10HD was a bit disappointing to start with a lot of legacy content upscaled. First run reality and drama plus sport was HD.
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According to the NFSA, 73 of the 900+ episodes have been saved. A remake of Pick a Box, this time titled Ford Superquiz, would air from 1981-82 hosted by Bert and Patti Newton.
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3 March 1975: The first episode of The Graham Kennedy Show for 1975 sparks complaints from the Australian Broadcasting Control Board over Graham Kennedy‘s “crow call” which was sounded to resemble the F-word. The show also attracted complaints from viewers about “general vulgarity and poor taste”.
3 March 1978: The 20th annual TV Week Logie Awards are televised on Nine, hosted by Bert Newton from the Southern Cross Hotel. Special guests include Florence Henderson, Sammy Davis Jnr, Patti Weaver, David Frost, Richard Anderson and Mike Farrell.
YouTube: Libraries Tasmania
3 March 1981: ABC premieres two new children’s dramas: Fatty And George, a Tasmanian-made sci-fi series starring Scott Kinloch, Lisa Douglas and Mathew Excell; and The Patchwork Hero, starring Steve Bisley, Damon Herriman, Monica Maughan and Jackie Woodburne.
3 March 1985: After 28 years, the final edition of ABC‘s Weekend Magazine goes to air. The Sunday night program, which began on 11 November 1956 as Sunday Magazine, was the longest running program on Australian television.
3 March 1996: ABC six-part anthology series Naked: Stories Of Men begins with Coral Island, the story of four men gathered at a 20th anniversary dinner at a Jesuit boarding school. Starring Hugo Weaving, Joss McWilliam, Peter Hardy, Lewis FitzGerald, Justin Rosniak, Anthony Hayes and Steve Rodgers.
3 March 2002: The 2002 Foster’s Australian Grand Prix is live on the Nine Network from Albert Park, Melbourne. Commentators include Martin Brundle, James Allen, Alan Jones, Darrell Eastlake and John Watson.
3 March 2005: The Osbournes host the inaugural MTV Video Music Awards Australia, held at Luna Park, Sydney. Performances include Missy Higgins, Grinspoon, Eskimo Joe, The Dissociatives and Simple Plan. The awards are telecast live on MTV with a delayed telecast the following night on Network Ten.
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YouTube: Andrew Zur
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4 March 1994 (NZ): Blue Heelers, a brand new Australian police drama set in the fictional country town of Mount Thomas, makes its New Zealand television debut and premieres on TV One (now TVNZ 1) - less than two months after its first screening on the Seven Network. The series starred John Wood as Tom Croydon, with Grant Bowler, Ann Burbrook, Lisa McCune, William McInnes, Martin Sacks and Julie Nihill.
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4 March 1962: New TV station — NBN3, Newcastle, New South Wales
4 March 1982: ABC debuts children’s drama Come Midnight Monday, based on the book by David Burke. The seven-part series stars Stephen Comey (Sons And Daughters), Jacqui Gordon (Prisoner), Sally Boyden (Young Talent Time), Tommy Dysart, Tim Blake, Peter Cummins and Julie Hamilton.
4 March 1985: ABC launches The National, a revamped news and current affairs format replacing the traditional 7pm state-based news bulletins and the former current affairs program Nationwide
4 March 1991: Seven’s long-running game show Wheel Of Fortune celebrates its 2000th episode with John Burgess, Adriana Xenides and voice-over man John Deeks presenting highlights from the show’s past.
4 March 2001: Drama series Head Start, based around a group of young entrepreneurs who are recipients of innovation grants, debuts on ABC.
4 March 2007: ABC screens the concert from The Kylie Showgirl Homecoming Tour, filmed at Kylie Minogue‘s 2006 Melbourne concert at Rod Laver Arena. Sandra Sully hosts Ten‘s special Cool Aid: The National Carbon Test, examining the issue of climate change and featuring interviews with Al Gore and Tim Flannery.
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6 March 1985: ABC‘s consumer affairs program The Investigators debuts with reporters Ian Altschwager, Clare Petre, John Hosking and Sonia Humphrey.
YouTube: ARIA
6 March 1992: The ARIA Awards are telecast for the first time, live from Melbourne’s World Congress Centre. Hosted by Richard Wilkins and Julian Lennon, with appearances by John Farnham, Jimmy Barnes, Jenny Morris, Noiseworks, Diesel, Wendy Matthews, Margaret Urlich, Rockmelons, Sophie Lee, Craig McLachlan, Dannii Minogue and international artists Diana Ross, Rod Stewart and Harry Connick Jnr.
6 March 1994: Comedian Jimeoin launches his new Seven Network series, Jimeoin, featuring Glenn Robbins, Bob Franklin, Rachel Griffiths, Daina Reid, Tamara Cook, Angus Smallwood and Brian Nankervis.
6 March 1996: Highlights from the parade at the 1996 Sydney Gay And Lesbian Mardi Gras airs on ABC.
YouTube: Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
6 March 1999: SBS‘ short film compilation series Eat Carpet celebrates its 10th anniversary.
6 March 2000: Sports-based talk show The Fat debuts on ABC, hosted by Tony Squires with panellists Rebecca Wilson and Peter Wilkins.
6 March 2006: Nine airs a delayed telecast of the 78th Academy Awards from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, hosted by comedian Jon Stewart.
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7 March 1975: Bert Newton hosts the TV Week Logie Awards from the Southern Cross Hotel, Melbourne — the first Logies to be telecast in colour. Hollywood star John Wayne presented the Gold Logies to winners Ernie Sigley and Denise Drysdale.
7 March 1985: ABC debuts comedy-drama series The Fast Lane, starring Terry Bader, Debra Lawrance, Peter Hosking and Richard Healy. The series was created by John Clarke and Andrew Knight.
7 March 1979: The winner of the 1978 series of Mastermind, John Bond, represents Australia in Mastermind International, debuting on ABC. The series, taped in London, features Mastermind winners from around the world including the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Nigeria, Canada and the Republic of Ireland.
7 March 1992: The Seven Network hosts Olympathon, a nationwide telethon to raise financial support for Australia’s athletic team to compete in the Barcelona Olympic Games.
7 March 1993: ABC broadcasts The Great Debate in the lead up to the 1993 Federal Election, featuring Prime Minister Paul Keating and Opposition Leader Dr John Hewson and moderated by Kerry O’Brien. ABC also begins broadcasting 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with the expansion of overnight programming from Friday and Saturday nights to every night of the week.
7 March 1997: The Sydney Gay And Lesbian Mardi Gras parade is covered on commercial TV for the first time, with Network Ten screening a highlights package of the previous weekend’s event. Hosted by Tottie Goldsmith.
7 March 1999: The Nine Network telecasts the 1999 Qantas Australian Grand Prix, live from Albert Park, Melbourne. Hosted by Eddie McGuire.
YouTube: TelevisionAU
7 March 2005: ABC launches its new digital-only television channel ABC2 — containing a mix of original programs, such as regional news and information, and ‘time shifted’ content from the main ABC channel
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The endless repeats of Stateline from around the county on weekends.
yes! and the channel earned the nickname “The New Inventors channel” at our place as everytime we tuned in we’d always land on a repeat of The New inventors
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8 March 1969: The world title fight between Lionel Rose and Alan Rudkin becomes the highest rated program in Australian television history.
8 March 1974: Bert Newton hosts the TV Week Logie Awards, live from the Southern Cross Hotel, Melbourne, and telecast on Nine. International guests include Gina Lollobrigida, David Cassidy and MacDonald Carey. Gold Logie winners are Graham Kennedy (The Graham Kennedy Show) and Pat McDonald (Number 96).
8 March 1992: Network Ten debuts the two-part mini-series The Other Side Of Paradise, an Australian-UK-NZ co-production starring Garry McDonald, Jay Laga’aia, Judy Morris, Josephine Byrnes and Su Cruickshank.
8 March 1996: Due to Cricket World Cup commitments over the weekend, Hey Hey It’s Saturday becomes Hey Hey It’s Friday.
8 March 1998: Murray Walker hosts Nine‘s coverage of the Australian Formula One Grand Prix, live from Albert Park, Melbourne.
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9 March 1966: Jimmy Hannan‘s new weekly variety show Jimmy debuts on Sydney’s TEN10. The show makes its debut in Melbourne, where it is produced at ATV0, the following night.
YouTube: @Petarkco
9 March 1990: Mark Mitchell hosts the 32nd annual TV Week Logie Awards on Network Ten, from the Hyatt On Collins, Melbourne. Former Neighbours star Craig McLachlan was awarded the Gold Logie for Most Popular Personality on Australian Television.
9 March 1992: The 7.00pm battle between Home And Away and Neighbours, started in January, comes to an end with Neighbours making the sudden move to the 6.30pm timeslot. The shift sees Ten’s current affairs program Hinch take over at 7.00pm – the timeslot he previously held over at Seven – and US game show Studs (previously 6.30pm) move to 6.00pm.
9 March 1997: Ken Sutcliffe hosts Nine‘s coverage of the Australian Formula One Grand Prix, live from Albert Park, Melbourne.
9 March 2003: Bill Woods hosts Ten‘s coverage of the Australian Formula One Grand Prix, live from Albert Park, Melbourne.
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This was the first ever F1 broadcast on 10 following the end of Nine’s run of 20-25 years.
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Nine started from 1981 according to their farewell montage in 2002. https://youtu.be/WW75UN39mys?si=i_gWJ41NyCLk6Yv5&t=99
For those playing at home this was followed by a fishing show and then National Nine News coverage of the 2002 Bali bombings (Jim Waley in Sydney).
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10 March 1967: New TV station — BTW3, Bunbury
10 March 1983: After six years and 1114 episodes, The Sullivans comes to an end in a movie-length episode.
10 March 1991: Seven screens the first of the two-part children’s mini-series Ratbag Hero, starring Cameron Nugent, Elaine Smith, Peter Fisher, Marcus Graham, Gus Mercurio and Simon Chilvers. Ten debuts a new late-night sports program, Sports Week, hosted by Eddie McGuire and Stephen Quartermain.
10 March 1993: Andrew Denton covers the Just For Laughs International Comedy Festival in the 90-minute special The Money Or The Gun On The Road: The Funniest City In The World on ABC.
10 March 1996: The Australian Formula One Grand Prix is live from its new home at Albert Park, Melbourne. Ken Sutcliffe and Jackie Stewart host Nine‘s coverage, which includes commentary by Alan Jones, Darrell Eastlake, Murray Walker and Jonathan Palmer. Background reports are provided by Anne-Maree Sparkman, Geoff Hutchinson, Mary Gearin and Eddie McGuire.
10 March 2002: Network Ten airs the telemovie Heroes’ Mountain — the story about Stuart Diver (played by Craig McLachlan), survivor of the 1997 Thredbo landslide, and the team that rescued him.
10 March 2004: ABC debuts The New Inventors, reviving the long-running format known as The Inventors in the 1970s, with host James O’Loghlin.
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11 March 1960: New TV station — ABS2, Adelaide.
11 March 1969: The premiere of Nine‘s new police drama Division 4, starring Gerard Kennedy, Chuck Faulkner, Frank Taylor, Terence Donovan, Ted Hamilton and Patricia Smith.
11 March 1978: ABC debuts variety series Marcia Hines Music, featuring the Queen of Pop with guest appearances by actor John Waters and singer-songwriter Doug Ashdown.
YouTube: aussiebeachut0
11 March 1988: Daryl Somers hosts the 30th annual TV Week Logie Awards from the Hyatt On Collins, Melbourne. Neighbours star Kylie Minogue won four awards on the night, including the Gold Logie.
11 March 1991: ABC debuts its new rural affairs program Landline, screening every weekday.
11 March 1992: ABC presents a 90-minute special, La Stupenda, a unique portrayal of Dame Joan Sutherland combining interviews, archival footage and performances. Dame Joan and her husband Richard Bonynge talk about their life in opera, while close friends and colleagues reminisce about Sutherland’s remarkable career spanning 42 years.
11 March 1993: With coverage of the Federal Election on the coming Saturday, Hey Hey It’s Saturday is shifted to Thursday for this week. The special three-hour program includes live crosses to Elton John in concert at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.
11 March 1996: After The Beep, a new seven-part comedy series on ABC debuts. Starring Genevieve Lemon, Genevieve Mooy, Kerry Walker and Emily Weare.
11 March 2002: The premiere of Fox8 drama series Crash Palace, starring Dieter Brummer, Tory Mussett, Toby Truslove, Simone McAullay, Jenni Baird, Kristy Wright and Jessica Gower.
11 March 2006: ABC begins daily highlights coverage of the 2006 Winter Paralympic Games, from Torino, Italy.
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Also on this date: Seven News Melbourne has its first bulletin from Docklands, and a special episode of The Weakest Link featuring the nine remaining contestants from the 2002 season of The Mole goes to air with an exemption on offer for the winner. The total money banked, $14,100, is the lowest won on an episode of the Seven version of WL.
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Seven Melbourne had News, Weather and Sport instead of News, Sport and Weather
Following that move into Docklands, Seven News had the sports headlines at the top of the bulletin and then a weather check before the first ad break (which would eventually be implemented in all markets by the mid-teens decade).
I remember they also did this in the 90s, but it didn’t work too well so they went back to the standard format for the bulletin (which was, at the time, two blocks of news, one for sport in the third and then weather in the last).