SBS closes long running Hotline

Where does SBS suggest we write to complain about the end of Hotline? [email protected] ? Booo!

The 5 minute viewer feedback programme which has been running for 17 years ended this week!

The show has had welcome boquets and briquettes via phone, fax, letters and emails, and included everything from voxpops to the hotcam booth. Host Electra Manikakis took over from Silvio Rivier since 1999 and you can watch her final ever episode here.

One of the more poignant letters to Hotline was from a young gay man in the country who was about to take his life, until he saw an episode of Queer As Folk. He told Hotline it was a defining moment that saved his life.

Alas, the show is no more in a changing SBS landscape of advertisements and rumblings about disgruntled staff.

And SBS viewers are outraged, having left feedback for SBS on the axing of their feedback show.

'Janet C' said "Why axe Hotline? It seems to me that SBS thinks the internet is going to take over television. Can you imagine a family sitting around a computer screen every night?" and another, "What are we going to do without you? The hotline comments give a wide variety of opinions which in turn encourages my family to discuss different viewpoints therefore bringing back the art of conversation."

Fans also have ralalied around host Electra, saying " Hotline becomes Electra. Will miss Hotline and Electra's wonderful presence. The online interactive idea does not appeal to me at all." and "What a disgrace, axing Hotline. Electra is wonderful and is a great credit to SBS. Please do not remove Hotline. The new directions that SBS are taking is completely undermining the once great broadcaster you were." Read more...

Rumour: More staff changes at Nine?

An anonymous tipster has suggested that there have been more staff movements at Nine with a possible sacking and another executive taking a package.

If the rumour is true the key executives are believed to be have overseen light entertainment and sports production at GTV9 in Melbourne.

Significantly, today also marks the end of the reign of one Eddie McGuire. Could those who have been too closely aligned with the now-former CEO be facing the chop too?

Nine's recent light entertainment from Melbourne includes struggling chat show The Nation, axed game-show Family Feud and Quizmania which is set to be replaced by The Mint. Both 1 vs 100 and Temptation have performed well.

Nine Melbourne sports includes AFL Footy Show, Sunday Footy Show and Footy Classified which has put some good runs on the board in AFL markets.

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First Review: Gay, Straight or Taken

When Bravo TV launched Boy Meets Boy in 2004 the luvly James Getzlaff was the Bachelor-style hero in a dating show that offered gay beaus and straight wolves in designer-sheep clothing. According to Getzlaff, this twist by gay-owned production company Evolution was part of an agenda to get the show into mainstream television when Queer Eye was hot.

It was probably a delicious idea. Once.

Suddenly straight men were trying to be gay, showing an aspirational quality that left homophobia at the door. Suggesting that you couldn’t tell metrosexual from homosexual merely from appearances was a notion worth disintegrating.

But in Playing It Straight, Rebecca was so disarming that you actually felt sorry for the poor gal. And the show’s focus on gay men as “liars” was alarming. Meanwhile Miriam came off looking like a “nasty transgender” with a lie as big as her apparently intact member. Each time, the envelope was worringly pushed.

So now we have Gay, Straight or Taken as 18 x 30min eps of varying males and females. The only difference here is that one of the straight guys is married. If she picks the single straighty they win a holiday, otherwise the others do. Whoopee.

In the first ep we meet Jenner who describes herself as an "hilarious smarty-pants." She forgot to mention loud, annoying and a cross between Jessica Simpson and Adam Richard. SHUT-UP! Her three guys are all big, beefy and butch. I get the impression this will be the case for the entire series. Small chance of three slight, effeminate men, right?

Jenner goes on three separate dates that look little product-placement advertorials. There isn’t even a Bachelorette’s Mansion on this puppy, the gang are all standing outside some hotel plaza.

Admittedly, when I wasn’t cringing I was either perving on the boys or guiltily testing my own gaydar, which was pretty misfired. How hopeless I am if I can’t pick the gay reality liar from the straight reality conspirator and the straight greedy married bastard.

So where to from here? Maybe a reality show outside The Peel? If you’re gay you’re in, if you’re straight you’re out. If you’re bisexual go away ‘cos you just don’t fit in anywhere. Frankly it’s easier just to watch Kerri-Anne and chill out.

Be careful what you wish for.

Gay, Straight or Taken premieres 9:30pm Monday on Arena.
Playing it Straight repeats 12:30am from Friday July 6 on Seven. Read more...

Explosive tell-all in Nine book

Gerald Stone's new book Who Killed Channel Nine? likens the death of Kerry Packer to a dying king, unable to protect his kingdom from a greedy prince.

Stone was Executive Producer of 60 Minutes from 1974 to 1989 and the man credited with leading the #1 show in the country. But his book, which has taken 13 months to write, will spill the beans on the inner workings of the once-glorious network.

Stone asserts that Kerry Packer wanted Nine to remain number one at all costs, whilst James was focussed on profit. It is particularly unkind to current PBL executive John Alexander, painting him as a man with little understanding of commercial television.

Other claims in the book relate to the leaking of doubts about Jana Wendt during her contract negotiations, the unexplained demise of the Sunday show, the exit of the producers of The Block, Eddie McGuire's fury over Steve Liebmann's criticisms of The Today Show and more.

The book, which was launched yesterday, is sure to make a great wedding president for James Packer.

Source: The Age.
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Jeepers. Seven's creeper movie

There sure is some interesting stuff on telly this weekend.

Amongst some of the more dubious choices is Seven's airing of Jeepers Creepers 2. The film is directed by Victor Salva who was convicted of pedophilia during an earlier film he made, "Clownhouse" in 1989. Salva pleaded guilty and served 15 months for charges relating to acts involving a child under the age of 14. He later made films for Disney which unsurprisingly led to a considerable public outcry. It will screen at 12:40am Sunday morning, but should Seven really be screening this? And if so, where would that leave films by Roman Polanski? A difficult decision, but one I'm guessing the Programming Department probably hasn't considered.

Less controversial viewing this weekend includes a repeat of Eurovision, the introduction of Doctor Who's new sidekick played by Freema Agyeman, the late night return of Living with Fran and a repeat of John Safran's exorcism episode.

Check out more highlights here. Read more...