Fans of old school hip-hop know the rhyme scheme where one rapper says most of a line then the rest of the crew come in on the last word. C’mon, don’t look at us like that, you know this! Call and response! Every single (bad) social media joke about The Beastie Boys is based on... Read More »
Of the four new Australian comedy series that launched (on the same day!) a few weeks back, Thank God You’re Here is the biggest, the oldest, and the least interesting. Spanning six seasons and two decades, we all get the idea by now. The twist is, there is no twist. Can you still be funny... Read More »
Press release(s) time! Let’s get spelling! Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont Spelling Bee premieres this August on ABC Get ready to laugh-out-loud as Guy Montgomery and his loyal assistant Aaron Chen test the spelling prowess of some of Australia’s favourite faces on Guy Montgomery’s Guy Mont Spelling Bee. The fast-paced eight-episode series will premiere Wednesday 14... Read More »
We can’t blame Working Dog for taking an “if it ain’t broke” approach to their revival of Thank God You’re Here. The original run was much loved and fondly remembered… though not by us, which is why fans of the show might want to skip what comes next. Glad you enjoyed it, it’ll probably be... Read More »
The opportunities for Australian comedians on local television have been shrinking for the last [insert depressingly long stretch of time here]. After a while, it becomes a vicious circle: no jobs for comedians means less comedians means less comedy on television means no jobs for comedians. Want proof? Time to open the blue door to... Read More »
A few people today have noticed something we picked up on yesterday: Channel Ten’s pulled the plug on tonight’s comedy line-up. No Thank God You’re Here, no The Inspired Unemployed. And why? The sudden realisation that Australian comedy is in a death spiral and they were only prolonging the agony? Worse: they don’t want it... Read More »
As probably the only Australian comedy format of the 21st century with any nostalgic value attached to it (can’t wait for the Randling revival), we shouldn’t have been surprised that Thank God You’re Here finally made a comeback. But did the magic return with it? Well, that depends: was there ever any magic there in... Read More »
It’s been a long time since local comedy had a future on Australian free-to-air television. Watching comedy – well, the trends in comedy – is a great way to figure out where television is going in general: it’s a niche product on the sharp edge of production, so whatever’s happening there will eventually happen everywhere.... Read More »
If you were a newcomer to Australia’s shores, you might be puzzled about – well, about a lot of things really, but let’s stick with panel shows. Why don’t we have more of them? They’re cheap to make, don’t require a whole lot of effort, and didn’t we kinda sorta invent the prime time version... Read More »
For those of you eagerly anticipating the Australian version of Whose Line Is It Anyway?, big news! New Foxtel series Whose Line Is It Anyway? Australia announces its ensemble cast of seven exciting and talented performers. Comedy superstar Rhys Darby is joined by comedy festival favourites Cal Wilson, Tegan Higginbotham and Susie Youssef, along with... Read More »