WEBVTT - How they really make I'm A Celeb? 🕷️🐍 0:00:00.560 --> 0:00:03.440 Welcome to TV Reload. My name is Benjamin Norris and 0:00:03.480 --> 0:00:05.920 on this podcast I'll be going behind the scenes with 0:00:06.000 --> 0:00:08.959 the biggest players in television today. On the podcast, I 0:00:09.000 --> 0:00:12.680 have executive producer Alex Mavertaikas, who has been making some 0:00:12.720 --> 0:00:16.000 of the biggest and best reality shows in Australia. He 0:00:16.120 --> 0:00:19.200 successfully rebooted Big Brother for Channel nine and twenty twelve. 0:00:19.560 --> 0:00:22.000 In twenty sixteen, he took over as the EP on 0:00:22.160 --> 0:00:24.400 Channel ten's I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here. 0:00:24.880 --> 0:00:27.640 He also brought Love Island to Australia in twenty eighteen 0:00:27.720 --> 0:00:30.160 for Channel nine. Up next, he'll take on the Cube 0:00:30.200 --> 0:00:32.720 with Andy Lee for Channel ten in twenty twenty one. 0:00:33.200 --> 0:00:36.840 So let's get started with some exclusive content as we 0:00:36.880 --> 0:00:39.040 find out how these shows get made. 0:00:39.760 --> 0:00:42.360 What I tried to bring to Big Brother. It's time 0:00:42.400 --> 0:00:45.440 to go what's fun and funny. 0:00:45.560 --> 0:00:47.120 I'm a Celebrity, Get Me Out? 0:00:48.360 --> 0:00:50.320 I think it's what I've brought to one a Celebrity. 0:00:50.520 --> 0:00:52.640 Tonight we are recoupling. 0:00:52.800 --> 0:00:55.000 One of Love on as well. Actually, some one unfortunately 0:00:55.440 --> 0:00:58.200 is going to be dumb from the Island. We take 0:00:58.200 --> 0:01:00.680 the piss out of ourselves and I think the audience 0:01:00.720 --> 0:01:01.400 appreciate that. 0:01:02.160 --> 0:01:03.960 I want to start the show by saying to you, 0:01:04.160 --> 0:01:05.720 thank you for casting me my big brother all those 0:01:05.760 --> 0:01:07.600 years ago. That's a pleasure paid off for me, which 0:01:07.640 --> 0:01:08.160 was great, so. 0:01:08.240 --> 0:01:09.920 Paid off for us as well, if I remember correctly. 0:01:10.360 --> 0:01:13.920 I love hearing stuff like that. So big brother, Love Island, celebrity, 0:01:13.920 --> 0:01:17.040 get me out of here. You have launched, rebooted, and 0:01:17.080 --> 0:01:20.319 revitalized some of the biggest shows. What can you say 0:01:20.640 --> 0:01:22.679 that you do that is a part of the Alex 0:01:22.720 --> 0:01:23.760 Maverdicker's brand. 0:01:24.120 --> 0:01:28.880 Funny Funny wins every single time. I think. Look, it's 0:01:28.920 --> 0:01:31.080 so hard to say because when you comedian says you know, 0:01:31.200 --> 0:01:33.200 oh you know, I'm funny, the first thing people says 0:01:33.240 --> 0:01:35.080 is all make me laugh, and I have no ability 0:01:35.120 --> 0:01:36.640 to make you laugh right here and right now. But 0:01:36.640 --> 0:01:38.560 I do think I'm quite funny. I think it's what 0:01:38.600 --> 0:01:41.160 I've brought to I'm a celebrity. With the casting, with 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:43.480 the trials that we do. We don't play it as 0:01:43.480 --> 0:01:45.360 straight as the Brits. We try and make everything funny, 0:01:45.640 --> 0:01:47.040 and I'm pretty sure it's what have done for Love 0:01:47.080 --> 0:01:50.040 Island as well, because you know, Loveland is actually a 0:01:50.080 --> 0:01:52.200 love quest and it is all three of those shows, 0:01:52.240 --> 0:01:54.880 certainly under my watch, were very real, all three of 0:01:54.880 --> 0:01:57.000 them as honest as reality TV gets. You know, there 0:01:57.040 --> 0:01:58.720 really is no script in as you know, we never 0:01:58.760 --> 0:02:01.200 tell you what to say. But they've all got a 0:02:01.400 --> 0:02:04.240 very rich vein of humor in them. And you know, 0:02:04.280 --> 0:02:06.120 I've always believed that if you can make people laugh 0:02:06.160 --> 0:02:07.840 at seven thirty or eight thirty or whatever time the 0:02:07.880 --> 0:02:10.600 shows are on, yeah, just to be funny and you know, 0:02:10.639 --> 0:02:12.960 and be honest with your audience as well. Everything is 0:02:12.960 --> 0:02:15.360 so over dramatized in this day and age, you know, 0:02:15.400 --> 0:02:17.760 and I think certainly with our celebrity we take the 0:02:17.800 --> 0:02:20.600 piss out of ourselves and I think the audience appreciate that. 0:02:20.680 --> 0:02:22.400 You know, it's the one show that we I love 0:02:22.440 --> 0:02:25.239 Onland as well. Actually we are very self mocking. 0:02:25.320 --> 0:02:26.800 Do you think that, you know, the heads of the 0:02:26.800 --> 0:02:29.959 studios think we'll get Oles to do this because that's 0:02:29.960 --> 0:02:31.600 what he's going to bring. He's going to bring family 0:02:31.720 --> 0:02:32.600 friendly fun. 0:02:32.800 --> 0:02:35.639 That is what I bring. I'm very one dimensional character. Yeah, 0:02:35.680 --> 0:02:37.880 you know, there's no smoke and mirrors. You know what 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:39.600 you're going to get if you're booking Alex as the EP, 0:02:40.200 --> 0:02:42.880 You're going to get stupid humor. 0:02:43.720 --> 0:02:45.560 Well, this isn't one of my questions. But one of 0:02:45.560 --> 0:02:47.480 the things that I remember about Big Brother and the 0:02:47.520 --> 0:02:50.440 casting was that once it was over, we were finally 0:02:50.440 --> 0:02:52.960 allowed to talk about, you know, the casting process and 0:02:53.000 --> 0:02:55.399 how it all was. You could swap your stories, and 0:02:55.760 --> 0:02:58.600 I honestly think that everyone had somehow fallen in love 0:02:58.600 --> 0:03:00.960 with you, which obviously is the power of a good producer. 0:03:01.320 --> 0:03:04.960 And I guess you have to create this friendship, you know, 0:03:05.000 --> 0:03:08.280 with people to that level so they trust you, and 0:03:08.320 --> 0:03:10.520 then once the show goes, that just has to exist. 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:13.320 I guess, well, you said the key word is trust. Yeah, 0:03:13.520 --> 0:03:16.519 I'm very lucky because I've never had to make very 0:03:16.680 --> 0:03:19.480 manufactured reality, and it could have gone a very different way. 0:03:19.480 --> 0:03:22.000 I don't hold anything against any of the people that 0:03:22.040 --> 0:03:23.680 I know very very well that have to work on 0:03:23.960 --> 0:03:27.680 a lot of the other shows that are clearly more structured, 0:03:27.800 --> 0:03:31.240 clearly more manipulated. But I've been very, very lucky in 0:03:31.280 --> 0:03:35.480 that I can look the housemates that I've had, the 0:03:35.480 --> 0:03:38.200 Islanders that I've had, and the celebrities that I've had 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:41.800 under my watch and those shows, and I've been able 0:03:41.840 --> 0:03:43.320 to say to all of them, you can trust me, 0:03:43.720 --> 0:03:47.440 and they can because we don't frank and grab. We 0:03:47.520 --> 0:03:50.480 don't play people as the baddies or the goodies on 0:03:50.520 --> 0:03:53.440 those twenty four hour turnaround shows, which let's not forget 0:03:53.440 --> 0:03:55.280 all three of them. Big Brother Under my Watch was 0:03:55.280 --> 0:03:58.880 a twenty four hour show turn around show. Loveland is celebrities. 0:03:59.440 --> 0:04:04.040 We don't have time to play demonic music under somebody 0:04:04.040 --> 0:04:05.640 to you know, make them the baddie. 0:04:05.920 --> 0:04:08.200 We don't have grab what they call frank and grab 0:04:08.240 --> 0:04:11.200 Frank frank you know which reality TV shows. Now people 0:04:11.200 --> 0:04:13.160 are coming to terms with the fact that, you know, 0:04:13.360 --> 0:04:15.200 it is a very different style of show once you're 0:04:15.240 --> 0:04:16.360 manipulating the audience. 0:04:16.400 --> 0:04:18.360 We have a WhatsApp group me and some of the 0:04:18.400 --> 0:04:20.520 other producers, and you know, you watch the reality sho 0:04:20.560 --> 0:04:22.200 on TV and you just go frank and grab, frank 0:04:22.200 --> 0:04:24.440 and grabbing, because you know, whenever you're not watching someone's. 0:04:24.120 --> 0:04:26.200 Lips, yeah, you can get them to just pretty. 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:29.520 Much as are. It's frank and grabbed. But anyway, luckily 0:04:29.560 --> 0:04:31.400 we've never had to do that, and we don't have time. 0:04:31.560 --> 0:04:33.359 Christ I'd love to have the time to manipulate some 0:04:33.360 --> 0:04:35.800 of the storylines, but when you're cutting a show overnight, 0:04:36.000 --> 0:04:38.920 the only editorial control you've got is okay. There's two 0:04:38.960 --> 0:04:41.200 bend scenes today. Both are very funny. We're not going 0:04:41.240 --> 0:04:43.680 to have ben in twice in one segment. Which one 0:04:43.680 --> 0:04:47.080 should we chuck out? Yeah, that is the editing process. 0:04:47.080 --> 0:04:50.480 You know, we are right at the cusp of the 0:04:50.480 --> 0:04:52.520 next time a celebrity get me out of here, and 0:04:52.560 --> 0:04:53.800 I know you're going to tell me that you can't 0:04:53.800 --> 0:04:56.760 tell me really anything, can't tell you anything. You know, 0:04:56.800 --> 0:04:58.960 we're friends and we've sort of spoken offline about that 0:04:58.960 --> 0:05:02.000 sort of stuff. He said that it is a fantastic 0:05:02.040 --> 0:05:06.200 series and that you've captured a lot that you probably 0:05:06.200 --> 0:05:08.719 wouldn't have been able to capture if it was turning 0:05:08.760 --> 0:05:12.000 around quickly, which is great. So everyone is prepared for 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:14.320 this to be a good series. But you'll go back 0:05:14.320 --> 0:05:16.520 to Africa, you'll go back to doing it live. 0:05:17.000 --> 0:05:18.680 Oh yeah, I'm a Celebrities is a twenty four hour 0:05:18.720 --> 0:05:22.440 turnaround show. It's only the circumstances of the universe as 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:25.680 to why it's not been done this way this time. 0:05:25.920 --> 0:05:28.839 It's a hard one because so let's use the British 0:05:28.839 --> 0:05:32.200 om celebrity as an example. They filmed their version in 0:05:32.240 --> 0:05:35.520 a castle and they managed to keep their twenty four 0:05:35.560 --> 0:05:38.400 hour turnaround. But what that meant for them was that 0:05:38.720 --> 0:05:41.000 at Deck would host the show at nine o'clock at night, 0:05:41.040 --> 0:05:42.920 whatever time it was in the UK live to air, 0:05:43.160 --> 0:05:46.920 they do their trial at eleven o'clock midnight, sure, and 0:05:46.960 --> 0:05:49.359 the celebrities will be up till five six o'clock in 0:05:49.400 --> 0:05:53.240 the morning to make the content for tomorrow's show and 0:05:53.279 --> 0:05:55.320 then they'd sleep all day. Now they can get away 0:05:55.360 --> 0:05:56.880 with that because they're in a castle which has got 0:05:57.040 --> 0:06:01.679 lights and stuff. We can't do that because we're in jungle, 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:05.599 so the entire show would be, you know, in the dark. 0:06:05.680 --> 0:06:09.240 So when COVID hit and it was clear we couldn't 0:06:09.279 --> 0:06:11.800 go to Africa, we talked. We had all sorts of 0:06:11.800 --> 0:06:14.960 crazy ideas, all sorts of mental stuff you know where 0:06:15.120 --> 0:06:16.400 you know where we could should and have we get 0:06:16.400 --> 0:06:17.920 away with it. But one thing you can't get away 0:06:17.960 --> 0:06:19.520 with this is a time zone. Clearly, we had shoot 0:06:19.520 --> 0:06:21.800 it in Australia and it's worked and you see, you'll 0:06:21.800 --> 0:06:24.719 see on January third that I'm pretty confident it's going 0:06:24.800 --> 0:06:25.120 to work. 0:06:25.440 --> 0:06:27.840 You're always pretty confident, do you know what you don't 0:06:27.839 --> 0:06:28.280 want to sound? 0:06:28.520 --> 0:06:30.799 I know because if we launched a four hundred thousand 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:32.400 and then this goes to airing to look like a dick. 0:06:32.440 --> 0:06:34.640 So I don't think you should be worried about that, 0:06:34.640 --> 0:06:36.480 because if you look at the ratings that you've always 0:06:36.480 --> 0:06:38.560 delivered on opening nights, and before I got here, I 0:06:38.600 --> 0:06:40.240 went back and had to look at the launches of 0:06:40.600 --> 0:06:43.080 your first Big Brother Love Ireland and your first time 0:06:43.120 --> 0:06:46.239 a celebrity launch night is your thing, and I guess 0:06:46.240 --> 0:06:48.120 with the nature of all shows, you're obviously going to 0:06:48.120 --> 0:06:50.839 have a dip. But I think that you're just probably 0:06:50.839 --> 0:06:54.040 nervous thinking are we going to keep these a secret? 0:06:54.200 --> 0:06:56.360 You're always well, well, let's put that to one side 0:06:56.360 --> 0:06:58.640 for a second, but always nervous about the launch, and 0:06:58.640 --> 0:07:00.960 you always think, is this the year when it's going 0:07:01.040 --> 0:07:02.480 to get down the toilet? It doesn't matter how good 0:07:02.480 --> 0:07:06.839 it is. Free tow are television ratings are eroding January third, 0:07:06.920 --> 0:07:09.039 there's a lot of people still away on holiday. Sure 0:07:09.160 --> 0:07:11.520 the sun will be shining. It's very likely in all 0:07:11.520 --> 0:07:15.040 the major cities across Australia. I was shitting my pants 0:07:15.120 --> 0:07:17.680 last year on the fifth of January when they launched 0:07:17.680 --> 0:07:21.120 on Celebrity Season six, and when the ratings came back 0:07:21.120 --> 0:07:22.560 and you know it did I think nine hundred and 0:07:22.600 --> 0:07:24.440 ninety thousand or something and well over a million when 0:07:24.440 --> 0:07:27.440 they added up everything else, the sense of euphour. It 0:07:27.680 --> 0:07:30.040 was incredible because it was a game of that paid off. 0:07:30.080 --> 0:07:33.000 So with doubling down, hopefully it works again. There's very 0:07:33.000 --> 0:07:35.280 little competition at that time of the year. You know, 0:07:35.520 --> 0:07:37.560 it's if you don't like sport, you're with us. But yes, 0:07:37.600 --> 0:07:39.320 going back to your point about launch show, yes, I'm 0:07:39.400 --> 0:07:43.960 very much I've always had a very very set methodology 0:07:43.960 --> 0:07:46.600 on how to make a strip to reality show launch 0:07:46.760 --> 0:07:50.800 obviously as hard as possible, strong as possible, with a 0:07:50.840 --> 0:07:54.360 you know, either a twist or something interesting to drag 0:07:54.760 --> 0:07:57.440 people through that episode, because generally those episodes are ninety 0:07:57.440 --> 0:07:59.240 minutes already one hundred and twenty minutes. You've got to 0:07:59.280 --> 0:08:00.880 drag people through, you've got to make them fall in 0:08:00.920 --> 0:08:03.320 love with the cast. And actually episodes two and three 0:08:03.640 --> 0:08:06.480 in my mind as important as the launch because if 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.320 you don't lose more than let's say, twenty five percent 0:08:09.320 --> 0:08:11.400 of your audience into night two, you generally got a 0:08:11.480 --> 0:08:13.760 hit show. If you look at all of the arms celebs, 0:08:14.480 --> 0:08:16.640 you go episode one and clearly goes down, then it 0:08:16.680 --> 0:08:17.840 goes down a bit more, then it goes down a 0:08:17.880 --> 0:08:20.120 bit more, and then you generally get a bounce on 0:08:20.280 --> 0:08:23.280 either the first week Thursday or the second week Sunday. 0:08:23.440 --> 0:08:26.400 And that's all dictated by those ensecutive second and third 0:08:26.440 --> 0:08:27.520 episode being strong. 0:08:27.320 --> 0:08:29.400 Exactly right, because if you can make them fall in 0:08:29.440 --> 0:08:32.400 love with the cast, then you've got them, and then 0:08:32.600 --> 0:08:34.720 you care if people go. It's the same methodolog you're 0:08:34.760 --> 0:08:36.640 used on Big Brother and the same way usual love zol. 0:08:36.960 --> 0:08:41.920 If you care where the celebrities are housemates get evicted, eliminated, dumped, 0:08:42.840 --> 0:08:44.520 then you come and watch and if you don't care, 0:08:45.200 --> 0:08:47.160 then you won't. But you've got to launch strong. That 0:08:47.160 --> 0:08:48.080 that's the whole ball game. 0:08:48.800 --> 0:08:53.439 So, talent agents, studio bosses, publicity managers, where does the 0:08:53.480 --> 0:08:57.560 most amount of celebrity contestant requests come from? Because I 0:08:57.600 --> 0:08:59.400 know that I ask you every year and you say 0:08:59.440 --> 0:09:03.440 go away, yeah, and that's fine, But I can imagine 0:09:03.679 --> 0:09:05.640 there is a lot of requests. And I think I 0:09:05.760 --> 0:09:07.640 even heard a rumor that you might have done something 0:09:07.640 --> 0:09:10.240 over two hundred zooms to make sure the cast was 0:09:10.320 --> 0:09:12.679 right this year. You know, how are these people coming 0:09:12.679 --> 0:09:12.880 to you? 0:09:13.400 --> 0:09:16.559 I should have a zoom T shirt. If there's a 0:09:16.600 --> 0:09:19.880 celebrity in Australia but you haven't been on a zoom with, Yeah, 0:09:19.960 --> 0:09:21.480 I haven't been on a zoom with well, you know, 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:25.120 let's let go. I'm going to say as tactors account, 0:09:25.200 --> 0:09:28.719 let's say from B listed downwards, if the celebrity in 0:09:28.720 --> 0:09:30.480 Australia I haven't had a zoom with, then I'd be 0:09:30.600 --> 0:09:31.200 very surprised. 0:09:31.200 --> 0:09:33.080 Does that mean that you're like a complete slot for that? 0:09:33.280 --> 0:09:36.240 And I've spoken to people who their mothers, they know 0:09:36.280 --> 0:09:39.520 who they are. You know, let's not forget the casting 0:09:39.559 --> 0:09:42.520 from a slab is it's a tongue in cheek show. 0:09:43.040 --> 0:09:46.439 We put Justin Lacko on the show who Was? Did 0:09:46.559 --> 0:09:49.880 one half a series of Love on on a digital 0:09:49.960 --> 0:09:53.640 channel on Channel nine and the freedom are audience that 0:09:53.720 --> 0:09:56.560 you know, the broad Channel ten audience went who an 0:09:56.640 --> 0:09:58.680 hour later they're like, we love him. 0:09:58.760 --> 0:10:00.319 One hundred percent. I mean that's but what you do 0:10:00.400 --> 0:10:03.240 with Lorena Flour. There's been lots of people that maybe 0:10:03.240 --> 0:10:05.120 other networks hadn't seen a lot of them. 0:10:05.720 --> 0:10:08.000 Even Charlotte Crosby. We put Charlotte Crosby in and I 0:10:08.040 --> 0:10:09.720 couldn't believe it because you know, she's got you know, 0:10:09.800 --> 0:10:12.240 eleven million followers or whatever it is, and is world 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:16.560 famous reality star and all you read on Facebook, Twitter, 0:10:16.760 --> 0:10:20.160 Instagram is who's this? Every single year we're going to 0:10:20.200 --> 0:10:23.360 cop the same shit, Yeah, every single year. Yeah, they're 0:10:23.400 --> 0:10:24.440 not real celebrities. 0:10:24.760 --> 0:10:26.600 No, when we get it, you just have to laugh 0:10:26.640 --> 0:10:28.800 at that kind of stuff because they obviously don't understand 0:10:28.800 --> 0:10:31.280 the brand. But also more importantly, they aren't the people 0:10:31.280 --> 0:10:31.960 to watch the show. 0:10:32.080 --> 0:10:34.319 Well they're not, but look, having said that, we always 0:10:34.320 --> 0:10:36.880 want a certain level of fame and certainly our show 0:10:36.960 --> 0:10:39.160 is more famous than the British show would say they're 0:10:39.200 --> 0:10:43.080 they're casting methodold who has always been two household names 0:10:43.440 --> 0:10:44.160 and you know. 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:46.000 And the rest have to be batshit crazy. 0:10:46.120 --> 0:10:48.120 Well well you know I've slept with awayn Rooney basically. 0:10:48.200 --> 0:10:51.040 But again it absolutely works in their twentieth year, you know, 0:10:51.520 --> 0:10:56.680 it absolutely works. So we've kind of changed our casting 0:10:57.280 --> 0:10:59.800 tactics after I think the series two or Series three, 0:10:59.800 --> 0:11:01.320 where we you know, we would clearly go for the 0:11:01.320 --> 0:11:02.560 most famous people we could get. 0:11:02.720 --> 0:11:04.240 There was a waste of money. I mean, yes, the 0:11:04.320 --> 0:11:06.280 ratings are there, like you can pay Shane Warn a 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:08.679 million dollars, but at the same time, the ratings didn't 0:11:08.720 --> 0:11:11.160 really get affected too much to then go and get 0:11:11.160 --> 0:11:11.920 your Sam Dastra. 0:11:12.080 --> 0:11:13.720 Shane Warn actually wasn't a waste of money. I'll tell 0:11:13.720 --> 0:11:15.840 you why because Series one was just you know, a bomb. 0:11:15.880 --> 0:11:18.240 Slipper was on the cusp. You know, it just about 0:11:18.280 --> 0:11:20.880 did enough, sure just about did enough for people to 0:11:20.920 --> 0:11:24.560 be talking about it. It needed a prestige name for 0:11:24.640 --> 0:11:27.800 series two to drag people back into the format, and 0:11:27.880 --> 0:11:30.319 we put Warning in on episode two. So going back 0:11:30.320 --> 0:11:31.800 to what I was saying the minute and go, we 0:11:31.920 --> 0:11:33.800 teased him through the launch. We put him in episode two, 0:11:33.840 --> 0:11:35.599 and I think launched a one point one million and 0:11:35.679 --> 0:11:37.880 episode two today on hundred ninety or nine hundred thousand 0:11:37.960 --> 0:11:40.040 or something. And then you're of from running. There's a 0:11:40.120 --> 0:11:42.240 million dollars right there. It's just paid for himself, you 0:11:42.280 --> 0:11:42.840 know as well. 0:11:42.920 --> 0:11:45.839 I think what you do is you format your cast 0:11:45.920 --> 0:11:48.400 really well. I think that you always managed to pick, 0:11:48.720 --> 0:11:52.160 whether it's intentional, your your stereotype characters. You know, your 0:11:52.160 --> 0:11:54.080 heroes and your villains. I mean they are always PG 0:11:54.360 --> 0:11:56.400 heroes and villains on your show, of course, but how 0:11:56.400 --> 0:11:58.400 do you whittle it down like say you do two 0:11:58.480 --> 0:12:00.679 hundred zooms and then you you've got to sit down. 0:12:00.720 --> 0:12:02.600 Do you sit down with like Stephen Tate and Bev 0:12:02.640 --> 0:12:04.560 McGarvey and try and pitch them or. 0:12:04.559 --> 0:12:08.160 Yep, it's very very collaborative, is exactly. It's Bevlyn McGarvey, 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:11.920 It's Daniel Monaghan, Stephen Tate from ten Side. There's also 0:12:12.240 --> 0:12:15.319 a casting person we had Georgie Harrop this season who 0:12:15.440 --> 0:12:18.000 was on ten Sides. So that's four from Channel ten 0:12:18.320 --> 0:12:20.360 from it TV. This David Mott who's my boss, Beth 0:12:20.360 --> 0:12:22.920 Heart who's our head of content, Ben Olm who's head 0:12:22.960 --> 0:12:27.440 of Factual in Reality, myself, my Coey p Rema. I mean, 0:12:27.480 --> 0:12:30.439 you know that's nine or ten names I've reamed off. 0:12:30.440 --> 0:12:32.800 It's not a simple process. I'm the one who does 0:12:32.960 --> 0:12:36.959 most of the calls and most of the first line chats. 0:12:37.360 --> 0:12:40.720 But then, I mean we would have had sixty seventy 0:12:40.840 --> 0:12:43.600 names seriously in the mix for this year, and that 0:12:43.720 --> 0:12:45.000 is not an exaggeration. 0:12:44.600 --> 0:12:46.280 At the very end, Like, how do you get it 0:12:46.320 --> 0:12:46.920 down to that time? 0:12:47.040 --> 0:12:50.600 Well, I mean there's absolutely everything you would expect that 0:12:50.640 --> 0:12:52.800 you have to do in casting any show. We've got 0:12:52.800 --> 0:12:54.839 to check off diversity. Well, you know, we've got to 0:12:54.920 --> 0:12:56.959 check off fame, We've got to check off funny, we've 0:12:56.960 --> 0:13:00.560 got to check off headlines things. But then there's something 0:13:00.600 --> 0:13:04.960 that you can't there's no subcategory for the X factor is. 0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:08.719 It's such a horrible, horrible cliche. But when you talk 0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:12.080 to somebody, you just know. And I love having people 0:13:12.080 --> 0:13:14.800 on I'm a Celebrity that are tried and tested reality 0:13:14.800 --> 0:13:19.400 talent Lorena Justin Ash Pollard for people that have done 0:13:19.440 --> 0:13:19.800 the show. 0:13:20.480 --> 0:13:23.040 So COVID was a big player in the industry. How 0:13:23.080 --> 0:13:25.280 did it all play out when planning this series? I mean, 0:13:25.360 --> 0:13:27.240 at some point did it nearly not happen? 0:13:27.520 --> 0:13:32.240 Oh? One hundred percent. I mean, let's rewind to I'm 0:13:32.280 --> 0:13:34.839 talking to you and you now in my kitchen on 0:13:34.880 --> 0:13:38.400 the Gold Coast. I have basically not left the Gold 0:13:38.440 --> 0:13:42.800 Coast since February twenty twenty. I landed from Johannesburg on 0:13:42.840 --> 0:13:45.720 February the eighth from doing I'm a Celebrity Series six, 0:13:46.280 --> 0:13:48.640 ready to do another full year in Sydney, you know, 0:13:48.679 --> 0:13:50.920 with Love Island and some development stuff I'm going on 0:13:51.040 --> 0:13:54.160 and you know, getting ready for the next IIC. I 0:13:54.240 --> 0:13:57.640 have not been to Sydney in twenty twenty, which is 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:01.400 absolute madness. I'm Platinum Virgin, Platinum quantus. I live on planes. 0:14:01.440 --> 0:14:03.880 I have not been anywhere. We just filmed on a 0:14:03.880 --> 0:14:06.200 celebrity in my Woolen bar, which is forty five minutes 0:14:06.400 --> 0:14:07.640 from where we're talking now. 0:14:07.800 --> 0:14:09.600 Yeah, we don't want to tell them where you live. 0:14:10.000 --> 0:14:14.199 That's practically the furthest away I've been from home since 0:14:14.240 --> 0:14:16.760 February twenty twenty. I mean, yes, it was. It was 0:14:16.920 --> 0:14:19.880 very worrying. I mean, you know, we were fighting hard 0:14:19.920 --> 0:14:22.880 for Africa for you know, a nanosecond. It looked like 0:14:22.920 --> 0:14:24.280 we might be able to happen, and then of course 0:14:24.320 --> 0:14:26.280 it just exploded and it was like, okay, Africa's off 0:14:26.280 --> 0:14:27.880 the table. How we're going to how we're going. 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:31.600 To do this? Can I ask, though, what other locations were. 0:14:31.520 --> 0:14:36.400 Considered serious incident? None? Nothing else except that I absolutely 0:14:37.280 --> 0:14:40.520 did a blanket ideas brain dump. And we did talk 0:14:40.560 --> 0:14:43.120 about a castle by the way, before the Brits decided. 0:14:43.120 --> 0:14:44.840 We talked about, you know, is there a castle in 0:14:44.840 --> 0:14:48.760 Australia somewhere? You know. We talked about caravan parks. Yeah, 0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:52.480 We've talked about dilapidated old kind of factories. We talked 0:14:52.480 --> 0:14:56.480 about prisons. You know, abandoned prisons. We had all sorts 0:14:56.480 --> 0:14:56.920 of you know. 0:14:56.840 --> 0:14:58.360 That what would have been you would have got that 0:14:58.400 --> 0:15:01.000 headline though I'm a celebrity and warehouse, which is what 0:15:01.040 --> 0:15:03.400 happened with Big Brother and a warehouse and you want 0:15:03.440 --> 0:15:04.040 to avoid that. 0:15:04.240 --> 0:15:05.680 Yeah, I think. 0:15:05.520 --> 0:15:07.680 People are really excited about it being here in Australia. 0:15:07.720 --> 0:15:09.880 I really do think there's a coup for that. I 0:15:09.960 --> 0:15:12.960 heard today from a source from England that they won't 0:15:12.960 --> 0:15:15.200 be coming back to Australia. They're very happy with the 0:15:15.200 --> 0:15:16.400 way the production happened. 0:15:16.440 --> 0:15:19.520 Well, it rated, Look, it absolutely rated. Whether that was 0:15:19.560 --> 0:15:23.080 because everyone was in lockdown or not. Look, I don't 0:15:23.080 --> 0:15:25.840 know about that. My gut feeling is that they will 0:15:25.840 --> 0:15:28.400 come back, but based that on nothing like I've got 0:15:28.400 --> 0:15:30.560 no evidence of that. I'm spoken to anyone about it. 0:15:30.640 --> 0:15:32.880 But you know, their whole show for nineteen years, the 0:15:32.920 --> 0:15:36.560 whole stick has been the Aussie bush and bugs and stuff, 0:15:37.000 --> 0:15:38.480 you know. And I think it'd be terrible for Australia 0:15:38.480 --> 0:15:40.040 if they didn't come back, because obviously it's such a 0:15:39.920 --> 0:15:43.080 bit of money spinner for that area. But yes, COVID 0:15:43.360 --> 0:15:45.040 was shit for a lot of television. 0:15:45.280 --> 0:15:47.400 Can we talk about pre recorded TV? Shows, So like 0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:50.040 reality TV now for you, you were forced into that, but 0:15:50.120 --> 0:15:52.320 Big Brother had already done it before COVID. So look, 0:15:52.320 --> 0:15:54.520 a lot of reality TV shows are following the format 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.320 of the contestants eliminate themselves. Do you think that that 0:15:57.480 --> 0:16:00.840 is realistically the way forward and not your decision because 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:02.520 I know you don't want to do it that way, 0:16:02.680 --> 0:16:04.960 But are you thinking that you're going to get stronghold 0:16:05.320 --> 0:16:08.800 into doing that because of the production cost being cheaper 0:16:08.960 --> 0:16:12.680 and it being an easier series to produce financially. 0:16:12.680 --> 0:16:15.520 Absolutely absolutely makes sense. It depends what sort of show 0:16:15.560 --> 0:16:18.880 you want to make. We took nominations and off the 0:16:18.880 --> 0:16:21.960 table from a celebrity straight away because okay, so let's 0:16:21.960 --> 0:16:25.000 talk about you know, Old Big Brother versus New Big Brother, 0:16:25.040 --> 0:16:26.360 and I'm not I'm not going to be drawn into 0:16:26.360 --> 0:16:29.160 any comparisons. But apart from the fact that Old Big Brother, 0:16:29.640 --> 0:16:33.480 you couldn't talk about nominations. Yeah, so that basically meant 0:16:33.480 --> 0:16:36.520 that what you got was talking about your life and 0:16:36.640 --> 0:16:38.480 talking about other people's lives and. 0:16:38.520 --> 0:16:40.200 Taking the strategy out funny stories. 0:16:40.280 --> 0:16:42.480 So there was no strategy because that you can't really 0:16:42.520 --> 0:16:45.760 play a game because you can't discuss nominations. Yes, you know, 0:16:45.800 --> 0:16:47.720 you can internalize and go, I think Ben's going to 0:16:47.760 --> 0:16:50.200 nominate Michael and therefore w and nominate Michael two and 0:16:50.360 --> 0:16:51.120 all that stuff, but. 0:16:51.240 --> 0:16:53.040 Never nominated mine. 0:16:54.120 --> 0:16:56.200 Yes, it was a game, but it was you know, 0:16:56.320 --> 0:16:58.160 really it was an entertainment show with the kind of 0:16:58.160 --> 0:17:00.000 the subplot of the game because you can't talk about nominations, 0:17:00.040 --> 0:17:01.680 and of course New Big Brother is you know, it's 0:17:01.720 --> 0:17:04.320 all about nominations, and that's that's the key point actually, 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:08.720 you know, more prevalent than it pre recorded versus twenty 0:17:08.720 --> 0:17:12.159 four hour turnaround is you can't talk about nominations, you 0:17:12.200 --> 0:17:14.720 can talk about nominations. That is a completely different show 0:17:14.960 --> 0:17:18.280 in my mind. So we took strategy talk off the 0:17:18.280 --> 0:17:21.400 table for IC straight away for this series, right because 0:17:21.800 --> 0:17:24.639