Same Name – gone. Camelot – bumped to GO!. Top Design finale – hidden away on GEM. Channel 9 haven’t had a whole bunch of luck with their programming choices this year, bar The Block and possibly Underbelly Razor. Channel 10 seemingly having the same problems with former standards like Modern Family and Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation not rating anywhere near like they should, and The Renovators not even close to what was expected. It’s only Channel 7 that seem to be having consistent success, with out of the box things like Four Weddings, Dinner Date and the soon to return Beauty and the Geek Australia. What will be the cut-through, stand out success of 2011? There’s still time for it to rear it’s head, given it’s only Week 37 (on the other hand, HOLY CRAP, IT’S WEEK 37!!!).
CAN’T MISS
- Sunday Night – Sun 6:30pm, Ch7
- The Renovators – Sun 6:30pm/Mon 7:30pm/Tue 8pm/Wed 7:30pm/Thu 8pm/Fri 7:30pm, Ch10
- Grand Designs – Sun 7:30pm, ABC1
- Wild Boys – Sun 7:30pm, Ch7
- Underbelly Razor – Sun 8:30pm, Ch9 (rpt Fri 8:30pm, GEM)
- Talkin’ ‘Bout Your Generation – Sun 7:30pm/Wed 8:30pm/Sat 7:30pm, Ch10
- MOVIE: The Hangover – Sun 9:30pm, Ch9
- Camelot – Sun 9:30pm, GO!
- Farmer Wants A Wife – Mon 7:30pm, Ch9
- Mythbusters – Mon 7:30pm, SBS one
- Australian Story – Mon 8pm, ABC1
- Can Of Worms – Mon 8:30pm, Ch10
- Body Of Proof – Mon 8:30pm, Ch7
- Good News World – Mon 9:30pm, Ch10
- Modern Family – Tue 7:30pm (rpt Thu 7:30pm), Ch10
- The Office (US) – Tue 8:30pm/9pm, Eleven
- Dinner Date – Tue 9:30pm, Ch7
- Wilfred (US) – Tue 9:30pm, Eleven
- Californication (rpt) – Tue 10pm, Eleven
- Top Design – Wed 7:30pm, GEM/10:30pm Ch9
- Spicks and Specks – Wed 8:30pm, ABC1
- The Gruen Transfer – Wed 9pm, ABC1
- Sons Of Anarchy – Wed 9:30pm, Eleven
- Crownies – Thu 8:30pm, ABC1
- Hamish & Andy’s Gap Year – Thu 8:30pm, Ch9
- The Glee Project – Fri 7:30pm, Eleven
BURIED TREASURE
- Compass – Sun 10pm, ABC1
- MOVIE: The Taking of Pelham 123 – Mon 9:30pm, GO!
- Flight Of The Conchords (rpt) – Mon 10pm, SBS one
- Suits – Mon 10:30pm, Ch7
- Louis Theroux: The Most Hated Family In America – Wed 8:30pm, ABC2
- Arrested Development – Thu 8:30pm, ABC2
- MOVIE: Pitch Black – Fri 8:30pm, ONE
- Richard Hammond’s Engineering Connections – Sat 7:30pm, SBS one
SECRET TV PLEASURES
- 6:30PM with George Negus – Weeknights 6:30pm, Ch10
- The 7pm Project – Weeknights 7pm, Ch10
- Media Watch – Mon 9:15pm, ABC1
- Q & A – Mon 9:35pm, ABC1
- Good Game – Tue 8:30pm, ABC2
- Hardcore Pawn – Wed 8:30pm, 7mate
- Pawn Stars – Thu 8:30pm, 7mate
- The NRL Game Plan – Thu 8:30pm, One
- Embarrassing Bodies – Thu 9:30pm, GEM
- Operation Repo – Thu 9:30pm, 7mate
- Up Late – Thu 11:50pm, GO!
- NRL – Fri 7:30pm/9:30pm, Ch9
AT YOUR OWN RISK
- The X Factor Australia – Mon/Tue/Wed/Thu 7:30pm, Ch7
- Everyday Gourmet – Weekdays 4pm, Ch10
- Packed To The Rafters – Tue 8:30pm, Ch7
- Poh’s Kitchen on the Road – Wed 8pm, ABC1
- The Hotel – Wed 8:30pm, SBS one
- At Home With Julia – Wed 9:30pm, ABC1
- Rush – Thu 9:30pm, Ch10
- Law & Order: UK – Fri 8:30pm, Ch10
LAST CHANCE(S)
- CSI: Miami – Mon 9:30pm, Ch9
- Top Gear Australia – Tue 9:30pm, Ch9
- The Defenders – Wed 9:30pm, Ch10
- Detroit-187 – Wed 11pm, Ch7
DO. NOT. BOTHER.
- Rescue Special Ops – Mon 8:30pm, Ch9
- Swift & Shift – Mon 8:30pm, SBS one
- Keeping Up With The Kardashians – Tue 11pm, Ch7
- NRL Footy Show – Thu 9:30pm, Ch9
It’s a two-horse drama race on Sunday night – Wild Boys (UnderKelly) followed by Underbelly Razor. Both likely to rate their pants off, the former benefitting from the premiere/much promoted ep airing earlier so likely to do better. Both show a great investement by the networks in Australian TV. They deliver strongly to different markets, so it will be interesting to see who triumphs in the battle of Aussie period drama this year.