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Cooking pips cars on Tuesday
Nine might have to rethink its advertisements for Top Gear touting it as Australia’s new #1 show after last night it was pipped by My Kitchen Rules.
It was a line ball tussle but Seven’s cook-off pulled 1.4m viewers ahead of Nine’s first-run roadtest on 1.38m -well down on its season premiere. Both left Bondi Rescue / The Biggest Loser in their wake (934,000 / 774,000).
Nine’s second episode of Top Gear, which had already aired on SBS, slipped to 1.15m behind NCIS on 1.36m but bettered Grey’s Anatomy on 1.04m.
Other networks battles …
Big Love for Željko Ivanek
Character actor Željko Ivanek makes his first appearance in tonight’s torrid episode of Big Love on SBS ONE.
Ivanek is well-known for his performances in The X Files (Roland), Homicide: Life on the Street (as prosecuting attorney Ed Danvers), Damages (Ray Fiske), Oz (Governor James Devlin), 24 (Andre Drazen), Heroes (Emile Danko), John Adams (John Dickinson) and True Blood (The Magister).
The third series of the HBO polygamy series has been its best so far, with some dynamite storylines. It surely deserves a much bigger audience.
The first series will also air on Showcase …
Top Gear drives up 1.68m viewers
Nine’s reputedly big fee in hijacking Top Gear from SBS appears to have paid off with a huge 1.68m viewers tuning in for the new episode last night.
The show was the #1 programme for Tuesday, driving right across My Kitchen Rules (1.21m) and The Biggest Loser / Bondi Rescue (722,000 / 966,000).
With all the advertisements Top Gear fans are questioning whether the episode had been trimmed. The BBC delivers a 52 minute international version to its clients. Nine maintains it didn’t edit the show, but it certainly dumped the credits …
Renewed: Big Love
HBO has renewed the acclaimed drama, Big Love for a fifth season.
Bill Paxton, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Chloe Sevigny, Ginnifer Goodwin are all confirmed to return.
Currently in its fourth season in the US, the show is tracking 13% higher than last season, despite big event competition including the NFC Championship and the Grammys. That season also includes Zeljko Ivanek and Sissy Spacek.
Sevigny won a Golden Globe as Best Supporting Actress for her performance as the volatile ‘Nicki’, wife of ‘Bill’ and daughter of ‘Roman Grant’ (Harry Dean Stanton).
SBS is currently airing the third …
Airdate: Big Love
Well here’s a bit of a surprise….
Showcase is picking up Big Love.
That’s Big Love that has already aired on SBS (where S3 is currently airing).
The top-notch series will begin 8:30pm Fridays from March 26 with S1E1.
While much of Pay TV is built around network shows that have already aired on Free to Air, it generally likes to swoop on the HBO and Showtime dramas first. In any case if you were a latecomer, or indeed haven’t started with the show, it’s a great opportunity to begin from the start.
It will air …
Sissy Spacek on Big Love
Sissy Spacek has spoken about her upcoming role on HBO drama Big Love.
As previously reported, the film star is joining for a multi-episode arc, but not in the Big Love compound.
“Well, you know, over the years I have done TV — I’ve never done a continuing role on episodic TV. Different networks have talked to me about it, and cable, and this was just a good way to get my feet wet. … I’m a fool for a good role in a creative piece where there are really such talented …
2010: SBS looks beyond Top Gear
Next Monday night SBS bids farewell to Top Gear for the final time.
The show drives off to Nine after a ferocious acquisition battle last year that SBS lost due to being outbid.
But the network is keen to remind us it was just one hour of television a week, and that it still has plenty to bring its “six billion stories” theme to life.
This year SBS has the World Cup exclusive, a third series of East West 101, Eurovision in Oslo, more Mad Men, Skins, Inspector Rex, Entourage and Shameless.
Over summer, the …
So what’s been your summer gem?
The other week a journalist asked me for some quotes on how our TV summer season was faring and I pointed out that historically, the 09 / 10 season has offered an abundance of choice -at least compared to when we had just 5 channels, half of which were stuck on sport.
This year the amount of content has boomed, thanks to our extra digital channels.
But when the article appeared in print, readers hit back saying summer is still a dead zone. I got slammed. Well, it is if you stick with …
Aussie-wood actors make their mark
More Aussie actors are making their way in the US.
TV Tonight hears former Neighbours regular David Hofllin has just finished shooting a guest role on US cable drama Big Love.
Hoflin played Oliver Barnes on the TEN soap in 2007-2008.
Meanwhile former Rush regular Claire Van der Boom will play folk singer Billie Tucker in Tough Trade, the first pilot for new cable network Epix to be directed by Academy Award winner Gavin Hood.
Other local faces making their way in the US lately include Josh Lawson, Grant Bowler, Sianoa Smit-McPhee, Dichen Lachman, and …
67th Golden Globes: nominees
Rose Byrne, Simon Baker and Toni Collette were all nominated today in the Golden Globe Awards.
Their three television performances in Damages, The Mentalist and United States of Tara were the only Australian nominations in the film and television accolades chosen by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
Baker and Collette are both up for Lead Actor / Actress trophies while Byrne is recognised in the Supporting Actress category.
Leading the TV nominations this year is newcomer Glee on four nods. 30 Rock, Big Love, Damages, Dexter, Mad Men, Grey Gardens, Into the Storm and …
WGA Awards 2009 / AFI Most Outstanding
Awards season is certainly hotting up in the US.
The Writer’s Guild of America has announced the best of the bunch in television writing for 2009.
Mad Men, 30 Rock and The Office are multiple nominees while Modern Family and Glee are both up for Comedy and New Series awards.
Amongst the other New Series contenders are Nurse Jackie, Hung and The Good Wife –totalling four of five shows to air in Australia on TEN.
In Animation it is a five horse race between writers of The Simpsons.
Amongst the television nominees are:
DRAMA SERIES
Breaking Bad – …
Returning: Big Love
It’s still a month away but at long last, the third season of Big Love is heading back to telly. It’s been such a long time since we checked in with the Utah’s Mormon family that a fourth season is about to get underway in the US.
In the third season, polygamist Bill Henrickson (Bill Paxton) attempts to create some much-needed financial security by expanding from Henrickson Home Plus into Weber Gaming. And as he continues to try and extricate himself from family and business ties to the Juniper Creek compound, he …