News Free Zone

News Free Zone was a 1985 Australian TV comedy show starring Grahame Bond. It was the idea of Maurice Murphy.[1]

News Free Zone
GenreComedy
Created byMaurice Murphy
StarringGrahame Bond
Country of originAustralia
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes50
Production
Running time30 mins
Release
Original release29 July 1985 (1985-07-29) –
1985 (1985)
Related
Aunty Jack Show

Premise

It was intended to be an entire evening's entertainment in one half hour with no news (shown at 6pm, the same time the three commercial networks showed their evening news). It screened daily.[2]

The regular segments included:

  • a sitcom called Australia Street about a sharehouse at 85 Australia Street with a different resident from each state
  • a game show Neverending Story
  • a one person soap opera Party Line
  • Kev Kevanagh's Kulture
  • World Championship Acting
  • Vintage Video which showed old sketches from Aunty Jack
  • a reading at the end from The Book Of Wisdom
  • Bond singing "Please Respect Me"

Cast

Production

Murphy says the program was based on his "absolute hatred of anything journalistic and philosophical" and an "absolute love of enjoyment and fun and the light side in life". He says it was based on his "personal attention span. Some programs have one minute of plot and 27 minutes of fill in. I've always wondered why we just didn't have the minute and forget about the other 27 minutes."[3]

Apart from Grahame Bond, there are no well-known faces in the cast. "The aim is to try and develop a program that doesn't have to come off," said Murphy. "The idea is just to have I fun. I hope News Free Zone builds up new faces."[3]

It was filmed in Adelaide.[4] The series ran on every weekday for ten weeks.[3]

Reception

The show was the lead-in for the new ABC news program The National. Ratings were poor.[5]

References
  1. "Series takes the Australian slant". Sydney Morning Herald. 28 July 1985. p. 59.
  2. "Chatterbox poet lost in secluded paradise". The Canberra Times. Vol. 59, no. 18, 214. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 12 August 1985. p. 26. Retrieved 22 December 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. "The ABC believe no news is good news". Sydney Morning Herald. 29 July 1985. p. 54.
  4. "From 30 hours to 105 on ABC More Australian drama next year". The Canberra Times. Vol. 61, no. 18, 896. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 29 June 1987. p. 1 (TIMES TV & RADIO). Retrieved 22 December 2017 – via National Library of Australia.
  5. "Here is the news". Sydney Morning Herald. 10 August 1985. p. 1.
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