After the announcement of their 2011/2012 financial year results and the news they would be shrinking their newsrooms, Channel 10 needed some good news. This release of their 2013 schedule looks reasonable, though that’s being cautiously optimistic. The key values of the Network in 2013 are “Smart, Different, Authentic” (ordered as such likely so it’s not reduced to an acronym of SAD) and the programs lined up mostly reflect that – the authenticity they seek is delivered primarily through their on-air talent and who knows who will be left to be that.

It’s a partial harking back to the Ch10 of old with The Simpsons return to 6pm, The Project sliding to 6:30pm but remaining an hour long – all seeking to fix their 6pm to 7:30pm ratings nightmare – and (conspiracy theorist unite) no mention of Breakfast – though there’s been no discussion of news/entertainment product outside primetime. From the press release:

Network Ten today announced its programming line-up for 2013, including nine new local series and four new overseas drama series.

Network Ten will launch five new Australian drama series for TEN in 2013, including the comedic drama Wonderland and the epic Australian story Batavia. Also new are Mr and Mrs Murder with Shaun Micallef and Kat Stewart, Reef Doctors with Lisa McCune, and Secret & Lies: The Track.

Next year’s line-up includes new twists on the iconic TEN programs MasterChef Australia and The Biggest Loser, new seasons of the critically acclaimed local drama series Offspring and Puberty Blues, and the innovative new cooking show Recipe to Riches. Other engaging new local series on TEN next year include the live, interactive series Shock of the Now and Hamish Macdonald’s The Truth Is.

The 2013 summer will see the Hopman Cup broadcast on TEN, while next year the Wallabies find a new home on TEN with our broadcasts of the British and Irish Lions Tour and the Rugby Championship.

Network Ten Chief Executive Officer, James Warburton, said: “For 2013 we have developed a schedule that builds consistency for our viewers and advertisers and will build our audience. “It is a 40-week plan, consistently targeted with authentic TEN programs. Familiar, successful franchises will be in our schedule week in, week out, as well as a large number of new shows.”

Network Ten Chief Programming Officer, Beverley McGarvey, said TEN’s core programs such as MasterChef, The Biggest Loser, The Project, Offspring, Modern Family and NCIS would be joined by a raft of new local and overseas series. “We want our viewers to be engaged and have a great experience when they come to TEN, ELEVEN and ONE,” Ms McGarvey said. “We want to inspire them and surprise them, but most of all we want to entertain Australians with authentic, accessible content.”

“In 2013 we are proud to present viewers with our largest and most diverse drama slate. We are also cementing the growth we have seen in early evening this year by moving The Project to the 6.30pm to 7.30pm timeslot and bringing The Simpsons back home to TEN at 6pm,” she said. “Our aim in 2013 is to deliver quality content to our audiences every week of the year and to offer them distinctive programs they cannot get anywhere else.”

TEN In 2013

Local – New
MasterChef: The Professionals
TEN and Shine Australia take the MasterChef Australia experience to a new level with MasterChef: The Professionals. Hosted by Marco Pierre White – the man widely regarded as the best chef in the world – and esteemed food critic and MasterChef Australia judge Matt Preston, this new series takes 18 working chefs and puts them in the toughest cooking competition in Australia. The prize? The chance to turn their culinary dreams and ambitions into reality, under the direction of a legendary chef.

Recipe to Riches
TEN is delighted to partner with Woolworths to present this innovative new series. Produced by FremantleMedia Australia, Recipe to Riches gives everyday Australians the chance to share their home-cooked dishes with millions of people, by turning them into mouth-watering products on the shelves of Woolworths supermarkets. Viewers vote in the most authentic way: the day after each episode goes to air, they can walk into a supermarket and buy the featured products.

Mr and Mrs Murder
Shaun Micallef (Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation, Newstopia, Mad As Hell) and Kat Stewart (Offspring, Underbelly, Tangle) star is this new murder-mystery series. Industrial cleaners by day and amateur sleuths every other second, this happily married couple solve the crimes that leave the police baffled. Mr and Mrs Murder is a FremantleMedia Australia production of a Bravado drama.

Batavia
The best-selling book by Peter Fitzsimons is set to become a major television event on TEN. This eight-part series tells the remarkable true tale of the shipwrecking of the Batavia on her maiden voyage and the shocking events that followed. The story of the Batavia is being brought to life by Screentime (Underbelly, Bikie Wars: Brothers In Arms, Mary Bryant) as a co-production with networks in the US and Europe.

Wonderland
From FremantleMedia Austalia’s Jo Porter, a producer of Packed To The Rafters and one of the writers of Winners & Losers, comes a new contemporary romantic comedic drama. Wonderland is a series that will engage viewers with beautifully rich, relatable and moving stories, and will deliver the emotional highs and lows of drama and comedy, with an edge.

Secret & Lies: The Track
This innovative new series is a taut psychological thriller. Ben is an innocent man who finds the body of a young boy and quickly becomes the prime murder suspect. Secrets & Lies: The Track comes to TEN from the BAFTA and Emmy® Award-winning production company Hoodlum.

Reef Doctors
Gold Logie Award-winning actor Lisa McCune (Blue Heelers, Sea Patrol, The Potato Factory) stars in and co-produces this engaging family adventures series. Set on the picturesque Great Barrier Brief, Reef Doctors centres on Sam Stewart, an accomplished doctor who runs the remote Hope Island Clinic. Co-produced by Jonathan M. Shiff Productions, Reef Doctors also stars Matt Day (Rake, Tangle, Paper Giants: The Birth of Cleo) and Richard Brancatisano (Underbelly: Razor, Bait, Home and Away).

Shock of the Now
TEN will add to its factual program line-up in 2013 with Shock of the Now, a smart, unpredictable live show that explains our connected world. This is not a gadget show: think of it as a state-of-theart tonight show that allows viewers to interact directly with what is happening on their television screens. Shock of the Now is produced by Cordell Jigsaw Zapruder.

The Truth Is
TEN’s award-winning reporter Hamish Macdonald brings his unique style to The Truth Is, a bold, new way of exploring the world’s most dangerous, difficult and downright jaw-dropping news stories. This series sees journalism meet Bear Grylls-style television in an exciting collision of reportage and experience.

Overseas – New
American Idol
It is the highest-rating television series in the United States. It has produced global superstars such as Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Jennifer Hudson and Adam Lambert. In January, season 12 of FremantleMedia’s American Idol arrives on TEN, with new voices and new judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and – of course – Australia’s favourite music export, Keith Urban. Forget the imitators:
American Idol is the real deal. Only on TEN.

Elementary
From CBS Television Studios comes a reworking one of the most compelling characters in fiction, Sherlock Holmes. Starring Jonny Lee Miller (Trainspotting, Eli Stone, Dark Shadows), Lucy Liu (Charlie’s Angels, Ally McBeal, Kill Bill) and Aidan Quinn (Legends of the Fall, Michael Collins, An Early Frost), Elementary will have viewers hooked from the first scene. It launched in the US as the
number one new drama of the 2012-13 season.

Ripper Street
The terrifying story of Jack the Ripper is given a new lease of life in this major television event. Set in the East End of London in 1888 during the aftermath of the Jack the Ripper murders, Ripper Street stars Matthew Macfadyen (Spooks, Pride & Prejudice, Frost/Nixon) and is a BBC production for BBC 1 in the UK and BBC America.

The Americans
Keri Russell (Felicity) and Matthew Rhys (Brothers & Sisters) star as Russian spies living in the US during the 1980s in this smart, engaging drama series. The Americans is produced by 20th Century Fox and debuts in the US in early 2013.

Local – Returning
MasterChef Australia returns in 2013 with a new home in Melbourne, a stunning new kitchen and a new crop of contestants eager to be crowned the best amateur chef in Australia. Gary Mehigan, George Calombaris and Matt Preston are back, along with an inspiring collection of new judges and some returning favourites.

The Biggest Loser takes on its most important challenge in 2013: helping mums, dads and their children change their lives. The Biggest Loser: The Next Generation will be a multi-media event, using social media to take the battle against obesity to a new level. Over the past four years, The Project has firmly established itself as the most innovative news and current affairs program on Australian television. In 2013, Carrie, Dave and Charlie will have a new home in the 6.30pm to 7.30pm timeslot.

Australia’s love affair with Nina Proudman and her family continued in 2012. Offspring returns in 2013 and TEN is delighted that Asher Keddie and the other brilliant cast members of this remarkable series will be on our screens for another two seasons. Network Ten’s commitment to quality local drama will also see the second season of the critically acclaimed Puberty Blues on TEN in 2013 and ELEVEN’s Neighbours enter its 28th season.

Chrissie Swan and Can of Worms will be back in 2013, along with new seasons of Steve Irwin’s Wildlife Warriors, Bondi Vet, Bondi Rescue and The Living Room.

Overseas – Returning
TEN’s slate of returning overseas hits in 2013 is led by the multi-Emmy® Award-winning Modern Family and Homeland, along with the perennial viewer favourite NCIS and its compelling spin-off NCIS: Los Angeles. Next year’s line-up also new seasons of The Good Wife, Glee, New Girl, Law & Order: SVU, Merlin and The Graham Norton Show.

Sport
TEN remains the home of premium motorsport in 2013, with all the excitement and action of MotoGP and Formula One, including the high-rating Australian Formula One Grand Prix.

Other sport highlights of 2013 will include the Australian Swimming Championships, National Basketball League and the Hopman Cup, which will be seen on TEN in January.

TEN is also proud to announce the return of rugby union in 2013. TEN will show all Wallabies matches, including the Bledisloe Cup, as well as the British and Irish Lions Tour next year. And Before The Game and The Game Plan will be back in 2013. ELEVEN and ONE In 2013
ELEVEN has been a success since the day it went to air and now stands as the most youthful commercial free-to-air television channel in Australia.

The success of ELEVEN will continue in 2013 with a line-up that includes new series such as Beauty and the Beast and The Choice, and new seasons of fan favourites American Horror Story, Futurama, The Cleveland Show, Raising Hope, The Office, Bob’s Burgers and – of course – Neighbours.

After posting strong audience growth in 2012, ONE is set to remain one of the most successful digital multi-channels in 2013.
ONE’s line-up for next year includes Sons of Anarchy, An Idiot Abroad: The Short Way Round, Extreme Fishing With Robson Green, Burn Notice, COPS, Undercover USA and Python Hunters, plus more Ross Kemp adventures, stand-up comedy and premium motorsport.