Will this change reality TV?

I know there has been some discussion about this already, but for those of you who missed it there was a landmark decision this week (no, not ScoCam deciding who to pick on again).
You can read about it here at The Age (thanks to Polly B for sending it in).
Basically a House Rules contestant has sued Seven for workplace bullying. Seven countered that she was not an employee but the NSW Workers Compo Commission found otherwise.
This could open a real can of worms for some of the networks.
Will we see a return to “gentler” reality TV or will the Instafluencer types who go on MKR use it as a chance to up their payday?
While I love the guilty pleasure of some reality shows, things have certainly taken a darker turn in the past few years, with more focus on manufactured drama.
MKR certainly encourages contestants to belittle each other. MAFS is just pure insanity. The Bachelorette allows total douches on the show and while Angie kicked sleazy Jess off, the fact he was allowed there at all after making production staff uncomfortable is not cool. The Block and House Rules rely on sleep deprivation to bring out the worst in people and Keith and ScoCam love to poke the bear for drama.
This is why GBBO is my fave reality show because the most controversial thing that happens there is someone opening a freezer door too often.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

MKR Wed, Feb 10 – the new teams

Well, here we go with a batch of fresh faces with names I can’t be bothered learning. First up are the miner mates, and I think we’ll just call them Man Bun and The Other One. They live in Mackay and look like they are enjoying their bromance, working hard and playing hard. They want to open up a bar and grill, so hopefully they have been saving their mining pennies.

Man bun alert.
Man bun alert.

Entree is crab miang. What? Where’s Curly Sue when you need her. Dr Google says it’s a Thai or Lao snack, wrapped in a leaf. Looks kinda san choy bao-ish.
In Coles they buy some packaged duck, then ask a staff member if they buy a whole duck, will he carve some breasts off for them. They must know this guy, because the meat at Coles and Woolies here often looks like it was carved with a drunk wielding a chainsaw.
The boys can’t find the canned lychees for their curry (Don’t fresh lychees not grow up north? Am I making assumptions just because it’s Queensland?). A staff member offers to help them, just t remind you it’s a TV show and not real life.
I like that they are serving it with cauliflower rice for something different – I wonder if they are paleo advocates? Pete will be happy not to be eating white rice.
Dessert is lava cake and it sounds pretty much like a chocolate fondant, so why ruin it with white chocolate sauce? Contrast it with some sharp fruit flavours instead, boys, or there will be sugar overload. At least we can be sure they won’t pull a Zana and use the Cadbury’s. It’s a tricksy dessert to pull off. I would have just called it chocolate cake, and then if the ooze worked, call it a fondant.
Entree: Miang of crab, coconut, mint and citrus
Main: Roast Duck with lychee red curry and cauliflower rice
Dessert: Chocolate lava cakes with white chocolate sauce
Back home the lads set up their industrial-themed restaurant on the back deck and it’s all corrugated iron, hessian and dead branches.
Uh oh – they’ve eaten an hour into their cooking time. Luckily Asian is a quick cook once you get the prep done, although prepping the crabs will take a while.
Man Bun is in charge of the mortar and pestle and says: “I think I’m going to freestyle this curry paste.”

Now the guests arrive and we meet Jessica, our new villainess, wearing what appears to be strappy pink sandals with thigh-high socks …. in Queensland. What is the stylish thinking! What is Jessica thinking!

Sorry for the dreadful pic. MKR has yet to upload the episode to yahoo. Actually, the outfit looks better blurry.
Sorry for the dreadful pic. MKR has yet to upload the episode to yahoo. Actually, the outfit looks better blurry.

The guests approve of the decor. The Sisters think the Miners look more like hipsters, and they’re spot on – hipsters who work out a lot and drive big cars instead of riding bespoke bicycles.
We meet the other couples. The Italian mates quibble over who is the more Italiano and apparently are not a couple. Nev and Kell are the Tradie and Cleaner (what, no snappy name for them, MKR? Just call them The Aussies, already) ARE a couple. Nev wants to serve something that’s “the duck’s nuts”. Next are the Lovebirds who are all cutesy wootsie and sweet as pie – I’m still waiting to see if the girl one blinks because it looks like she may not. One of the Sisters likens them to a Disney couple.
Now it’s time for the geography game to see what everyone’s heritage is. Two Italians, a Croats, an Argentinean, Polish and Indonesian (the Sisters – hopefully we’ll get some terrific spicy food).
Jessica and Marcos are the mates from Melbourne who are fitness fanatics and were self-proclaimed “popular kids” at school. Yes, the producers definitely want us to hate them.
Jess: “I’m good at everything I do, because I’m an achiever.”
She eats to fuel her body and that means no fried food or chocolate.
The judges arrive and the Miner boys are all smiley and nervous and the other guests are excited, but no-one is hyperventilating like in group one.
Jess points out the dessert does not fit with the Asian vibe of the entree and main and she’s right, but she loses her fellow guests’ respect by saying she doesn’t like chocolate. She makes a few clipped comment and Pete enjoys baiting her.
In the kitchen, the boys are plating their miang, and it’s definitely not the traditional bite sized snack. Nor is it tp be wrapped in a leaf and eaten. The Other One is worried there is too much heat in the dressing so he doesn’t put much on. Yes, because a dry salad has never been a problem on MKR before.

At the table Jess notes the oranges have not been segmented, which is something you wouldn’t bother with for your mates but is a cheffy thing you should be doing to impress the judges. Her manner is abrupt but she’s making good points – it’s just that the first instant restaurant is not the most tactful place to do it. Would this salad usually be served with green papaya or similar rather than citrus?


Chew time … Pete says they didn’t deliver and wonders where the dressing went. Manu says they had orange overload but needed to balance their ingredients more, with more crab.
The boys look like sad puppies, especially when they get back to the kitchen and see their huge amount of leftover dressing.
Nev gets a few bits of shell but talks the boys up for having a go. The Sisters agree the crab was done well but more spice and sourness was needed. Manu enjoys telling Jess the white of an orange is called a pith.
It’s on to mains and now I’m wondering why the boys are using duck breast for their curry instead of legs on the bone, which have more flavour. They try their curry and are worried there is not enough of a kick, so add more chilli.
At the table Italian Sans Hat is not a fan of sweet with savoury (not coming round to my place for apricot chicken, then), but the Sisters know red curry duck with lychees is a classic dish.
And then Jess admits “I don’t really eat rice … I don’t eat many carbs”. No surprise, really, but again, this is a cooking show. And then the big proclamation: “I don’t allow myself to be addicted to anything other than exercise and healthy living.” (I do note she seemed to be drinking white wine before). Aww, don’t you just love her already? Zana, please hand over your MKR’s Next Top Villain sash to Jess.
However, she says she will try anything unless it looks like it is going to make her sick. Hmm, how would she have fared at Cougar’s table?
Jess has never eaten duck before and she may not get a chance tonight, as the boys look to be overcooking the duck. Why didn’t they crisp the skin first? Are they going to pour curry sauce over that crispy skin? Oh no, it’s a duck curry with the duck on the side. And a sprinkle of coriander for green – not even a stalk of bok choy to lift it. You are going to be crucified, lads.
Before it’s even chew time Pete looks underwhelmed and rightly so.


Manu is feeling that extra raw chilli burn in his throat and notes they look stressed. He thinks they’ve done well with the cooking of the duck. It’s not an awesome curry but it’s ok. Pete wants the skin crispier and says they nailed the cauli rice. It’s not hard Pete – you just grate cauli and chuck it in the microwave to steam.
Ok, I’m wrong, the curry was well received so good on you, boys.
Now it’s chocolate time and Manu pops in to offer advice/turn the screws. Uh oh – I’m seeing Cadbury Melts on the bench. What do these people have against fancy cooking chocolate?
The boys make some honeycomb to go with their lava cake, which they claim is technical but isn’t. I hope they are serving cream or something to cut through all this sweetness.
Is Italian Sans Hat flirting with Manu? Pete looks jealous.
The other guests find Jess’s anti-chocolate stance totes awks, but she says she will give it a go. How courageous.
The lava cake tester obliges by oozing, but they are faffing around while the other cakes continue to cook in the hot ramekins.


Pete digs the spoon in and gets lava but Manu’s is moist – not molten. Pete likes the cake but says the whole dish is overly sweet (yay, I was right with one prediction at least). Jess is not going to like this. The guests get mixed levels of ooze and find it too sweet. Jess has chopped her cake into bits in search of a protein bar and come up empty handed: “If this was a restaurant in the real world I wouldn’t have stayed after the entree, to be honest.”
Hatted Italiano is being, well, Italian in his disappointment at the lacking lava: “I was thinking about a dramatic event …Pompeii .. people running from a … natural disaster. But what I taste was only the ashes.”
The announced makes yet another mining-themed pun which I shall ignore and it’s on to the scores.
Lovebirds 5; Italians 5; Jess and That Guy 5; Aussies 4; Sisters 6. (All fair scores, especially since Nev got several pieces of shell in his meal). Total 25/50. The boy are gutted but trying not to show it.
Judges: Entree Pete 4, Manu 5; Main Pete 8, Manu 8; Dessert Pete 6, Manu 4.
Total: 60. Probably a bit higher than they deserved, but they were the first ones out of the blocks so deserve a little leeway.

That’s it for MKR this week. Up on Sunday are the NSW Italianos and the gents look fab in their colourful ties and jumpers. The stylist is razing the barn on Jordan’s wardrobe. And we know they get at least one good score because Pete and Manu are raving over their pasta. But enough of celebrating excellent cooking, in MKR land it’s all about the drama and our new villianess is stirring the pot. Again, she’s strangely dressed. While the stylists went heavy on Zana’s makeup at least they always gave her nice outfits to wear. It’s implied she has a dig at Manu for unhealthy eating habits, but we’ll have to wait and see the context. One of the miners (the non-man bun one) calls her on her attitude so it will be one awkward dinner party.

More to come.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

I’m A Celeb – Sunday night

I’m only watching a few minutes live of Celeb tonight, so if anyone wants to do a little recap (Erin, if you have time?), feel free to email it to the email on the contact page.
The bit I saw consisted of Ant, Bonnie and JB trying to pronounce Bassingthwaite. Come on people, speaking English is not that difficult. Poor Nat Bass.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

MKR Ep 4 Sunday recap

Chat about tonight’s episode here. I hope to have a recap up later. And here ’tis:
Here we go, it’s my home team and I have high hopes, judging from the ads, that we’ll see some tasty food.
I love trying to spot the SA landmarks when the contestants are from Adelaide. We get Colonel Light’s statue, views of the revamped Adelaide Oval, the tram at Glenelg (at the beach). The voiceover guy refers to the “cottage suburb of Plympton”. I have no idea what that means. It’s a decent enough suburb but not at all fancy.Rosie and Paige stop for a coffee at Froth & Fodder cafe, which is behind behind my local Kmart.
Rosie gets the happy family montage while Paige is a single gal with a dog who didn’t finished high school “they asked me to leave”. Rosie is mum to two girls and studies tourism part time, while Paige does some safety type job for a gas company (I think). But that doesn’t really matter because in MKR land they are “SA Best Mates”.
They dash into Coles and I’m pretty sure last time I was inside that particular supermarket there were several shoppers with whom I was scared to make eye contact. The shelves are looking far more fully stocked than usual.
Their menu sounds delicious.
Entree: Lamb backstrap with pickled beetroot ad creme fraiche
Main: Chicken, leek, zucchini pie with mushy minted peas
Dessert: Grandma’s gingerbread with rum and raisin ice cream
Back home and it’s a lovely old character place – wonder if it’s really Rosie’s?
Their theme is “Big Love Grub” and they’ve made a terrific crafty-looking sign to for it but – oops – part of it falls off when they hang it up. and now we know it must indeed be Rosie’s house, because she runs straight to the shed and finds her hammer and craft glue. However, they’re down to 2 hours 8 minutes and they have yet to pick up a knife.

Drop the hammer and turn on the stove, Rosie.
Drop the hammer and turn on the stove, Rosie.

Not a lot of time to sort out their ice cream and puff pastry.
The girls shred their pie veg in the food processor to save time.
The guests are here and Cougar is hoping for a Steven Bradbury – is cub old enough to know who that is? “I just want to smell the smell of burnt something.”
Everyone thinks the room looks awesome except, of course, Zana and Plus One turn up their noses at the word “grub”.
They butter their guests up by giving them slippers and a lot of thought has gone into them, even finding flamingo ones for Jordan.
mkrslippers1

mkrslipperspugs

mkrslipperszana
Guests pass the time doing a poetry slam, while Rosie perfects the pickled beetroot and it looks divine.
The judges arrive to the strains of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” to show they are funky, followed by The Doors “Roadhouse Blues”.
Cougar is a little embarrassed to have to see them so soon after her food fiasco: “I almost felt like we artistically insulted them. And I desperately don’t want them to think that we don’t take it seriously.” That’s the most genuine she’s been in a week of shows. But then she reads the menu and reverts to delusional form: “I don’t think it’s a menu that could beat ours. If we did the right thing and we were on form and got our plating right, I think our menu would have beaten this menu.”
Yeah, caesar salad with both burnt and undercooked bacon is way fancier than lamb backstrap with pickled beetroot.
Zana loves lamb but screws up her nose at the pickled beetroot.

Beetroot? Isn't that poor people food?
Beetroot? Isn’t that poor people food?

Dramatic music for the cutting of the lamb and, yes, it’s perfectly pink.
Rosie doesn’t know how to plate up but they do a great job of making a meat dish look pretty and light enough for an entree.
But, here we go with the faux derogatory comments: Cougar is “underwhelmed”.


Uh oh, and so is Pete. They didn’t season the dish or dress the leaves. Rookie mistakes! But both judges agree the lamb was cooked perfectly and Manu loved the beetroot. Still, it’s a far cry from last episode’s “one spoonful was enough for me”.
The teams think the dish was ok but they are feeling hungry.
Jordan is looking forward to mains, and he hopes the pie is as good as Mum’s, who apparently writes his name on top in pastry. Awwww.
Zana and Plus One “don’t not normally order pies; we’ve never made a pie”.
In the kitchen the girls have not even started the ice cream machine, which is a real worry.
Manu pops into the kitchen to suggest one of them cook something instead of both shelling peas – the pressure is getting to them.
It gets worse … there is not enough pastry to make individual whole pies for everyone. What were they thinking? I know teams throw a lot of recipes at the producers in advance and see what sticks, but it’s common sense you’d need to at least triple your usual recipe. So it’s a pot pie instead and at least they are doing a taste tester.
And they’re learning from Cougar’s mistake by washing their hairy carrots thoroughly. Tester pie’s pastry lid collapses but it’s because they haven’t pinched it.
The guests are getting hungry while they wait for pie dramas to be resolved and the girls know they will be marked down for it.
Cougar is hungry but delighted.
In the ad break there’s a promo for the new teams, so they must start Wednesday night, as Mama and Son cook next, then the Lawyers. And there’s one girl who doesn’t like chocolate. Yep, she’s the Zana of the group. I have a friend who doesn’t eat chocolate but it’s because it gives her migraines. So unless I see a medical certificate from this girl’s doctor, I’m barracking for her to fail already.
And the pressure continues to fluster the girls – they’ve overcooked the carrots. I’d have chucked them in a tonne of butter and maybe some honey to see if I could save them, but they decide not to include them on the plate.
They are worried the pies aren’t quite cooked but are scared to keep the guests waiting, so it’s on with a plop of peas and away we go.


The pastry layers on the judges’ pie look awesome, but Manu eez sad that the pie filling does not have much texture. And Pete says the flavours are out of whack, with salty peas and too much wine in the filling.
Zana and Plus One have never made a pie yet with typical modesty still know they would do it better.
Time for dessert. And they are yet to cook the gingerbread, which will take a while to bake.
Zana is big noting her ability to stay calm in the kitchen as she and Plus One have very stressful jobs with people’s lives at steak. Umm, hello – you’re sitting at a table with two police officers!
The gingerbread is ready and it’s a cake, as per Paige’s gran’s recipe. Surprise, surprise the ice cream isn’t set, so they anchor it on the plate with some chopped macadamias “for crunch”. If you want crunch, you don’t pick macadamias, and certainly not untoasted ones.


Manu says the booze is missing from the ice cream (which Rosie was worried about) and Pete feels the cake lacks spice.
Paige is gutted; she’s let grandma down.
The Curlies love the cake but no one likes the vanilla ice cream with raisins, sans rum.
The girls are crying on the floor of the kitchen, for fear they were “Cheryl and Matt bad”.

I should have listened to you about the raisins.
I should have listened to you about the raisins.

Surely they can do better than 30?
Team scores: Mama and Son 6; Cougar Town 4 (to be expected); Cops 4 (bit strategic there); Zana and That Guy 5; Curlies 7 (they must really want Cougars to fail)
Total: 26/50, so they know they’re safe.
Judges: Entree Pete 6, Manu 7; Main Pete 5, Manu 5; Dessert Pete 5, Manu 5.
Total:59
Tomorrow night it’s off to Perth and what looks to be some delicious Maltese food and a snappy shirt from Jordan. Yum.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

First Dates to air on Seven

Yet another reality shows kicks off this week. First Dates premieres on Channel at 9pm Wednesday, February 3. Will it get lost in the flood of other shows which have already built up loyal audiences?
The blurb on Yahoo7 says:
Be there for every awkward, hilarious and heart-warming moment of lovelorn Aussies on blind dates with the premiere of First Dates – Wednesday, Feb 3 at 9pm, hosted by Sam Mac. In Channel Seven’s new fly-on-the-wall dating show real people go on blind dates in a restaurant with a unique twist.
There’s someone out there for everyone, and when the First Dates restaurant sets the table, hopeful singles from across the country will have a chance of meeting their dream partner.
Our daters have been brought together according to their likes and dislikes by First Dates’ team of matchmakers. They’ve turned their backs on online dating in the hope of meeting someone special face-to-face, and they’ll meet their potential love match for the very first time in the restaurant.
Cameras controlled remotely record the date from start to finish – from first impressions, through all the awkward, heart-warming and funny moments, to the end of the meal and the discussion about whether or not a second date is on the cards.
For some pairings, it’ll be their first and last date. For others, it might just be the beginning of a lifelong relationship. What happens next is up to them!
First Dates allows us to observe human behaviour in its purest form. This is a series about people’s lives, their stories, the diversity of a country – these factors are played out through the prism of dating and the universal feeling of wanting to love and be loved.
The series is warm, kind and generous, and served with a good dollop of humour.



Facebooktwitterredditmail

I’m a Celebrity – live recap

Akmal SalehAkmal Saleh

Anthony CalleaAnthony Callea

Bonnie LythgoeBonnie Lythgoe

Brendan FevolaBrendan Fevola

Courtney HancockCourtney Hancock

Dean GeyerDean Geyer

Havana BrownHavana Brown

Jo Beth TaylorJo Beth Taylor

Laurina FleureLaurina Fleure

Paul HarroganPaul Harrogan

Shane WarneShane Warne

Val LehmanVal Lehman

LIVE BLOG (SA TIME):  Missed the first minute and tuned in to see Akmal has already arrived. Yay – he’s good value.

They are moving quickly – it’s Bonnie Lythgoe (ex-wife of Nigel Lythgoe, creator of So You Think You Can Dance). Makes sense –  she was a judge on the Aussie version years ago, which was a Channel 10 product. Was there a little bit of her contract left to use up? Yes, I watched it but I wonder if many of the other celebs did. She and Akmal politely pretend to know who the other is.

30 seconds later  – it IS Anthony  Callea, ex-Australian Idol singer. Poor lad must be sweating in that glittery jacket.

Courtney Hancock is next. Sorry, I don’t know you, champion ironwoman, but you seem nice. No-one else knows her either.

Bonnie confesses she has never slept in a sleeping bag. She is going to be the Maureen of the season.

Paul “The Chief” Harrogan is the NRL captain – hadn’t thought of him at all. He knows who Akmal is. Phew.

Here comes the helicopter … darn, it’s only Chris and JMo, who tell them they will be trekking to the camp together. Five angry blokes with pregnant bellies AKA parachute backpacks pop out to give everyone the willies. Our Famous Five realise they will have to jump out of a plane. Geez, who’d have thunk that was a possibility on a show like this. “Just think of it as an instant facelift,” say Callea. Good one, Ant. They will have to change into their khaki shirts and red pants. Luckily Ant has red dacks on already .

12 mins in: I’ll give Ten credit – they are ripping right through it. JMo is wearing a super shiny blue retro swing dress but it is it just me or does she not really look like her? I prefer her usual make-up and do.

17 mins in: Cut to pre-recorded confessionals. Bonnie does not want to share a toilet. Please, someone, make her swim in a vat of elephant poo like last year.

OMG It’s Jo Beth Taylor! Didn’t pick that – she’s ex-Channel Nine. Guess that rules out Toni Pearen then.

Yes, as we already know, it’s Val Lehman: Bea Smith from Prisoner. Jo Beth knows who she is but I don’t think it’s reciprocated.

And, it’s Fev (Brendan Fevola), to be this season’s Barry Hall. Jo Beth introduces herself as JB. Fev is afraid of snakes, spiders and, errr, mozzies.

The international DJ is Havana Brown and she knows Fev. She is kinda famous overseas but I’m tipping not many TTV readers will know her. Will find some links to her songs later.

Dean Geyer – another Idol contestant! His family moved here from South Africa years ago. I last saw him playing a buff marine type in Terra Nova, a US sci-fi series filmed in Queensland. Must be between gigs. He came third on the season of Idol won by Damien Leith (the Irish guy with the beautiful voice), with runner up Jessica Mauboy.

We were right – it is Laurina Fleure from Bachie Blake Dirty Dog season. She will be good TV.

 JMo and Chris are back. Let’s hope Fev offers to carry Val’s bag for her. They have to canoe to camp. Deano puts his tank top on backwards and has to have Fev point it out. D’oh.

32 mins in: More precorded confessionals. All pretty tame so they have to cut to a clip of a scary-looking snake. Chris has placed a wooden statue of a gazelle between him and JMo to keep her mitts off him.

The Famous Five get the speech on how a lion could eat them when they land, although there’s probably  more danger of being shot accidentally by one of the armed guard.

Val is cacking herself because Fev can’t steer a canoe and they go backwards. Laurina is the first one to say shit as she and Jo Beth capsize. Jo Beth then clocks herself in the face with her own oar. Let’s hope she didn’t smash a tooth. Havana benefits from the fact Dean looks like he’s rafted before, plus she’s not a 72-year-old woman.

We’re still waiting on the 12th celeb – is this Warnie?

 To recap, we have:

Akmal

Bonnie

Ant

Havana

Laurina

Jo Beth

Courtney Ironwoman

Fev

Paul Harrogan

Deano

Val

43 mins in: Heather (ex-Bachelorette) and Joel Creasey, who host the after-show, say g’day. We know they are cool because Joel is wearing art curator glasses and Heather is in a playsuit.

Cut to the sky and they have to push Harrogan out of the chopper. He’s a big unit so that skydiver must have some guns. He’s packing death and fair enough – I wouldn’t do it. The River Tribe is waiting to welcome the Sky People. So we have khaki shirts versus navy shirts – is this a two tribes scenario, a la Survivor?

Poor Courtney lands a bit hard and looks shaken. Bonnie jumps and there are no creases on her forehead – it can’t be just the effect of the wind. She’s a bit teary. Akmal pretty much takes it in his stride and lands standing up, leaving Ant to sweat it out on his own.

54 minutes in: Not a lot of ads tonight – I’m  surprised. Is KFC not on board this year? Ant jumps: “I’m never, ever doing this again.” So, Ant to win?

JMo is getting more texts. HAS to be Warnie. Ok, I was wrong – it’s another ad! Ten is using I’m A Celeb to lure people into staying to watch the X Files. I’ve seen part of the first ep and, honestly, it ain’t worth it. Duchovny is just dialling it in for the moolah. Can you believe they initially fought against giving Gillian the same money as DD? Makes me even less inclined to watch.

One hour in: The core 11 celebs arrive at the first Tucker Trial, which is how they win extra food. They are dangling above vats of fish guts and offal. Celebs must use their mouths to pick up stars from boxes crawling with the usual gross insects. Akmal and Val try not to swallow any mealworms and are giving it a good crack. Box 2 is cockroaches and Bonnie does surprisingly well, beating Fev. Havana and Ant try not to drown putting their heads in a tank of eels. Box 4 is 14kg of maggots. Deano laps it up and Court does well. Laurina and Harrigan have scorpions – they’ve saved them for her, expecting her to freak.

72 mins in: Laurina smashes it and seals the win for her team. So, Sky People are going to get dunked. Akmal jumps out but is made to hop back in. It’s not that bad – their heads didn’t even get slimed. The worst bit is they know a hot shower is a long way off. The others have to tell Dean and Fev what a long drop and a short drop are. Jo Beth gives delivers the horrifying news that if they poo in the wrong one they have to scoop it out with their hands. This could lead to trouble.

They get a teeny dinner of biltong and salad. Why not give them the ingredients and make them cook it? More interesting than watching them get handed food.

85 mins in: It’s dark and the Sky Peeps finally make it to camp, looking knackered. After trying to start the fire for ages the celebs finally twig they have a flame in their lantern and can use that. Some of the dunkees burn their rank undies. Val kindly tries to teach Ant how to cook rice – he buys the pre-cooked packs at home. Tim must be the chef of the couple, or perhaps Mama Callea cooks and drops off care packages for them.

Fev thinks the jungle noises are fake. JoBeth needs a Panadeine Forte desperately. Harrogan is snoring – everyone wants to kill him. Fev snores, too.

The plane with Celeb No. 12 lands and, shock, horror, it’s Mr Yeah Yeah. But – cliffhanger – they are saving his entrance for tomorrow night.

Phew – that was a jam-packed 90 minutes. So, who do we think will be out first? Court?

I leave you with this classic from Jo Beth:



Facebooktwitterredditmail

Are you ready for the onslaught?

For the past month it’s been nothing but cricket and tennis on TV (I’ve been making the most of Stan’s 30-day free trial) but now it’s time for the annual bombardment of  premieres of shows old and new.

Channel 10 is attempting to get ahead of the pack by launching the second season of I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here! – a whole 24 hours ahead of the other channels. It premieres Sunday, January 31 at the family-friendly timeslot of 6.30pm (check your local guide).

There’s meant to be an after-show on Eleven, hosted by Bachelor reject Heather Maltman and jungle reject Joel Creasey, but it’s not showing up as yet on Sunday TV guides.

The following night the other channels join the party.

Nine kicks off with Australia’s Got Talent and a new panel of judges: Kelly Osbourne (daughter of Ozzy and fashion commentator), Eddie Perfect (beloved by Offspring and Play School viewers) and Sophie Monk (remember when she was an unknown on one of Australia’s first reality shows, Popstars?). Hughesy is hosting.

The Farmer Wants a Wife, also on Nine, starts the same night at 8.45pm.

I suspect Channel 7 is where most of us will land on the Monday night for the return of My Kitchen Rules (with the first part of much-promoted Molly telemovie looking likely to air on February 7).

Backtracking a little here, but if you have time the previous Monday night (January 25) turn to the ABC for the Australian of the Year Special. Four finalists have been selected for each state and territory in the categories Australian of the Year, Senior Australian of the Year, Young Australian of the Year and Australia’s Local Hero.

If you’ve missed it no doubt you can catch up on iView or read more about the nominees at http://www.australianoftheyear.org.au/

Other shows due in February are Nine’s scripted comedy Here Come the Habibs! and the Australian episodes of If You are the One on SBS2. Wanted, the TV series Rebecca Gibney developed and in which she stars, starts in February on Seven. Over in Pay TV land, the excellent Selling Houses Australia returns February 3 on the Lifestyle channel.

Here’s a link to a Channel 7 ad for the MKR premiere and a few other shows that start the same day:

So, what will you be watching?

UPDATE: The Celeb after show is now appearing in the TV guides. It’s called Get Me Out of here now, runs 9.30-10.30pm this Sunday (check your local guide) on Eleven  and is rated M for “Adult Themes or medical procedures, Coarse language”.

 



Facebooktwitterredditmail

Put down the remote and have a chat

Welcome to a new site about watching TV. Whether you love a show or loathe it, this is the place to talk about it. Reality TV – especially Australian content – is my guilty pleasure but those with more highbrow tastes are also welcome. However, if you’re a fan of Two and a Half Men you may want to slink away to another corner of the interweb … Bear with me while I find my feet with this new-fangled technology.

Cheers

Admin Juz

PS: You no longer need to register to comment. If the spambots attack this may change. If you want to email me, check out the contact page.



Facebooktwitterredditmail