children’s programs until 12pm (educational programs were on from 10am to noon during school terms only). Seven also catered to younger viewers not normally at home between 9.30am and 10.30am, with a couple of C classification programs during that time.
As far as the Pay TV channels are concerned, “fx” would be rebranded as “w” later in 2003.
If they count at all, the “Video Program Guide” channels from Seven and Nine might’ve also been on Digital TV in April 2003.
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Still a 9 months before TDT in Tasmania came into existence too. It’s weird thinking that will be 15 years old at the end of this year.