August 2012 archive

Ten loses programming chief

The Ten Network’s failed post-Olympics program line-up has triggered the resignation of longtime Chief Programming Officer David Mott (pictured). Mott’s resignation, which was effective immediately, comes only days after the cancellation of talent show Everybody Dance Now after only four episodes.  The big-budget series, hosted by Sarah Murdoch (wife of Ten chairman Lachlan Murdoch) and …

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Obituary: Alan Bateman

Alan Bateman, the creator of long-running drama series Home And Away, has died after a battle with cancer. Bateman’s early television career was as a technician, working at Perth channels ABW2 and TVW7 in the early 1960s, before moving up the ranks to become a producer and executive at ABC and later the Seven and Nine …

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Howzat’s unlikely hero

The Nine Network‘s long-anticipated biopic Howzat! Kerry Packer’s War, inspired by the success of ABC‘s Paper Giants: The Birth Of Cleo, has given the network a ratings hit as it rides the wave of a post-Olympic ratings boost. The first of the two-part mini-series — the second installment appears next Sunday — scored 2.097 million …

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1992: August 16-22

Goodnight, Jana! TV Week reports an exclusive that A Current Affair host Jana Wendt (pictured) is to take a year off on full pay — worth around $2 million — to spend more time with her young son, Daniel.  The deal, struck between Wendt and network chief David Leckie, was negotiated over a series of private …

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Whatever happened to Willi Koeppen?

The name Willi Koeppen (pictured) might not be familiar to many, but he was a pioneer in bringing food to television well before anyone had heard of MasterChef — and his subsequent disappearance in the 1970s has undertones of an Underbelly-style drama. Koeppen was born in Berlin in 1929 and migrated to Australia in 1956, when he …

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1992: August 9-15

Is this TV’s greatest mismatch? Former A Country Practice star Georgie Parker makes her debut in the series return of Acropolis Now. Parker plays the role of flight attendant Despina Hatzipapadopoulos. For series co-star Mary Coustas, who plays style victim Effie Stephanidis, it was only a matter of time before she and Parker (pictured) worked …

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Bert in the Hot Seat… and Big Brother?

Although he has been under contract with the Nine Network since 2006, having returned after 20 years and a lengthy stint as host of Ten‘s former daytime flagship Good Morning Australia, Bert Newton has not made an appearance on the network since last hosting 20 To 1 in 2010. However, he will be making an appearance as a …

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1992: August 2-8

Cover: Rachel Blakely (Neighbours) The perils of being Phoebe Neighbours‘ Phoebe Bright (Simone Robertson) is only 17 years old but has had more than her fair share of emotional trauma. First she was abused by her father and then had to cope with his sudden death. Then she fell pregnant to boyfriend Todd Landers (Kristian …

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