On This Day

[TelevisionAU]

17 February 1961: The premiere of Crawford Productions’ first television drama series, Consider Your Verdict. Produced at HSV7’s “Teletheatre” and regarded as the first Australian-made one-hour drama series, Consider Your Verdict continued for over 160 episodes before winding up in 1964.

17 February 1978: The premiere of ABC four-part drama series Loss Of Innocence, based on a story starting in Sydney in the 1930s going through to the 1970s. Starring Ronald Falk, Monica Maughan, Carol Burns, Enid Lorimer, Carol Raye, David Franklin, Alwyn Kurts, John Fitzgerald and Edward Howell.

17 February 1990: ABC presents the ABC Sports Award Of The Year, live from the Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra.

17 February 1991: SBS begins a national screening of the twelve-part documentary series My Place, My Land, My People, a production of Queensland-based regional broadcaster QTV and a winner at the 1990 TV Week Logie Awards for most outstanding achievement by a regional television station

17 February 1993: ABC launches its new Asia-Pacific television service, Australia Television International (ATVI) with a one-hour special, A Network Begins, hosted by Karina Kelly. ATVI was officially opened by Prime Minister Paul Keating. Later, ABC begins nightly broadcast of Australia Television International News, presented from ABC’s Darwin studios. ATVI initially broadcast via satellite to fifteen countries in South-East Asia.

17 February 1995: The one-hour special The Mavis Bramston 30th Anniversary pays tribute to the popular comedy show of the 1960s, hosted by Amanda Keller and featuring Mavis originals Carol Raye and Barry Creyton with guest stars Garry McDonald, Andrew Denton, Noeline Brown and the cast of Big Girl’s Blouse.

17 February 1997: Drama series Big Sky, starring Gary Sweet, Alexandra Fowler and Martin Henderson, debuts on Ten with a two-hour episode.

17 February 2006: Friday Night Games, a spin-off from Big Brother: Friday Night Live, debuts with Mike Goldman, Bree Amer and Ryan Fitzgerald. The show features teams of celebrities participating in games and challenges.

[TelevisionAU]

18 February 1972: Bert Newton hosts the 14th annual TV Week Logie Awards at Melbourne’s Southern Cross Hotel. The Nine Network telecast was shown live to Sydney and Melbourne and for the first time to Brisbane and Adelaide.

18 February 1979: The Sydney premiere of the Seven Network documentary series This Fabulous Century hosted by Peter Luck. The new series, including footage from Cinesound, Movietone and the National Film and Sound Archive to illustrate the history of Australia from Federation to the present day, debuts with a one-hour episode. The series debuted in Melbourne the following Sunday.

18 February 1980: Melbourne’s ATV10 screens the telemovie The Franky Doyle Story, tracing the story of the notorious Prisoner character played by Carol Burns.

18 February 1984: After over a decade on Saturday mornings, Hey Hey It’s Saturday moves to prime time and is re-named Hey Hey It’s Saturday Night.

18 February 1985: After 12 years at midday, The Mike Walsh Show makes its prime time debut. Network 0-28 is re-branded as SBS in anticipation of the network’s expansion to Brisbane, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Newcastle and Wollongong later in the year and the eventual removal of the VHF Channel 0 transmissions in Sydney and Melbourne. The re-launch also coincides with the debut of regular daytime programming on the channel.

18 February 1987: Don Lane returns to television with the debut of You’ve Got To Be Joking, a weekly series of practical jokes and hidden camera stunts.

18 February 2007: The debut of the first series of Australia’s Got Talent, with contestants vying for a grand final prize of $250,000. Judging the contestants are Red Symons, Dannii Minogue and Tom Burlinson.

[Tane04]

@TelevisionAU

18 February 1984: After over a decade on Saturday mornings, Hey Hey It’s Saturday moves to prime time and is re-named Hey Hey It’s Saturday Night.

@TelevisionAU

Network 0-28 is re-branded as SBS in anticipation of the network’s expansion to Brisbane, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Newcastle and Wollongong later in the year and the eventual removal of the VHF Channel 0 transmissions in Sydney and Melbourne.

“We’re SBS. Bringing the world back home.”

[JohnsonTV]

It will be a double milestone for the multicultural broadcaster next year (50th anniversary of SBS Radio and the 40th anniversary of the 0-28 network rebranding to SBS).

[Avatar5991]

19/2/2007 Stephanie Brantz is introduced as the new sports presenter on Nightline. I also think it was on the same night they changed the backdrop from the previous look seen on the national bulletins, to be that of a shot of Sydney at night.

[TelevisionAU]

23 February 1981: Network Ten revives the breakfast news format with the debut of Good Morning Australia, hosted by Gordon Elliott and Sue Kellaway.

23 February 1993: Hugo Weaving, Heather Mitchell, Andy Anderson and Victoria Longley star in Lust, the opening episode of the ABC anthology series Seven Deadly Sins.

23 February 1995: The daily adventures of vet Peter Trembath are covered in the new six-part documentary series The Flying Vet (ABC).

23 February 1998: James O’Neil hosts Seven‘s new afternoon game show, Hot Streak.

23 February 2000: The Mole, a reality competition based on a Belgian format, debuts on Seven, hosted by Grant Bowler.

23 February 2009: The Cut, a six-part drama exploring the sometimes murky world of sports management, debuts on ABC. Starring John Wood, Matt Passmore, Ben Oxenbould and Julieanne Newbould.

23 February 2010: Network Ten launches its new morning show Breakfast with Paul Henry, Andrew Rochford, Kathryn Robinson and Magdalena Roze

[Tane04]

@TelevisionAU

23 February 2000: The Mole, a reality competition based on a Belgian format, debuts on Seven, hosted by Grant Bowler.

The last time Seven did a series of The Mole was back in 2013, this time hosted by Shura Taft.

[Avatar5991]

@Tane04

@TelevisionAU

23 February 2000: The Mole, a reality competition based on a Belgian format, debuts on Seven, hosted by Grant Bowler.

The last time Seven did a series of The Mole was back in 2013, this time hosted by Shura Taft.

The Mole was never the same after the third season, after which it went downhill with the fourth season based in New Caledonia (with the subtitle being The Mole in Paradise).

The stripped-down 2013 season did not work out well for a variety of reasons, of which there was little or no “commentary” of the contestants’ actions during team assignments as was seen during the Grant Bowler seasons.

[BigVic]

@TelevisionAU

23 February 2010: Network Ten launches its new morning show Breakfast with Paul Henry, Andrew Rochford, Kathryn Robinson and Magdalena Roze

2012. And what a disaster it was

[Avatar5991]

Launching Breakfast on a Thursday off the back of a potential Federal leadership spill (which didn’t happen) put the viewers offside from the start.

It was originally meant to launch on the following Monday (27/2/2012).

Ten went downhill after losing the AFL rights at the end of 2011, as well as axing long-time staples Video Hits and Sports Tonight among other programs.

[BigVic]

Didn’t got the rights for the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics instead just the Sochi 2014 WOG.

[TelevisionAU]

25 February 1971: The first episode of the 0-10 Network police drama Matlock Police, based around a fictional town in country Victoria. The series starred Paul Cronin, Vic Gordon, Grigor Taylor and Michael Pate. The debut episode, titled 26 Hours, featured a guest appearance by Sheila Florance.

25 February 1996: In the lead up to the Federal Election, ABC screens The Debate: The Prime Minister Paul Keating Vs The Leader Of The Opposition, John Howard.

[Tane04]

@TelevisionAU

25 February 1971: The first episode of the 0-10 Network police drama Matlock Police, based around a fictional town in country Victoria. The series starred Paul Cronin, Vic Gordon, Grigor Taylor and Michael Pate. The debut episode, titled 26 Hours, featured a guest appearance by Sheila Florance.

Ran for six seasons before being spun-off in 1976 as Solo One.

[TelevisionAU]

26 February 1966: New TV station — SDQ4, Southern Downs, Queensland.

26 February 1975: The ABC sketch comedy special Basically Black features members of the National Black Theatre: Bindi Williams, Gary Foley, Zac Martin and Aileen Corpus.

26 February 1977: The annual GTV9 Yooralla Telethon is officially opened by newsreader Eric Pearce and personalities featured during the day included Don Lane, Mike Walsh, Daryl Somers, Paul Hogan and Bert Newton. The 1977 telethon raised a total of $594,741.21.

26 February 1979: The 0-10 Network‘s new drama series Prisoner debuts on TEN10, Sydney. The other stations in the 0-10 network screen the premiere episode the following night.

26 February 2006: Sunrise hosts David Koch and Melissa Doyle host Seven‘s new nostalgia show Where Are They Now?

26 February 2007: The Nine Network launches daytime talk show The Catch-Up, featuring Libbi Gorr, Zoe Sheridan, Lisa Oldfield and Mary Moody.

[Tane04]

The Catch Up - Nine’s failed attempt at copying The View. Was created to fill the space left after the shock cancelling of The Young and the Restless.

[TelevisionAU]

27 February 1975: ABC screens the movie Who Killed Jenny Langby?, a documentary and dramatised account of the pressures and breakdown of a working class family and the death of wife and mother Jenny Langsby (Julie Dawson). The movie was based on a mix of real-life case histories and included interviews and commentary by journalist Anne Deveson.

27 February 1979: The 0-10 Network‘s new drama Prisoner debuts on ATV0, Melbourne, TVQ0, Brisbane, and SAS10, Adelaide, following its premiere in Sydney the previous night.

Melbourne:

Brisbane:

27 February 1984: Nine debuts its new late evening lineup — current affairs show Willesee at 9.30pm and variety show Tonight With Bert Newton at 10.00pm. Both shows airing Monday to Thursday nights.

27 February 2000: Seven debuts The Olympic Show, a series featuring news on the upcoming Games Of The XXVII Olympiad to be held in Sydney. The series is presented by Tracey Holmes, Mike Whitney and Dawn Fraser.

27 February 2007: The premiere of ABC‘s four-part documentary series Not All Tea And Scones, about the New South Wales Country Women’s Association.

[TelevisionAU]

28 February 1959: ABC debuts music show Six O’Clock Rock, hosted by Ricki Merriman and featuring Johnny O’Keefe and his band The Dee Jays. O’Keefe took over as host six weeks later.

28 February 1975: The last day of black and white television with colour transmission officially launching at 12.00am on Saturday 1 March 1975.

28 February 1978: ABC debuts the late night music show, Rocturnal, hosted by David Woodhall and produced at ABS2, Adelaide. The program was inspired by the ABCFM radio show of the same name.

28 February 1982: Greg Evans hosts ATV10’s live coverage of Moomba Festival’s Birdman Rally. This was followed by highlights of the Mushroom Evolution Concert, which was held at the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in January as a celebration of ten years of Mushroom Records. Performers at the concert included Renee Geyer, Russell Morris, The Sports, Jo Jo Zep And The Falcons and FJ Holden And The Fives. The concert telecast was simulcast with radio station 3XY.

28 February 1993: ABC documentary series True Stories presents Feed Them To Cannibals, a colourful review of Sydney’s annual Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras.

28 February 1995: Australia’s Funniest Home Video Show celebrates its 200th show with a guest appearance by Geoff Harvey and a 20-piece brass band.

28 February 2005: Nine broadcasts a delayed prime time telecast of the 77th Academy Awards from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles.

28 February 2010: Rebecca Gibney, Vince Colosimo, Maya Stange and Jessica Tovey star in the Nine Network telemovie Wicked Love; The Maria Korp Story — a dramatised account of the attempted murder and disappearance of Melbourne woman Maria Korp.

28 February 2016: The Seven Network launches new channel 7flix, offering an emphasis on movies and kids entertainment.

Seven Network 7flix preview

[TelevisionAU]

1 March 1968: New TV Station — GTS4, Spencer Gulf North, South Australia.

1 March 1971: Seven‘s breakfast show Sydney Today changes its name to Today with the program extended to Melbourne. Sydney hosts Bruce Webster and Pat Lovell are joined by Melbourne-based host Roland Strong.

1 March 1973: The Melbourne debut of ABC series Certain Women, a six-part series of plays with each focusing on a different female member of the one family. It was so successful that it later spun off into an ongoing serial to run over three years.

Aunty Jack Show

YouTube: National Archives of Australia

1 March 1975: “C-Day” marks the official changeover to colour television in Australia.

1 March 1993: Prime Television re-enters the local news market in Canberra with an aggressive attack on the top-rating Capital Eyewitness News. Prime’s one-hour bulletin combines local and national news and is largely staffed by former Capital employees, including newsreader Geoff Hiscock and news director Ken Begg.

[Tane04]

@TelevisionAU

1 March 1975: “C-Day” marks the official changeover to colour television in Australia.

HSV-7

Nine

ATV-0

[TelevisionAU]

2 March 1957: Bob Dyer’s Pick-A-Box, a radio quiz since 1948, launches on ATN7, Sydney, and GTV9, Melbourne. It continues until 1971.

2 March 1996: The 1996 Federal Election dominates the night’s viewing with coverage across all networks.

2 March 2005: Les Murray hosts the 25th Australian Sports Awards from the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, broadcast on SBS.

2 March 2014: The Sydney Gay And Lesbian Mardi Gras is televised on SBS2 — the first time on free-to-air television in 12 years.

2 March 2016: Ten resumes high definition simulcast of its primary channel