WEBVTT - BRIAN WALSH DROPS EXCLUSIVE NEWS FOR FOXTEL!

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<v Speaker 1>Good a mate, How are you today?

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<v Speaker 2>I'm good, thanks and Bennett's a terrific pleasure to be

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<v Speaker 2>with you on this podcast. And I must admit I'm

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<v Speaker 2>only a recent devatee to TV Reload. I've thoroughly enjoyed

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<v Speaker 2>what I've heard and it's terrific to get all the

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<v Speaker 2>insights from so many different people across the industry on

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<v Speaker 2>both sides of the camera.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, I mean, it's so exciting to have you on

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<v Speaker 1>TV Reload. Everyone in the Australian television world knows who

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<v Speaker 1>you are and everyone in Australia has been watching your

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<v Speaker 1>work in one way or another, so it's quite exciting

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<v Speaker 1>to be able to have you here. But how did

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<v Speaker 1>you get started in the industry?

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<v Speaker 2>Look, I think I always had a great love of

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<v Speaker 2>wanting to entertain people and that goes back to my

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<v Speaker 2>school days really. But at the end of the day,

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<v Speaker 2>I love putting on a show and I think that

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<v Speaker 2>that really started back in those days at school. And

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<v Speaker 2>when I left school, I really wanted to get into

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<v Speaker 2>television and at the time I was successful in getting

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<v Speaker 2>an opportunity with the ABC as a specialist trainer and

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<v Speaker 2>my dad, whilst he was very encouraging in my career.

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<v Speaker 2>Wasn't sure that television was going to be a very

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<v Speaker 2>secure industry for me, but he certainly encouraged me to

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<v Speaker 2>take the position with the ABC, but also wanted me

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<v Speaker 2>to pursue a tertiary education. And so for the first

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<v Speaker 2>twelve months I was working at ABC Television in Sydney

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<v Speaker 2>and I was studying part time a business degree. And

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<v Speaker 2>after twelve months, I just thought, look, my passion was

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<v Speaker 2>really was really wanting to be in entertainment full time.

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<v Speaker 2>So I took the decision to my dad insisted on

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<v Speaker 2>I get a degree. So I took the decision to

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<v Speaker 2>leave the ABC and I went to university full time.

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<v Speaker 2>And it was the first year of the communications degree

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<v Speaker 2>at what is now known as the University of Technology

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<v Speaker 2>in Sydney, and the first holiday job I had and

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<v Speaker 2>my semester break was working at a factory in Sydney

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<v Speaker 2>literally midnight to dawn for White Wings catching Himself Flower

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<v Speaker 2>And after four weeks, I thought there's got to be

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<v Speaker 2>a better way to make a dollar as I'm going

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<v Speaker 2>through UNI, and so I reached out to the guys

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<v Speaker 2>that I used to organize the movies when I was

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<v Speaker 2>at school. I used to organize surf movies and show them.

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<v Speaker 2>And I contacted the distributors of those surf movies and

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<v Speaker 2>I said, look, I'm looking for some work during the

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<v Speaker 2>holiday periods whilst I'm at UNI. If there's any opportunities,

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<v Speaker 2>please keep me in mind. And sure enough, there was

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<v Speaker 2>an opportunity that came up or showing surf movies down

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<v Speaker 2>the New South Wales South coast, and so I took

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<v Speaker 2>that opportunity and literally every semester break for three years,

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<v Speaker 2>I would load up a comedy van with two sixteen

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<v Speaker 2>millimeter projectors, a blue bucket poster is a staple gun,

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<v Speaker 2>and I would travel from town to town showing surf

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<v Speaker 2>movies from the southern suburbs of Sydney all the way

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<v Speaker 2>down to the Victorian border, and then over the summer

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<v Speaker 2>breaks I would extend that tour.

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<v Speaker 3>To go across another board.

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<v Speaker 2>I would show movies all through regional Victoria, South Australia

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<v Speaker 2>and West Australia up to Geralden. Did that for three years,

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<v Speaker 2>and at that stage surf movies were the rage and

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<v Speaker 2>surfers would flock to the local town hall and pay

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<v Speaker 2>their five dollars and watch the latest movie from some

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<v Speaker 2>of the great surf filmmakers from the US, and that's

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<v Speaker 2>where I really learned the trade. That's where I despite

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<v Speaker 2>all the wonderful things that happened through a university degree,

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<v Speaker 2>I really think the university of life for me was

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<v Speaker 2>showing those surf movies and learning how to promote and

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<v Speaker 2>how to market and standing in the back of those

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<v Speaker 2>town halls and watching two hundred and three hundred people

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<v Speaker 2>really get a thrill out of watching a movie that

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<v Speaker 2>you were showing. And I think that's when I knew

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<v Speaker 2>that entertainment was going to be my destiny. And so

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<v Speaker 2>when I completed my degree, I was convinced that I

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<v Speaker 2>wanted to be in the entertainment game full time. I

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<v Speaker 2>wasn't quite sure where that would take me. So my

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<v Speaker 2>first job out of UNI was working for David Elfick

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<v Speaker 2>and Film Noise in a company called Palm Beach Pictures,

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<v Speaker 2>and they were very successful Australian filmmakers. At the time,

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<v Speaker 2>Phil was just launching his career, David Elphick was establishing

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<v Speaker 2>himself as a major player and some of the features

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<v Speaker 2>that Palm Beach Pictures produced included news Front, which I

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<v Speaker 2>think to this day is still regarded as one of

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<v Speaker 2>the great Australian motion pictures. I guess the theme that

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<v Speaker 2>was constant for me was my involvement in professional surfing,

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<v Speaker 2>either showing surf movies or now working at a company

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<v Speaker 2>like Palm Beach Pitches, and so an opportunity came up

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<v Speaker 2>then to get more involved in professional surfing, which I

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<v Speaker 2>did as from a filmmaker's perspective, and that led me

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<v Speaker 2>through a long story I owned board or listeners, but

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<v Speaker 2>it led me to my first real, I guess, professional job,

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<v Speaker 2>which was actually in radio, and I was promotions and

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<v Speaker 2>publicity manager for a radio station in Sydney which was

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<v Speaker 2>then the number one rock station to SM and I

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<v Speaker 2>was there for five years, and you know that two

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<v Speaker 2>SM was a citadel of rock and roll, and I

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<v Speaker 2>learned so much and that's when I guess my first

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<v Speaker 2>mentor came into my life amazing legendary radio kingmaker by

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<v Speaker 2>the name of John Brennan, and he really had a

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<v Speaker 2>profound influence on my career. And I learned a lot

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<v Speaker 2>about radio from Breno and I had five fantastic years

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<v Speaker 2>at two a SM. This is a very long answer

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<v Speaker 2>to a real short question, Ben.

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<v Speaker 1>Sorry, no, I'm fascinated. Just to let you know, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>from a family of storytellers and nobody, nobody in our

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<v Speaker 1>family ever told a short story. So and the funny

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<v Speaker 1>thing was, I would always go and sit at the

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<v Speaker 1>table with all of the adults as a kid and

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<v Speaker 1>listen to my grandparents and my parents and basically anyone

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<v Speaker 1>that was capable of telling a story, and just loved it.

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<v Speaker 1>I loved hearing people's story. I love hearing anybody talk

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<v Speaker 1>about something that they feel really passionate about. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>I can hear that in the way you're telling your

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<v Speaker 1>story just now. It might seem like a long answer,

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<v Speaker 1>but I think it's fascinating for me to understand and

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<v Speaker 1>for listeners to understand that you've really been on the

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<v Speaker 1>ground floor. You've watched audiences watch entertainment. You've watched how

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<v Speaker 1>they've absorbed it, and all of these things that you've

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<v Speaker 1>picked up along the way, and all the things you've

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<v Speaker 1>heard from mentors have allowed you to be where you are.

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<v Speaker 1>And for a lot of people out there, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>people be like, oh, well, you know you've been at

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<v Speaker 1>Foxtel for so long, and what's the backstory to that? Like,

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<v Speaker 1>how did you get there, and I think people need

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<v Speaker 1>to realize that you've got to do the hard yards,

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<v Speaker 1>which from this, that's what you're telling me. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>you're telling me that you've got to go out there

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<v Speaker 1>and email these people, ask if the work is there,

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<v Speaker 1>and then prove yourself.

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<v Speaker 3>Absolutely.

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<v Speaker 2>I think that, you know, connecting with audiences, they're respected

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<v Speaker 2>of the medium radio, television, film. Connecting with audience is

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<v Speaker 2>paramount to anyone's success.

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<v Speaker 3>But all me, it goes back to being in a

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<v Speaker 3>town halls and.

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<v Speaker 2>Showing movies to people and seeing the enjoyment of that brings.

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<v Speaker 2>I think, you know, when you go back to the

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<v Speaker 2>origins of the Traveling Picture show Man, it.

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<v Speaker 3>Goes back to those days.

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<v Speaker 2>And in radio, what I loved about IDEO was that

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<v Speaker 2>I know was promotions manage the radio station. So I

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<v Speaker 2>spent a lot of time in prime ovns, going around

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<v Speaker 2>the beaches, going through the suburbs.

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<v Speaker 3>Really mixing with audiences.

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<v Speaker 2>And it still continues to this day with the fms

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<v Speaker 2>and promotional vehicles that go out and about, and I

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<v Speaker 2>think that for me is so key. You've got to

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<v Speaker 2>know your audience irrespective of what the radio format is.

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<v Speaker 2>Unless you can connect with those audiences, You're never going

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<v Speaker 2>to really be successful in that arena. And that's what

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<v Speaker 2>I've taken through to television, and I wouldn't have enjoyed any.

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<v Speaker 3>Of the success that I've had in television.

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<v Speaker 2>I've had those foundation years in radio and before that

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<v Speaker 2>showing those surf movies, and even in television. One of

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<v Speaker 2>the early lessons I learned was the importance of connecting

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<v Speaker 2>with audiences fundamentally on a level that you could really

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<v Speaker 2>connect and talk to people. And that's not sitting behind

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<v Speaker 2>a reversed glass mirror while a research group's going on,

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<v Speaker 2>and you've got to talk to people and ask them.

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<v Speaker 2>And when I was at Channel ten, and I was

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<v Speaker 2>at Channel ten through the eighties through what was a

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<v Speaker 2>successful decade for that network, and two of the programmers,

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<v Speaker 2>Tom Warn and John Stevens used to literally doorknock. Tom Warn,

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<v Speaker 2>who was one of the most successful television programmers in

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<v Speaker 2>the history of Australian television, would literally doorknock up and

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<v Speaker 2>down the street. John Stevens would sit on his favorite

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<v Speaker 2>stool at the bar at Balmain League's Club in Sydney

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<v Speaker 2>and talk to blue collar workers about what they watched

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<v Speaker 2>on television. The night before and that helped inform those

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<v Speaker 2>two programmers about the science of creating successful shows for Ten.

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<v Speaker 2>And I think all of that's important when you consider

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<v Speaker 2>the fragmentation of video today in twenty twenty one.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that people these days, you know, people in

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<v Speaker 1>positions like yourself, need to understand that a little bit more.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, need to understand that going out there and

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<v Speaker 1>talking to the community and understanding the community is.

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<v Speaker 3>Vital, absolutely, and that holds true to this day.

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<v Speaker 1>And so then I know that you went from Ten

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<v Speaker 1>and then you got into Foxtel, So how did Foxtel

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<v Speaker 1>happen for you?

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<v Speaker 2>So I, as I mentioned, I was at Ten through

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<v Speaker 2>the eighties and it was a fantastic time to be

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<v Speaker 2>working in Australian television, particularly Ten. Ten gets such a

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<v Speaker 2>rough run, I think unfairly if you look back at

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<v Speaker 2>the history of that network. The Ten network has a

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<v Speaker 2>proud tradition of great Australian television and particularly Australian television drama.

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<v Speaker 2>I guess some of the younger people listening to this

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<v Speaker 2>podcast might be aware, but certainly during the eighties the

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<v Speaker 2>signature quality Australian stories were on the Ten network, largely

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<v Speaker 2>through Kennedy Miller production company, responsible for series such as Vietnam, Bangkok, Hillton,

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<v Speaker 2>Dirt Water Dynasty, the Cawra Breakout. It was an amazing

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<v Speaker 2>time for the Ten Network. It was also the decade,

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<v Speaker 2>of course, most famously where Channel ten acquired Neighbors, which

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<v Speaker 2>was on the seven network at the time and was

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<v Speaker 2>very successful on HSV in Melbourne but not a success

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<v Speaker 2>in Sydney on ATM and so seven walked away from

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<v Speaker 2>the show and at the time Channel ten was running

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<v Speaker 2>Mash five nights a week at seven o'clock for the

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<v Speaker 2>undeenth time. I remember the day that the boss of

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<v Speaker 2>the ten network at the time came in, instead, we're

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<v Speaker 2>going to pick up Neighbors, and we controversially took the

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<v Speaker 2>show from the seven network to the Ten network. And

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<v Speaker 2>I was head of publicity for ten at the time

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<v Speaker 2>and we had a lot of fun we sticking it

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<v Speaker 2>up the opposition when we pinched Neighbors. One of the

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<v Speaker 2>stories that I look back ben with great fondness was

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<v Speaker 2>I organized a couple of large semi trailers to be

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<v Speaker 2>parked outside the Channel seven studios in Sydney at Epping

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<v Speaker 2>and I had the construction team at ten and build

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<v Speaker 2>what looked like some of the some of the insides

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<v Speaker 2>of the homes from Ramsey Street, and I brought the

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<v Speaker 2>past up and we put them on the back of

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<v Speaker 2>these trucks and we did a live cross to Good

0:11:11.480 --> 0:11:14.840
<v Speaker 2>Morning Australia and the trucks had these banners saying we're

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<v Speaker 2>moving neighbors to a new home. And the Channel seven

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<v Speaker 2>security guard was none the wiser. I think he probably

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<v Speaker 2>lost his job over it. And so after that run

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<v Speaker 2>of ten, I really wanted to go out on my

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<v Speaker 2>own and do my own thing, and in nineteen ninety

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<v Speaker 2>I left ten to start up my own consultancy and

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<v Speaker 2>my first client was the boss of what was the

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<v Speaker 2>opposition for many years, Channel nine. So Stam Chisholm, legendary

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<v Speaker 2>figure around the nine network, and said, I'm starting a

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<v Speaker 2>new role with News Corporation in the UK starting up

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<v Speaker 2>satellite television and I think.

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<v Speaker 3>We could do with some help.

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<v Speaker 2>So that really was an invitation for me to move

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<v Speaker 2>to the UK and be part of the foundation to

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<v Speaker 2>start Sky. So I went over there in nineteen ninety

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<v Speaker 2>and we launched it as incredibly exciting as you can imagine,

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<v Speaker 2>and so we created satellite television and Sky was born

0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:13.960
<v Speaker 2>twenty four multi channels. It was a breathtaking change for

0:12:14.000 --> 0:12:18.920
<v Speaker 2>British television viewers and that was an incredible time. And

0:12:18.960 --> 0:12:21.280
<v Speaker 2>you know, of course Rupert Murdoch was very hands on

0:12:21.760 --> 0:12:25.439
<v Speaker 2>with Sky in those days. So my path to Foxtel

0:12:25.480 --> 0:12:29.439
<v Speaker 2>really came about through that time at Sky. And after

0:12:29.480 --> 0:12:32.000
<v Speaker 2>three years at Sky, I was then moved to Hong

0:12:32.080 --> 0:12:35.640
<v Speaker 2>Kong when News Corporate quiet Star TV, and I was

0:12:35.840 --> 0:12:40.000
<v Speaker 2>involved with Star and launched Channel V, the music channel

0:12:40.040 --> 0:12:42.320
<v Speaker 2>as it was then, through Asia. So that was like

0:12:42.559 --> 0:12:45.240
<v Speaker 2>launching a music channel in fifty three countries, which for

0:12:45.280 --> 0:12:49.840
<v Speaker 2>a kid from suburban Sydney was extraordinary and pretty daunting impressive.

0:12:50.120 --> 0:12:53.079
<v Speaker 2>So after Star, of course the next move was Australia

0:12:53.440 --> 0:12:54.920
<v Speaker 2>and then and.

0:12:54.880 --> 0:12:57.040
<v Speaker 1>Then here we are. I mean, the main reason I

0:12:57.040 --> 0:12:59.480
<v Speaker 1>wanted to chat with you is that you know, you're

0:12:59.520 --> 0:13:02.760
<v Speaker 1>the man in hard of increasing folks tells Australian produced entertainment,

0:13:03.080 --> 0:13:06.000
<v Speaker 1>which is quite an impressive job. What's the importance in

0:13:06.040 --> 0:13:10.920
<v Speaker 1>your mind of creating Australian made shows and having ourselves

0:13:10.960 --> 0:13:11.840
<v Speaker 1>be seen on screen.

0:13:12.080 --> 0:13:16.199
<v Speaker 2>I think people like me are in very very privileged positions.

0:13:16.679 --> 0:13:20.360
<v Speaker 2>It's incumbent on us to ensure that we reflect our

0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:24.720
<v Speaker 2>national identity and that we tap into the national conversation,

0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:27.920
<v Speaker 2>or if we don't tap into the national conversation, then

0:13:27.920 --> 0:13:31.160
<v Speaker 2>we should we should start on. And I think Australian

0:13:31.200 --> 0:13:36.040
<v Speaker 2>storytelling is so important and I'm a big advocate.

0:13:35.720 --> 0:13:37.120
<v Speaker 3>For telling our stories.

0:13:37.240 --> 0:13:40.560
<v Speaker 2>I don't see how we can pass on our identity

0:13:40.640 --> 0:13:44.440
<v Speaker 2>to the generations to come unless we're accurately reflecting the

0:13:44.480 --> 0:13:46.880
<v Speaker 2>sort of Australia we're living in. I think that still

0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:50.400
<v Speaker 2>holds two. I think that Australians still, by and large

0:13:50.440 --> 0:13:52.920
<v Speaker 2>want to watch Australian stories. We want to see the

0:13:52.960 --> 0:13:56.160
<v Speaker 2>best that the US and Britain and other parts of

0:13:56.160 --> 0:13:57.200
<v Speaker 2>the world have to offer.

0:13:57.280 --> 0:13:59.840
<v Speaker 3>But we have to tell our stories about our people.

0:14:00.040 --> 0:14:03.000
<v Speaker 3>You know. The one point of difference that Foxtel has

0:14:03.040 --> 0:14:03.440
<v Speaker 3>with all.

0:14:03.360 --> 0:14:06.600
<v Speaker 2>Of the competition we have in the payworld is that

0:14:06.640 --> 0:14:09.920
<v Speaker 2>we're an Australian company and that we commission Australian stories.

0:14:10.440 --> 0:14:12.400
<v Speaker 2>And if those stories happen to get picked up by

0:14:12.440 --> 0:14:14.840
<v Speaker 2>other parts of the world, that's great, but that shouldn't

0:14:14.840 --> 0:14:17.720
<v Speaker 2>be the driving force. We shouldn't be driven by whether

0:14:18.080 --> 0:14:21.320
<v Speaker 2>a show is seen in one hundred and fifty three

0:14:21.360 --> 0:14:25.760
<v Speaker 2>countries like wentworth Is. Although that's a wonderful accolade to

0:14:25.840 --> 0:14:29.240
<v Speaker 2>have to talk about. That shouldn't be the driver. The

0:14:29.320 --> 0:14:31.880
<v Speaker 2>driver should be whether we're making television that connects with

0:14:32.160 --> 0:14:33.440
<v Speaker 2>our Australian audiences.

0:14:33.720 --> 0:14:35.200
<v Speaker 1>Yeah. Well, I think it's important for us to be

0:14:35.240 --> 0:14:37.240
<v Speaker 1>able to be seen on screen. I think young people

0:14:37.280 --> 0:14:39.320
<v Speaker 1>as well need to be seen on screen. You know,

0:14:39.360 --> 0:14:42.360
<v Speaker 1>younger people are finding entertainment on different streaming services, but

0:14:42.760 --> 0:14:46.480
<v Speaker 1>Foxtel really is a portal that I think is still

0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:49.160
<v Speaker 1>viable for people to see themselves on screen. Yeah.

0:14:49.200 --> 0:14:51.520
<v Speaker 2>Look, I think that the interesting thing for me Ben

0:14:52.040 --> 0:14:55.160
<v Speaker 2>in those formative years of Foxtel, we were the like

0:14:55.280 --> 0:14:57.040
<v Speaker 2>you know, to use the expression, we were the last

0:14:57.040 --> 0:15:01.000
<v Speaker 2>cab on the rank in that we would producers. It

0:15:01.080 --> 0:15:04.560
<v Speaker 2>would come to us with show ideas and they were

0:15:04.720 --> 0:15:07.600
<v Speaker 2>all the shows that had been rejected by seven nineteen

0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:10.680
<v Speaker 2>in the public broadcasters, and we were just getting kind

0:15:10.680 --> 0:15:13.560
<v Speaker 2>of getting what are we missing here? Why are we

0:15:13.680 --> 0:15:16.320
<v Speaker 2>getting all the shows to the others to rejected? Why

0:15:16.360 --> 0:15:18.840
<v Speaker 2>can't we make our own mark? And there was a

0:15:18.840 --> 0:15:21.680
<v Speaker 2>significant turning point I think for us when we commissioned

0:15:21.680 --> 0:15:22.920
<v Speaker 2>Love My Way, it's.

0:15:22.800 --> 0:15:25.880
<v Speaker 1>My favorite show of all time. It was so amazing

0:15:25.920 --> 0:15:27.840
<v Speaker 1>that you guys had picked that up, because I think

0:15:27.840 --> 0:15:30.520
<v Speaker 1>in lots of ways, the other networks wouldn't have taken

0:15:30.680 --> 0:15:35.200
<v Speaker 1>something that saw such flawed characters, you know, and showed

0:15:35.360 --> 0:15:38.040
<v Speaker 1>people being real. I think it was an ability that

0:15:38.080 --> 0:15:41.000
<v Speaker 1>Foxdelle could offer that show and that show's creators that

0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:42.480
<v Speaker 1>no other network could have done.

0:15:42.600 --> 0:15:45.480
<v Speaker 2>Thank you, Yes, I mean all creditors, John Edwards and

0:15:45.520 --> 0:15:49.480
<v Speaker 2>Claudia Carbon and Brendan Powell and Asher I'm an incredible

0:15:49.480 --> 0:15:53.640
<v Speaker 2>team behind that show. I think that what surprised them

0:15:53.800 --> 0:15:57.960
<v Speaker 2>when we commissioned the show was in all the creative

0:15:58.000 --> 0:16:01.280
<v Speaker 2>sessions and all the writing rooms, just kept telling them

0:16:01.320 --> 0:16:05.400
<v Speaker 2>to go further. And you know, they, like a lot

0:16:05.400 --> 0:16:09.480
<v Speaker 2>of producers, they had worked in the commercial sector where

0:16:09.480 --> 0:16:12.480
<v Speaker 2>there are so many guidelines about what you can and

0:16:12.560 --> 0:16:14.840
<v Speaker 2>can't do on television. We just told them to throw

0:16:14.880 --> 0:16:18.200
<v Speaker 2>the rule book out and go hard and be provocative.

0:16:18.600 --> 0:16:21.200
<v Speaker 2>We were the Challenger brand, as you can imagine, at

0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:24.560
<v Speaker 2>the time, and we wanted to make an impact and

0:16:24.640 --> 0:16:27.160
<v Speaker 2>the only way we could do that meaningfully was to

0:16:27.200 --> 0:16:32.760
<v Speaker 2>give them complete creative license. And we talked to producers

0:16:32.000 --> 0:16:35.880
<v Speaker 2>as about why they love working for Netflix, and they'll

0:16:35.920 --> 0:16:39.640
<v Speaker 2>tell you that it's because they're given creative autonomy. I'd

0:16:39.680 --> 0:16:42.720
<v Speaker 2>like to think that's what we gave those producers with

0:16:42.880 --> 0:16:45.560
<v Speaker 2>Love my Way. It's all about you've got to if

0:16:45.560 --> 0:16:48.280
<v Speaker 2>you're going to engage with the creative community, you have

0:16:48.360 --> 0:16:50.560
<v Speaker 2>to allow their creative vision to go to the screen.

0:16:50.880 --> 0:16:53.600
<v Speaker 2>Network notes are important, but you know, if you're going

0:16:53.640 --> 0:16:56.520
<v Speaker 2>to commission the show, you're commissioning someone's vision. It's like

0:16:56.640 --> 0:16:58.960
<v Speaker 2>telling an author to write a book and then trying

0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:01.720
<v Speaker 2>to edit what they write. You just don't do that,

0:17:01.800 --> 0:17:03.320
<v Speaker 2>and you don't do it. You don't do it with

0:17:03.400 --> 0:17:06.560
<v Speaker 2>television drama. And I think that's why I Love my

0:17:06.680 --> 0:17:07.360
<v Speaker 2>Way work.

0:17:08.840 --> 0:17:11.280
<v Speaker 1>Thanks to my were friends. Well, I think it's worth

0:17:11.280 --> 0:17:13.520
<v Speaker 1>a try. If he killed himself and he's a.

0:17:13.480 --> 0:17:15.520
<v Speaker 3>Coward, no, no, no, they've got a million dollars.

0:17:15.600 --> 0:17:17.960
<v Speaker 1>He was a drunk and a gambler and he calls

0:17:18.000 --> 0:17:18.640
<v Speaker 1>them nothing.

0:17:18.440 --> 0:17:21.000
<v Speaker 3>But pay So is this chicken bult to the family cult?

0:17:21.359 --> 0:17:22.560
<v Speaker 2>This is disgusting.

0:17:22.760 --> 0:17:26.680
<v Speaker 1>What's bumped my family? That's the most important thing to me.

0:17:26.760 --> 0:17:26.920
<v Speaker 2>Now.

0:17:27.400 --> 0:17:31.120
<v Speaker 1>I love to hear me. I'm not you fank out mother,

0:17:31.240 --> 0:17:33.440
<v Speaker 1>aren't you? Oh? I's not supposed to me. But what

0:17:33.520 --> 0:17:35.760
<v Speaker 1>about these kids growing up? Without a famcun.

0:17:35.880 --> 0:17:38.600
<v Speaker 2>I knew you wouldn't understand, mate, because you never screw

0:17:38.680 --> 0:17:39.760
<v Speaker 2>up to you, it's in human.

0:17:42.080 --> 0:17:43.520
<v Speaker 3>I think that really changed the game.

0:17:43.600 --> 0:17:46.520
<v Speaker 2>That show changed the game certainly for us, and I

0:17:46.520 --> 0:17:51.680
<v Speaker 2>would like to think for Australian writers and producers and

0:17:51.720 --> 0:17:55.040
<v Speaker 2>that passion that went into that show back then is

0:17:55.119 --> 0:17:58.160
<v Speaker 2>still very much alive today with all of our commissioners

0:17:58.160 --> 0:18:01.680
<v Speaker 2>here at the company that Love My Way is such

0:18:01.720 --> 0:18:02.680
<v Speaker 2>a reference point.

0:18:02.920 --> 0:18:05.600
<v Speaker 1>You know, I was talking to Samantha Strauss on this

0:18:05.680 --> 0:18:08.920
<v Speaker 1>podcast only a few weeks ago, and you know she

0:18:09.040 --> 0:18:11.359
<v Speaker 1>was inspired by Love my Way. You know, that kind

0:18:11.400 --> 0:18:14.520
<v Speaker 1>of writing had allowed her to sort of think outside

0:18:14.520 --> 0:18:17.200
<v Speaker 1>the box and then go hard. And I watched all

0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:20.720
<v Speaker 1>of in the end in one sitting, the end, sorry,

0:18:20.760 --> 0:18:22.360
<v Speaker 1>not in the end, the end. I watched it all

0:18:22.400 --> 0:18:26.160
<v Speaker 1>in one sitting, and I just was blown away by

0:18:26.680 --> 0:18:29.160
<v Speaker 1>how far we'd even come from Love my Way, because

0:18:29.160 --> 0:18:31.240
<v Speaker 1>there was things that was happening in this new show

0:18:31.600 --> 0:18:34.159
<v Speaker 1>that was groundbreaking all over again.

0:18:34.560 --> 0:18:37.159
<v Speaker 2>And certainly if you were remaking Love my Way today,

0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:41.080
<v Speaker 2>you would have a lot more diversely the characters, and

0:18:40.200 --> 0:18:45.320
<v Speaker 2>you would and you should be showing the modern face

0:18:45.359 --> 0:18:48.879
<v Speaker 2>of Australia and I think we've been somewhat not so

0:18:48.960 --> 0:18:50.920
<v Speaker 2>much with the public broadcast, but I think in the

0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:56.359
<v Speaker 2>commercial world, I don't think we've accurately reflected the modern

0:18:56.400 --> 0:19:00.080
<v Speaker 2>face of Australia, and I think that's important that we do.

0:19:00.320 --> 0:19:03.160
<v Speaker 2>And I think we also have to be telling stories

0:19:03.160 --> 0:19:06.960
<v Speaker 2>that are resonating with younger Australians. And I mean, I

0:19:06.960 --> 0:19:09.359
<v Speaker 2>think I think Australians have a lot of choice with

0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:11.720
<v Speaker 2>what they watch. I think, you know, I think it's

0:19:11.760 --> 0:19:14.400
<v Speaker 2>our responsibility to ensure that we're delivering stories that bring

0:19:14.440 --> 0:19:15.360
<v Speaker 2>them back to Fox Sell.

0:19:15.600 --> 0:19:19.240
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, absolutely, and not to move away from scripted reality

0:19:19.280 --> 0:19:22.199
<v Speaker 1>and the importance of Foxtail's show The End. Do you

0:19:22.200 --> 0:19:24.480
<v Speaker 1>think we'll get a second series of that series? Do

0:19:24.480 --> 0:19:26.879
<v Speaker 1>you think Samantha Strauss will come back and do another

0:19:26.920 --> 0:19:27.480
<v Speaker 1>series event?

0:19:27.680 --> 0:19:31.280
<v Speaker 2>Look, I'd like to. It really depends on the story.

0:19:31.480 --> 0:19:33.880
<v Speaker 2>It all comes back to story then, and there's no

0:19:33.960 --> 0:19:37.360
<v Speaker 2>doubting that Samantha Strows is an exceptional writer. And if

0:19:37.359 --> 0:19:41.360
<v Speaker 2>anyone can nail a great hip story, it's it's Sam.

0:19:41.800 --> 0:19:45.080
<v Speaker 2>So if the story is there, we will absolutely would

0:19:45.080 --> 0:19:47.320
<v Speaker 2>absolutely love to continue doing it.

0:19:47.440 --> 0:19:50.640
<v Speaker 1>I'll be there for it. That's for sure, who would

0:19:50.680 --> 0:19:53.040
<v Speaker 1>you say is Foxtel's biggest competitor now?

0:19:53.320 --> 0:19:58.040
<v Speaker 2>I think any paying subscription platform is obvious. Is the

0:19:58.080 --> 0:20:01.560
<v Speaker 2>obvious answer to that? To that question, I think things

0:20:01.560 --> 0:20:03.720
<v Speaker 2>have changed a lot in the last few years. Free

0:20:03.720 --> 0:20:07.000
<v Speaker 2>to wear television to me is very much focused around

0:20:07.080 --> 0:20:12.080
<v Speaker 2>competition reality, and you know that their sweet spot is

0:20:12.119 --> 0:20:15.520
<v Speaker 2>six pm to nine pm, and after that they've kind

0:20:15.520 --> 0:20:19.520
<v Speaker 2>of conceded that people go to pay services. So I

0:20:19.560 --> 0:20:22.919
<v Speaker 2>don't think we're really competing there in free toowear television.

0:20:23.240 --> 0:20:26.600
<v Speaker 2>Competition reality is not something that we necessarily spend a

0:20:26.640 --> 0:20:29.439
<v Speaker 2>lot of time on because seven, nine and ten do

0:20:29.480 --> 0:20:32.600
<v Speaker 2>it so well in our lifestyle genre. We like to

0:20:32.600 --> 0:20:36.800
<v Speaker 2>think that what separates us from free to wear television

0:20:36.960 --> 0:20:42.720
<v Speaker 2>is that our lifestyle shows in particular are informative, inspirational

0:20:42.920 --> 0:20:45.919
<v Speaker 2>as well as entertaining, So we tend to dial down

0:20:46.240 --> 0:20:50.240
<v Speaker 2>the idea of competition and dial up inspiration and I

0:20:50.280 --> 0:20:54.439
<v Speaker 2>think that comes through in shows like Selling Houses, Love It.

0:20:54.480 --> 0:20:57.760
<v Speaker 3>A List, Yeah, definitely, bake off. It's the joy of

0:20:57.840 --> 0:20:58.600
<v Speaker 3>that endeavor.

0:20:58.960 --> 0:21:03.280
<v Speaker 2>So competition is the consumer and how they spend their

0:21:03.280 --> 0:21:06.760
<v Speaker 2>disposable income, and they've got so many choices now as

0:21:06.760 --> 0:21:10.160
<v Speaker 2>to how they spend that money. Every week there's another

0:21:10.200 --> 0:21:13.800
<v Speaker 2>app being launched that represents competition for Foxtail, and I

0:21:13.840 --> 0:21:16.919
<v Speaker 2>think that makes us sharper. And going back to what

0:21:17.000 --> 0:21:20.720
<v Speaker 2>I spoke of before, I think the Australian flavor of

0:21:20.760 --> 0:21:24.560
<v Speaker 2>our content and our commissioning is more important now than

0:21:24.560 --> 0:21:28.080
<v Speaker 2>ever because I think that there's so many good shows

0:21:28.160 --> 0:21:30.879
<v Speaker 2>on a number of services. You can pick any one

0:21:30.920 --> 0:21:33.800
<v Speaker 2>of the streaming services and you can list off four

0:21:33.880 --> 0:21:37.400
<v Speaker 2>or five must see TV shows and that includes Foxtail.

0:21:37.600 --> 0:21:41.000
<v Speaker 3>So what's going to separate us? What's going to differentiate us?

0:21:41.040 --> 0:21:41.920
<v Speaker 3>It has to be.

0:21:42.000 --> 0:21:43.919
<v Speaker 2>Those shows that can see on Fox tell that you

0:21:43.920 --> 0:21:44.920
<v Speaker 2>can't see anywhere else.

0:21:45.200 --> 0:21:47.199
<v Speaker 1>What about free to wear television? Though, I mean you

0:21:47.280 --> 0:21:51.280
<v Speaker 1>touched on something. Then about these competition based reality shows

0:21:51.320 --> 0:21:56.080
<v Speaker 1>taking up that sweet spot and the audience numbers have decreased.

0:21:56.480 --> 0:21:58.680
<v Speaker 1>What do you see happening with Free to Wear in

0:21:58.680 --> 0:22:00.760
<v Speaker 1>that regard? Do you think that they're can have to

0:22:01.040 --> 0:22:03.000
<v Speaker 1>get better in the ways in which they tell those

0:22:03.080 --> 0:22:05.440
<v Speaker 1>competition based reality TV shows or do you think they

0:22:05.440 --> 0:22:06.679
<v Speaker 1>need to move away from them.

0:22:06.720 --> 0:22:09.840
<v Speaker 2>Free to wear television it's all about live eyeballs. That's

0:22:09.880 --> 0:22:12.119
<v Speaker 2>where the revenue is for them. I mean the end

0:22:12.119 --> 0:22:14.720
<v Speaker 2>of the day, their business model is based on how

0:22:14.720 --> 0:22:16.720
<v Speaker 2>many people are watching a show at any given time

0:22:17.200 --> 0:22:19.960
<v Speaker 2>so that they can deliver an against number two ad

0:22:20.000 --> 0:22:23.639
<v Speaker 2>agencies who will buy that time for their clients. So

0:22:23.680 --> 0:22:26.720
<v Speaker 2>it's all about live viewing for free TV. It's not

0:22:26.800 --> 0:22:30.480
<v Speaker 2>about that necessarily for the subscription universe. So for free

0:22:30.480 --> 0:22:36.919
<v Speaker 2>TV news, sport, competition reality requires live viewing, and for

0:22:36.960 --> 0:22:40.840
<v Speaker 2>that reason then I don't see the model changing. I

0:22:40.840 --> 0:22:44.240
<v Speaker 2>think the interesting observation is the sort of competition reality

0:22:44.600 --> 0:22:47.880
<v Speaker 2>in that you still have to have narrative to take

0:22:47.960 --> 0:22:51.040
<v Speaker 2>audiences from one night to the next, which is why

0:22:51.040 --> 0:22:54.080
<v Speaker 2>I Married at First Side is such a roaring success

0:22:54.200 --> 0:22:59.280
<v Speaker 2>because it's what I would call light scripted people. You know,

0:22:59.280 --> 0:23:02.000
<v Speaker 2>people aren't really from scripts, but there's certainly a narrative

0:23:02.040 --> 0:23:06.080
<v Speaker 2>that keeps people their night after night after night. You

0:23:06.200 --> 0:23:09.720
<v Speaker 2>don't have that same requirement with Holy Mole. You don't

0:23:09.720 --> 0:23:14.200
<v Speaker 2>have that same requirement with some of the other shows

0:23:14.400 --> 0:23:17.560
<v Speaker 2>like Ultimate Tag et cetera. So I think the sort

0:23:17.560 --> 0:23:20.879
<v Speaker 2>of competition reality is important. You know, certainly you know

0:23:21.000 --> 0:23:24.640
<v Speaker 2>teen success off Bachelor and Bachelor at and a Celebrity.

0:23:24.640 --> 0:23:27.360
<v Speaker 2>I mean, there's narrative that takes the audiences over that

0:23:27.480 --> 0:23:31.040
<v Speaker 2>six week story arc that keeps people there. So competition

0:23:31.119 --> 0:23:33.440
<v Speaker 2>reality is what works for free to wear television. It's

0:23:34.240 --> 0:23:38.399
<v Speaker 2>the type of competition reality that I think differentiates the

0:23:38.440 --> 0:23:39.560
<v Speaker 2>winners from the losers.

0:23:40.000 --> 0:23:41.960
<v Speaker 1>You know, in hindsight, do you think that our television

0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:44.640
<v Speaker 1>industry could have been faster adopting to digital?

0:23:44.800 --> 0:23:49.320
<v Speaker 2>Well, you can't repeat history, and the Australian television industry

0:23:49.359 --> 0:23:51.960
<v Speaker 2>is the most competitive in the world, I think, given

0:23:52.000 --> 0:23:54.639
<v Speaker 2>our scale. I mean, we just don't have the population

0:23:54.800 --> 0:23:57.959
<v Speaker 2>of other English speaking territories like the United States. You know,

0:23:58.000 --> 0:24:02.040
<v Speaker 2>when you think of the population size of Australia and

0:24:02.200 --> 0:24:06.000
<v Speaker 2>the amount of television we have, I think television's evolved

0:24:06.080 --> 0:24:08.840
<v Speaker 2>as it has. A lot of the major players have

0:24:08.920 --> 0:24:11.800
<v Speaker 2>sunk a lot of money into technology, so I think

0:24:11.840 --> 0:24:15.520
<v Speaker 2>it's happened organically for all the right reasons, you know.

0:24:15.600 --> 0:24:17.880
<v Speaker 2>I think that we have an industry that we should

0:24:17.920 --> 0:24:18.679
<v Speaker 2>be very proud of.

0:24:18.800 --> 0:24:20.320
<v Speaker 3>We have three.

0:24:20.680 --> 0:24:25.560
<v Speaker 2>Successful commercial networks, we have two public broadcasters who I

0:24:25.600 --> 0:24:29.000
<v Speaker 2>think both serve their audience as well with their charter

0:24:29.359 --> 0:24:33.760
<v Speaker 2>and we've got a subscription television industry of which Foxtel

0:24:33.880 --> 0:24:35.320
<v Speaker 2>is absolutely.

0:24:34.960 --> 0:24:36.040
<v Speaker 3>The pioneer product.

0:24:36.359 --> 0:24:39.080
<v Speaker 2>And now there are other competitors in market that stands

0:24:39.160 --> 0:24:41.359
<v Speaker 2>up to being amongst the best in the world. And

0:24:41.520 --> 0:24:44.600
<v Speaker 2>you know, I've been fortunate enough to travel around the

0:24:44.640 --> 0:24:45.920
<v Speaker 2>world a lot and.

0:24:46.320 --> 0:24:49.320
<v Speaker 3>Watch television in very many markets, and I'm very proud

0:24:49.359 --> 0:24:50.320
<v Speaker 3>of the fox Tail product.

0:24:50.400 --> 0:24:54.600
<v Speaker 2>I think it's I think that we have absolutely sought

0:24:54.680 --> 0:24:58.000
<v Speaker 2>out the best television from around the world. And it's

0:24:58.000 --> 0:24:59.359
<v Speaker 2>an interesting time that we're living in.

0:25:00.160 --> 0:25:03.320
<v Speaker 1>Having Binge for drama and sort of Kao for sport

0:25:03.440 --> 0:25:05.440
<v Speaker 1>help Foxtel's subscriptions.

0:25:05.840 --> 0:25:09.560
<v Speaker 2>Well, there are two very different products with distinct personalities

0:25:09.640 --> 0:25:13.719
<v Speaker 2>and catering for a completely different segment. Ko and Binge

0:25:13.720 --> 0:25:16.960
<v Speaker 2>have not capitalized Foxtail in the way which you might

0:25:16.960 --> 0:25:21.240
<v Speaker 2>find surprising. But people who have Binge have Binge because

0:25:21.280 --> 0:25:24.160
<v Speaker 2>they are of a segment where Binge is are more

0:25:24.160 --> 0:25:29.679
<v Speaker 2>affordable product. They are probably surfing between streaming services a

0:25:29.720 --> 0:25:34.560
<v Speaker 2>lot more than a Foxtel customer would do. The Foxtel customer.

0:25:34.640 --> 0:25:39.080
<v Speaker 2>This is anecdotal, but I can tell you that we

0:25:39.119 --> 0:25:42.240
<v Speaker 2>have a very loyal customer base and they love the

0:25:42.320 --> 0:25:45.120
<v Speaker 2>technology of Foxtail. They love the convenience of the IQ,

0:25:46.000 --> 0:25:50.240
<v Speaker 2>they love the ability to press pause, rewind, watch, on demand,

0:25:50.760 --> 0:25:53.480
<v Speaker 2>you know, to use a pizza analogy. Foxtel is all

0:25:53.560 --> 0:25:56.399
<v Speaker 2>you can eat, So there's something there for everyone in

0:25:56.440 --> 0:26:00.439
<v Speaker 2>the household. And it's a family product. Foxtail, whether it

0:26:00.560 --> 0:26:06.640
<v Speaker 2>be sport or news, or lifestyle or entertainment, movies, boxtellers,

0:26:06.640 --> 0:26:10.520
<v Speaker 2>the complete package. Those people for Binge, they're buying a

0:26:10.560 --> 0:26:13.800
<v Speaker 2>pure entertainment product. Those who are buying Kore buying a

0:26:14.080 --> 0:26:17.639
<v Speaker 2>pure sports product. The strategy, which is I think a

0:26:17.760 --> 0:26:21.400
<v Speaker 2>very sound one, is to diversify our business to meet

0:26:21.520 --> 0:26:26.480
<v Speaker 2>changing marketplace that are looking for alternatives. And both Ko

0:26:26.560 --> 0:26:29.320
<v Speaker 2>and Binge have been incredible success stories.

0:26:29.560 --> 0:26:32.040
<v Speaker 1>Well you know, at the moment, I am obsessed with Binge.

0:26:32.119 --> 0:26:36.000
<v Speaker 1>I went to a screening of Mayor of Eastown in Melbourne,

0:26:36.200 --> 0:26:38.840
<v Speaker 1>a screening of the first two episodes, and I knew

0:26:38.880 --> 0:26:41.040
<v Speaker 1>nothing about the series. I went in with my best

0:26:41.040 --> 0:26:46.000
<v Speaker 1>friend and we were absolutely blown away. I think it's

0:26:46.119 --> 0:26:49.400
<v Speaker 1>probably Kate Winslet's best role today, which is a really

0:26:49.400 --> 0:26:51.760
<v Speaker 1>hard thing to say because she has just a back

0:26:51.800 --> 0:26:55.720
<v Speaker 1>catalog of endless work that's just a masterclass. But Mayor

0:26:55.760 --> 0:26:58.960
<v Speaker 1>of Eastown for Binge. I'm anyone listening to this go

0:26:59.000 --> 0:27:01.600
<v Speaker 1>and get Bin straight away, just for this show, like,

0:27:01.640 --> 0:27:04.520
<v Speaker 1>it's just so addictive. What episode are you up to

0:27:04.760 --> 0:27:05.560
<v Speaker 1>in Mayor of Eastown?

0:27:05.680 --> 0:27:08.280
<v Speaker 2>My money up to episode three. But Mayor of Eastown

0:27:08.400 --> 0:27:11.879
<v Speaker 2>has blowness away in terms of performance numbers. It's so

0:27:12.080 --> 0:27:14.560
<v Speaker 2>close to doing the sort of numbers that The Undoing did,

0:27:14.640 --> 0:27:18.320
<v Speaker 2>and The Undoing has been the most successful drama outside

0:27:18.359 --> 0:27:21.560
<v Speaker 2>of Game of Thrones, the most successful drama launch ever

0:27:21.640 --> 0:27:23.919
<v Speaker 2>in the history of Foxtown. And Mayor of Eastown is

0:27:23.920 --> 0:27:26.919
<v Speaker 2>going to becoming a very very close sect quite extraordinary,

0:27:27.160 --> 0:27:29.240
<v Speaker 2>And I agree with you, Ben, I think Kate Winslet's

0:27:29.240 --> 0:27:30.320
<v Speaker 2>is going to win every award.

0:27:30.520 --> 0:27:33.679
<v Speaker 1>I just from the very moment this character emerged on screen,

0:27:33.720 --> 0:27:36.920
<v Speaker 1>it wasn't Kate Winslett, you know, it was somebody who

0:27:38.119 --> 0:27:40.920
<v Speaker 1>you know. Just the mannerisms, with everything that Mayor does

0:27:41.000 --> 0:27:44.000
<v Speaker 1>through this show is just so relatable in this kind

0:27:44.040 --> 0:27:51.119
<v Speaker 1>of attractive but repulsive way. It's magnificent television. And I

0:27:51.280 --> 0:27:54.359
<v Speaker 1>just keep thinking about how far we've come from having

0:27:54.480 --> 0:27:57.320
<v Speaker 1>characters and stories that you used to only see in

0:27:57.359 --> 0:28:00.760
<v Speaker 1>the cinema now being accessible and available on programs like

0:28:00.800 --> 0:28:01.960
<v Speaker 1>bingch It's unbelievable.

0:28:02.119 --> 0:28:05.119
<v Speaker 2>I think certainly the pandemic changed a lot of things forever,

0:28:05.400 --> 0:28:09.199
<v Speaker 2>and we always knew that there was great storytelling on

0:28:09.320 --> 0:28:13.359
<v Speaker 2>television through the supplies like HBO. But I think that

0:28:13.440 --> 0:28:16.320
<v Speaker 2>the pandemic has certainly convinced a lot of people that

0:28:16.359 --> 0:28:18.040
<v Speaker 2>you don't have to go to the cinema have a

0:28:18.080 --> 0:28:20.639
<v Speaker 2>great story. I think cinema will always have its place,

0:28:20.680 --> 0:28:24.359
<v Speaker 2>and it's a fantastic experience, big screen experience for that.

0:28:24.680 --> 0:28:27.680
<v Speaker 2>But the way we're getting big screen TV's at home

0:28:27.760 --> 0:28:31.320
<v Speaker 2>now and it's just changed dramatically in terms of our

0:28:31.600 --> 0:28:33.040
<v Speaker 2>in terms of our viewing habits.

0:28:33.800 --> 0:28:36.520
<v Speaker 1>I think there needs to be a binge cinema because

0:28:36.800 --> 0:28:39.000
<v Speaker 1>watching the first two episodes of Mayor of Eastown in

0:28:39.040 --> 0:28:41.680
<v Speaker 1>the cinema was amazing, and I just think there should

0:28:41.680 --> 0:28:43.600
<v Speaker 1>be a binge cinema. I wonder if something like that

0:28:43.640 --> 0:28:45.680
<v Speaker 1>can happen. I mean, I know you're saying people are

0:28:45.680 --> 0:28:49.840
<v Speaker 1>having home cinemas and having big screens, but that communal

0:28:49.880 --> 0:28:52.560
<v Speaker 1>experience of being in a cinema and watching this sort

0:28:52.560 --> 0:28:55.400
<v Speaker 1>of event television. I wonder if there's a place for that.

0:28:55.680 --> 0:28:58.120
<v Speaker 2>Well, it might take you back to those days of

0:28:58.200 --> 0:28:59.320
<v Speaker 2>showing movies in those.

0:28:59.200 --> 0:29:02.960
<v Speaker 1>Town halls exactly right, you know, did HBO and Binge like,

0:29:03.040 --> 0:29:04.680
<v Speaker 1>you know, did that come along at the right time

0:29:04.720 --> 0:29:07.840
<v Speaker 1>for Foxtel. I mean, when did that deal start to evolve.

0:29:08.720 --> 0:29:12.800
<v Speaker 2>It's no secret that there was a very competitive hitch

0:29:13.040 --> 0:29:15.479
<v Speaker 2>happening with one of the other players in the market.

0:29:15.680 --> 0:29:19.680
<v Speaker 2>And so you know, we've got an amazing head of

0:29:19.800 --> 0:29:23.720
<v Speaker 2>content at Foxtel, Amandalaying our head of Content and commercial

0:29:23.840 --> 0:29:25.920
<v Speaker 2>and is an amazing negotiator.

0:29:26.440 --> 0:29:28.040
<v Speaker 3>That was a hard fought.

0:29:27.880 --> 0:29:33.040
<v Speaker 2>Win to retain HBO and in the new deal we

0:29:33.160 --> 0:29:35.800
<v Speaker 2>have with Wornermedia, we have all of the HBO and

0:29:35.920 --> 0:29:39.280
<v Speaker 2>HBO Max products. So we knew it was an important

0:29:39.320 --> 0:29:41.800
<v Speaker 2>deal to get because not only would it continue the

0:29:41.840 --> 0:29:44.480
<v Speaker 2>great legacy that we had with HBO for Foxtel, but

0:29:44.480 --> 0:29:48.000
<v Speaker 2>it would also provide us with exceptional content and HBO

0:29:48.120 --> 0:29:51.960
<v Speaker 2>Max or Binge and HBO Max in the US and

0:29:52.120 --> 0:29:55.480
<v Speaker 2>Binge here in Australia very much aimed at the same segment.

0:29:55.640 --> 0:29:58.640
<v Speaker 2>So you know, females eighteen to four b that's kind

0:29:58.680 --> 0:30:01.640
<v Speaker 2>of the target group HBO Max and the target group

0:30:01.760 --> 0:30:02.480
<v Speaker 2>her Binge.

0:30:02.720 --> 0:30:06.280
<v Speaker 1>Yeah. Absolutely, Now I need to talk Housewives. I'm loving

0:30:06.280 --> 0:30:08.160
<v Speaker 1>the new cast. By the way, I was lucky enough

0:30:08.200 --> 0:30:10.720
<v Speaker 1>to be there with you for the launch in Melbourne.

0:30:11.160 --> 0:30:13.200
<v Speaker 1>It was just such a magnificent day. I was just

0:30:13.240 --> 0:30:15.480
<v Speaker 1>so good to be able to see these women who

0:30:15.480 --> 0:30:17.720
<v Speaker 1>were so impressive. But I want to ask, you know,

0:30:17.800 --> 0:30:19.800
<v Speaker 1>how did it go with gene Leana when she gave

0:30:19.840 --> 0:30:22.440
<v Speaker 1>you the news that she wouldn't be returning to Real Housewives.

0:30:22.480 --> 0:30:24.480
<v Speaker 1>I remember on the day you might have said something

0:30:24.520 --> 0:30:27.120
<v Speaker 1>like you'd gone out to a lunch. How did Gina's

0:30:27.280 --> 0:30:28.760
<v Speaker 1>exit from that show go down with you?

0:30:29.320 --> 0:30:32.520
<v Speaker 3>Look? It was it was tough news to receive that.

0:30:32.800 --> 0:30:36.200
<v Speaker 2>She indicated to the producer's match box that she didn't

0:30:36.240 --> 0:30:39.120
<v Speaker 2>want to continue. Very early on when the border, when

0:30:39.160 --> 0:30:41.320
<v Speaker 2>the border restrictions were lifted, I took one of the

0:30:41.320 --> 0:30:44.800
<v Speaker 2>first flights to Melbourne to meet with Gina and we

0:30:44.880 --> 0:30:49.239
<v Speaker 2>had a really terrific afternoon talking about her life and

0:30:49.320 --> 0:30:51.920
<v Speaker 2>how things have changed for her through the pandemic.

0:30:52.120 --> 0:30:54.200
<v Speaker 3>And I came away from that meeting.

0:30:54.320 --> 0:30:56.040
<v Speaker 2>You know, you come away from meetings like that with

0:30:56.120 --> 0:30:59.080
<v Speaker 2>talent sometimes when you know that they've made the right

0:30:59.080 --> 0:31:01.840
<v Speaker 2>decision for them and for their happiness. And I knew

0:31:01.880 --> 0:31:04.960
<v Speaker 2>after that meeting that there was no way of convincing

0:31:04.960 --> 0:31:08.280
<v Speaker 2>her to stay with the show. She rediscovered her love

0:31:08.360 --> 0:31:11.320
<v Speaker 2>and passion for the law. The pandemic had provided an

0:31:11.360 --> 0:31:16.360
<v Speaker 2>opportunity for her to continue her legal practice virtually, and

0:31:16.400 --> 0:31:19.280
<v Speaker 2>she really got a lot of great personal reward from that.

0:31:19.720 --> 0:31:22.320
<v Speaker 2>And you know, she just said to me that she

0:31:22.640 --> 0:31:24.960
<v Speaker 2>just didn't want to be a celebrity anymore. And when

0:31:25.000 --> 0:31:28.280
<v Speaker 2>you hear it from someone like Gina, who's an intelligent

0:31:28.520 --> 0:31:31.640
<v Speaker 2>woman who really does have a great empathy for people

0:31:31.760 --> 0:31:35.840
<v Speaker 2>and for the people she represents in legal matters, I

0:31:35.960 --> 0:31:38.520
<v Speaker 2>related to that. And for me then it wasn't so

0:31:38.640 --> 0:31:41.360
<v Speaker 2>much about can I talk her around? It was about

0:31:41.560 --> 0:31:43.680
<v Speaker 2>how are we going to evolve the show without her?

0:31:44.360 --> 0:31:46.840
<v Speaker 2>And that really became for me over the summer of

0:31:47.000 --> 0:31:50.160
<v Speaker 2>twenty twenty one, the conundrum how.

0:31:50.000 --> 0:31:50.800
<v Speaker 3>Do we move forward?

0:31:51.080 --> 0:31:54.560
<v Speaker 2>And I went back to Gina and Lydia on a

0:31:54.760 --> 0:31:56.760
<v Speaker 2>number of occasions and thought, you know, can we do

0:31:56.840 --> 0:32:00.200
<v Speaker 2>it be special together? Can we get you back of

0:32:00.240 --> 0:32:03.760
<v Speaker 2>a handover? But Gina had moved on, and she'd moved

0:32:03.800 --> 0:32:07.920
<v Speaker 2>on emotionally and in every way. So look, I think

0:32:07.920 --> 0:32:10.800
<v Speaker 2>you've just got to really you've got to trust the

0:32:10.840 --> 0:32:14.080
<v Speaker 2>producers that you surround yourself with that the show will

0:32:14.120 --> 0:32:16.960
<v Speaker 2>survive without the individual. And how many times have we

0:32:16.960 --> 0:32:20.120
<v Speaker 2>seen that on Australian television over many, many years, we've

0:32:20.120 --> 0:32:23.680
<v Speaker 2>got so many countless examples of where talent have left

0:32:23.720 --> 0:32:26.440
<v Speaker 2>shows and the shows have continued to great success. And

0:32:26.600 --> 0:32:29.080
<v Speaker 2>the most recent example, of course is Master Chef. So

0:32:29.280 --> 0:32:32.400
<v Speaker 2>it was not so much about having remorse for Gina

0:32:32.520 --> 0:32:34.719
<v Speaker 2>not doing the show. It was about how can we

0:32:34.800 --> 0:32:38.640
<v Speaker 2>recast it so that we've got some really fantastic, compelling

0:32:38.720 --> 0:32:41.240
<v Speaker 2>new characters for people to relate to.

0:32:41.520 --> 0:32:43.360
<v Speaker 1>Did she say to you when she walked away, good

0:32:43.440 --> 0:32:45.840
<v Speaker 1>luck with your deck of cards? When she walked away

0:32:45.840 --> 0:32:48.360
<v Speaker 1>from that meeting, good.

0:32:48.240 --> 0:32:50.760
<v Speaker 2>Luck with your deck of cards, because that's all you've

0:32:50.800 --> 0:32:52.040
<v Speaker 2>got is a deck of cards.

0:32:51.840 --> 0:32:56.320
<v Speaker 3>That are back to Topple And no. No.

0:32:56.560 --> 0:32:59.840
<v Speaker 2>In fact, Gina gave me a lot of very valuable

0:33:00.000 --> 0:33:02.640
<v Speaker 2>actually on the show, and she said to me, and

0:33:02.680 --> 0:33:05.960
<v Speaker 2>we talked about why Melbourne was such a great success

0:33:06.000 --> 0:33:09.320
<v Speaker 2>and why Sydney didn't work, and she had very I

0:33:09.360 --> 0:33:13.000
<v Speaker 2>think informed views that I took from her about why

0:33:13.160 --> 0:33:16.640
<v Speaker 2>one work why one didn't, And the overriding theme that

0:33:17.160 --> 0:33:20.640
<v Speaker 2>came through from those discussions was importance of humor. And

0:33:20.920 --> 0:33:22.880
<v Speaker 2>she said, you know, you've got to keep it real,

0:33:23.000 --> 0:33:24.200
<v Speaker 2>but keep the humor there.

0:33:24.320 --> 0:33:25.400
<v Speaker 3>Brian that's important.

0:33:25.800 --> 0:33:27.640
<v Speaker 2>As for the show, all I can tell you is

0:33:27.680 --> 0:33:30.680
<v Speaker 2>where three weeks in and the fireworks are already started.

0:33:30.840 --> 0:33:33.320
<v Speaker 3>And I'm excited for the new cast.

0:33:33.600 --> 0:33:39.120
<v Speaker 2>It's great to have Janet and Jackie and Gamble back.

0:33:39.360 --> 0:33:40.520
<v Speaker 3>I think fans of.

0:33:40.560 --> 0:33:44.800
<v Speaker 2>The show will love those three Janets of shitst by

0:33:44.840 --> 0:33:47.280
<v Speaker 2>her own edition. But the new girls, I think, I

0:33:47.320 --> 0:33:50.959
<v Speaker 2>think they're going to give a fantastic insight into what

0:33:51.000 --> 0:33:52.880
<v Speaker 2>it means to be a real housewife of Melbourne in

0:33:52.880 --> 0:33:54.959
<v Speaker 2>twenty twenty one. The world has changed, the world has

0:33:55.000 --> 0:33:57.120
<v Speaker 2>moved on, and I think in the same way, the

0:33:57.200 --> 0:34:00.560
<v Speaker 2>goggle Box is very reflective of the conversations that are

0:34:00.560 --> 0:34:03.040
<v Speaker 2>happening around Australia about what we watch on television.

0:34:03.120 --> 0:34:05.520
<v Speaker 3>I'm certain that Real Housewives.

0:34:04.880 --> 0:34:09.040
<v Speaker 2>Will also, I think, be fairly accurate representation how people

0:34:09.080 --> 0:34:10.640
<v Speaker 2>are living their lives post COVID.

0:34:10.840 --> 0:34:13.320
<v Speaker 1>Oh absolutely. You know, what do you think went wrong

0:34:13.440 --> 0:34:17.680
<v Speaker 1>with that Sydney version? In your mind? And Sydney didn't

0:34:17.719 --> 0:34:20.360
<v Speaker 1>get played in America? You know it was at the

0:34:20.480 --> 0:34:24.160
<v Speaker 1>end of the relationship between Australian housewives being played in America?

0:34:24.280 --> 0:34:28.560
<v Speaker 1>Or does Melbourne still get to be played overseas on Bravo.

0:34:28.480 --> 0:34:31.960
<v Speaker 2>Melbourne's Housewives and Melbourne still plays very successfully on Bravo.

0:34:32.200 --> 0:34:35.920
<v Speaker 2>Sydney Housewives did not get picked up by Bravo, and

0:34:36.040 --> 0:34:36.799
<v Speaker 2>I think, you.

0:34:36.760 --> 0:34:38.200
<v Speaker 3>Know, look, you've got to be honest.

0:34:38.320 --> 0:34:42.360
<v Speaker 2>We got the casting wrong and chemistry is so important

0:34:42.360 --> 0:34:44.560
<v Speaker 2>when it comes to these kind of shows. I think

0:34:44.600 --> 0:34:49.359
<v Speaker 2>the mistake was that the Sydney women felt like they

0:34:49.440 --> 0:34:54.080
<v Speaker 2>had to perform to a certain way and that it

0:34:54.160 --> 0:34:58.279
<v Speaker 2>wasn't authentic, lacked authenticity, and I think they were just

0:34:58.360 --> 0:35:00.960
<v Speaker 2>being aggressive with each other for the of being aggressive,

0:35:01.080 --> 0:35:04.279
<v Speaker 2>and it came across as too nasty. And you know,

0:35:04.400 --> 0:35:09.560
<v Speaker 2>audiences are Australian audiences. They're very honest with their assessment

0:35:09.800 --> 0:35:12.759
<v Speaker 2>and they're appraisal of what they watch on television.

0:35:12.920 --> 0:35:14.560
<v Speaker 3>And it just didn't gel.

0:35:15.080 --> 0:35:17.319
<v Speaker 1>So no reboot of Sydney happening anytime soon.

0:35:19.000 --> 0:35:22.080
<v Speaker 2>Housewives of Melbourne is our is the show that they're

0:35:22.080 --> 0:35:25.920
<v Speaker 2>putting all our focus into. It's the most successful and

0:35:26.080 --> 0:35:28.680
<v Speaker 2>enduring franchise and I see it running for many years

0:35:28.719 --> 0:35:29.000
<v Speaker 2>to come.

0:35:29.239 --> 0:35:31.160
<v Speaker 1>You know, I thought Joel Creesy was really great at

0:35:31.200 --> 0:35:33.959
<v Speaker 1>hosting that Melbourne Media launch just a few weeks ago.

0:35:34.400 --> 0:35:36.600
<v Speaker 1>Is there any chance that he might replace Alex Perry.

0:35:36.800 --> 0:35:39.359
<v Speaker 2>I'm a huge fan of Joel Creasy. In fact, I

0:35:39.400 --> 0:35:41.799
<v Speaker 2>caught up with he and his manager last week. You know,

0:35:41.880 --> 0:35:44.680
<v Speaker 2>the thing that I will say is this, that you

0:35:44.800 --> 0:35:48.080
<v Speaker 2>talk to people about what we lack on Australian television.

0:35:48.120 --> 0:35:51.320
<v Speaker 2>Everyone will tell you it's a primetime show that is

0:35:51.360 --> 0:35:57.960
<v Speaker 2>a fantastic vehicle for our talent, whether they be musicians, actors, celebrities,

0:35:58.200 --> 0:35:59.160
<v Speaker 2>sports people.

0:35:59.440 --> 0:36:00.520
<v Speaker 3>The promoter will.

0:36:00.320 --> 0:36:03.640
<v Speaker 2>Tell you that the only vehicle they have when they've

0:36:03.640 --> 0:36:06.680
<v Speaker 2>got touring acts is the breakfast shows or the Project.

0:36:06.840 --> 0:36:10.080
<v Speaker 2>And I think we are desperately in need of a

0:36:10.120 --> 0:36:13.560
<v Speaker 2>weekly prime time variety show and if there's one person

0:36:13.560 --> 0:36:15.200
<v Speaker 2>who should host it, it's Joel Creasy.

0:36:15.760 --> 0:36:18.800
<v Speaker 1>I think we need to see more young TV hosts

0:36:19.160 --> 0:36:22.839
<v Speaker 1>and I think what's interesting about Joel not already in

0:36:22.880 --> 0:36:25.120
<v Speaker 1>that role is that, you know, maybe there is a

0:36:25.160 --> 0:36:27.360
<v Speaker 1>bit of a step still to go to having an

0:36:27.440 --> 0:36:31.480
<v Speaker 1>LGBTI host. I mean, in America there's Allen DeGeneres or

0:36:31.520 --> 0:36:34.440
<v Speaker 1>Andy Cohen. You know, both of those are very prominent

0:36:34.560 --> 0:36:39.400
<v Speaker 1>LGBTI personalities hosting shows. And in Australia don't necessarily know

0:36:39.440 --> 0:36:40.239
<v Speaker 1>if we've seen that.

0:36:40.840 --> 0:36:43.800
<v Speaker 2>No, we haven't, and we tend to categorize or pigeonhole people.

0:36:43.880 --> 0:36:46.400
<v Speaker 2>So we go, Okay, you're funny, so we're putting you

0:36:46.440 --> 0:36:49.760
<v Speaker 2>in a funny show. But we've never actually said you're funny,

0:36:49.880 --> 0:36:54.120
<v Speaker 2>and you're smart, and you're a great conversationalist and you're

0:36:54.120 --> 0:36:56.640
<v Speaker 2>a great interviewer. Let's create something different.

0:36:56.800 --> 0:36:58.879
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I think so. And I think Joel Creasy has

0:36:58.920 --> 0:37:01.840
<v Speaker 1>some what's interesting about him is he has some social

0:37:01.880 --> 0:37:06.239
<v Speaker 1>intelligence that is not seen in other presenters and other interviewers.

0:37:06.719 --> 0:37:09.279
<v Speaker 1>And I think that we've for so long just said

0:37:09.320 --> 0:37:11.600
<v Speaker 1>you're a comedian, you know, And I think we need

0:37:11.640 --> 0:37:13.200
<v Speaker 1>to delve a little bit deeper with some of the

0:37:13.239 --> 0:37:15.600
<v Speaker 1>talent that we have in this country who are more capable.

0:37:15.840 --> 0:37:18.279
<v Speaker 2>I agree, And you know, again, you know that's where

0:37:18.360 --> 0:37:20.880
<v Speaker 2>Channel thirty one was so important.

0:37:20.400 --> 0:37:21.279
<v Speaker 3>Platform, wasn't it?

0:37:21.360 --> 0:37:21.560
<v Speaker 1>Oh?

0:37:21.600 --> 0:37:23.960
<v Speaker 3>Absolutely, and so many others.

0:37:23.960 --> 0:37:28.400
<v Speaker 2>So we have to absolutely as an industry ensure that

0:37:28.440 --> 0:37:31.840
<v Speaker 2>we have an opportunity for incubation and for ideas, and

0:37:31.880 --> 0:37:34.279
<v Speaker 2>we have to take risks. You know, so much of

0:37:34.280 --> 0:37:36.840
<v Speaker 2>television is safe, but we need to take some risks

0:37:36.840 --> 0:37:40.000
<v Speaker 2>and let some things fail. You know, someone told me

0:37:40.040 --> 0:37:42.359
<v Speaker 2>once at eighty percent of television is failure we need

0:37:42.400 --> 0:37:45.200
<v Speaker 2>to be braver. We need to be bolder. And look,

0:37:45.200 --> 0:37:47.799
<v Speaker 2>it's been very unusual time the last two years. The

0:37:47.840 --> 0:37:52.040
<v Speaker 2>networks have been hurting commercially. Money's not as free as

0:37:52.080 --> 0:37:55.160
<v Speaker 2>it once was. But I don't think we should ever

0:37:55.280 --> 0:37:57.799
<v Speaker 2>step away from being bold, and we should never step

0:37:57.840 --> 0:38:01.160
<v Speaker 2>away from being experimental, and certainly never step away from

0:38:01.200 --> 0:38:01.760
<v Speaker 2>being boring.

0:38:02.280 --> 0:38:05.680
<v Speaker 1>Absolutely here here to that. Absolutely Can I bribe you

0:38:05.760 --> 0:38:08.000
<v Speaker 1>at all to keep Wentworth on television? You know, we

0:38:08.040 --> 0:38:10.480
<v Speaker 1>have talked about the last two seasons. It's promoted as

0:38:10.520 --> 0:38:13.120
<v Speaker 1>the last two seasons. We've seen the first part of

0:38:13.120 --> 0:38:15.200
<v Speaker 1>that and there's going to be this final series that

0:38:15.239 --> 0:38:16.959
<v Speaker 1>will be happening in the back end of this year.

0:38:17.600 --> 0:38:19.760
<v Speaker 1>Can I bribe you in any means, in any way

0:38:20.040 --> 0:38:21.480
<v Speaker 1>to keep that show on television.

0:38:21.960 --> 0:38:25.120
<v Speaker 3>I appreciate your devotion to the show.

0:38:25.280 --> 0:38:29.120
<v Speaker 2>It's certainly computed that the history of Australian television. I'm

0:38:29.239 --> 0:38:31.640
<v Speaker 2>proud of that Wentworth will be up there as one

0:38:31.680 --> 0:38:35.480
<v Speaker 2>of the signature series that have come out of this country.

0:38:36.000 --> 0:38:39.120
<v Speaker 2>I think it's played its last hard. I think it's

0:38:39.200 --> 0:38:41.960
<v Speaker 2>best to go out on top. I think that we

0:38:42.600 --> 0:38:48.520
<v Speaker 2>really explored so many stories that I'd like to tie

0:38:48.520 --> 0:38:51.520
<v Speaker 2>a nice bow on the box and have other stories

0:38:51.560 --> 0:38:55.040
<v Speaker 2>to tell. And it's my hope that Fox can continue

0:38:55.080 --> 0:38:58.239
<v Speaker 2>to work with the creative team behind Wentworth on an

0:38:58.280 --> 0:39:02.160
<v Speaker 2>exciting new drama out of Victoria. And we're certainly well

0:39:02.200 --> 0:39:06.000
<v Speaker 2>advanced in those discussions. So you I'd like to convince

0:39:06.040 --> 0:39:09.920
<v Speaker 2>you to transfer your love and devotion to something new

0:39:09.960 --> 0:39:11.200
<v Speaker 2>that we'll have on screen soon.

0:39:11.400 --> 0:39:13.920
<v Speaker 1>Oh. Absolutely, And then would be remissive me not to

0:39:13.920 --> 0:39:16.400
<v Speaker 1>ask you this question, but Game of Thrones fans the

0:39:16.520 --> 0:39:20.319
<v Speaker 1>anticipation for this upcoming prequel, House of the Dragon, has

0:39:20.360 --> 0:39:23.040
<v Speaker 1>that been cemented in for Foxtail? Have you locked that show?

0:39:23.480 --> 0:39:24.239
<v Speaker 1>Locked that show in?

0:39:24.520 --> 0:39:28.080
<v Speaker 2>That's absolutely going to be, if not the most important

0:39:28.160 --> 0:39:31.080
<v Speaker 2>launch of twenty twenty two, it will certainly be up there.

0:39:31.120 --> 0:39:34.120
<v Speaker 2>But that's absolutely in our arsenal. We have a long

0:39:34.200 --> 0:39:38.000
<v Speaker 2>term output arrangement with HBO and the Game of Thrones

0:39:38.080 --> 0:39:41.919
<v Speaker 2>franchise and House of Dragon. As this prequel will be known,

0:39:42.080 --> 0:39:45.399
<v Speaker 2>we'll absolutely spearhead our program offering for twenty twenty two.

0:39:45.680 --> 0:39:48.000
<v Speaker 1>Well, people are very excited about that. You know, another

0:39:48.040 --> 0:39:51.680
<v Speaker 1>show that is so a part of Foxtel and has

0:39:51.719 --> 0:39:53.880
<v Speaker 1>been kicking on now. I think it's on its like

0:39:53.960 --> 0:39:57.520
<v Speaker 1>thirteenth series is goggle Box, which you've been very instrumental

0:39:58.080 --> 0:40:01.719
<v Speaker 1>with working on that show the whole way through. Did

0:40:01.760 --> 0:40:03.799
<v Speaker 1>you expect that show to be as popular as it is?

0:40:04.040 --> 0:40:05.760
<v Speaker 3>No, I didn't, to be honest.

0:40:06.080 --> 0:40:09.560
<v Speaker 2>In fact, when I was attending mip in Khan, the

0:40:09.640 --> 0:40:12.000
<v Speaker 2>show had been on an air in the UK, I

0:40:12.040 --> 0:40:15.719
<v Speaker 2>think it was about two years and the commercial networks

0:40:15.760 --> 0:40:18.240
<v Speaker 2>here all took a look at it. But won't surprise

0:40:18.280 --> 0:40:20.719
<v Speaker 2>you Ben that their view was, well, why would we

0:40:20.760 --> 0:40:23.320
<v Speaker 2>commission a show where we were going to include content

0:40:23.400 --> 0:40:24.320
<v Speaker 2>from our opposition?

0:40:24.840 --> 0:40:26.839
<v Speaker 3>Kind of When I got that sense from being at

0:40:26.840 --> 0:40:27.880
<v Speaker 3>the market.

0:40:27.520 --> 0:40:31.200
<v Speaker 2>I thought, well, you know what, seven nine to ten

0:40:31.680 --> 0:40:33.960
<v Speaker 2>might not do this show because they don't want to

0:40:34.000 --> 0:40:37.080
<v Speaker 2>promote shows from another network, But I think this is

0:40:37.080 --> 0:40:38.880
<v Speaker 2>the kind of show that we'll get a lot of

0:40:38.920 --> 0:40:42.799
<v Speaker 2>talk ability in Australia because it felt to me like

0:40:43.320 --> 0:40:46.320
<v Speaker 2>it was a show that very much played down the middle.

0:40:46.520 --> 0:40:47.640
<v Speaker 3>You could reflect.

0:40:47.920 --> 0:40:50.600
<v Speaker 2>We talked before in this podcast about the changing face

0:40:50.640 --> 0:40:53.960
<v Speaker 2>of Australia and diversity on screen. I knew that in

0:40:54.080 --> 0:40:58.360
<v Speaker 2>casting goggle Box, we could very quickly, I think, show

0:40:58.719 --> 0:41:02.960
<v Speaker 2>what contemporary Australian family life or home life is life

0:41:03.200 --> 0:41:05.440
<v Speaker 2>and have some fun at doing it, and you know,

0:41:05.440 --> 0:41:09.040
<v Speaker 2>because where Foxtel, we can take some license and we

0:41:09.080 --> 0:41:12.080
<v Speaker 2>can go hard and we can be controversial, and the

0:41:12.120 --> 0:41:15.400
<v Speaker 2>networks aren't going to really worry that we're lifting content

0:41:15.480 --> 0:41:17.680
<v Speaker 2>from them because you know, we are not in one

0:41:17.719 --> 0:41:20.800
<v Speaker 2>hundred percent of harms. And so for me, it was

0:41:20.840 --> 0:41:23.520
<v Speaker 2>a gamble. I thought of we'd maybe get two or

0:41:23.520 --> 0:41:25.640
<v Speaker 2>three seasons out of it. I had no idea that

0:41:25.680 --> 0:41:29.400
<v Speaker 2>it would run this long. And it's been an incredible

0:41:29.440 --> 0:41:33.360
<v Speaker 2>success story for us. And as you know, we on

0:41:33.560 --> 0:41:35.879
<v Speaker 2>sell the show to ten and it's one of their

0:41:35.920 --> 0:41:39.480
<v Speaker 2>top rating shows every week. And I think Shane, who

0:41:39.520 --> 0:41:42.560
<v Speaker 2>produced the show for us, are a David McDonald who's

0:41:42.600 --> 0:41:45.600
<v Speaker 2>an extraordinary producer. You know, I think they get it

0:41:45.800 --> 0:41:47.600
<v Speaker 2>just right. It's a show that we spend a lot

0:41:47.640 --> 0:41:51.360
<v Speaker 2>of time on because of casting and crafting each week,

0:41:51.440 --> 0:41:54.160
<v Speaker 2>and the selection of shows that the families look at

0:41:54.800 --> 0:41:59.240
<v Speaker 2>is really carefully considered. For me, the segments at work

0:42:00.160 --> 0:42:04.400
<v Speaker 2>most effectively are those that really encourage a debate in

0:42:04.440 --> 0:42:08.279
<v Speaker 2>the household, and that would be a compelling documentary, or

0:42:08.320 --> 0:42:11.160
<v Speaker 2>a news and current affairs show, or a great movie

0:42:11.200 --> 0:42:15.840
<v Speaker 2>that people can reminisce with it's got such an authenticity

0:42:15.880 --> 0:42:19.239
<v Speaker 2>about it, goggle Box, and I'm happy to share with you.

0:42:19.320 --> 0:42:21.120
<v Speaker 2>We haven't announced it, but I'm happy to share with

0:42:21.160 --> 0:42:23.920
<v Speaker 2>you that we will be doing a celebrity edition of

0:42:24.000 --> 0:42:26.840
<v Speaker 2>goggle Box in an upcoming season and we're having a

0:42:26.880 --> 0:42:27.960
<v Speaker 2>lot of fun pasting that.

0:42:28.440 --> 0:42:32.239
<v Speaker 1>Oh wow, everyone's been talking about it, but there's the

0:42:32.280 --> 0:42:36.720
<v Speaker 1>official confirmation while we talk about that. I think Anthony

0:42:36.760 --> 0:42:39.000
<v Speaker 1>Clear and Tim Campbell would be very good on that show.

0:42:39.440 --> 0:42:42.080
<v Speaker 1>I don't know those boys personally, but I watched them

0:42:42.080 --> 0:42:44.319
<v Speaker 1>doing that mimicking stuff and I just think that they'd

0:42:44.360 --> 0:42:44.760
<v Speaker 1>be great.

0:42:44.960 --> 0:42:46.920
<v Speaker 2>I think there's a great formatt in the lips and

0:42:46.960 --> 0:42:49.960
<v Speaker 2>I've told them that. And yes, Anthony and Tim are

0:42:50.000 --> 0:42:52.680
<v Speaker 2>absolutely on our wide card the celebrity Gogglebots.

0:42:52.920 --> 0:42:54.839
<v Speaker 1>You know what's interesting about goggle Box as well as

0:42:55.080 --> 0:42:57.640
<v Speaker 1>we've seen faces popular face on that show come and go,

0:42:58.440 --> 0:43:01.839
<v Speaker 1>do you yourself get attached the families? And is there

0:43:01.840 --> 0:43:04.640
<v Speaker 1>a family that or a household that you now miss

0:43:04.680 --> 0:43:05.240
<v Speaker 1>that's gone?

0:43:05.680 --> 0:43:09.680
<v Speaker 2>No, because I think that I think it's healthy for

0:43:09.760 --> 0:43:16.520
<v Speaker 2>the show to always review the households. And you know, look,

0:43:16.520 --> 0:43:18.759
<v Speaker 2>it's a big imposition on them, to be frank, it's

0:43:18.800 --> 0:43:21.920
<v Speaker 2>a lot of time that they have to devote to

0:43:22.560 --> 0:43:26.000
<v Speaker 2>watching television and reviewing television, and I think it's like

0:43:26.200 --> 0:43:29.919
<v Speaker 2>any great ensemble piece bend you know, you can interchange,

0:43:30.080 --> 0:43:32.240
<v Speaker 2>and so do we miss.

0:43:32.320 --> 0:43:33.080
<v Speaker 3>I mean, of.

0:43:33.040 --> 0:43:36.200
<v Speaker 2>Course there are people who have a deep affection for

0:43:36.239 --> 0:43:38.240
<v Speaker 2>the Goggle Bops, but it's.

0:43:38.040 --> 0:43:39.960
<v Speaker 3>A big country. There are a lot of people who

0:43:40.040 --> 0:43:41.040
<v Speaker 3>love watching television.

0:43:41.080 --> 0:43:44.240
<v Speaker 2>I don't think there's any shortage of opportunities to cast

0:43:44.239 --> 0:43:44.640
<v Speaker 2>the show.

0:43:44.880 --> 0:43:46.320
<v Speaker 3>Moving into the future.

0:43:46.520 --> 0:43:50.200
<v Speaker 2>I think when you look at the makeup of the

0:43:50.239 --> 0:43:53.719
<v Speaker 2>current households of Goggle Bops, I think it's a very

0:43:53.760 --> 0:43:57.319
<v Speaker 2>interesting and reflection of Australia in twenty twenty one. I

0:43:57.360 --> 0:44:00.279
<v Speaker 2>don't see the show in any way waning just goes

0:44:00.280 --> 0:44:03.680
<v Speaker 2>from strength to strength. I had Shine in the office

0:44:03.680 --> 0:44:06.960
<v Speaker 2>here yesterday. We were talking about it and you asked me, Am,

0:44:06.960 --> 0:44:10.560
<v Speaker 2>I surprise. They are more surprised. I mean, here's a

0:44:10.600 --> 0:44:13.400
<v Speaker 2>show that lasted one season in the United States. It

0:44:13.440 --> 0:44:16.240
<v Speaker 2>was called The People's Couch and it was on Bravo

0:44:16.360 --> 0:44:20.520
<v Speaker 2>and it just failed dismally. So it's fantastic that here

0:44:20.520 --> 0:44:23.640
<v Speaker 2>we are fourteen seasons in and it's still as strong

0:44:23.680 --> 0:44:26.080
<v Speaker 2>as ever. I think there's something in the fact that

0:44:26.120 --> 0:44:28.600
<v Speaker 2>we don't run it four nights a week, forty weeks

0:44:28.600 --> 0:44:29.040
<v Speaker 2>of a year.

0:44:29.239 --> 0:44:32.759
<v Speaker 1>How do you respond to rumors about foxtowl? I know

0:44:32.840 --> 0:44:34.880
<v Speaker 1>that you like to keep up with the industry gossip

0:44:34.920 --> 0:44:37.680
<v Speaker 1>and you keep your finger on the pulse. But when

0:44:37.719 --> 0:44:40.000
<v Speaker 1>you hear something that's completely off tap, you know, how

0:44:40.000 --> 0:44:41.480
<v Speaker 1>do you deal with that? Do you just ignore it

0:44:41.560 --> 0:44:43.480
<v Speaker 1>or do you try and respond to it in the public.

0:44:44.440 --> 0:44:48.760
<v Speaker 2>Being an ex publicist, I always believe in having open

0:44:48.880 --> 0:44:53.640
<v Speaker 2>conversations with press and with journalists, and I always engage

0:44:53.680 --> 0:44:57.040
<v Speaker 2>with journos. I always take their calls. If I can't

0:44:57.080 --> 0:45:00.200
<v Speaker 2>answer something honestly, I'll say I can't answer the quest uestion,

0:45:00.360 --> 0:45:03.040
<v Speaker 2>or I can't address the question. If they report something

0:45:03.040 --> 0:45:06.640
<v Speaker 2>that's inaccurate or false about Foxtell, I'm the first person

0:45:06.800 --> 0:45:13.560
<v Speaker 2>to defend the organization, and I you know, there are

0:45:13.600 --> 0:45:17.360
<v Speaker 2>all sorts of the years that people have about our business,

0:45:17.360 --> 0:45:20.680
<v Speaker 2>and it's not just out but every business. I don't

0:45:20.719 --> 0:45:25.400
<v Speaker 2>think that ignoring a question from a journalist serves in

0:45:25.440 --> 0:45:28.680
<v Speaker 2>the organization. Journalists are there to do a job, and

0:45:29.640 --> 0:45:33.759
<v Speaker 2>you should answer a question honestly. You should and if

0:45:33.800 --> 0:45:35.560
<v Speaker 2>you can't answer the question, you should say you can't

0:45:35.600 --> 0:45:36.239
<v Speaker 2>answer the question.

0:45:36.560 --> 0:45:38.759
<v Speaker 1>Having an opening conversation is a sign of intelligence.

0:45:38.800 --> 0:45:40.160
<v Speaker 3>I think yeah.

0:45:40.400 --> 0:45:42.560
<v Speaker 2>As I say, I think being in PR for as

0:45:42.600 --> 0:45:45.640
<v Speaker 2>long as I was, you've got to have a respectful

0:45:46.000 --> 0:45:49.239
<v Speaker 2>relationship with the journals, and you've got to have a

0:45:49.280 --> 0:45:54.880
<v Speaker 2>respectful relationship with your competitors. And we've talked podcast about

0:45:54.920 --> 0:45:59.560
<v Speaker 2>my mentors, and I identified John Brennan and Sam Chisholm

0:45:59.600 --> 0:46:02.520
<v Speaker 2>and amongst them. But Sam was always full of great

0:46:02.600 --> 0:46:05.560
<v Speaker 2>one liners and I learned so much from him, particularly

0:46:05.600 --> 0:46:08.439
<v Speaker 2>at Sky. But one of his most famous lines Ben

0:46:08.719 --> 0:46:11.920
<v Speaker 2>was compete by day, dying by night, and I've always

0:46:11.960 --> 0:46:14.600
<v Speaker 2>taken that on board and I think that's a very

0:46:14.680 --> 0:46:18.279
<v Speaker 2>healthy position to have. And I'm very happy to say

0:46:18.280 --> 0:46:22.279
<v Speaker 2>that in this industry. I have very strong cordial relations

0:46:22.320 --> 0:46:25.920
<v Speaker 2>with all of the players in Australian television and whether

0:46:25.960 --> 0:46:29.400
<v Speaker 2>they be in Free TV or our colleagues at STAN

0:46:30.000 --> 0:46:34.879
<v Speaker 2>or Amazon or Netflix. Yes, we inverted commas compete by day,

0:46:35.120 --> 0:46:37.640
<v Speaker 2>but we also get together socially, and I think that's

0:46:37.760 --> 0:46:40.160
<v Speaker 2>important for the health of the industry because at the

0:46:40.239 --> 0:46:43.600
<v Speaker 2>end of the day, we're all doing our job to

0:46:43.760 --> 0:46:47.680
<v Speaker 2>entertain Australians, in form Australians, and the best thing we

0:46:47.719 --> 0:46:49.600
<v Speaker 2>can do is the best job we can do for

0:46:49.680 --> 0:46:52.960
<v Speaker 2>our respective organizations. And I think if we all do that,

0:46:53.320 --> 0:46:54.800
<v Speaker 2>the win it will be the consumer.

0:46:55.040 --> 0:46:57.400
<v Speaker 1>What's a funny story? And this is something I ask everybody,

0:46:57.440 --> 0:46:59.480
<v Speaker 1>but what's a funny story that you can tell from

0:46:59.480 --> 0:47:02.319
<v Speaker 1>behind this scenes of Foxtel over the years? You know

0:47:02.400 --> 0:47:04.520
<v Speaker 1>something when someone goes, oh, what do you do for work?

0:47:04.520 --> 0:47:06.960
<v Speaker 1>And you'll tell them what you do. Is there something

0:47:07.000 --> 0:47:09.080
<v Speaker 1>that you've been privy to a bit of a funny story,

0:47:09.120 --> 0:47:11.440
<v Speaker 1>bit of a funny anecdote I guess from working at

0:47:11.480 --> 0:47:12.600
<v Speaker 1>Foxtel over the years.

0:47:12.800 --> 0:47:14.320
<v Speaker 3>I'll tell you the one that got away.

0:47:15.040 --> 0:47:18.920
<v Speaker 2>During our very first few years, we had a half

0:47:18.960 --> 0:47:23.719
<v Speaker 2>hour magazine show called in Fashion and Series one was

0:47:23.719 --> 0:47:28.239
<v Speaker 2>hosted by Hugh Jackman and Melissa Foyer. But what is

0:47:28.280 --> 0:47:32.440
<v Speaker 2>a little known fact is that the guy who replaced

0:47:32.480 --> 0:47:35.240
<v Speaker 2>him as the co host was Keith Ledger. He did

0:47:35.600 --> 0:47:39.560
<v Speaker 2>four episodes of the show and he phoned me up

0:47:39.600 --> 0:47:40.680
<v Speaker 2>and asked to come to see me.

0:47:41.560 --> 0:47:43.040
<v Speaker 3>And he came to my.

0:47:43.040 --> 0:47:46.840
<v Speaker 2>Office at Foxtel we were then based down at Darling

0:47:46.920 --> 0:47:50.279
<v Speaker 2>Harbor in Sydney, and said to me, I've just been

0:47:50.320 --> 0:47:54.520
<v Speaker 2>offered a movie from Disney and I'd like to take it,

0:47:54.560 --> 0:47:56.960
<v Speaker 2>but I've got this twelve month contract with you, and

0:47:57.000 --> 0:48:00.959
<v Speaker 2>I'm hoping you'll let me out of the contract. And

0:48:02.040 --> 0:48:04.359
<v Speaker 2>how can you turn around to a young Australian kid

0:48:05.040 --> 0:48:08.520
<v Speaker 2>who has been given an opportunity to go to Hollywood?

0:48:09.080 --> 0:48:14.000
<v Speaker 2>And so I spoke with his manager and said that

0:48:14.280 --> 0:48:17.560
<v Speaker 2>Heath wants to stop doing in fashion and I'm not

0:48:17.600 --> 0:48:19.960
<v Speaker 2>going to stand it his way, so I'm happy to

0:48:20.040 --> 0:48:23.080
<v Speaker 2>let him go. He went to LA and did there's

0:48:23.080 --> 0:48:24.319
<v Speaker 2>the ten things I knew about you?

0:48:24.480 --> 0:48:26.359
<v Speaker 1>I know what ten things I hate about you?

0:48:26.440 --> 0:48:28.399
<v Speaker 3>Yep, Yeah, And there you go.

0:48:28.520 --> 0:48:32.440
<v Speaker 2>And I've still got as we're sitting here doing this podcast,

0:48:32.560 --> 0:48:37.360
<v Speaker 2>I've got a rack of TV shows, great TV moments

0:48:37.360 --> 0:48:41.000
<v Speaker 2>and Foxtail's twenty five years and amongst them is in

0:48:41.040 --> 0:48:44.200
<v Speaker 2>Fashion with Hugh Jackman, in Fashion with Heath Ledger. And

0:48:44.520 --> 0:48:46.640
<v Speaker 2>I don't think a lot of people know that. You know,

0:48:46.760 --> 0:48:50.120
<v Speaker 2>in the archives of Foxtel, amongst everything here, you know

0:48:50.280 --> 0:48:54.319
<v Speaker 2>Beauty and the Beast, Australia's Next Top Model, Project, Runway

0:48:54.600 --> 0:48:58.440
<v Speaker 2>with Chrissy Hines, you name it. Are sitting these this

0:48:58.480 --> 0:49:02.360
<v Speaker 2>little magazine show about fashion with a News Corp journalist

0:49:02.360 --> 0:49:05.040
<v Speaker 2>in the SA Joya and her co host being two

0:49:05.080 --> 0:49:08.000
<v Speaker 2>of the greatest male stars able to come out of

0:49:08.040 --> 0:49:08.920
<v Speaker 2>the country.

0:49:08.840 --> 0:49:12.080
<v Speaker 1>Our biggest exports. Had you said to him, no, you've

0:49:12.080 --> 0:49:15.080
<v Speaker 1>got to finish this show, we may never have been

0:49:15.120 --> 0:49:17.440
<v Speaker 1>able to appreciate all that Heath Ledger was.

0:49:17.880 --> 0:49:21.040
<v Speaker 2>There is funny moments, right, I mean, I'm sure every

0:49:21.080 --> 0:49:23.279
<v Speaker 2>network in the world has stories like them.

0:49:23.360 --> 0:49:25.239
<v Speaker 1>Oh that's a good one though. The one that got

0:49:25.280 --> 0:49:28.759
<v Speaker 1>away Heath Ledger absolutely amazing. I just want to say

0:49:28.760 --> 0:49:30.239
<v Speaker 1>thank you so much for taking the time to have

0:49:30.280 --> 0:49:33.960
<v Speaker 1>this chat. I commend you for always looking for original content.

0:49:34.440 --> 0:49:37.319
<v Speaker 1>I feel confident that you will continue to bring us

0:49:37.320 --> 0:49:39.600
<v Speaker 1>some original content here in Australia and we can all

0:49:39.640 --> 0:49:42.000
<v Speaker 1>be reflected on screen, which I think is really powerful.

0:49:42.040 --> 0:49:43.799
<v Speaker 1>So thank you so much for being able to join

0:49:43.880 --> 0:49:44.280
<v Speaker 1>us today.

0:49:44.600 --> 0:49:46.600
<v Speaker 3>Thanks very much, Ben, I really enjoyed the chat.