A big night last night as the Ten Network celebrated winter and launched their new Breakfast program Wake Up, announcing its hosts and location. The Network also announced sporting commentators Steven Bradbury & Alisa Camplin have joined for the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, and the inclusion of Osher Gunsberg as host of The Bachelor.
The reveal of James Mathison, Natarsha Belling and Natasha Exelby as hosts in Sydney and Nuala Hafner as Newsreader live from Melbourne offers a unique dynamic to engage the two biggest markets in the country at once while Executive Producer Adam Boland promises the show will “never be inside a studio” again offering scope to ship the show wherever it is needed when it moves away from its Manly seaside location.
The proof will certainly be in the pudding when the show launches soon though with cast like this and a strong growing production team it’s hard to think it’ll do anything but succeed. From the press release:
Natarsha Belling, James Mathison, Natasha Exelby to Host All New Breakfast Program.
Network Ten today announced its new breakfast program, Wake Up, will be hosted by Natarsha Belling, James Mathison and Natasha Exelby, with Nuala Hafner as news presenter.
Wake Up will launch later this year and will be broadcast live every weekday morning from Surf City, Manly, Australia. Nuala will be based in Melbourne, presenting the news from a location that will be announced in the next few weeks. Network Ten Director of Morning Television, Adam Boland, said: “We promised to be different and now we can deliver. “This show will never go near a studio. It’s an ambitious project, but one guaranteed to be fun.”
Network Ten Chief Executive Officer, Hamish McLennan, said: “We are very excited about Wake Up. Adam and his team are creating a show that is genuinely different and compelling, and that will give breakfast television viewers a real alternative. “The combination of Natarsha, James, Natasha and Nuala, plus great locations and an informative, entertaining format, is just what the breakfast television market needs. We can’t wait to get Wake Up on air.”
Mr Boland said the three hosts of Wake Up, plus Nuala, would bring a fresh and engaging approach to breakfast television. “Chemistry is everything at breakfast. We screen-tested plenty of combinations, but these guys had an instant dynamic. They can talk about anything and, trust me, with this format they will,” he said. Network Ten Head of News and Current Affairs, Anthony Flannery, said: “Wake Up is an important and exciting part of TEN’s new morning line-up. We have a great team of presenters, a fantastic location and a fresh new format.
“Australia will find Wake Up fun, informative and different. We hope viewers will let us become part of their mornings, and enjoy the show as much as we will enjoy making it.” Wake Up is part of TEN’s new morning line-up, the full details of which will be released later this year.
The line-up also includes a new, panel-based morning show. Two members of that panel have already been announced: media legend and Australian of the Year, Ita Buttrose, and newspaper columnist and television presenter, Joe Hildebrand. The rest of the panel will be revealed soon.
Natarsha Belling, Host.
Natarsha, or Tarsh as she is widely known, is one of the best-known news presenters on Australian television. She read her first news bulletin at just 21 and now has almost two decades of experience reporting and breaking some of the nation’s biggest stories. A journalist first and foremost, Tarsh’s passion for news, warmth and sincerity have seen the mother of two enjoy a meteoric rise is a highly competitive industry. Her most recent roles at Network Ten include presenting TEN Weekend News At Five and TEN Late News.James Mathison, Host.
A television presenter, radio host, part-time film critic and full-time sports addict, James started his media career as the co-host of By Demand on Channel [V] with Andrew G. The pair soon moved on to TEN’s Australian Idol, which, at its peak, out-rated the AFL Grand Final. After six highly successful years with Australian Idol (during which time he hosted three ARIA Awards), James co-hosted Launchpad, an innovative radio show on the Nova Network, and travelled overseas. More recently he has appeared on The League Lounge, reviewed films for Foxtel and Weekend Sunrise, and been a regular guest on TEN’s The Project and Can of Worms.Natasha Exelby, Host.
Natasha, or Tash, has been a senior reporter and presenter with Network Ten since 2008. She spent three years as a political reporter for TEN in Canberra, covering some of the most significant events in Australian political history, including the removal of Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister and the 2010 Federal Election. Tash moved to Network Ten in Sydney in 2010 as a senior reporter. She has spent time reporting in the United States and completed a fellowship with CNN World. She has appeared on TEN’s The Project and Can of Worms.Nuala Hafner, News Presenter.
A qualified lawyer and trained actor, Nuala’s 16 years in television have seen her work in Australia and the UK, and file stories from across the globe, including Cambodia, Mexico, the US, France, Italy, Greece and New Zealand. Based in Melbourne, Nuala currently combines freelance television reporting and pyschology studies at Melbourne University. Her resume includes stints as Melbourne correspondent for Sunrise, Weekend Sunrise and The Morning Show; entertainment editor for Sunrise; presenter on Sydney Weekender; and part of the Sydney and Canberra Seven news team.