Television

Durie's Backyard dumped into Friday Graveyard   Author: eNews staff and agencies | Feb 17, 2006, 11:02

Jamie Durie & Friends

There's much wonderment about Nine's decision to switch the still very watchable Backyard Blitz from the attractive Sunday evening 6.30 pm timeslot into the almost dead Friday evening 7.30 pm timeslot.

This change starts tonight and you have to wonder about just why it has happened.

Backyard Blitz is one of Nine's best performers of the past three years and yet it is being punted from its key timeslot and into the wasteland that's Friday night, simply to bolster a black hole that Nine just can't program with anything watchable.

There is a bit of an adage in TV programming which sort of says, 'never give viewers a reason to not watch you'. By moving Backyard Blitz, Nine is doing just that.

Taking a double edged gamble: that people will tune in on Friday night, and remain loyal to Nine for the replacement program, a new thing called Clever.

The move may pay off, such is the continuing attractiveness of BB, even if it's now getting a little too predictable.

Tonight it will go up against Seven's Better Homes and Gardens and will almost certainly help shred that program's timeslot winning position. But at what cost?

Backyard Blitz is Nine's most family favourite program, ideal for 6.30 pm on Sunday nights.

The network hasn't a good recent track record on Friday nights with garden-based reality shows. It killed off Burke's Backyard under David Gyngell, and then had Our Place with Scott Camm (of Backyard Blitz fame) for a couple of weeks last year, until that too was killed (by David Gyngell and the viewing audience).

BB is a far better program than either of those but I wonder if the fact that it’s a production of Mr Burke's company might be a factor in making the switch.

Certainly Clever does sound interesting, looking like a cross between Einstein Factor (ABC) Brainiac (TEN) Mythbusters (SBS). Scott Camm is a part of the 'team' to be fronted by Georgie Parker, X Seven and All Saints.

Ten has the 7.30 Sunday evening timeslot settled for the next 10 weeks or so with its Brainiest specials at 7.30 pm ( 60 minutes will test it on Sunday).

And at 6.30 pm next Sunday it has a Daniel McPherson special on Killer Sharks (won’t they leave those creatures alone. Death by TV exposure rather than netting!

Another factor to consider is that Scott Camm hasn’t worked outside of Backyard Blitz where he goes well with Jamie Durie. (and what does Jamie Durie think of the switch, hardly high profile?)

Scott Camm has been on Renovation Rescue, which ended up in summer programming, which is the equivalent of the Sargasso Sea of TV. (that will be one for Sam Neil to solve later in the year).

Bert Newton is on Clever, and he is on 20 to 1 and he is on Family Feud. Overexposure anyone, and people worried that Ray Martin was too exposed on too many programs!!

This is another timeslot quandary for Fast Eddie to contemplate: it's not as serious as Bert's Feud, the 6 pm to 7 pm hour, the Today show in the morning, and now the lack of any surge in the audience for Temptation at 7 pm.

The Backyard Blitz-Clever move is a risk for Nine, but one with a lower downside than Bert.

But it was a risk that didn't have to be taken. Clever could have waited, or rather Backyard Blitz could have waited until autumn, its timeless and its got a high profile with viewers.

The move is really a sign that Nine wants to go flat out in resisting Seven's ratings assault and is throwing as much ammunition into the battle: but what will it have come May and June and then the back half of the year?

Meanwhile, is it a just a case of Friday night in the Wasteland, to the joys of Tinsletown for Durie?

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