Chris Lilley – exploring what it means to be a 21st century boy in the world premiere of his comedy, ANGRY BOYS.
The story of the magazine that epitomised an era when girls realised they could have everything – career, clothes and
oral sex; and the relationship behind it, dramatised in the two-part telemovie, PAPER GIANTS: THE BIRTH OF CLEO.
A double dose of ADAM HILLS; with the premiere of his own talk show in addition to his hosting duties on
Spicks and Specks.
Truth and justice get dramatic, as ABC1 returns to long-form drama with CROWNIES – played out against the
backdrop of the courts.
THIS IS WHY YOU’LL
TURN US ON IN 2011
Become TWENTYSOMETHING again with best friends Jess and Josh as they search for their big break in a new
comedy series.
Discover WHO’S BEEN SLEEPING IN MY HOUSE? with archaeologist Adam Ford.
Frank Woodley gets his own comedy series, WOODLEY playing a part-time dad and loveable fool.
The most talked about book in Australia – THE SLAP – brings its controversy to the screen in an eight-part drama
adaptation.
Live life on the wild side in CHRIS HUMFREY’S WILD LIFE.
Get LAID with Marieke Hardy’s comedy series about sex and death... it’ll kill you.
Give in to the ultimate kid fantasy that is SPLATALOT.
Take a spiritual journey with JUDITH LUCY as she searches for something to believe in.
Travel the WIDE OPEN ROAD and discover the history behind Australia’s love affair with cars.
Go teddy-bear chasing with the BANANAS IN PYJAMAS in a new 3D animated series.
Send shivers down your spine watching the story of punk rock legend, Rowland S Howard in AUTOLUMINESCENT.
A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR OF TELEVISION,
KIM DALTON
It’s been an extraordinary few years in Australian television – the biggest
revolution we’ve experienced since colour was first introduced. Not only
has the number of channels tripled, but TV is now available on demand, on
mobile and audiences can get involved through a range of social media. And
throughout it all, ABC TV has led the way.
Now it’s time for that revolution to move on-air. In 2011, we want to change
the way people see and experience ABC TV. We want to mean something and
to touch the lives of all Australians. Young and old, from around the country,
from diverse backgrounds and all walks of life. So we’re focusing on creating
the most exciting and entertaining array of quality Australian content as well as
buying some of the most interesting overseas programs to deliver across our
family of channels and platforms.
What sets ABC TV apart from other networks is not just the programming
we commit to, but the approach we take to it; we tackle subjects and genres
the commercial channels won’t and we do so in our own unique style. This
is what defines us – whether it be high risk Australian drama and comedy,
making politics entertaining, or election advertising must-watch TV - we do
things differently. What you’ll see in the year ahead, is more distinctive content;
entertaining programs that offer something extra. In 2011, ABC TV sets out to regain our position as the leading broadcaster of
quality Australian drama. And we do so with a sensational slate of Australian
stories that will carry on where Rake left off – challenging and entertaining our
viewers and leaving them wanting more.
It’s also about the people we work with – you’ll see the cream of Australia’s
creative talent along with the best new and up-and-coming personalities on
screen this year. We’re also working with the leading producers, writers and
directors to develop programs that are unique, engaging and distinctively ABC.
The year also marks some major milestones – Four Corners turns 50, the 7.30 Report 25,
Australian Story and Stateline notch up 15 years, and Insiders reaches its first decade of
broadcasting. Meantime, At the Movies hosts, Margaret and David, celebrate 25 years of
talking film.
With digital switchover only a couple of years away, we’re refining the direction of each
of our channels. In January, ABC FOR KIDS will extend its broadcast by one hour to 7pm,
with a newly branded and revamped ABC2 commencing broadcast at 7pm and going
through until 2am. ABC iView will become more mobile, expanding onto more devices
and platforms throughout the year and we will continue introducing new ways to
interact with our content.
Our focus on creating distinctive Australian content will be even more important over
the next few years. And as the way people access content changes, we will change
the way we deliver it and the opportunities we provide for our audiences to engage
with it. And as we see more channels and platforms emerge and more and more
overseas content floods into the country to fill them, ABC TV continues to showcase and
champion our local content and our local content creators.
With five broadcast channels plus iView, ABC TV offers the complete package for
Australian families, for younger and older couples, for single people, indeed for
everyone. I believe we are well positioned to lead the charge into the future. Our vision is
clear and the way forward is inviting and exciting.
Kim Dalton
Director of Television
ABC1
“ABC1 provides entertaining, quality programs that everyone can enjoy
– it’s the touch point to our lives.”
Brendan Dahill, Channel Controller
Paper Giants:
The Birth of Cleo
(working title)
D R AMA
C hris H umfrey ’s
W ild L ife
It’s 1972. Skirts are up, pants are
down. Girls can have anything:
fabulous careers, fashionable
clothes, oral sex. And riding the wave
of sexual liberation and feminist
freedom is Cleo magazine – fresh,
bold and naughty. Two ambitious,
young upstarts – Ita Buttrose and
Sir Frank Packer’s unregarded
second son, Kerry – create their own
legends as they fling the modern
girl headlong into the passion and
politics of this turbulent era. As
the backlash hits and optimism
crumbles, Ita and Kerry refuse to
take a backward step as they both
reach for their own glittering crowns.
Stars Asher Keddie and Rob Carlton.
Produced by John Edwards and
Karen Radzyner, this is a Southern
Star Entertainment production in
association with Film Victoria, Screen
Australia and ABC TV. (2 x 2hr)
THE SLAP
CROWNIES
D R AMA
D R AMA
When an adult slaps someone
else’s child at a BBQ, middle class
Australia’s underbelly is exposed. In
2009 Christos Tsiolkas’s novel, The
Slap, crashed into the dinner parties
and book clubs of Australia setting
off passionate arguments and moral
divides. The Slap fires the big guns:
love, faithfulness and parenting in
a sophisticated drama about adults
scrambling to stay upright when
the once reliable earth of family and
friendship is shifting beneath their
feet. From the multi-award-winning
novel, Australia’s most individual and
challenging writers, directors and
producers create a moving tapestry
of drama that is tense, surprising
and poetic. Love it or hate it, no-one
leaves this story unmoved. It will be
accompanied by a website produced
by ABC TV Multiplatform. Produced
by Tony Ayres, Michael McMahon
and Helen Bowden. A Matchbox
Pictures production in association
with Film Victoria, Screen Australia
and ABC TV. (8 x1 hr)
ABC TV is in final negotiations with
Screentime on a 22-part series that
will mark our return to long-form
drama. Smart, passionate young
solicitors and sharp, unshakeable
barristers; the Crownies team are
hungry for justice. When a life is
shattered by crime and the hope of
justice is all that remains, they take
the stand. But it’s not enough to
know someone is guilty; prosecutors
must build a thorough case and
deliver it brilliantly under the judicial
spotlight. Sometimes the truth is
surprising, often the truth is not
enough. Overworked and under
intense pressure, they have to band
together or fall apart and when your
colleagues are your friends, lovers
and keenest competitors it can be
hard to know who to trust. Produced
by Des Monaghan and Greg
Haddrick, the series is a Screentime
production. (22 x 1hr)
* Subject to finance.
DRAMA
Paper G iants :
T he B irth of C leo
DRAMA IN
PRODUCTION
In addition to the drama screening on ABC1 and ABC2 in 2011, we will
also be busy throughout the year producing telemovies, series and
features to screen in 2012.
REDFERN NOW
THE STRAITS
PHRYNE FISHER
D R A MA
D R AMA I N PROD UC TI ON
D R AMA I N PROD UC TI ON
The first contemporary TV drama
series written, directed and produced
by Indigenous Australians, Redfern
Now is a collaboration between
screenwriter Jimmy McGovern (The
Street, Cracker, The Lakes), ABC TV
and the Indigenous Department of
Screen Australia. Set in inner-city
Redfern in Sydney, the series will
feature hard-hitting, truthful stories
centring on a diverse group of
individuals exposing their strength,
flaws and resilience. A Blackfella
Films production in association with
ABC TV and Screen Australia. (6 x 1hr)
The Montibellos are not your average
Australian family; modern day pirates,
their family business is smuggling
drugs into Australia and guns and
exotic wildlife out, by exploiting ties
of blood and loyalty in the Torres
Strait Islands. When Harry and
Kitty start to plan their succession,
it sparks a vicious power struggle
between brother and brother, wife
and mistress, daughter and deputy.
Under attack from ambitious bikies
and mercurial PNG raskols, the
family must hold together through
torture, assassination, imprisonment
and black magic. Set among the
turquoise waters and angelic
choristers of Australia’s Torres Strait,
The Straits is a Matchbox Pictures
production in association with ABC
TV, Screen Queensland, Screen
NSW, Screen Tasmania and Screen
Australia. Produced by Penny
Chapman and Helen Panckhurst.
(10 x 1 hr)
Phryne Fisher is a glamorous and
thoroughly modern woman of the
1920s with a taste for the best, and
impeccable working class credentials.
She is feisty, liberated and unfailingly
charming as she solves murky crimes
in Jazz-age Melbourne. The darker
the deed, the greater the challenge
for the young woman with a steel
trap mind beneath her fashionable
bob. Kerry Greenwood’s much-loved
novels are adapted into a fast-paced,
fascinating series of mysteries by Deb
Cox (Sea Change) and Fiona Eagger
(East of Everything) with an awardwinning team of writers including
Shelly Birse, Liz Doran, Michael Miller,
Kelly Lefever and Jo Martino. An
Every Cloud production. (13 x 1hr)
* Subject to finance.
TOP OF THE LAKE
D R AMA I N PROD UC TI ON
Director Jane Campion once more
collaborates with Gerard Lee, her
co-writer on Sweetie to create a
compelling mystery. Twelve-year-old
Tui Mitcham, daughter of the local
drug lord Matt Mitcham, stands
chest deep in a freezing lake. Five
months pregnant, she won’t say who
the father is, insisting it was ‘no one’.
Then she disappears. Detective Robin
Griffin returns to her home town and
faces her own memories of brutal
violence, to uncover shocking secrets
in the lost valleys of this hauntingly
beautiful landscape. Produced by
Emile Sherman, this is a See-Saw
production in association with ABC
TV and BBC TV. (6 x 1hr)
* Subject to finance.
THE EYE OF THE
STORM
D R AMA IN P RODU C TION
Judy Davis, Geoffrey Rush and
Charlotte Rampling star in Fred
Schepisi’s first Australian film since
Evil Angels. Adapted from the book
by Australian novelist and 1973 Nobel
Prize-winner, Patrick White, it tells
the story of Elizabeth Hunter, the
powerful matriarch of her family,
who still maintains a destructive iron
grip on those who come to farewell
her in her final moments upon her
deathbed. Produced by Jonathan
Shteinman and Antony Waddington
and written by Judy Morris, ABC TV
has invested in this feature project
which will screen on ABC1 following
its theatrical release. (1 x 90min)
ENTERTAINMENT
ADAM HILLS IN
GORDON ST TONIGHT
E NTE R TA I N M E N T
Adam Hills, the host of ABC1’s
smash hit Spicks and Specks, is having
a crack at a new show – a weekly,
hour-long talk show – in his own
inimitable style. It’ll have all the
usual talk show trimmings – guests,
comedy and music and a few tricks
that we’ll keep as a surprise for now.
Adam had the following to say… “I’m
really excited to be allowed to have
the run of the ABC studios for a few
months. It feels like Mum and Dad are
leaving town and have given me the
keys to the studio. I’m gonna invite a
few friends around, have some good
chats, play some good music, and
try not to trash the place”. Spicks and
Specks fans need not despair, the
team will return with their seventh
series after Easter. A co-production
between ABC TV and Dick the Horse
Productions. (12 x 1 hr)
ANGRY BOYS
CO M E DY
ADAM HILLS
The creative genius behind the
award-winning shows Summer
Heights High and We Can Be Heroes,
Chris Lilley returns to ABC TV with the
world premiere of his new 12-part
COMEDY
series Angry Boys. From the bright
lights of the big cities to small country
towns, Angry Boys is set in various
locations around the world, as Chris
introduces several unforgettable
new characters to explore what it
means to be a 21st century boy, with
all the angst, anger, anticipation and
absurdity that comes with it. No-one
does mock-documentary quite like
Chris Lilley. Produced by Princess
Pictures in association with ABC TV,
HBO and the BBC. (12 x 30min)
OUTLAND
CO M E DY
Starring Christine Anu, Adam Richard,
Ben Gerrard, Paul Ireland and Toby
Truslove as the members of a gay
science fiction fan club, Outland is
a comedy series about their lives,
loves and passion for the worlds of
science fiction. Orbiting around their
shambolic meetings at each other’s
apartments, this is a series about
how you cope if you’re gay and a
geek. Mostly it’s about belonging,
no matter who you are, and how
everyone searches to find a place to
fit in. Produced by Princess Pictures
in association with ABC TV, Screen
Australia and Film Victoria.
(6 x 30min)
outland
COMEDY
LAID
CO MEDY
CO M E DY
One of Australia’s most loved comedians,
Frank Woodley, stars in his own series as
Woodley, the chaotic and accident prone
father of eight-year-old Ollie. His ex-wife
couldn’t live amongst the chaos but he
secretly hopes that one day he’ll win her
back and there is nothing he won’t do to
get the family together again. Inspired
by Frank’s silent film heroes – Woodley is
unashamedly sentimental and filled with
virtuosic physical mayhem. Produced by
Bucket Tree Productions in association
with ABC TV and Film Victoria.
(8 x 30min)
What happens when a bad one-night
stand from your distant past dies in
horrible circumstances on a beach in
Fiji? It’s enough to make any single
girl re-live some of her murkier sexual
moments. Not a pleasant place to visit,
to be perfectly honest. But when a
second ex leaves this mortal coil, she’s
forced to dwell a little longer. Add a
third on to that, and things just start
getting weird. Written and created by
Marieke Hardy and Kirsty Fisher, Laid is
woodley
a series about sex and death, starring
Alison Bell, Celia Pacquola, Toby
Truslove, Abe Forsythe and Graeme
Blundell. Produced by Porchlight
Films in association with ABC TV,
Screen Australia and Screen NSW.
(6 x 30min)
LAWRENCE LEUNG’S
UNBELIEVABLE
CO M E DY
The new adventures of intrepid
sceptic and comic, Lawrence
Leung, is a fun and fascinating
documentary series that investigates
the unbelievable. It’s Mythbusters
meets Ghostbusters as Lawrence
embarks on mind-bending quests
to examine the irrational and the
impossible. With his curious scientific
research and somewhat ludicrous
real-life experiments, Lawrence
Leung’s Unbelievable pokes fun at
our own misconceptions and tests
the limits of our beliefs. A six-part
search for truth that you will have
to see to believe. A co-production
between ABC TV and Unbelievable
Productions. (6 x 30min)
LAID
WOODLEY
ARTS
JUDITH LUCY’S
SPIRITUAL JOURNEY
MADE UP RELIGIONS:
YOUR CENSUS GUIDE
E NTE RTAIN MEN T
ARTS
Judith Lucy is lost. Now, ready or
not, she’s going on a journey to find
herself. This six-part series follows
Judith’s very personal path from
devoutly religious child to determined
young atheist to adult searching for
something to believe in. She tries
on different faiths for size, revealing
what’s on offer for the spiritually
curious, and reliving the hilarious,
bizarre and profound moments in
her life that have shaped who she is
today. A co-production between ABC
TV and Bearded Lady/Pretty Good
Productions. (6 x 30min)
John Safran takes inspiration from
the thousands of Australians who
enter ‘Jedi’ on their census form, to
explore those religions and beliefs
created for fiction and film. What
are other fictitious religions made
up by authors that have taken on a
life of their own? Can quasi-religions
like Norse and Wiccan be satisfying
substitutes? Would Australian society
fall apart without the big religions?
MRS CAREY’S
CONCERT
ARTS
J U D I T H LU C Y ’S
S P I R I T UA L J O U R N E Y
At a Sydney girls’ school, music
director Karen Carey prepares
her young students for a concert
at the Opera House. Believing in
the transformative power of great
music, Carey insists upon a classical
repertoire, sets a dauntingly high
performance standard and requires
the participation of every girl in the
school. But not everyone shares
her passion. Mrs Carey’s Concert is
about music-making and coming
of age, about talent and courage,
compliance and rebellion. Produced
by Helen Pankhurst, co-directed by
Sophie Raymond and Bob Connolly
(Rats in the Ranks). Produced by Music
Films Pty Ltd. (1 x 95min)
MACHETE MAIDENS
UNLEASHED!
ARTS
Karate-kickin’ midgets! Paper-maché
monsters! Busty babes with blades!
Filipino genre films of the ‘70s and
‘80s had it all. Boasting cheap labour,
exotic scenery and non-existent
health and safety regulations, the
Philippines was a dreamland for
exploitation filmmakers whose
renegade productions were soon
engulfing drive-in screens around
the globe like a tidal schlock-wave!
The hit of the international film
festival circuit. Produced by Fury
Productions. (1 x 1hr)
AUTOLUMINESCENT
ARTS
Director Richard Lownstein (Dogs in
Space) traces the turbulent life of one
of the most influential and multifaceted Australian rock-guitarists and
songwriters of all time – Rowland S.
Howard. His song ‘Shivers’, written
at age sixteen, became a cult classic
and anthem of teenage angst for his
and successive generations. Howard
joined Nick Cave in the iconic band,
The Boys Next Door and they went
on to become one of the most
profound forces to explode onto
the international music scene of the
time, before he was diagnosed with
terminal liver cancer. A Ghost Pictures
production. (1 x 1hr)
BEN LEE: CATCH MY
DISEASE
ARTS
One of Australia’s self-styled icons,
Ben Lee has always been a unique
artist. From his angst-ridden days as
a punk-fuelled thirteen year old, to
his starring role in a feature film and
the recording of his 5th album in the
United States, Catch My Disease is
an incisive and revealing portrait of
an indie pop star who grew up too
quickly. A Ghost Pictures Production.
(1 x 1hr)
DOCUMENTARY
25TH ANNIVERSARY
OF MARGARET
AND DAVID AT THE
MOVIES
A R TS
Cinema’s odd couple celebrate
their silver anniversary in 2011 – 25
years of Margaret Pomeranz and
David Stratton doing what they do
best – talking about film. To honour
their milestone, we’re throwing a
party – with a special live audience
studio recording, featuring the best
footage from the vault, as well as
special guests and interviews from
the greats of international and
Australian cinema. In addition, the At
the Movies mobile app will launch in
2011.
SPORTING NATION
D O C UM E N TA RY
M argaret P omeran z
& D avid S tratton
The inimitable satirist, sports fan
and Olympic Games organiser, John
Clarke, is back with a new series that
questions whether sport should be
declared Australia’s national religion.
Would today’s MCG stand up against
the Ancient Greeks’ Colosseum?
What would Australians achieve
if they didn’t have sport to fill the
vacuum? Is it a magnificent obsession
or bloated entertainment? John
kicks around with legendary
sporting heroes, amateur athletes
and the country’s loudest fans in a
documentary series that barracks for
and rips into Australian sport, past
and present. A co-production with
Princess Pictures. (3 x 1hr)
Chris Humfrey’s
Wild Life
D OCUMEN TARY
Zoologist and wildlife fanatic
Chris Humfrey lives with his wife
Nicole and their young family on
a sprawling private zoo in country
Victoria. With over 2000 amazing
creatures in their care – including
their daughters Taasha (3 yrs) and
Charlie Ashe (6 yrs) – Chris and
Nicole share their property with a
motley crew of Gen Y zookeepers.
Every waking minute is consumed
by animal and human dramas and
dilemmas. This entertaining and
informative docu-soap is driven
by charismatic personalities and
dramatic stories which capture the
joy, danger, madness, knowledge
and sheer exhilaration of living
side by side with Chris’s amazing
animal world. A co-production with
December Films. (13 x 30min)
THREE BOYS
DREAMING
D OCUMEN TARY
Over four years, three Indigenous
boys chase the dream of becoming
professional AFL footballers.
At stake is fame, prestige and
a starting salary of $150,000.
Under the glare of coaches and
recruitment managers, carrying
their own dreams and their families’
hopes, each of the boys makes a
tumultuous journey as they try to
join the highest ranks of Australian
sportsmen. One grapples with the
death of his father and faces criminal
charges for assault; another is beset
with a more common affliction –
fading ambition, while the third
is determined to go all the way. A
co-production with Cordell Jigsaw
Productions. (1 x 85min)
OUTBACK KIDS
D OCUMEN TARY
Ten teenagers are given a chance
to come back from the brink of
personal destruction in this inspiring
documentary series that follows
Allan Brahminy’s controversial
rehabilitation program at his remote
Northern Territory camp. Drug and
alcohol addicts, self-harmers, petrol
sniffers and victims of violence
have all come here in the hope of
finding a way out of the pain and
mess of their lives. Some stay only
a few weeks, others remain up
to six months. With the isolation
and Allan’s confronting methods
comes the chance to start again. A
co-production with Beyond Screen
Productions. (3 x 1hr)
WIDE OPEN ROAD
D OCU MENTARY
Australians haven’t merely ridden
in cars; we’ve pursued, fetishised
and fallen in love with them.
Cars remade the experience of
living on our continent, the fabric
of our cities and the intimate
power exchanges between sexes,
generations and classes. Told
through terrific characters, neverbefore-seen archive and candid car
confessions, Wide Open Road is the
story of Australia, as seen through
the windshield. The series will be
accompanied by a complementary
website. A Bombora Film and TV
Production. (3 x 1 hr)
WHO’S BEEN
SLEEPING IN MY
HOUSE?
FAC TUAL
Open the door to a unique approach
to discovering the social history of
Australia, through the homes we live
in. Each week, archaeologist Adam
Ford visits what appears to be an
ordinary Australian house to uncover
the stories and history within its walls.
He zigzags his way through archives,
family albums, interviews, data
bases, and home movies, meeting
social historians and relatives of past
owners along the way. Adam pieces
together a past that isn’t recorded
in the history books, and builds a
picture of the true life of Australians
Produced by Joined up Productions.
(8 x 30min)
FACTUAL
POH’S KITCHEN –
NEW SLOT
FAC TUA L
In 2011, Poh’s Kitchen moves out
of the 6.30pm timeslot and out of
the kitchen! This year the show will
premiere in primetime and Poh hits
the road. As she crosses Australia,
she meets new friends and uncovers
the dishes that talk to us about
being Australian. For Poh it’s a true
adventure, and the stories and food
inspire her to create her own new
recipes.
COMPASS
PRESENTS LIFE’S BIG
QUESTIONS
FAC TUA L
An exciting new Compass series
premieres on Sunday nights in early
2011. Hosted by Scott Stephens, a
theologian fascinated with life’s big
questions. Each half-hour episode
features Scott talking about the
deeper issues of life with high profile
Australians like Matt Preston, Lindy
Chamberlain-Creighton, Julian
Morrow, Clare Bowditch, Philip
Nitschke and Rolf De Heer. He’ll be
asking our guests to reflect on their
lives to find out what they think is the
meaning of life …
P O H ’s kitchen
INTERNATIONAL
BUY-INS INCLUDE:
The Kennedys
The Human Planet
Featuring a stellar cast of Greg
Kinnear, Katie Holmes, Tom Wilkinson
and Barry Pepper, this revealing
four-part drama series spotlights one
of America’s most legendary families
as they have never been seen before.
Following in the footsteps of Planet
Earth and Life, this epic eight-part
blockbuster is a breathtaking
celebration of the amazing,
complex, profound, and sometimes
challenging relationship between
humankind and nature.
Attenborough’s
Last Journey
A remarkable portrait of the man
behind the legend. Sir David
Attenborough revisits parts of the
world that have had special meaning
for him throughout his career.
Oliver Stone’s The
Untold History of
the United States
A fascinating documentary series
which covers the last 60 years of
American history, focusing on the
dramatically under-reported events
of the era that shaped the USA.
Great Rift
T he gruen transfer
Visible from space, Africa’s Great
Rift Valley runs four thousand miles
from the Red Sea to the mouth of
the Zambezi – it is a world of exotic
extremes, where the forces of nature
have shaped the landscape and so
created a hotbed of evolution.
Kidnap and
Ransom
Dominic King is the best international
hostage negotiator in the business.
Devoted to his clients, his mantra
“Never Promise, Never Lie,” has, until
now, meant a 100% success rate.
NEW SERIES OF
RETURNING
SHOWS:
A Quiet Word with...
Art Nation
Artscape
At the Movies
Australian Story
Can We Help?
Catalyst
Collectors
Foreign Correspondent
Four Corners
Gardening Australia
The Gruen Transfer
Hungry Beast
Insiders
Lateline
Lateline Business
Media Watch
Offsiders
Q&A
Spicks and Specks
The New Inventors
The 7.30 Report
RETURNING SHOWS
INTERNATIONAL
INCLUDE:
Doctor Who S6
Whitechapel
New Tricks S7
Spooks S9
Doc Martin S5
Midsomer Murders
Miss Marple
Poirot
ABC2
“With hand-picked programming from around the world, ABC2 is the surprise package;
entertaining TV for the young and young at heart.”
Stuart Menzies, Channel Controller
TWENTYSOMETHING
COMEDY
twentysomething
When best friends Jess and Josh
left high school, they never went
to uni, never had a clear talent and
never had a drive to grow up. While
their friends climb the corporate
ladder and settle down, Jess and
Josh live for the weekend. But
when their mind-numbing jobs
start wearing them down, Jess
and Josh embark on an unusual
entrepreneurial journey. Whether
it’s finding out how you got home
last night or what to do with the rest
of your life, the Twentysomething
world is filled with massive highs,
heartbreaking lows with plenty of
drinks in between as Jess and Josh
search for their big break. Produced
by Twentysomething Productions
in association with ABC TV, Screen
Australia and Film Victoria.
(6 x 30min)
ABC2 LIVE PRESENTS
It’s a new year of ABC2 Live Presents
performing arts treats... and Eddie
Perfect gets the live performance
party going. With the Brodsky
Quartet and students from the
Australian National Academy of
Music, Eddie performs a suite of
songs about living and growing
up in modern Australian suburbia
– Songs from the Middle. Filmed
during the Melbourne Cabaret
Festival. (1 x 90min)
GENERATION KILL
D R AMA
This acclaimed HBO mini-series
portrays the true story of the young
Marines of the First Recon Battalion
throughout the first 40 days of the
Iraq War. As part of the first spear
of the American Invasion, they
contend with equipment shortages,
incompetent commanding officers,
ever-evolving rules of engagement
and an unclear strategy. Based
on the award-winning book by
Evan Wright who was embedded
with the First Recon and originally
reported the series for Rolling Stone.
Stars Lee Tergesen, Alexander
Skarsgard (True Blood), James
Ransone and Billy Lush. An HBO
production. ( 7 x 1hour)
THE WAREHOUSE
COMEDY FESTIVAL
COM EDY
Every year Australia’s smartest
and funniest comics pour blood,
sweat and tears into developing
their new shows for the comedy
festival circuit, playing to audiences
from Melbourne to Edinburgh
via Adelaide, Sydney, Auckland,
Montreal and Brisbane. At the end
of each year the shows get put away
and often lost forever – until now.
An old warehouse in Melbourne’s
Collingwood becomes a pop-up
comedy venue, capturing the live
energy and laughs of the best
and brightest shows from the
comedy festival circuit including
Josh Thomas, Tom Ballard, Charlie
Pickering, Hannah Gadsby, Denise
Scott, Sam Simmons, Felicity Ward
and more. Produced by Madman
Entertainment and Token Events.
(10 x 30min)
WIRED
D R A MA
Louise is a fun-loving single mum
who’s given a high profile promotion
at a bank, unaware she’s been
targeted as part of a plan to steal
£250 million. The person responsible
is her best friend Anna, a young
woman who’s had her head turned
by the glamour and glitz of the
criminal fraternity and lifestyle.
She’s been persuaded to divulge
the secrets of Louise’s murky past to
her devious boyfriend, Philip, who
uses the information to entice her
into his conspiracy. As the plan is put
into practice, threats, blackmail and
insider dealing come into play and
Louise is sunk into increasing danger.
Produced by ITV Studios. (3 x 45min)
PARTY DOWN
CO M E DY
A B C 2 L ive P resents
While they wait for their big break, six
struggling actors and dysfunctional
dreamers are stuck serving hors
d’oeuvres for a Hollywood catering
company. Each week finds the
hapless catering team working a new
event - from a sexy, senior singles
mixer to a video porn awards afterparty and super-sweet 16 party gone
horribly wrong – they inevitably get
tangled up with the colourful guests
and their absurd lives. But in a town
where everything is possible, can the
ultimate going-nowhere job ever get
them anywhere? Produced by Rob
Thomas (Veronica Mars) it stars Glee’s
Jane Lynch. Produced by Slaverats.
(10 x 30min)
BLOOD, SWEAT AND
LUXURIES
In Britain today, what were once
luxuries… are fast becoming
everyday items… from electrical
gadgets to our leather handbags
and shoes. As we consume more
and more, these products become
increasingly disposable. But would
we care more if we knew the human
cost of making our luxuries? Six
young consumers will swap their
luxurious lives for the simple mud
huts and shanty towns of Africa and
Asia, to live and work alongside the
people who mine, manufacture,
process and recycle luxury goods.
After some of the most challenging
work and toughest conditions they
have ever experienced, will anyone
ever have the same love for their
luxuries again? Produced by Ricochet
Productions. (6 x 1hr)
RIVER MONSTERS
You’ve heard of extreme sports,
now prepare for extreme angling!
Biologist and angler Jeremy Wade
searches the world for legendary
and flesh-eating freshwater fish,
debunking the myths and exposing
the reality. From tiny piranha in the
Amazon that can tear apart humans
to large killer catfish in India that feed
on dead bodies, Jeremy has seen
it all... or has he? Produced by ITV
Studios. (7 x 1hr)
THE FILTH AND
THE FURY
They were in existence for only 26
months and recorded only one
album, yet The Sex Pistols changed
the face of music forever. This is the
story of the most notorious band
of all time, from the litter-stacked
back streets of London in the 70s,
to incredible worldwide success
and their ultimate self-destruction.
Featuring never-before-seen
performances and shockingly candid
interviews, the film settles old scores
and relives former triumphs in a true
celebration of the phenomenon that
was The Sex Pistols. An Icon Films
production. (1 x 100min)
ACADEMY SEASON
OF FILMS
D R AMA
A celebration of the award-winning
film favourites, this hand-picked
selection features Oscar-winning
films that stand the test of time.
From the 1950s classic Sunset Blvd,
to Chinatown, Raging Bull and
Platoon, it’s perfect Saturday night
entertainment.
NEW SERIES OF
RETURNING SHOWS
ABC2 Live Presents
Good Game
Being Human
Deadwood
Durham County
ABC FOR KIDS
“Australia’s most loved and trusted home for pre-schoolers,
enjoyed by children and parents alike.”
Tim Brooke-Hunt, Controller, Children’s
From January, ABC FOR KIDS will
broadcast to 7pm daily on ABC2
GIGGLE & HOOT
GOODNIGHT HOUR
Now it’s one year older, the
Goodnight Show gets a later
bedtime! Every evening, join Giggle
and Hoot from 6–7pm as Jimmy
Giggle and all his friends prepare
for bed and Hoot the owl stands by
for the very important job of Night
Watch. Featuring book readings,
5 Steps to Bed and gentler evening
programming. With favourite shows,
the Goodnight Hour is the perfect
way for a pre-schooler to end
their day.
BANANAS IN
PYJAMAS
P lay S chool
The Bananas are looking pretty
special in their pyjamas in this new
3D animated series. Come down the
stairs and join B1 and B2 in the world
of Cuddlestown where they always
have plenty of fun and adventures.
Together with their well-known
friends: the teddies – Amy, Lulu and
Morgan and Rat in a Hat, as well
as some new friends, our Bananas
do what they love to do best - help
each other, work together, have fun
and look out for their friends. The
series will be accompanied by a new
website in which younger children
can join the Bananas on their fun
adventures. This experience will also
extend to mobile and tablet devices
making full use of touch interaction.
A co-production between ABC TV
and Southern Star. (104 x 11min)
PLAY SCHOOL
Celebrating its 45th year in 2011,
this iconic pre-school program is
a cornerstone not just of ABC Kids
programming, but of children’s
television in Australia. There’ll be
birthday celebrations, as well as some
great new talent and the return of
many of the viewers’ favourite hosts.
Among the themes to be featured
are Once Upon A Time (fairy tales and
storytelling), On The Farm, Outdoors,
Make and Do and Pet.
THE OCTONAUTS
The Octonauts are an intrepid band
of explorers who roam the oceans in
search of adventure and fun. Living
deep under the sea in their Octopod
and led by a valiant polar bear and a
daredevil kitten, these eight talented
critters are always ready to embark
on an exciting new mission. This
series is based on the books by Vicki
Wong and Michael Murphy, also
known as Meomi. A Brown Bag Films
production. (52 x 10min)
LITTLE CHARLEY
BEAR
Join Little Charley Bear, the adorable
and wonderfully irreverent teddy
bear on his playful journeys into
his own imagination. The cheeky,
funny Charley inspires his audience
to discover the world around them.
When Charley takes to the skies in
his beautiful aeroplane he counts the
mountains as they pass below. An
Annix Studios production. (52 x 7min)
MR MOON
You know Mr Moon. Just look out
your window at night – there he is!
But have you ever wondered what
Mr Moon does when he’s not shining
down on us? Moon is an adventurer –
and who wouldn’t be, with the whole
universe for a playground? With
his Supafast Moon Rocket and best
friends Silva and Gold Star, Mr Moon
zips around, exploring planets, stars,
constellations, black holes, nebulae
and galaxies - no wonder he loses
track of time on occasion! A Sparky
Entertainment / Skaramoosh / Title
Entertainment production.
(52 x 11 min)
THE HIVE
Buzzbee and Rubee are two cute
little bees who live in The Hive, which
is always bustling with fun, adventure
and exciting things to see and do.
They love spending time with their
family and friends and finding out all
about the natural world and how it
works. A Monumental Productions
series. (26 x 21min)
ICONICLES
Nat, a young explorer and inventor,
discovers a futuristic, interactive
portal that gives him access to the
undiscovered world of the Iconicles.
This world is inhabited by a wide
variety of animated animals, birds
and creatures and is peppered
with games, songs and silliness.
This animated series combines 2D
animation with innovative, state-ofthe-art live action. A Create Media
Ventures & Foothill Entertainment
production. (26 x 24min)
MIKE THE KNIGHT
Mike the Knight lives in the medieval
land of Pendragon, a rich CG world
filled with castles, quests, dragons
and amazing friendships. With his
unique call to action “Be a knight,
do it right!” Mike the Knight brings
the excitement and enchantment
of medieval times into the life of
the modern pre-schooler for the
first time. A Hit Entertainment UK
Production. (52 x 10min)
RAH RAH! THE NOISY
LION
From the creators of Fifi and the
Flowertots, comes this new series
about a boisterous yet loveable
young lion, and his little friends, who
all live in the Jingly Jangly jungle.
Rah Rah is just finding his voice and
when he gets excited, he forgets
words. Luckily, the jungly world
he lives in is the perfect place to
learn. A Mackinnon and Saunders
Production. (52 x 10min)
NEW SERIES OF
RETURNING SHOWS
Wiggly Waffle
Timmy Time
Grandpa in My Pocket
G iggle & H oot
G oodnight H our
ABC3
SPLATALOT
An action-packed game show set in
and around a fantastical medieval
fortress, surrounded by a sludgefilled moat, featuring fire-breathing
dragons, human catapults and more
face-planting, gut busting splattacular spills than you could ever
imagine. It’s Wipeout for kids meets
It’s a Knock Out. The series comprises
26 half-hour episodes and is aimed
at an audience of 6 to 15 years.
A co-production between ABC TV,
YTV (Canada) and CBBC (UK).
(26 x 30min)
“ABC3 will continue to be Australia’s number one destination
for the school-age audience, both on TV and online.”
Tim Brooke-Hunt, Controller, Children’s
Escape from
SCORPION ISLAND
SERIES 5
Escape From Scorpion Island is the
most nail-biting, adrenaline-soaked
game show on earth. The popular
adventure series returns with series
5 in 2011. A co-production between
Freehand (Australia) and RDF Rights
(UK) for ABC TV and CBBC.
(26 x 30min and 1hr special)
K ayne &
A mberley
MAL.COM
MY PLACE SERIES 2
My Place series 2 continues the
story of one spot in Australia, told
by the children who live there
over 260 years. My Place series
1 told their stories from 2008 to
1888. Series 2 tells their tales from
1878 to Beforetime (before white
settlement). The series 2 website will
be an extension and enhancement
of the current site. A co-production
between ABC TV and Matchbox
Pictures. (13 x 30min)
Three homeless teenage street kids
stumble on television’s biggest secret
– Malcom Mann, TV3’s most popular
host, is a robot! Malcom’s ruthless
producer is desperate to keep the
secret so the kids offer her a deal.
They’ll keep quiet if she gives them
a home and they get to play out the
celebrity child lifestyle. And so a
weird family is born. A co-production
between ABC TV and Animazing
Productions. (13 x 13min)
GO LINGO! ( Wo rk in g Title)
Go Lingo! captures all the fun you’d
expect in a children’s game
show – exciting and challenging
games while enjoying the latest in
touch screen gaming technology.
Go Lingo!’s games draw heavily
from elements of Indigenous
culture educating contestants and
the audience about Indigenous
language, people and their
connection to country. Go Lingo!
features Indigenous and
non-Indigenous students aged
between 11 and 12 years of age.
A co-production between ABC TV
and Carbon Media. (50 x 30min)
GASP!
If you like laughs, lunacy and all
things illogical, then get ready for
Gasp – the most twisted fish the
goldfish bowl has ever seen. Based
on the stupidly successful GASP!,
ZAPT!, SPLAT!, SQUISH!, CRASH!,
CHOMP! series of comic books by
Australian author/illustrator/genius
Terry Denton, this fin-twitchingly
funny series follows the insanity that
ensues when Gasp and his manic
mates are home on their own.
A SLR production. (52 x 12min)
NEW
INTERNATIONAL
SERIES
The Avengers, The Jungle Book,
Deltora Quest, Almost Naked
Animals, Legend of Dick and Dom S3,
The Little Prince, Jolly Rabbit,
Life with Boys
NEW SERIES OF
RETURNING
SHOWS
Studio 3
Prank Patrol
Good Game SP
BTN
News on 3
ABC NEWS 24
“ABC News 24 gives Australians the most comprehensive, independent news service 24/7,
on TV, online and on mobile.”
Gaven Morris, Head of ABC News 24
In 2011, ABC News 24 will build on its commitment to live coverage of news events as they break at home and abroad, when you
want it, wherever you want – on TV, online and on mobile.
The year ahead will see ABC News 24 extend the opportunity for the audience to engage with more discussion, debate and
interactive input into programs. As audiences continue to look for convenience – access anytime, anywhere - Australia’s first,
free-to-air 24-hour television news channel will provide it.
ABC News 24 offers true, local, national and international news and analysis. It delivers specialist programs on business, politics,
international affairs, sport, as well as on health, rural issues and the arts. The channel showcases the best of ABC current affairs
coverage, along with new formats for discussion and analysis of the day’s news events.
NEW SERIES OF
RETURNING SHOWS
ABC News Breakfast
Afternoon Live
Mornings
Business Today
Capital Hill
Contact Sport
The Drum
One plus One
The Quarters
The World
A B C N E W S 24
The World this Week
Newsline
Plus the existing stable of ABC
news and current affairs programs.
MULTIPLATFORM
“We’re about connecting, innovating and extending ABC TV
content – be it online, on TV or on the go.”
Arul Baskaran, Controller Multiplatform
ABC iVIEW GETS
MOBILE WITH iPad
True mobile TV has finally arrived,
with ABC iView’s much anticipated
debut on the iPad. Download the
app to enjoy the best ABC TV content
in beautiful tablet size. It’s mobile TV
sized the way it should be – finally
Following on from its move to
mobile via the iPad, in 2011 Australia’s
favourite catch-up TV service will
be expanding onto more mobile
platforms and internet-connected
TVs and Blu-Ray players throughout
the year. The year ahead will see an
expansion of sport and pre-school
content on iView along with more
exclusive programs, documentaries
and previous series to complement
programming on ABC1 and ABC2.
THE GRADUAL
DEMISE OF PHILLIPA
FINCH
A RTS
Enter the whimsical world of Phillipa
Finch, a young woman searching
for love who comes to realise she is
emotionally dead, as she journeys
to find herself and love again.
Acclaimed artist Emma Magenta’s
newest character is brought to life
in this multiplatform 2D animated
project, narrated by Emmy-awardwinning Toni Collette. The TV
shorts will be accompanied by an
interactive website, where people
can create their own ‘heartwork’
and share it with their friends. A
co-production between ABC TV and
Hopscotch Films. (16 x 2min)
converts movement into sound
and colour. The site will also enable
users to have a ‘sound chamber’
experience using webcams to pick up
movement and convert it to sound
and vision on their computer. People
can create their own compositions
from the available audio samples,
upload and share them as well as
view a video stream from the sound
chamber. A co-production between
ABC TV, ScreenWest and the WA
Department of Culture and Arts.
RE-ENCHANTMENT
ABC3 GAMES
Re-Enchantment is a rich and
immersive online world where
viewers can explore contemporary
adult fairy tales. The website uses
animation, video, images and sound
to reveal the ‘real’ story behind the
classics.
ABC3 Games will be expanded with
a new suite of casual games that will
link into the Club3 social network,
including Peleda, a large-scale online
game set in an imaginary folk world
in the aftermath of a calamitous
event. With the help of magical owl
characters with others, players can
regenerate the world and piece
together the story of what happened.
IARTS – SOUND
CHAMBER
A multiplatform project based on
sound art, Sound Chamber is built
around a digital program developed
by Perth artist Kynan Tan, which