Questions

Would you like to win an official Bates Motel door hanger? Just email us and let us know who plays Norman Bates and what time, day and channel the show airs, it’s premiere episodes. The first three will win! Email alicia@throng.com.au and the 3 winners will be notified by email and then asked to send their address for shipment. If the first winners contacted do not reply in 24 hours from 9.30pm 4/6/13, the competition will remain open.

Did I hear right this morning ? Was it just a dream what I heard on 3AW that Days of our Lives is leaving Channel 9. Then another caller says the same thing. I log into Facebook and see the news being shared on several pages. Yes its true. Days of our Lives has been airing on Channel 9 for 45 years and will end on Channel 9 on Friday, April 26th. That’s show business!

In 2007 Channel 9 gave freeview viewers a taste of loss when they removed The Young & The Restless. This didn’t take long to resolve as Foxtel stepped in and continued its broadcast and there never was a weekday interuption ever again. Foxtel has also recently launched 2 former free to air soaps Hollyoaks and Shortland Street and also added never before seen series Doctors. Will they be coming to the rescue for Days of our Lives? I think its very likely. Foxtel would actually promote the show, screen it in HD, have encore screenings and air it with no interuptions whatsoever. Continue reading »

Yet again, the fact that Asher Keddie won Gold Logie was out and about on the internet LONG before the announcement on Nine’s Logies telecast at around 12.15am – a time when less than 500,000 were still tuned in. Continue reading »

Here the staff from Throng recap what they are watching at the moment and our faves! Do you hate our opinions or agree?

Alicia B

What are your favourite TV shows at the moment?Hart of Dixie – Go Team Wade! I just love Rachael Bilson and the whole love triangle/s.
Grey’s Anatomy surprises me all the time and has me in constant tears and emotional conflict.
The Newsroom for the best writing on TV
I Will Survive, of course, for the fun, music and amazing talent.
Ellen – makes me laugh, dance, cry!
Also White Collar (mmm Matt Bomer )and Burn Notice!

Continue reading »

Just last week rumours were abuzz about when the Masterchef Grand Final would be for 2012. Now we can reveal what day the Grand Final really is.

This week on Masterchef sees the top 10 take part in Italy week. By the end of this week, there will be 8 left.

Continue reading »

My TIVO on Saturday (March 24) announces a new channel – channel 94 Extra.

So what is Extra?

It is Nine’s version of Seven’s TV4ME which airs on channel 74 (and 64 in PRIME markets).

The new channel starts Monday March 26, 2012 and will carry content much the same as TV4ME – infomercials, paid programming and the like*.

It will also appear on channel 84 in regional markets*.

Now to Ten – are you going tp give us a third infomercial channel on say channel 14?

I know these channels carrying paid advertising make money for the networks, but realistically, who is watching them? I would love hear from people who do watch and even interact with these services. Feel free to comment below, or email me andrewb@throng.com.au if you’d rather stay confidential.

* Syd, Melb, Bris, and NBN regionals. Adel and Perth and WIN regionals not confirmed.

Ten’s new morning news and talk show Breakfast is rating so poorly, that it surely could not be considered sustainable. Ratings average around the 40,000 mark, but have hit as low as 24,000 on some mornings.

With Seven’s Sunrise reaching over 400,000 on average, Nine’s Today not far behind in the high 300,000′s and ABC’s breakfast offering reaching around 70,000 over two channels, Ten’s Breakfast has had no impact on the three existing offerings.

As Breakfast has such low figures, it must now be difficult to justify the money paid for its opinionated host New Zealand import Paul Henry.

Ten are well known for persisting with these sorts of decisions. The Project still being on air is testimony to their commitment to sticking with shows that are not necessarily an instant ratings hit.

But the difference between Breakfast and The Project, is that the Project is not rating at 10% of what its highest rating competitor in the timeslot is – it comparatively does better.

Ten say they are in for the long haul with Breakfast, but how long can the network sustain figures that low? Shows on digital channels in the morning pull better figures – namely ABC2 and ABC3 in the hours before children go to school. Children’s programming on 7TWO, 7mate, GO! and ELEVEN all are in a similar ball park as far as morning viewers are concerned.

Ten are not having a good run this year, with the network fourth in main channel shares on a numerous nights. So far, the impact of James Warburton has had little effect over the network’s overall performance.

Maybe in 2013 we will see a real difference with Ten vying for numerous sporting rights held currently by other networks and commissioning of new shows set to air later this year and next.

The last week of rage Goes Retro airs Saturday 28th January and takes us up to the end of the 90s with a fantastic collection of clips along with some amazing old episodes of Countdown, Countdown Revolution and The Factory.

Catch vintage performances by Aussie bands like Mental As Anything and the Dynamic Hepnotics, and revel in the fashions that have strangely enough come back round.

The Molly Meldrum-produced Countdown Revolution entertained a new generation of music-lovers and we are proud to show two fantastic episodes of the show, one of which features Collette performing on stage in those bike-pants.

No doubt we’ve rekindled some old memories, or provided history lesson for some – either way we hope you enjoy the final night of rage Goes Retro before commencing our 2012 program of guest presenters and specials.

Rage airs on ABC1. Rage Goes Retro Saturday January 28 from 12.30am Saturday night (or Sunday morning if you are that way inclined).

If you’re not out with family or at a Christmas function of some description, and find yourself stuck in front of the TV, there is plenty on offer, despite the fact we are deep in summer non-ratings TV. A mix of Chritsmas themed episodes of regular shows, Christmas movies, and regular programming across our networks should provide something for most people.

The following were our picks for the day – as usually seen in our regular “What to Watch on TV Tonight” posts:

The Vicar of Dibley Christmas Special, Seven, 6.30pm
Supermodel Rachel Hunter pays an unexpected visit to the village of Dibley. Geraldine celebrates her 10th year as the vicar and, as usual, nothing goes to plan. The Christmas carol-writing competition is a disaster, and Geraldine heads off a plan to have a stripper at the Christmas Eve cocktail party.

The Queen’s Christmas Message 2011, ABC1, 7.20pm
HM Queen Elizabeth gives her annual Christmas message to the Commonwealth.

Christmas Movie Triple – Nine from 6.30pm
First up is Deck the Halls at 6.30pm, then National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation at 8.30pm followed by Billy Bob in Bad Santa at 10.30pm

Little Shop of Horrors, GO!, 10.30pm
Another 80′s classic. A monster musical black comedy about an extraordinary triangle involving a flower shop employee named Seymour, his whimsical co-worker and a plant.

Fear Factor, ONE, 11.10pm
Christmas Episode. In each pulse-racing episode, contestants recruited from across America must decide if they have the guts and determination to face their most primal fears and confront a series of challenging stunts.

Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol, UKTV, 8.00pm AEDT.
2010′s Christmas special. Amy and Rory are trapped on a crashing space liner, and the only way the Doctor can rescue them is to save the soul of a lonely old miser. But is Kazran Sardick, the richest man in Sardicktown, beyond redemption? And what is lurking in the fogs of Christmas Eve?

But wait… there’s more…
Many regular shows over most channels will air Christmas episodes. On ELEVEN, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Simpsons and Futurama are Christmas episodes. Older shows on that channel like Cheers, Family Ties and The Brady Bunch also fit the festive theme. GEM has Black Adder’s Christmas Carol at 6.30pm while ABC1 has a Christmas episode of My Family at 7.30.

If you want to escape Christmas altogether, try SBS ONE and SBS TWO – Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon airs on SBS ONE, followed by Kung Fu Hustle at 10.50. SBS TWO plays Jean De Florette at 7.30 hailed as a modern classic that won 4 BAFTA’s, followed by its sequel Manon Des Sources at 9.40pm.

Over on Seven, once they are done with the Vicar Of Dibley at 7.40, programming is the same as any Sunday night with Dog Patrol and Coastwatch first, followed by Bones and Castle. 7mate is also a Christmas-free zone with Mythbusters at 7.30 and the movie Smokey and the Bandit III at 8.35pm.

Meanwhile, It’s a Knockout Continues on Ten – airing at the later time of 7.50 – thanks to a late finishing Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation Christmas Special, followed by the movie There’s Something About Mary. Movies on GO! include Flight of the Navigator at 6.30pm, then Stormbreaker at 8.30. GEM has Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day in glorious HD.

Merry Christmas from Throng Australia.

Neighbours, after spending a year on digital channel ELEVEN, will return to that channel in 2012 on January 9, 2012 at 6.30pm.

Last year, Ten made the bold move to air Neighbours on digital channel ELEVEN, with the 2011 season premiere airing on the channel’s first day on air, January 11, 2011. The move allowed Ten to free up time for more news and George Negus.

Neighbours, in 2011, has consistantly ranked as the most watched show on any digital channel on the nights it airs, and will no doubt do the same in 2012.

It returns a full two weeks before Home & Away, which returns on Seven 7pm January 23, 2012.

Neighbours, 6.30pm weeknights on ELEVEN from January 9, 2012.