With the fifth GfK radio ratings survey released this week, we are now officially over the halfway mark of radio ratings season. As always, Mediaweek speaks to radio bosses around the country to provide insights into their station’s performances. Today, we catch up with Nova Entertainment’s group programming director, Brendan Taylor.

See Also: Radio Ratings 2023, Survey 5: Highlights + Full Results

“It’s an incredible day, there are so many numbers to go through,” Taylor said of survey day. “For Nova Entertainment to have a 6.3 million network cume and be the number one network when it comes to our audience, it shows the Nova and smooth networks are in a good place leading into the final few surveys of the year.”

When it came to picking out some of the highlights for Nova from the fifth radio ratings survey, Taylor wasn’t short of options to choose from.

“We have three out of five number ones. The smooth Melbourne results are just outstanding, number one for Nova in Brisbane, and of course number one for Nova Perth. Just extraordinary figures there in Perth, particularly with Nathan, Nat & Shaun – 22.5 in breakfast and an 18.1 share for the overall as a station is just an incredible result for the team. We’re so incredibly proud. Credit goes to Joel, Dave, Amy and the team there, they do such a great job.”

In Sydney, smooth FM has taken over KIIS 106.5 to land the title of highest cume in the city – and the country – with a cume of 1,352,000.

“That is just outstanding,” said Taylor. “That, and to be point-one off number one in Sydney is, again, a testament to the team. Peter Clay has such a great team. They’re a family environment, and they work so well together. The consistency that the smooth team shows is a testament to the product we hear.”

When asked what it is that is driving these results for the network, Taylor said that it all comes down to genuine audience connection, both now and into the future. 

“We’ve got a great connection with our audiences. Our shows are really delivering, so I think that’s the first part of it. It’s about understanding each market, understanding the audience’s needs, and growing that connection with the audience.”

In July, Taylor was promoted to group programming director, a role that sees him responsible for overseeing and delivering strategic leadership and broadcast outcomes for the metro network. In the months since, Taylor and his team have hit the ground running.

“I’m enjoying the role. I’ve been with Nova Entertainment for 15 years, so I know the shows, the music teams, and the product teams around them. It’s an exciting time to be working with the team.”

As for his plans and goals for the Nova network under his guidance, Taylor says that ultimately he’s working towards providing the right environment for the on-air teams to do what they do best.

“Sydney breakfast – we saw an increase, and we’ve set ourselves a benchmark that we want to hit this year. 

“Ben, Liam & Belle in Melbourne had a great result, they held their share and increased their cume. We’re just making sure that they’re getting the right support for the remainder of the year. 

“Sarah McGilvray is working really closely with The Chrissie Swan Show, and with Ricki-Lee, Tim & Joel, and Smallzy’s Surgery we’re making sure that they’ve got the right support around them to deliver the best content for our audience.”

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Top Image: Brendan Taylor

The Mediaweek Academy held its seventh session at News Corp’s office in Surry Hills on Wednesday, August 30. 

Attendees returned to the session focused on Storytelling and Presenting, led by facilitator Rowena Millward, a global leader in business and personal growth.  

Accompanying Millward on the panel was Legend Rose Herceg from WPP and Superstar Sam Geer from Initiative. 

See also: Mediaweek Academy Legend Rose Herceg shares her simple solution to presenting well
See also: Initiative managing director Sam Geer reveals the key to successful storytelling ahead of the Mediaweek Academy

The session focussed on storytelling and presenting skills with both Legend and Superstar, giving effective tips on how to tell an effective story and informing how most people remember a great story, not a presentation.

Herceg used her own storytelling skills to inform attendees that great storytellers keep you in the palm of their hand. She also said that human fragility connects people and at the end of the day, being real works wonders when telling a story.

Herceg shared that she hoped attendees took away the importance of honing their style of presenting and being proud of the fact that they are part of an industry that has the best storytellers in the world.

While being a legend of the industry, Herceg called Geer’s note on being brave as a particular highlight. “Belief is absolutely the first and foremost before being a confident presenter. And have some fun with it,” she said.

Looking to the future of the industry and the questions from the attendees, she said: “The future has never looked brighter, the best user ahead of us. What I’d love to say many great questions we got which tells me that people were really listening.

“They’ll hopefully take some of the lessons and apply it to the day-to-day life and business,” she added.

Geer expanded on the idea of creating a scenario and having technique in your storytelling during the discussion. He said: “You can write the script, but audiences aren’t buying a script. Delivering the script perfectly is not a good way to tell the story.”

Elsewhere in the session, Geer shared many pearls of wisdom to the attendees, among them being: “Storytellers have to have stories,” and “Your voice is your weapon, and it’s important how you wield that weapon in your storytelling.” 

The entire conversation had many takeaways, but for Geer, his highlights were the importance of preparation, narrative arc, and “how, despite the fact we’ve been conditioned to think in media that we’re not good storytellers, we are.”

“I think we need to start holding ourselves to a higher standard and have the courage of our own convictions. We’re great at coming up with ideas were great at telling extremely complex stories and making them simple,” he said.

“I think the more and more that we can do that and champion that in our industry, the happier we are going to be,” he added.

Geer noted that aside from learning Herceg was previously a professional dancer before her media career, much like himself, he appreciated her wisdom around the importance of asking for respect in a presentation.

“If you’re presenting and telling a story and your audience isn’t paying attention, it is okay to call them out. It’s okay to stop, pause and say, ‘Do you have something more important? We’re happy to wait,” he recalled.

“I think hearing from someone as powerful and senior as Rose and encouraging young people to do that when they’re being disrespected is really important.”

Geer also highlighted Herceg’s point on clarity and simplicity. “Her stories around articulating at the moment very, very succinct stories, I think, can never be overestimated.”

Nick Smith, creative strategist from Paramount AU/NZ said that today’s session made him realise the true importance of storytelling and how it weaves into his day-to-day work with brand integration. 

“I want to start taking the challenge instead of just presenting the stats – actually creating a story and making it engaging and just changing the boring parts that no one listens to into something more engaging,” he said. 

Julia Gapon, a marketing communications executive from Nine said that she gathered a lot of storytelling insight from today’s session that she plans to implement into her own work.

“One of the main things I learnt from the Q&A session was the idea of cutting out the unnecessary when it comes to speaking or telling a story in meetings, pitches etc and sharing more of my personal life in work life to create connections and better my storytelling abilities,” she said.

First-time Mediaweek Academy facilitator Rowena Millward said she was very pleased with the turnout of the event from young professionals and the wisdom and experience shared by Herceg and Geer from their respective careers.

“They’re two of the icons of the industry, and I hope that people took away that they can all be great storytellers.

“We all have great stories within us, we just have to find the courage and the conviction to be able to tell them to solve problems,” she added.

While both Herceg and Geer shared insightful industry and career anecdotes, for Millward the highlight was thinking about how to tell stories across people.

“Sam made a great point about doing a pitch, you may only be presenting a piece, but how do you ensure that your piece makes sense of all the other pieces. I think that’s really important because the story is coming from all of you, not just one person,” she said.

With her first Academy under her belt, Millward said she was pleased to see incredible and diverse talent making their way up in the industry.

“I think we’re at a unique time in history where diversity is valued, and people feel that they can bring their own stories to life and communicate and connect with people through who they are and what’s important to say about the business.

“I think that message came through really loud and clear from Rose as well when she talked about being human, being kind, being honest, and being real in relationships with people,” Millward said.

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Top image: Trent Thomas, Sam Geer, Rose Herceg and Rowena Millward

Earlier this year, Advertising Week APAC was host to an event that could have come straight out of Star Trek. Actor William Shatner joined the crowd live and direct via hologram.

Powered by holographic communications platform, Proto Hologram, Shatner joined the crowd to chat with Meta’s Catherine Bowe, who was tasked with interviewing the 92-year-old from the Australian end of the connection.

Mediaweek caught up with Bowe to speak about the cutting edge technology that made the interview possible, and what it was that stuck with her most from the conversation.

Looking back to the beginning of it all, Bowe says that she ended up on stage with Shatner via her work with the Advertising Week Advisory Committee. 

“They reached out to the whole Advisory Committee once they secured William Shatner and said, ‘he’s been secured, any ideas on who could interview him?’. I was very fortunate that a couple of people actually nominated me. It was actually Jules Lund, I blame him entirely! 

“I was thrilled, but also thought, oh my goodness, I’ve never done anything like this before. I’m usually the one behind the camera briefing the speakers, not the one who’s there on stage. It was a lot of fun, it was good to delve into something completely different.”

William Shatner via hologram

Reflecting on the early stages of organising the interview, Bowe says that the presentation could have looked a lot different from the futuristic technology showcase that it ended up being. 

“He did speak at South by Southwest earlier in the year, and people look at what’s going on for similar events. But he was also in Australia earlier this year filming in Coober Pedy, and so because he was here, he got raised on the radar. 

“The idea was originally for him to be there in person and to be able to have a chat and all of that. It was his idea to actually do it via a hologram.”

Of course, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry, and after testing the hologram over and over, a gag about being frozen from Shatner accidentally muted the tech. Although it was quickly resolved, Bowe says that it highlighted just how new hologram technology really is, and that the rest of the presentation “went exceptionally well.”

“In the 10-minute period where we didn’t know if we were going to get the tech to work, I felt like there was something quite powerful that happened,” said Bowe.

“The feeling in the room was really supportive. The number of people that I was getting eye contact from to say ‘this is cool, it’s fine, it’s good – don’t worry about it, we’re here and we’re not going anywhere’. When the tech actually came through, there was this riotous applause, it was amazing. I’ve never experienced that in a room before.

“This wasn’t by design, but it really illustrated how cutting edge this technology is. Once was up and running, the experience was incredible.”

It wasn’t just Bowe and the Australian team who had to prepare for Shatner to be beamed in, with the American team on the ground in LA making some adjustments as well.  

The view from LA. Credit: David Nussbaum at Proto

“From a tech side of things, I wanted to know what the experience was going to be like on his end, I wanted to know what he could see,” said Bowe. “He could see directly out from him, so he could see the audience in front of him – that was a really important thing for him, he really needed to have that immediate feedback – but he also needed to see me. That was something that we had to adapt at the other end, because he needed to have two screens.”

Having spoken to Shatner about so many aspects of his life and experiences whilst on stage, Bowe says that there is one particular topic he touched on that has stuck with her. 

“His experience of going to outer space is just so truly unique. He’s one of 600 people that have ever been outside of the atmosphere, so it’s truly incredible. He has this really, really beautiful understanding of how the universe and the planet are so interconnected, and how everything communicates with each other. 

“He thought before going that he was going to be really interested in what was out there, but in fact, what actually broke his heart was actually looking back at the vastness of out there and had tiny we are. He had a real rallying call to the industry, to advertisers and people of influence, and people who can help to impact culture that we’ve got a real responsibility to honour our protection of the planet through what we do. I think he spoke to about that beautifully.”

See Also: Beaming into the Future: The rise of holographic communication

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Top Image: Catherine Bowe interviews William Shatner via hologram. Photo credit: TeleIn

Compiled by Tess Connery and Jasper Baumann

Behind the blood spatter on Crime Insiders: Forensics 

LiSTNR has expanded its suite of Australian crime podcasts with a new breakthrough podcast series, Crime Insiders, that takes audiences beyond true crime and into the real experience of those trying to solve crimes and analyse crime scenes.

Crime Insiders: Forensics is a twice weekly podcast hosted by crime author, screenwriter, and former general practitioner with a forensic focus Kathryn Fox.

Podcast Week’s Tess Connery caught up with Fox to chat all things Crime Insiders: Forensics.

Crime Insiders: Forensics came to be after Fox was asked to join the time by LiSTNR’s head of factual and drama, Jennifer Goggin.

“Jen Goggin has a really big interest in true crime and fiction, and I was approached by them – given my background in as a medical doctor and crime author – and they asked if I’d be interested,” said Fox. “When I found out what I was about, I was really excited because forensic science and forensic medicine is a really big interest of mine. In fact, some of the people we’ve interviewed I’ve done for courses with!”

Covering everything from blood spatter to disaster victim identification, Crime Insiders: Forensics will leave no stone unturned when looking at the latest in scientific breakthroughs.

“The new advances in science are incredible, and even hearing about maggots – that they can actually contain the DNA of the victims and possibly the murderers – that’s pretty exciting that they are what they consume. When you look at things in a different way, the possibilities are endless, particularly for assisting with solving crime and trying to determine scientifically on the evidence base, what actually happened and who was likely to have done it.”

When asked what it is that she’s looking for in her guests on the podcast, Fox says that it’s “people who are passionate about their job and people who show humanity in their work,” which has resulted in a particular common thread.

“That’s the thing that has struck me the absolute most – guests are often dealing with the very dark side of life and death, and yet they are honour bound to the victims. One said she’d be the last doctor a person will ever be examined by. They take the work incredibly seriously, but also the respect for the victims and victims families is paramount.”

With the ethics of true crime having a spotlight shone on them recently, Fox is working to remove the romance around the genre.

“For me, especially as a doctor, there’s nothing that I want to do that will glamorise crime, I don’t want to click bait gore or anything gratuitous related to that crime. When I interviewed Jo Glengarry, who is a forensic pathologist, instead of focusing on the crime aspects, we actually spoke about what she did that day, her involvement, where she was when she got the call, and then how she felt at the end of the day after she’d done the autopsy.

“I think that gave us a great insight into the crime and its ripple effects through the community. We often think of victims’ families, but there are also the lawyers, doctors, prosecutors – there are a lot of people involved in a crime who are deeply affected, often for the rest of their life.”

Fox says that she hopes when listeners tune into Crime Insiders: Forensics, they find the answers that they’ve been looking for whilst listening to other crime stories. 

“I hope they’re getting questions answered that they often think through a podcast, but those questions aren’t asked. 

“It’s really interesting to me that when I’m listening to podcasts or documentaries, or any of those things, I often have all these questions in my head. Now I get to ask them. From the comments I’m getting from listeners, they’re really appreciating those questions being asked.”

[Listen to Crime Insiders: Forensics here]

Decoding success: How these two branded podcasts made waves in Australia

By Adam Jaffrey

Amidst the ever-evolving realm of marketing, branded podcasts have emerged as an effective channel brands can use to deepen connections with their target audience.

This is especially true in Australia where we lead the world in overall podcast listening, beating out the U.S., Canada and the U.K.

As more and more brands consider starting their own podcast, it’s worth exploring successful examples and extrapolating how they were able to attract a loyal audience.

Adam Jaffrey

Example #1: Beyond the Farm Gate

Basic info about the show:

Name: Beyond the Farm Gate
Produced by: Rural Bank (a division of Bendigo and Adelaide Bank)
Type: An interview-style podcast
Duration: 20 to 30 minutes

Rural Bank’s goal for this show was to position themselves as a thought leader in the agriculture industry. They’ve done that by creating a show which features farmers who’ve survived challenges like fire, flood, and drought; as well as farmers who run innovative and unique agribusinesses.

They’ve been consistently producing episodes for more than 18 months. Over that time, their audience grew to several thousand listeners, garnering over 1.7 million engaged minutes of listening time and dozens of 5-star reviews.

So what made the show successful? Simply put, they were able to find great guests with interesting stories which talked about real challenges many Australian farmers can relate to. The combination of useful insights and deeply personal stories is what kept people listening and coming back more.

You can listen to the show here.

Example #2: Tech Cetera  

Basic info about the show:

Name: Tech Cetera
Produced by: Ericsson
Type: An interview-style podcast
Duration: 20 to 30 minutes

Ericsson’s goals for this show were to present the brand as a technology leader in Southeast Asia by discussing topics at the intersection of technology and culture. The show features interviews with two expert guests each episode who unpack controversial and unique topics like: why diversity and inclusion matters, how to create sustainable technology, and what does the future hold.

According to their internal team, the show was the best-performing new media channel ever launched by Ericsson. Furthermore, the show won the ‘Best Podcast’ and ‘Best Branded Journalism’ awards in the SABRE Awards 2022.

What made this show work was a combination of a great host, interesting topics and guests, and professional editing. Since the podcast was aimed at a tech-savvy audience, they’ve put extra effort into polishing the podcast during post-production and using elements like custom music transitions to carry the interview and keep listeners engaged.

You can listen to the show here.

The ingredients for a successful branded podcast

I’ve had the privilege of working with both start-ups and global brands who want to succeed in the podcasting space. While having a well-known brand name certainly gives you a better starting position — without authenticity, storytelling, production quality, and consistency — you’re not going to see a good ROI.

People can smell when you are not being authentic. And we hate being sold to. That’s why successful branded podcasts transcend the boundaries of overt marketing and opt for compelling narratives that resonate with listeners’ emotions.

While a great story is important, it is going to fall flat if people have trouble hearing you or your guests. Many brands will turn to professional podcast production to elevate their brand image, as well as get expert guidance on the project in general.

Last but not least, as with most content-related efforts, success doesn’t come overnight. Some of the biggest podcasts in the world are also some of the longest-running shows. And that is probably the best argument for consistency anyone can make.

Adam is a multi-award-winning podcast producer who has been podcasting since 2009 (before Serial launched!). With 14 years in the industry, he has extensive experience and specialist skills in podcast production, marketing, and growth. Adam is the Strategy Director at Wavelength Creative — Australia’s leading podcast production and growth agency — where he oversees all new show development for their diverse range of clients.

“Everything is just not black and white”: The layers of Jack Laurence’s Wanted

Jack Laurence’s new podcast Wanted sort of is and isn’t what you think it is.

From the mind behind the Aussie success story, One Minute Remaining, Wanted features Laurence interviewing intriguing people who have been – or are currently – wanted by authorities in connection with alleged criminal activities.

From a former MI5 officer who leaked government secrets to someone who says he was once a hitman for a Panamanian drug cartel, the show has an eclectic, eccentric cast of characters that all share a similar conundrum.

Mediaweek’s Jasper Baumann sat down with Laurence to discuss his new podcast and how storytelling subverts listeners’ expectations in more ways than one.

[Read More Here]

LiSTNR executives feature in a new podcast trade campaign

LiSTNR executives will feature in a new podcast trade campaign for the first time ever, bringing the famous classic band t-shirt meme to life to reinforce the power of personalisation and how it sits at the heart of what LiSTNR podcasts deliver. 

The campaign will hero 18 LiSTNR staff from across the business who are passionate about podcasts and want to share their personal blend of podcast favourites. Whether it’s Hamish & Andy & Morbid & The Howie Games, or Hamish & Andy & 7am & KICPOD, every person has a unique blend of podcast preferences, and the ads conclude with the line “LiSTNR. Where reach gets more personal.” 

While 8 million podcast listeners have LiSTNR in common, each is unique in terms of the genres and title combinations they are drawn to and captivated by. Personalisation is part of LISTNR’s DNA, and it’s what makes audiences come back for more, time and time again, as evidenced by LiSTNR’s 145% audience growth* in just one year. 

In the world of audio, podcasts are recognised as the most deeply personal, intimate and immersive audio experience that listeners can engage with and offer unparalleled brand engagement.  

[Read More Here]

Queensland and The Peers Project partner to launch accessible travel podcast series

Travel should be accessible for every ability. To help us all get there, Queensland has partnered with The Peers Project on a new podcast designed to enact meaningful change for the tourism industry and travellers with a disability. Accessed That is available on podcast players now.

The Accessed That podcast explores what it’s really like to travel while living with a disability. The aim is to both educate the tourism industry about the specific needs of guests living with disability, while at the same time, inspire travel without limitation.

Driving the conversation each week is Oliver Hunter, award-winning standup comedian living with Cerebral Palsy, and Karni Liddell, Paralympic swimmer, TV presenter and Queenslander who was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy as a child. The duo chat with each of their 10 guests, travellers with a range of disabilities, to share their own insights of travelling with disability ‘having been there, accessed that’.

Oliver Hunter, Accessed That co-host said: “For people with a disability, the best resource to prepare for anything, especially travel, is to hear direct from others with lived experiences. Firsthand reviews are what the Accessed That podcast offers. Each episode is filled with experiences straight from the horse’s mouth.”

[Listen to Accessed That here]

Swifties uncovered in new podcast about Taylor Swift fans and the upcoming Eras Tour

As Swifties prepare for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour ticket resale next Monday, 4 September, LiSTNR’s Behind The Hits podcast today released an episode all about the eras and story of Taylor Swift, her devoted fandom and a preview into the biggest tour of all time.

Know nothing about Taylor Swift? This is the ultimate podcast to get you up to speed on the artist who is taking over the world!

From her first Aussie shows in tiny venues in 2009 to sold out stadium tours, and the ups and downs of a truly incredible career to date, this podcast episode dives into Taylor’s world as she tells her story through exclusive archived interview audio. The podcast also hears from industry pals including Ed Sheeran and Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott and fans aka ‘Swifties’, Kate Pattison, Jemima Skelley, Georgia Carroll, Bridget Hustwaite and TikTok’s King Vinoj. The podcast episode is hosted by the Hit Network’s Nic Kelly.

Swifties and music lovers went crazy in June when tickets went on sale for Taylor Swift’s upcoming Aussie tour in February next year, with over 4 million people trying to get tickets to her seven sold out Melbourne and Sydney shows.

The Eras Tour is headed to Australia in February 2024.

[Listen to Behind The Hits: Taylor Swift here]

Nova joins forces with social media icons for new Original pod, High Scrollers

Join OG YouTuber Brittney Saunders and Australia’s biggest Glamazon Alright, Hey! in Nova Entertainment’s new original podcast High Scrollers.

For all the screen-time addicts who love to scroll, this is the podcast version of your favourite group chat. The long-form edition of your besties’ secret voice note. This is… High Scrollers. Every week, Brittney and Alright, Hey! will break down the biggest online stories – so if it’s trending, going viral, or has you gripped, they’re talking about it.

Brittney Saunders is a business and entertainment powerhouse, and at just 30 years old has seen incredible success in both spheres. Brittney first rose to fame through her YouTube channel, where she vlogged and documented her everyday teenage life. She was more than just a hit with fans, amassing over 1.04 million subscribers.

Comedian Matt Hey, best known for his online persona Alright, Hey!, has been one of Australia’s favourite content creators since he started entertaining audiences online in 2015. His gorgeously diverse and dedicated audience, combined with his easy mix of humour and important messaging fosters a uniquely authentic connection with his followers. With creative, fresh content that never fails to make his audiences laugh, he has amassed half a million followers and millions of views across Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube.

Mediaweek spoke to Brittney and Matt about their new podcast and what makes their show unique and stand out amongst a sea of other podcasts.

MW: How did the idea for the podcast come about?

BRITTNEY: When Nova contacted me asking if I’d be interested in starting a pod, I was honoured! My immediate thought was I simply can’t do this alone, so I messaged Matt straight away!

MW: What goes into determining what viral or trending story will be discussed on the podcast?

MATT: It has to have caused a reaction in us – plenty of boring stuff goes viral, in fact, some of my most boring videos are viral. It’s more about how we can apply it to be relatable. If there’s a new song about a breakup, let’s talk about ours. Honestly, the viral vids are just an excuse to talk about ourselves.

MW: How do you both plan to inject your own personal brands and personalities into the podcast? 

BRITTNEY: Matt and myself are full of personality and it’s natural for us to have hilarious conversations together on the daily, so it’s a breeze for us to be able to bring our conversations to life through the pod! Despite being great friends, we do have our differences and conflicting opinions here and there which will make for great conversation.

MATT: We’ve learnt that our personalities are why people follow us – for some it’s their makeup skills or their fashion or their knowledge, our audience just really love us like we’re that crazy best friend who is a little unhinged, maybe says the wrong thing at times, but gives good advice and is always making you laugh. Knowing that our personalities is what’s bringing people to the podcast, it makes it easy to inject ourselves into it. We just have to show up and be ourselves, how good is that?

MW: How does High Scrollers stand out in the sea of podcasts that are available today?

BRITTNEY: There are a lot of podcasts out there today, I think what will set us apart is our genuine personalities and solid friendship. There’s no faking it for the clout over here!

MATT: It has us as hosts. Honestly, we aren’t boring. We aren’t mediocre. And we don’t take ourselves seriously. And we’re genuinely best friends of over 10 years – but we haven’t shown the internet much of our friendship, we’re lifting the veil on what it’s REALLY like to be friends with us, because no one has had much of a glimpse of that, especially in the last few years.

MW: What do you hope listeners get out of the podcast?

BRITTNEY: A good laugh, perhaps an escape from a crappy day and a light-hearted distraction.

MATT: Look, we aren’t here to change the world with this podcast, we just want people to have a good time. Life is ROUGH – if we can help you escape for 30-40 minutes a week, that sounds good to me. I’ve already had listeners tell me they need to wear a nappy next week – because they almost wet their pants listening to the first episode!

[Listen to High Scrollers here]

ARN announces multi-year partnership with TED in new sales deal

ARN’S iHeartPodcast Network has announced a multi-year partnership with TED to represent their podcast slate in Australia including both sales representation and amplification.

Delivering over 1.8 million Australian downloads every month, the slate is led by TED Talks Daily. Every weekday Australians listen for ideas on every subject imaginable — from Artificial Intelligence to Zoology— given by leading thinkers and creators. Additionally, the slate covers a further 20+ shows engaging Australians across topics like Business, Health, Technology and Work content.

[Read More Here]

On May 26th, Mediaweek’s Next of the Best awards celebrated the best of under 40s talent across the media industry – including TV, radio, media agencies and PR.

Taking home gold for PR – Media was senior publicist, Paramount ANZ / Network 10, Tess Fisher.

Mediaweek caught up with Fisher about her Next of the Best win and the future of the industry.

Congratulations on winning gold! How do you feel about the win? 

“Thank you! It’s absolutely surreal. When I saw the news that Mediaweek was launching the Next of the Best Awards, I thought it was such a great initiative and I was crossing my fingers someone I knew would make the shortlist. When that shortlisted person turned out to be me, I thought my excitement was peaking. To be recognised with gold – especially alongside such esteemed competition – was a true pinch-myself moment.”

How does this award reflect the work of you and your team?

“As Publicists, we’re considered ‘wallpaper’. What we do is not about us and if you’re doing this job for the limelight, you’re going to run out of juice pretty quickly. We’re the busy bees behind the scenes showcasing the work of others. It’s incredibly rare and exceptionally special to have that spotlight turned around!

“My colleagues and peers do remarkable work that extends well beyond their job descriptions (and the 9 to 5). It takes empathy, intuition, EQ, persistence and patience – think journalist, counsellor, mediator, teacher, strategist, mother and salesperson all rolled into one. Because this job is so multi-faceted, it’s often hard to explain what we do (my nan thought I dressed store mannequins for a while there), so it’s very special that Mediaweek has created a space for recognising all the hard work, talent and determination that fuels this one-of-a-kind industry.”

In your view, what are some of the major hurdles the industry is facing?

“Talking about Covid feels so 2020, but it has a long arm that just keeps taking – and it can’t be ignored.

“During lockdown, many professionals experienced ‘WFH’ for the first time. This change saw us implement lots of tactics to keep teams together. Yes, Zoom trivia or Paint & Pinot (which was always 75% pinot) might be activities that make us shudder now, but they glued us together when everything around us was falling apart.

“Post-Covid, we’re seeing the advent of the hybrid workplace. This means flexibility and improved productivity for many, but our workplaces remain fractured. Just because Covid is ‘over’, we shouldn’t jettison the team building exercises that help unite workers. Culture-building tactics foster a sense of workplace community, which in turn helps employees feel more engaged with their peers and their jobs. When people enjoy being at work, they’re more likely to put in extra effort and not seek employment elsewhere.

“Whether it’s a coffee run in the morning, drinks after work, team WIPs that cover more than just work (read: yes, I want to know the backstory of your wild IG stories last weekend!), uniting teams in a post-covid world is an essential part of futureproofing our industry.” 

The Next of the Best is an under-40s award, how will today’s upcoming talent impact the industry in the future?

“One of the best parts of working with under-40s is seeing them challenge the status quo. I love hearing young people say “But why do we do it that way?”, making others (myself included!) rethink antiquated approaches and processes.

“I genuinely feel like younger generations care about amplifying voices that matter and are striving for positive impact. Studies are already showing Gen Z’s distrust and scepticism of corporations is forcing brands and influencers to ‘do better’ and act more authentically, consciously, and transparently. I believe this push for better can translate to workplaces, and that younger generations have the power to dismantle business practices that are at best murky or misleading, and at worst, unethical.

“There is so much good coming from upcoming talent, but I also get a lot out of seeing older mentors buddy up with emerging talent. When fresh ways of thinking meet proven strategic experience, that’s the nexus for real evolution in the workplace.

What’s your outlook for the year ahead?

“Martinis, martinis, martinis.

“Kidding. That’s just this weekend’s outlook.

“Working at Paramount ANZ I’m constantly inspired by our programming and our commitment to heroing diverse, creative voices. My job marries my love of finding great content with my desire to spread the word about it. I get to talk about binge-worthy entertainment and I get paid? Now that’s an outlook to get excited about.

“On the personal front, I’m living for my mum’s daily dog pics, keeping on with my Masters of Creative Writing, trying to read, relax and bubble bath more, and am always on the lookout for a hot new restaurant opening. If you have any leads, you know where to find me!”

See Also: Mediaweek’s Next of the Best Awards: Winners Revealed

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Top Image: Tess Fisher

Paramount Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) has announced that head of entertainment and factual programming, Stephen Tate, will depart the business.

For over two decades, Tate has enjoyed one of the longest continuous tenures of any commercial Network Executive in Australia.

Tate has been responsible for some of Network 10’s most successful franchises including Australian Idol, Big Brother, Australian Survivor, The Bachelor Australia, The Masked Singer Australia, The Amazing Race Australia and of course I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here!.

Throughout his tenure, Tate has also overseen, many award-winning comedy and factual franchises including Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation, Rove Live, Todd Sampson’s Body Hack as well live event programming including the AACTA and ARIA Awards.

Beverley McGarvey, executive vice president, chief content officer and head of Paramount+, Paramount Australia & New Zealand said: “Stephen has brought incredible energy, passion, and tireless creativity to our shows for over 20 years and will be greatly missed by the entire team.

“Not only is Stephen a brilliant executive producer but he has been critical in casting so many, now household, names in all our favourite shows. As he moves to the next chapter of his career, we all wish him the best and we will miss his infectious enthusiasm.”

Stephen Tate said: “My time at Network 10 and more recently Paramount ANZ truly has been a privilege. I’m so grateful for the creative challenges entrusted to me but most importantly the deep and enduring friendships forged both within this fantastic organisation and with all our amazing suppliers in the Australian production community.

“I leave in an exciting new era in our industry, with a fully-charged battery for the next adventure.”

Tate will depart Paramount ANZ this Friday, September 1.

Media agency Initiative has been appointed as media partner to New Zealand bank ASB and will expand its global footprint by launching in New Zealand as Initiative Aotearoa.

The new business announcement follows a competitive pitch process which saw expressions of interest from a group of local and international agencies.

Chief marketing officer of ASB, Helen Fitzsimons says Initiative is the right partner for ASB as it evolves to meet changing customer needs and expectations in an increasingly complex and fragmented marketplace.

“We were inspired by Initiative’s philosophy and the impact this is having for its clients around the world. Initiative’s energy, strategic thinking, data smarts, and overall approach were aligned to ASB’s transformational agenda and the ambitions of our marketing practice. We’re excited to welcome Initiative Aotearoa to New Zealand and to the ASB team.”

As ASB’s media agency partner, Initiative will deliver innovative and integrated media strategy, planning, and buying across all channels.

Melissa Fein, Initiative AuNZ CEO said a move to open a New Zealand office has been on the agency’s agenda, but it was waiting for the right brand to launch with.

“We’ve always admired the sheer creativity of marketers in New Zealand and share their philosophy on embracing bold cultural ideas to fuel growth. As such, a New Zealand presence was always on our radar, but we were waiting for the perfect partner to set up shop. ASB is that partner.”

Initiative Aotearoa will combine the best from New Zealand and Australia in a trans-Tasman team built to meet ASB’s ambitions.

“We’re excited for this partnership that will see global expertise with the best of New Zealand, delivering innovative solutions in support of ASB’s ambitious plans,” says Initiative AuNZ managing director, Sam Geer.

A sentiment echoed by Chris Colter, AuNZ chief strategy and product officer.

“ASB’s passion for its customers and innovation is infectious and has led them to create some of the most compelling marketing in the Southern Hemisphere. The opportunity to combine that with our world-class talent, tools and technology, is beyond exciting and we can’t wait to get started.”

Fein concluded: “Announcing Initiative Aotearoa and our partnership with ASB marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in Initiative’s evolution, and all I can say is watch this space.”

The new contract takes effect 1st September 2023.

See Also: “Punch above their weight”: Initiative global CEO comments on Aussie team’s success

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Top Image: Melissa Fein

dmg media has announced the promotion of Lachlan Heywood to the position of managing director, Daily Mail Australia.

In this executive role, Heywood will assume responsibility for the day-to-day commercial operation of Daily Mail Australia while overseeing sales and working closely with editor Barclay Crawford and our Australian editorial team.

Rich Caccappolo, CEO dmg media said: “We are pleased to announce Lachlan’s promotion to managing director. With his extensive background as a seasoned media executive and over 25 years of experience in various leadership and management roles across Australia, including his successful tenure working alongside us, we are confident he will help lead our team through our next phase of growth.”

Heywood said: “Daily Mail Australia continues to be the first place for news for many Australians. I look forward to furthering its influence and ensuring our commercial partners reach our highly engaged readers.”

Before his promotion to managing director, Heywood had been the executive editor of Daily Mail Australia since 2017. He joined the company from The Courier Mail, where he was editor.

Prior to that he was editor of the Townsville Bulletin, deputy editor of The Sunday Mail, and for several years he worked as a federal political reporter in Canberra.

Heywood’s appointment is effective from Friday, 1 September.

The appointment comes after Sean Walsh announced his departure from dmg media as its chief brand officer after almost two years in the role and nearly a decade with the company.

Walsh’s tenure with dmg began in 2014 as chief brand officer of DailyMail.com in New York. He was promoted to global chief brand officer and managing director, US Operations, dmg media in January 2022.

See Also: “It’s now time to embark on a new adventure:” Sean Walsh announces departure from dmg media

Fetch TV, the Australian aggregation platform is rolling out a multi-platform campaign with the message Fetch is The Way to Watch.

The campaign has been commissioned from the full-service indie agency Today the Brave. The timing has been chosen to coincide with the arrival of Telstra TV customers to the Fetch platform.

In 2022 Telstra Group invested $50m in the business that now operates as a JV between Telstra (51.4%) and Astro Holdings. At the time of the investment, Fetch TV CEO Scott Lorson said: “This investment from Telstra will allow Fetch TV to accelerate growth and deliver a genuinely competitive Australian home and entertainment solution. Fetch has a hard-earned reputation for localisation, innovation and partnership, and today’s announcement will ensure a bright future for our subscribers, content partners, our emerging advertising partners and, importantly, for our telco and retail distribution partners.”

Fetch reports it services 600,000 households, and in 2023 is migrating the 800,000 Telstra TV base to Fetch.

ISP partners that offer Fetch TV to customers include Telstra, TPG/iiNet, Optus, Vocus, and Aussie Broadband. Retail distribution partners include JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman, The Good Guys and more. SVOD apps on the platform include Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount Plus, Stan and Hayu.

Fetch is selling itself in the new campaign as a way to enjoy the TV experience without the complexity of navigating multiple channels and streaming platforms.

Functions available to customers highlighted in the TVCs are Continue Watching, Universal Search, Ways to Watch and Free to Me.

Today the Brave has created “TV Purgatory”, a metaphor for the frustrating limbo viewers can find themselves in when it comes to navigating the content available in streaming apps and channels.

Fetch TV campaign

A series of 15” and 30” TVCs are driven by a voiceover, observing the unique insights users grapple with on a daily basis, before they are transported into the world of Fetch, where watching TV avoids the multiplatform complexities many face.

“The audience is transported to a lonely, desolate wasteland where a tower of TVs rises into the sky, displaying the overwhelming amount of content that confronts us when making our viewing choices,” says Jade Manning, creative partner, Today the Brave.

“While the TV tower is a strong hook that outlines the problem the audience is facing, it was crucial that we demonstrated the rich and highly differentiated functionality that Fetch offers. Once you have experienced just how simple and intuitive Fetch is to use, there’s no going back,” added Vince Osmond, creative partner, Today the Brave.

Today the Brave created a device for the brand that will be pulled through an integrated campaign spanning broadcast, BVOD, social, digital, radio and static OOH including superscreens at Westfield Centres and airport billboards.

“Fetch has established itself as a market-leading aggregation platform, and we now offer a truly differentiated user experience, establishing Fetch as ‘The Way to Watch’. The new positioning and creative, developed in partnership with Today the Brave, aligns with the rollout of the new user interface and the launch of Fetch from Telstra. With a great product and strong support from our ISP and retail partners, we are set to embark on an exciting period of growth and look forward to helping Australian households truly enjoy their TV experience,” said Sue Brenchley, chief marketing officer, Fetch TV.

Campaign credits

Client: Fetch TV
Creative: Today the Brave
Production: Collider
UI Animation: P2
Sound: Rumble

See also: Today the Brave expands capabilities with launch of dedicated media offering

Findings from the IAB Australia Online Advertising Expenditure Report (OAER) prepared by PwC has revealed the local Australian online advertising market reached $14.2 billion for the financial year ending 30th June 2023.

All categories recorded growth despite challenging economic conditions and a strong comparative period which included the Summer and Winter Olympics and a federal election. However, overall growth slowed to 1.8% year-on-year, compared to the 22% year-on-year growth recorded in FY 2022.

Video advertising, up 8.9% on FY22 ($3.5 billion), continues to outperform the broader general display advertising market with its growth offsetting declines in other formats of general display according to the trade association’s report. The audio category totalled $236 million and represented 4.3% of the general display advertising market, no comparative trend data is available for audio as reporting started in CY22.

Search and directories is the largest contributor to overall advertising growth, up 3% on FY22 ($6.2 billion), while classified advertising investment grew modestly by 0.9% on FY22 ($2.4 billion) impacted by slower property market activity. General display, which includes video, audio, and other forms of display advertising, also grew by 0.9% on FY22 ($5.5 billion) on a strong prior year which included the Olympics and Federal Election.

Connected TV yields the greatest share of content publishers’ video inventory investment, regaining ground compared to FY22 and taking share from mobile. Entertainment replaces technology in the top five industry categories for financial year 2023, whilst automotive general display advertising continues to recover after two years of economic concerns and production disruptions. The real estate and technology industry categories had the largest drop in share of spend in FY22.

Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, said: “In a challenging financial year, the digital advertising industry still achieved modest grow. This is a solid result in the current economic conditions, particularly given the strong prior year with events such as the Olympics and a Federal Election driving investment. Both digital video and audio options are attracting a larger share of marketing budgets, and the search sector continues its steady growth. It is pleasing to see spend by automotive and travel brands pick up over the last few quarters.”

For the quarter ending 30th June 2023, the total online advertising market represented $3,654m, with all categories’ share of the total online advertising market remaining relatively stable with June 2022 quarter. Growth in search and directories against the prior year (2.9%) offset the declines in classifieds listings expenditure, whilst general display remained flat.

Both video and audio formats within the general display category experienced double-digit growth compared to the same period last year, 12% and 14% respectively. The highest growth format for the digital advertising sector in the June quarter was podcast advertising ($27.5m) which was up 24.0%, according to the IAB report.

Within the quarter, automotive and travel’s share of reported general display advertising increased after being two of the hardest hit industries throughout the pandemic. Retail’s share of general display expenditure remained stable.

Everyday more than 350,000 businesses use TikTok to connect with new customers and grow their business. To help support them on this journey, the platform has launched the TikTok Thrive Roadshow in partnership with Afterpay.

See Also: Brett Armstrong: How creativity on TikTok is “driving the success of commerce” on the app

Visiting Melbourne and Sydney, the events offered attendees guidance on digital marketing, content creation, and business strategy to empower small and medium-sized businesses on TikTok to thrive and grow. The events attracted a diverse range of businesses, with more than 400 attending both events, including well-known names such as Frank Green, Chefs & Dogs, Edgars Mission, Beysis, and Esmio Australia.

During the event, small business operators and owners had the opportunity to gain insights from TikTok experts, industry professionals, and SMB owners who have achieved significant business growth and success through the platform. Founders from Beysis, Esmio Australia, and Chefs & Dogs, shared their expertise, whilst addressing pressing questions about harnessing viral success, transforming customer feedback into product solutions, and how to grow a prosperous business utilising the platform.

TikTok AUNZ general manager, global business solutions, Brett Armstrong said, “With a thriving community of more than 350,000 businesses on our platform, we’ve witnessed the impactful role TikTok plays for businesses of all sizes throughout Australia. We trust that the Thrive Roadshows have provided business owners with valuable insights into sustaining success on our platform, as we remain committed to enabling them to succeed and dream big!”

Joel Moran – marketing director, brand, growth and product marketing added, “Afterpay has always been committed to empowering businesses of all sizes for success. We know the importance of understanding and seizing the opportunities digital platforms offer, and we’re always looking for ways to help our merchants achieve success. TikTok is continuing to grow as an incredible platform for business visibility and success. By partnering with TikTok for the TikTok Thrive Roadshow, we’re excited to be supporting a roadshow of knowledge sharing that will benefit Australian businesses of all sizes.”

Thrive Roadshow is part of TikTok For Business’s continued commitment to provide inspiration, tools and solutions that allow businesses to take their TikTok journey to the next level.

Meta has seen a bumper last quarter with positive results, and to cap off the end of a rollercoaster financial year, the tech giant has unveiled its new offerings at its Performance Marketing Summit.

The Performance Marketing Summit, held in Sydney and Melbourne, with an upcoming one in Brisbane, will showcase new products and solutions from Meta to key partners.

The last 18 months have seen Meta undergo significant changes in the business – from restructures to new product launches and redesigns – and improved fiscal outcomes in Q2.

See Also: Meta reports total revenue is up $32.0 billion in Q2 results

Meta’s performance so far and the year ahead 

Will Easton

Will Easton, Meta’s managing director for ANZ, began with a reflection on the company’s family of apps – Facebook, Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp – which has continued to grow across Australia and New Zealand, with 3 billion people logging in every day, and 3.8 billion people logging in monthly.

Easton highlighted three reasons why the company had seen strong and healthy growth across its family of apps, starting with tweaks to components of the discovery engine with the addition of an AI recommendation engine that looks at content a user is interested in and provides further information.

The second has been the boom in short-form videos, better known as Reels. Easton noted that 200 million people heavily engaged with the content, particularly in Australia. Rounding out Easton’s points is the addition of new products and services that meet their customer’s needs.

On the advertiser value side of the company, Easton noted that in addition to the changes in the company, Meta has focused on rebuilding its advertiser platform and ensuring the delivery of relevant results to customers.

The tech giant focused on investing progress in AI and contextual advertising. Easton said: “We spend a lot of time making sure contextually that our ad units fit within the formats and the platforms that we use.”

Easton provided an overview of their innovation roadmap, short-to-medium-term investment in AI and continued focus on the metaverse.

AI and the future of performance marketing

Ian Stone, product marketing lead of Meta ANZ, discussed how brands can capitalise on the tech company’s business solutions and how their investment in AI plays a part. 

The AI Sandbox is currently only available in North America with selected partners. It is the first public generative AI offering to build creative.

“You start coming up with text variations, different ways of reaching audiences, generating backgrounds, and image outcropping. The capability of this when you start going across millions of small businesses, which don’t have creative agencies and don’t have graphic designers, start really levelling the playing field and helping small businesses,” Stone said

“This is in its infancy; it’s not something you can just buy at the moment. But I think it’s a great view of where our kind of gentle AI investments are going to lead to kind of in the near future,” he added.

Stone noted that Meta is honing in on buying outcomes and how that will drive towards point-of-sale ads, conversion or re-engagement.

“We’re trying to encourage advertisers to try and think about the way they set up advertising in different ways. The role of targeting when you’re buying an audience is really important to make sure that you’ve got efficiency and that you’re not wasting impressions. When you’re buying outcomes, detailed targeting can prohibit performance.

Stone noted that data is fundamental and that the ecosystem is changing with the onset of the cookie deprecation.

“The advancements we’ve made in conversions API, allowing advertisers to utilise their first-party data, is still key to performance marketing. Once it’s in, when you’re looking at our machine learning capabilities, the training that comes off the data is only as good as the seed of the data.

“It’s what leads to the modelling and the machine learning’s ability to get better with experience at driving an outcome that gives us server predictions and then gets the lowest outcome.”

Stone said that Meta is making it easy to understand how to buy through its Meta Advantage Suites, which launched last year.

“We’re forever bringing out kind of new areas advantage audiences launched this week. We’ll see different iterations coming through, but the main takeaway is that shopping and ad campaigns are end-to-end, automated solutions with every best practice hardwired.

“If you’re looking to sell a product online advantage, shopping campaigns will be the ticket. If you’re in the app space, and you want app acquisition or value optimisation and engagement, app campaigns are sensitive,” he said.

“Away from that, there’s loads of great marketing happening on our platform that fits outside that. We have individual levers that we’re encouraging marketers to try the right fit, whether by creative or the placement, part of our message Family Services and apps that it runs on to drive those positions,” Stone added.

Unlocking Growth with Measurement

Katie Forcey, client part at Meta, introduced the tech company’s Measurement 360 model, which is the new approach to helping marketers unlock growth by looking at a holistic approach and cross-referencing the results of multiple sources.

“Every marketer cares about driving profitable growth, especially in this macro economy, and it is about accurate measurement and the data underpinning it,” she said.

Measurement 360 is a framework that triangulates multiple sources – media mix modelling (MMM), experiments, and attribution – measuring across scope, accuracy, and speed.

“It’s a practical approach to organising and operationalising various measurement methodologies in a holistic way and making the most of each and minimising the individual deficiencies.”

Forcey noted that Meta’s successful marketers are using regular and ongoing experiments to help calibrate their MMM models and that attribution tools are using the best parts of each.

“They use the accuracy of incrementality to calibrate the scope of their trip learn models and the speed of attribution,” she said. This is to ensure day-to-day attribution tools are accurate and don’t compromise on the speed and the broad views across the channels,” she said.

Forcey concluded Meta’s innovation within the media measurement to drive profitable business growth involves:

• Adopting the Measurement 360 approach by triangulating methodologies and data sources.
• Applying the lens of incrementality to everything.
• Using experiments to calibrate other measurement methodologies.

Katie Forcey

Creative is the New Targeting

Carmela Soares, creative strategist at Meta, shifted the conversation to creativity and how it plays on the platform and in the company. She also discussed why the diversification of creative assets has had better reach and been more effective for brands.

Starting with the discovery engine, she noted that the AI part will have an estimated action rate that will serve a particular creative to an audience more likely to take action in a particular area.

“That means that the content of that creative and what’s in there to motivate the action becomes more important than ever. This is how we creatives, as humans, become a multiplier effect to effectiveness in this modern media landscape.

“Where diversification plays a part in this is people will have different motivations for their actions, or need or want a particular product, brand, or service. That’s when we start diversifying to make sure that you’re covering all the human truths behind a connection between a brand and a person.”

Soares noted that diversification can be achieved through visual direction, relevant messaging, and different placements. She noted that these components take a product-centric campaign to a human-first experience of creativity that adds incremental reach and brings new audiences on board.

“Now we create at the speed of culture. We build these campaigns based on culture on people on what’s human behind a product or a brand.

“That’s why we say creative is the new targeting. You don’t sit on the platform tweaking and manicuring all the audiences and the levers; you do that through your creative executions.”

The latest move in a number of ABC staffing shuffles, Virginia Trioli has told listeners that she will be leaving as host of ABC Radio Melbourne‘s Mornings show. Her last show will be Friday, September 15.

See Also: Ita Buttrose to step down as ABC chair in March 2024

Beginning the show on Thursday, Trioli said “After many years of daily broadcasting, and almost two decades of rising for the toughest alarms the ABC has to offer, life circumstances require me to work and live differently now.”

“My thanks to the many ABC Melbourne colleagues I’ve been so lucky to work with, but most importantly, my deepest thanks always to our amazing radio audience, who welcomed me so warmly. Only we will ever understand how these last four years have felt.”

After beginning her time on the show in 2019, Trioli reflected on her time with the program by saying that “This is an amazing program and an amazing audience.

“I hope I’ve been the person to ask those hard questions, to demand accountability, but also to provide company when we were locked in our homes through those difficult times.”

Trioli will still be working at the public broadcaster, however, with her departure from Melbourne Mornings coinciding with the announcement of a new arts program she’ll be hosting. 

According to the ABC, she will be hosting a “high-profile interview series” featuring “major arts luminaries.”

Speaking of Trioli’s new role, ABC managing director David Anderson said “Virginia has had a long association with the arts, stretching back to her early years in broadcasting.

“Her knowledge and undisputed passion for the arts will give our new arts line-up a significant boost in 2024.”

The new host of ABC Melbourne Mornings will be announced on Friday morning. 

ABC Radio Melbourne acting local manager Mary-Jane Fenech said of Trioli, “She has always led the conversation in Melbourne with intelligence, integrity and heart whilst holding those in power to account.

“But rest assured the audience will be in very good hands with the new host of Melbourne Mornings.

“We can’t wait to share with you who it is.”

The Australian’s Travel + Luxury has announced the addition of Travel + Luxury Weekend, a new standalone product, set for launch this Saturday in The Weekend Australian.

Travel + Luxury Weekend will feature fresh content and a new-look design on high-quality paper with a trimmed and stapled finish to create a superior travel product for readers and advertisers. 

Travel + Luxury Weekend editor Penny Hunter said: “Our readers are discerning and focused on the premium end of travel. Moving from a lift-out to our new standalone format will present our top-class journalism in a refreshed and modern style designed to inspire our readers to travel.  

“Long-form storytelling has always been our strength, and that will continue with a fresh array of fonts and colour palettes and generous use of beautiful photography on high-quality paper. 

“These will be interspersed with authoritative flight and hotel reviews, lists, deals, products and news, plus personality-driven stories. The new look will boost Travel + Luxury Weekend’s appeal as a publication; one that has a shelf life well beyond the weekend.”

Travel + Luxury Weekend’s new format, along with its sister publication, the glossy bi-monthly Travel + Luxury magazine, delivers world-class travel content to create the number one source of luxury travel information and inspiration in this country. 

Editorial director of Premium Food, Health and Travel, Kerrie McCallum, said the company’s News Travel Network had the largest audience of travel intenders in the country.

“Building out travel content for this highly engaged prestige audience with a standalone, refreshed version of Travel + Luxury in The Weekend Australian is the logical next step in segmenting our travel audience and targeting true travel intenders, in companion with the glossy bi-monthly magazine. 

“These products are the pinnacle for premium and luxury travel in Australia, and it demonstrates how seriously we take the category and the potential of this valuable audience.”

Each issue of the new Travel + Luxury Weekend will include increased editorial content and new features. Hotel and flight reviews, in-depth destination stories, On the Radar discoveries and Perfect 10 lists remain. Fab Four has expanded to Take Five, and Destination Next will transport readers to the latest hip hotel or locale. In Residence returns, with more divine holiday homes, and the Deals and News snippets have expanded. 

New content includes a Globetrotter column quizzing frequent flyers about where they’ve been, where they’re going and what they take with them. Product pages will feature travel-related goods and Just Add… will suggest pre-trip reading, viewing, listening and gear to take along for the ride.

The launch issue of Travel + Luxury Weekend has a theme of renewal throughout. From a historic train station that was gathering dust and is now a luxe hotel, to personal renewal at a wellness retreat on the Gold Coast, and NSW holiday homes that have been reborn from churches, slab huts and the like.

The issue showcases the latest trends in the travel sphere and looks at how nature-based tourism is a source of healing and solace. Associate editor travel Susan Kurosawa writes about the eternal allure of African safaris. 

Travel + Luxury has a strong presence across all platforms – print, digital, video, mobile and social – and is enhanced by a popular weekly newsletter.

Stan and Screen Australia have announced three brand new Stan Original series have been commissioned for production, created in collaboration with award-winning and emerging Australian writers, directors, producers and screen creatives.

Each series has been developed with support from funding partners such as Screen NSW, Screenwest, Lotterywest, the WA Regional Screen Fund, Screen Territory and the South Australian Film Corporation, and international partners DCD Rights, All3Media International and Banijay Rights.

These new additions to the scripted slate demonstrate Stan’s increasing commitment to telling authentic and original Australian stories. Collaborating with Australian production companies Ludo Studio, THIRDBORN and Feisty Dame Productions, Stan continues to invest in diverse narratives from leading Australian creative teams, to deliver a compelling slate of original content for Australian audiences. 

Thou Shalt Not Steal is an eight-episode road series set in Central and South Australia in the 1980s. On a search for the truth behind a mysterious family secret, Robyn, a young Aboriginal delinquent, escapes from detention and reluctantly teams up with awkward teenager Gidge.

Together they flee her small central desert community on a perilous journey across the outback, finding answers and learning some hard life lessons along the way. Hot on their heels are Maxine, a sex trafficker whose taxi Robyn stole, and Gidge’s domineering father Robert, a fraudulent preacher.

Commissioned by Stan and distributed by DCD Rights, Thou Shalt Not Steal has received major production investment from Screen Australia with support from the South Australian Film Corporation, Screen Territory and by Screen Queensland’s Post, Digital and Visual Effects (PDV) Incentive. Developed with assistance of Stan and Screen Australia, Thou Shalt Not Steal is directed by AACTA Award-winning filmmaker Dylan River (Mystery Road: Origin, Robbie Hood) who also serves as co-creator alongside AACTA Award-winning executive producer Tanith Glynn-Maloney (Finding Jedda, She Who Must Be Loved, Robbie Hood). The series is executive produced for multi-Emmy and BAFTA Award-winning Ludo Studio by Charlie Aspinwall and Daley Pearson (Bluey, Robbie Hood), and Sophie Miller (The Family Law), alongside producer Sam Moor (Bluey).

Exposure is a six-episode bold and unapologetic mystery-thriller set in coastal NSW. It follows photographer Jacs Gould who, following the death of her best friend, returns to her hometown to discover the hidden secrets of their relationship and the truth behind her tragedy.

Commissioned by Stan and distributed by All3Media International, Exposure has received major production investment from Screen Australia and Stan, with support from Screen NSW. Exposure is written and created by Lucy Coleman (Hot Mess) and directed by Bonnie Moir (Love Me S2). The series is produced through THIRDBORN by award-winning producers Nicole O’Donohue (Love Me, Frayed), with Justin Kurzel and Shaun Grant (Stan Original Films Nitram and True History of the Kelly Gang).

Based on the book by multi-award-winning author Holden Sheppard, Invisible Boys is a 10-episode contemporary drama series set in the regional town of Geraldton, Western Australia. In a small town everyone thinks they know you: but when a closeted gay teen’s hook-up with a married man is revealed on social media, it will have irreversible consequences for a group of teens who have previously been invisible.

Commissioned by Stan, international distribution handled by Banijay Rights, with major production investment from Screen Australia and Stan, and support from Screenwest, Lotterywest, and the WA Regional Screen Fund, Invisible Boys is created and directed by Logie Award-winning creator Nicholas Verso (Crazy Fun Park, Boys in the Trees) alongside an impressive writing team including Enoch Mailangi, Walkley Award-winning writer Alan Clarke, author Holden Sheppard, and artistic director of Griffin Theatre, Declan Greene. The series is produced by Tania Chambers (How to Please a Woman) and Verso. Invisible Boys was commissioned following a joint Stan and Screenwest development initiative, designed to foster local talent and spark the development of new series in WA.

Stan chief content officer Cailah Scobie said: “Bound to captivate a diverse range of Australian audiences, these three new Stan Original Series highlight our strong commitment to invest in local content that champions Australian voices and narratives. These unique dramas have attracted prestigious international partners – DCD Rights, All3Media International and Banijay Rights – signifying the global reach and relevance of Stan Original content.

“We are thankful to the Australian writers, directors, producers and filmmakers involved in the projects, and the ongoing support of Screen Australia, alongside our other key partners Screen NSW, Screenwest, Lotterywest, the WA Regional Screen Fund, Screen Territory and the South Australian Film Corporation.”

Screen Australia head of content Grainne Brunsdon said: “Get ready to immerse yourself in the power of Australian storytelling! We’re thrilled to partner once again with Stan to invest in Australian stories with these three compelling series. Each of these projects represents the rich tapestry of our local talent and narratives, and we are incredibly proud to support them.
 
“The collaboration between Stan, Screen Australia, and our state funding partners demonstrates a collective commitment to championing authentic and original storytelling. We look forward to seeing these series captivate audiences both locally and on a global scale, showcasing the depth and creativity of our local screen industry.”

Jennie Hughes, director of Screen Territory, said: “Screen Territory is incredibly proud to support the production of Thou Shalt Not Steal, which marks the second collaboration between Since 1788 Productions and Ludo, following the critically acclaimed and successful series Robbie Hood.
 
“With Dylan River and Tanith Glynn-Maloney returning to film once again in their hometown of Alice Springs, we anticipate a series that will captivate audiences, challenge perceptions, and leave a lasting impact! Dylan River brings a unique style as a director with an idiosyncratic blend of raw authenticity, beautiful visual storytelling and a twist of Territorian humour. The combined vision and storytelling expertise of Dylan and Tanith is sure to be a winning formula.”

Kate Croser, South Australian Film Corporation CEO, said: “The SAFC is delighted to welcome Stan back to South Australia for Thou Shalt Not Steal, the latest exciting series to come from our successful production partnership following international hit series The Tourist and feature films Gold and A Sunburnt Christmas. We are pleased to welcome multi-Emmy Award winning Ludo Studio to the state as they establish their production base for the series here in Adelaide, bringing with them the exceptional talents of NT writer/director/producer team Dylan River and Tanith Glynn-Maloney. This thrilling new First Nations-led production will take advantage of iconic road trip locations through the central corridor of Australia, showcasing some of South Australia’s stunning Outback landscapes.”

Kyas Hepworth, head of screen NSW, said: “It was clear after Hot Mess that Lucy Coleman was extremely talented at digging deep and getting to the raw truth of the contemporary female experience. Pairing her voice with series director of Exposure Bonnie Moir alongside Nicole O’Donohue, Justin Kurzel, and Shaun Grant can only help her star rise and result in a thrilling series that is sure to resonate with audiences.”

Rikki Lea Bestall, Screenwest CEO, said: “Screenwest is beyond excited to see local production company Feisty Dame secure a Stan Original Series based on a homegrown West Australian story! The WA screen sector is experiencing its busiest year to date with local creatives, crew and production companies making unprecedented levels of screen content, showcasing WA stories and locations to audiences around the world. Congratulations to Tania, Nick and Holden! We look forward to seeing Invisible Boys move into production in the Mid West in the near future.”

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Top image, left to right, top and bottom: Dylan River, Bonnie Moir, Nicholas Verso, Lucy Coleman

SCA and Mushroom Group announced that they have partnered again in 2023 for the national live concert series, RNB Fridays presents: Fridayz Live, which will return in November 2023.

Together with SCA’s Hit Network, MG Live, Illusive Presents and Frontier Touring, Fridayz Live will bring another epic line up to stages across the country for its sixth year, featuring some of the world’s biggest music stars.

This year’s star line up features Jason Derulo, Boyz II Men, Flo Rida, Kelly Rowland, JoJo, 112, Baby Bash, Travie McCoy, DJ Havana Brown, Vinn Rock & DJ Kay Gee for a Naughty By Nature DJ Set and resident DJ YO! MAFIA. The one and only Fatman Scoop and LiSTNR’s Abbie Chatfield will both return as hosts.

Abbie Chatfield

The RNB Fridays brand was made famous by the Hit Network, where the music strategy of celebrating the best of RNB music every week quickly became a nationwide phenomenon.

Together with Mushroom Group, Fridayz Live has continued to deliver some of the best live music memories in Australian history featuring some of music’s biggest names including Janet Jackson, The Black Eyed Peas, Macklemore, Usher, Akon, 50 Cent, Craig David, TLC, Shaggy and more.

Amanda Lee, head of Hit Metro Content, said: “We are so excited to partner with the Mushroom Group once again to present Fridayz Live.

“We love giving our fans experiences they will never forget and this year will be no different, bringing some of RNB’s biggest names to this incredible live concert series.”

Matt Gudinski, Mushroom Group CEO, said: “Fridayz Live is the biggest party of the year. As we enter our sixth edition, the event continues to build from strength to strength, set to deliver fans an amazing live experience. The 2023 lineup is one of our best yet and we can’t wait for crowds to see what we have in store for them this November.”

Forbes Australia has announced more high-profile speakers for the second Forbes Australia Business Summit, to be held on Tuesday, October 31, at the International Convention Centre, Darling Harbour, Sydney.

The new speakers include Reserve Bank of Australia Board Member and influential investor Carol Schwartz AO (who features on the cover of the latest edition of Forbes Australia magazine), Zambrero founder Dr Sam Prince, Collingwood Football Club president Jeff Browne, Netflix director, Content (ANZ), Que Minh Luu, Flybuys chief executive officer Anna Lee, and Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Organising Committee chief executive officer Cindy Hook.

The new additions to the Forbes Australia Business Summit line-up also include Meta group industry director Naomi Shepherd, Liven co-founder Grace Wong, Vida Glow founder Anna Lahey, Nakatomi managing director Benjamin Bray, and Flying Fox Ventures founding partner Rachael Neumann.

The newcomers join the previously announced speakers Team Global Express Group CEO Christine Holgate, WiseTech Global Founder and CEO Richard White, Immutable Co-Founders Robbie and James Ferguson, Gurner Group Founder Tim Gurner, and philanthropist, investor and board director Daniel Petre AO.

Forbes Australia Editor-in-Chief, Sarah O’Carroll, said: “The Business Summit is about bringing powerful stories to life and the line-up really speaks for itself. From some of the most influential leaders and entrepreneurs to investors and corporate powerhouses, we’ll harness their collective knowledge to address today’s critical issues and discover innovative solutions.”

The influential leaders will delve into contemporary business issues and highlight how we can innovate and grow against a shifting economic backdrop.

From the AI boom that will continue to transform the way we work, to attracting VC funding in a cash-strapped climate, to evolving return-to-work policies and turning economic turbulence into opportunities – this dynamic live event will equip you with valuable, actionable insights.

Read more: Forbes Australia names its first speakers for the Forbes Australia Business Summit

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Top image, left to right: Anna Lee, Naomi Shepherd, Benjamin Bray, Rachael Neumann, Jeff Browne, Que Minh Luu

Organic Pacific and Havas have been appointed by VA Media to support its international growth ambitions.

The remit includes the development of a global strategy, international brand profiling and an industry event approach.

The global entertainment company is an Australian-based, Ad-Supported Video On Demand (AVOD) network with more than 130 million monthly views, making them a leading enterprise partner of YouTube in the APAC region. The win for the Havas-owned agencies is another in a string of recent wins for the Group.

Partnering with leading studios, major film, and distribution businesses VA Media connects content creators with audiences to monetise their content across YouTube, Facebook, SNAP and other AVOD streaming platforms. 

From a consumer standpoint, VA Media boasts one of the largest independent movie networks on YouTube, with more than 15 channels and 18 million-plus subscribers worldwide, publishing more than 500 feature films or TV series across its network each month. Its flagship YouTube channels include Movie Central, True Crime Central, Horror Central, We Are Pride and Documentary Central.

Mark Ashbridge, VA Media CEO, said: “VA Media works side by side with the best creative talent to create, curate and optimise great content, achieving proven and quantifiable results. We’re excited to appoint Organic and the Havas Network to assist our ambitious growth plans and inform the industry about VA Media in the Asia Pacific region and globally.”

The agency appointments follow a strong of high-profile internal hires with Isabella Ronzel (previously Network Partnerships manager at News Corp Australia) joining as head of brand marketing and commercial partnerships and Kristen Bedno as head of content partnerships and acquisitions, North America in March this year to expand the footprint in the US. Hannah Barnes, former Foxtel executive, who joined in 2021 as director of Unscripted is now also managing VA’s newly created original production arm.

Organic Pacific managing partner, Annabelle Gigliotti said: “VA Media is enjoying exceptional success in the evolving AVOD landscape and team Organic are looking forward to working with VA Media on promoting its global brands. This space is growing exponentially and with watch-time hours on owned and operated channels of over 270 million hours in the last 365 days, equal to over 30,000 years of content consumption, the opportunities are endless.”

Seven has announced premiership hero and 7AFL expert commentator Daisy Pearce will join Seven’s AFLW team for the 2023 season, following her retirement from the game earlier this year.

Her addition to the team comes as the new season is set to begin, and Seven Network’s AFL Women’s commentary team is locked and loaded, ready to bring fans an epic season eight of the AFLW competition on Seven and 7plus.

Fresh off the back of her decorated career with Melbourne, Pearce will join Seven’s commentary team for the opening clash between reigning premiers Melbourne and Collingwood, where she will join her former teammates one last time to unfurl the 2022 premiership flag under lights at Ikon Park from 7.00 pm AEST live on Seven, 7mate and 7plus.

In addition to the team’s new recruit, Seven also welcomes back a star-studded lineup of the game’s best callers and experts in 2023, including Jason Bennett, Nigel Carmody, Natalie Edwards, Melissa Hickey, Abbey Holmes, Sam Lane, Kate McCarthy, Alister Nicholson, Sarah Olle and Jo Wotton.

Alongside the talented crop of former players, Seven’s team will also include current Melbourne defender Libby Birch, while 7NEWS’ Anna Hay, Mark Soderstrom and Laura Spurway round out the team.

Ahead of the opening match, fans can tune in to Seven on Thursday night from 8.30pm AEST when Andy Maher, Mick Molly and Sam Pang return for everyone’s favourite sports show, The Front Bar.

The hosts will be joined by Daisy Pearce and legendary ruckman Nic Naitanui, following the announcement of his retirement after 213 games across 15 seasons with the West Coast Eagles.

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Top image: Daisy Pearce and Abbey Holmes

Samsung Electronics has announced the return of its Solve for Tomorrow competition, a nationwide initiative designed to engage and inspire the next generation of Australian innovators and problem solvers using STEM skills.

Solve for Tomorrow – a free competition that is open to young Australians aged 14 to 24 – calls on students to use their creative, critical thinking, collaborative and communication skills to create tech solutions that address the social issues they are most passionate about.

Samsung is devoted to uncovering talent and supporting technological innovations that help build a better society. The ability to connect local youth with industry experts continues to be a powerful method to spark new advancements that yield positive transformation.

With the environment, equality, and mental health ranking as the three most important issues today by young Australians, Solve for Tomorrow provides individuals with an opportunity to bring their ideas to life in a meaningful way that drives impact.

The competition also serves as a launchpad for younger generations considering a future career in STEM, at a time when Australian jobs in STEM are predicted to grow over 14.2 per cent by 2026 – twice as fast as non-STEM occupations.

Brett Turnbull, director of corporate marketing, at Samsung Electronics Australia, said: “At Samsung, we believe in a shared mission to create real change that tackles economic, social, and environmental issues.”

“As technological connectivity and social media grows, so does activism. Through Solve for Tomorrow, we are providing purpose-driven young Australians a platform to establish themselves as pioneers and channel their passion into creating a better future by building their STEM and critical thinking skills,” he added.

Since winning the overall Solve for Tomorrow 2022 prize pack after presenting her animal conservation idea, Tasmania-based Meg Phillips has gone on to build her honours around the project and is looking to put the prize money towards testing and creating prototypes of her RFID system.

Beyond honours, Phillips is looking to get the technology to a place where she can run full scale trials and realise her goal of preventing roadkill. In her final year of a Science and Engineering combined degree at the University of Tasmania, majoring in applied mathematics and electrical engineering, she is also currently taking part in an Electrical Engineering internship in Singapore.

Phillips said: “The competition allowed me to stretch my skillset and gave me the confidence to pursue other ideas, turning one of my dreams into a reality. I’m grateful for the experience through Samsung and feel good knowing that I can help make a difference, whether that’s through a bigger idea like Solve for Tomorrow, or in my everyday life by the work that I’m doing.”

New this year, Samsung has partnered with Student Edge, an independent online platform that provides students and teachers with on-demand courses to learn practical life skills, and access job opportunities, and deals, competitions, surveys, student articles and free resources.

The organisation will help connect its network of 1.3 million students to the Solve for Tomorrow competition through its existing How Did I Get Here podcast and a series of five in-person Design Sprints structured to help potential participants brainstorm, shape, and present their ideas. All ideas will receive immediate entry into the Solve for Tomorrow competition, offering a chance to win multiple prizes.

Damien Langley, co-founder at Student Edge, said: “Creating success stories for students is at the heart of what we do, and we are honoured to work with an industry leader like Samsung on Solve for Tomorrow.”

“It’s a thought-provoking global initiative and locally, offers today’s youth a means to inspiring others and showcasing their passion for STEM.”

To participate, young Australians are invited to submit video or written project proposals by via the Solve for Tomorrow website. A panel of judges will review the proposals and select the winners based on their STEM application, creativity, feasibility, relevancy, and presentation.

Applications are open now until 7th January 2024.

With seven chances to win across the Design Sprints and Solve for Tomorrow competition, entrants could receive up to $10,000 in cash from the major prize alone to bring their idea to life. Two outstanding projects will be recognised as runners-up, and an additional will walk away as the Samsung Employees’ Choice winner as part of a polled vote for the best entry. Each winner will also receive a Samsung Productivity Pack, including a Samsung Z Flip4 5G, 27” M5 Smart Monitor, and Galaxy Buds2 Pro.

Since launching in Australia in 2021, the tech company’s Solve for Tomorrow has empowered young innovators and reached thousands of students, fostering their passion for STEM and encouraging them to pursue careers in the industry.

• 1.15 million watch The Voice in Total TV
• 1 million tune in for The Block in Total TV

Total TV Ratings, August 23

1,155,000 watched Seven’s The Voice Australia 2023 as 20-year-old bellboy Christian Ellis shared how singing gave him something to live for, up 27%.

1,094,000 tuned in for Nine’s watched The Block. Due to the fact they had to restump their entire home, Kristy and Brett were told they could work ahead, up 45%.

1,008,000 viewed ABC’s season premiere of Matt Okine and Denise Scott’s Mother and Son, up 52%.

862,000 saw 10’s Thank God You’re Here as Celia Pacquola sent actor Virginia Gay and comedians Guy Montgomery, Danielle Walker and Aaron Chen through the blue door, up 46%.

Overnight TV Ratings, August 30

Primetime News
Seven News 866,000 (6:00pm) / 850,000 (6:30pm)
Nine News 825,000 (6:00pm) / 827,000 (6:30pm)
ABC News 511,000
10 News First 214,000 (5:00pm)/ 162,000 (6:00pm)
SBS World News 124,000 (6:30pm)/ 105,000 (7:00pm)

Daily Current Affairs
A Current Affair 636,000
7.30 408,000
The Project 193,000 6:30pm / 279,000 7pm

Breakfast TV
Sunrise 213,000
Today 182,000
News Breakfast 150,000

Nine won Wednesday night with a primary share of 21.9% and a network share of 30.8%. 7Two has won multi channels with a 3.2% share.

Nine’s A Current Affair’s (636,000) Ally Langdon sat down for a one-on-one interview with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Langdon got to the heart of the Voice to Parliament in a special edition of the program after it was announced the referendum would take place on October 14. Then, 578,000 tuned into The Block. During the episode, Gian hit a roadblock when there was trouble with his stonemason, who failed to have the correct documentation to be inducted. Then, all of the Blockheads participated in a hilarious, yet cringe breakdancing challenge, where Eliza and Liberty took away $10,000. After her fall during the August 29 episode, Steph raised eyebrows when she delivered a performance sans any sign of injury. 261,000 then watched Luxe Listings Sydney as Gavin met his team at a mega-mansion and D’Leanne pursued new recruits. 

SEE ALSO: The Block Recap Episode 16: Gian has induction issues and the breakdancing challenge…happens

408,000 began their evening in Summer Bay with Seven’s Home and Away as questions were raised about whether Dana had sabotaged her own case and Samuel re-entered Rose’s orbit. 327,000 then watched the first of two episodes of Border Security: Australia’s Front Line. During the episode, officers uncovered a surprising secret inside a shipping container from China. Then, in a repeat episode, viewed by 312,000, a woman acting suspiciously was stopped at the border and officers were shocked by what she was hiding. Two episodes of Without Sin followed for 152,000 and 110,000 as Stella dove headfirst into finding out who really killed her daughter.

SEE ALSO: The comedians in ABC’s WTFAQ don’t just answer your burning questions, they seek out the answers too

On 10, The Project’s (193,000 6:30pm / 279,000 7pm) looked at how one year ago, 65% of the country supported the Voice to Parliament, but now support is sitting at 48%. Labor Senator Penny Wong explained what she thinks happened. The panel was also joined by comedian and Hit Network’s Tommy Little who spoke about his new kid’s book, Who Took My Nuts. Thank God You’re Here then followed as Ross Noble, Emma Holland, He Huang and TV host and radio legend Hamish Blake went through the blue door. Blake’s appearance marked 14 years since he had first stepped onto the show’, while one of Australia’s biggest Hollywood exports, Josh Lawson, was guest judge. Holland was given the honour of this week’s “Bachelor of Bullsh–t” as 556,000 tuned in. 291,000 also watched The Inspired Unemployed (Impractical) Jokers. During the episode, the jokers become wait staff at a fancy restaurant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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408,000 watched ABC’s 7.30. The date for the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum has been set, with the program hearing from all the states and territories and Laura Tingle assessed the state of play on day one of the campaign. 450,000 then watched Hard Quiz before 344,000 tuned in for Mother and Son. Maggie tried to inspire a visit from her grandchildren and Arthur practised for an online game tournament with a troublesome young teammate. 254,000 then watched the season premiere of WTFAQ. Co-presenter Chas Licciardello found out if it’s dangerous to use your phone on the plane and the team answered the controversial question: Do we really need to keep tomato sauce in the fridge?

The highest rating non-news show on SBS was Michael Mosley Secrets of the Superagers with 141,000 tuning in. During the episode, the series looked at our appearance. Michael was in Los Angeles to meet a 71-year-old with amazing, wrinkle-free skin and learned about a study that revealed how chemicals in mangoes can visibly reduce facial wrinkles.