Tag: Bert Newton

Logies 2022 – Comedy breakdown

There are plenty of myths about the Logies, one of which is that it’s funny. “Drags on for ages with occasional laughs” would be more accurate.... Read More »

Vale Bert Newton

Bert Newton was an all-rounder, a man of enormous energy and versatility. In many ways, the ultimate Australian television... Read More »

The funny side of the Logies

When you look at who and what won Logies this year, it says a lot about the state of TV comedy in this country. Comedy is there to sweeten the pill. The pill, in the case of the Logies, being hours and hours and hours and hours of industry backslapping, product promotion and…well, that’s all... Read More »

Seventeen nine-tee-hee nine reasons to laugh

Umbrella recently released the DVD Studio 9 – The Home of Australian Television, featuring golden moments from Channel 9’s glorious... Read More »

Face Up Comes Kennedy

If you were born after the last episode of The Graham Kennedy Show went to air (1975) it’s sometimes hard to understand Graham Kennedy’s legendary status in Australian television. Even now little of the tonight show work on which his legend is built is easily... Read More »

The Home of Variety

Channel 9's push to become the “Home of Comedy” this year hasn't really worked out for them; Live From Planet Earth, the bumping of The Joy of Sets...even Hamish & Andy's Gap Year. Sure, Gap Year made it to the end and managed decent enough ratings, but it wasn't the greatest piece of television ever.... Read More »

Our alright of nights

Ah, yes, the Logies...Australian television's night of nights, where the show itself is often as good as the programmes it's awarding. But despite that, there's always one good reason to tune in: when you bring together a large number of this country's most high profile ego manics and show-offs, and allow them to get as pissed as they like, there's a strong probability that at least one of them will make an idiot of themselves. On live... Read More »

So easy: RIP Don Lane

Maybe it's because to my generation Don Lane was a guy who'd clearly been famous once, but for what we weren't sure. His appearance on The Late Show was fun, and he presented American football on the ABC and turned up in the odd special, but that was it: he was just some old has-been in embarrassing trousers. So why am I about to launch into a heartfelt tribute to the Lanky Yank? Because, to paraphrase his theme song, he made it so... Read More »