The Footy Show
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There are two versions of the program, one dedicated to the AFL and Australian Rules Football, and the other concerning the NRL and rugby league. They are officially respectively referred to as The AFL Footy Show and The NRL Footy Show, though they are generally just referred to as The Footy Show. As they are shown in distinct geographical regions, according to areas where one or other sport predominates, there is little room for confusion.
Scheduling
Each version of the show airs twice each week in the form of a:
- A Thursday night program, shown at 9.30 p.m. AEST, and
- A Sunday morning program, shown at 11:00 a.m. AEST
The NRL Footy Show on Sunday usually starts at 11am and is one hour long. It is followeed by The Sunday Roast, which is a rugby league discussion show. The AFL Footy Show on Sunday is followed by Any Given Sunday, a show hosted by Mick Molloy and Nicole Livingstone as well as a guest host each week, that looks at all sports around the world, as well as previewing the AFL matches for that day.
The AFL Footy Show
The AFL Footy Show had its origins in 1993 when a special Grand Final Edition of the Sunday Footy Show aired on the Thursday night before the AFL Grand Final. The program was then extended and started as a regular program in 1994, hosted by former Network Ten reporter Eddie McGuire, and joined by former Geelong champion Sam Newman and comedian Trevor Marmalade. They are joined by several current and former football players in a panel format. The AFL Footy Show has also had its fair share of controversy, especially because of the on-air antics of Newman who has been the subject of many complaints directed at the Nine Network.
Some of these incidents include:
- Wearing blackface in response to an Indigenous Australian player, Nicky Winmar not appearing as scheduled on that night's program due to a flat tire.
- Hitting David Schwarz in the face with a pie before getting pushed by him.
- Having his trousers pulled down by Shane Crawford, exposing his genitals.
- Drinking a full bottle of Jim Beam over the length of a show.
- Newman has also had a number of well-publicised off-screen incidents that are often brought up during the show.
Regular segments include:
- Almost Footy Legends (by Trevor Marmalade) - showcases local footy highlights (such as big marks and great goals - originally started so that some football footage could be shown.
- Sams Mailbag (by Sam Newman) - Sam reads and answers letters from the show's fans.
- Street Talk (usually by Sam Newman) - a satirical take on the vox pop by interviewing and making fun of various characters on the streets of cities around Australia.
- Screamers - a AFL player talent quest competition
- House of Bulger - 5 minute parody of daytime soap operas featuring AFL stars such as Shane Crawford (as Hank Bulger) and guest appearances.
Sunday Footy Show
On Sunday mornings, the Sunday Footy Show airs, now hosted by Tony Jones and featuring Brian Taylor, Mark Bickley, Danny Frawley and Billy Brownless on the panel. The show discusses the weekend's matches so far, showing scores and highlights, and often interviews players from some of the sides that have played that round. Before the Nine network obtained the TV rights to AFL matches, it was a lighter look at AFL, with a panel featuring the likes of Max Walker, Ted Whitten and Lou Richards. Lou Richards is still a part of the Sunday Footy Show today, through his Lou's Handball segment.
The Sunday Footy Show was the original Footy Show, and following its success in 1993, it was decided to present a special Grand Final edition from the Rod Laver Arena. The success of this special meant that the Thursday night show was to be instilled as a permanent fixture in the Nine schedule. The Sunday Footy show has had numerous formats over the years running over two hours, but currently is one hour followed by Any Given Sunday.
The NRL Footy Show
Sydney Footy Show
Following the pioneering success of the AFL footy show, the Nine Network quickly developed a Footy Show for the Sydney/Brisbane market. The NRL Footy Show began in 1994 with and was hosted by 'Fatty' aka Paul Vautin, 'Sterlo' (Peter Sterling), 'Blocker' (Steve Roach) and Ray Hadley.The Thursday night program was, and still is largely entertainment-based, with some football-related content included, such as previews of the weekend's fixtures. This is often ridiculed by those in the industry, including Hadley himself.
Hadley and Roach did not have a good relationship with the rest of the team, and left by the late 1990's. For around two or three years, Vautin and Sterling presented the show by themselves, often with guest hosts such as Phil Gould, the Johns brothers (Andrew and Matthew) and Ryan Girdler with his highly popular segment, Their House, the name parodying Australian TV program Our House (a lifestyle program).
In 2001, a contest was held to find a new co-host, via a parody of the hit show Survivor (also shown on Nine), and former Knights forward Paul Harragon, also known as 'Chief', was selected. In 2003, fellow former Knights player Matthew Johns joined as the forth host, following the success of his appearances as alter egos Reg Reagan and Trent The Flight Steward the previous year. A new character, Randy Bugatelli, based upon an American fitness instructor, was introduced in 2005.
Paul Harragon's introduction to the show brought popular segments such as 'That's Tops', which involves giving the 'thumbs up' sign with both hands simultaneously. 'That's Tops' ran from 2002 until the end of 2004. In 2005 'That's Gold' was introduced, which involves placing an upright clenched fist on an open palm, both of these have had huge successes around Australia and New Zealand and can often be seen 'performed' at sports venues across the country.
In May 2005, due to declining ratings, former host Ray Hadley was invited back to the show. However, he declined this offer due to his radio commentiments on 2GB. Rebecca Wilson was also invited to be part of the show and she accepted. However, Vautin and Sterling disapproved of this move. Wilson appeared for only one episode.
The show has spawned 3 "best of" video/DVDs, a compliation CD, the Reg Reagan All of Me DVD and the single Am I Ever Gonna See The Biff Again? by Reg Reagan and the Knucklemen. Reg Reagan is a parody of a stereotypical 1980's rugby league fan, and Biff refers to barefisted fighting.
For a period of 10 weeks in 2005 the show was hosted by Matthew Johns, due to head injuries suffered by Vautin and a longer-than-expected recovery from the resulting concussion, however Vautin returned in September 2005.
The NRL Footy Show is a more fun-filled entertainment show than a show about the game itself. This is evident through the many games that the members play such as Going, Going, GOOONE! and segments such as Daredevil Dudes. Only one match is previewed in a through extent, it generally being the Friday Night showcase.
In 2006 the show is unfortunately declining in ratings once again, despite an attempt to re-introduce more rugby league discussion into the show (suggesting that more people watch it for its entertainment, rather than its sports content), with most conceding that the variety angle of the show in recent years had become stale.
Brisbane Footy Show
The Brisbane Footy Show was short-lived during the 1990s. Today, the Sydney version is shown in Brisbane and Queensland. In 1999, Channel 9 attempted a failed revival.
Sunday Footy Show
The Sunday Footy Show is aired on Sundays at 11 a.m. and goes for one hour. It is hosted by Paul Vautin, and panelists include Peter Sterling, Andrew Voss, Phil Gould and Matthew Johns. Much like the AFL version, the show also discusses the weekend's matches so far, including interviews with players after the matches, and goes 'around the grounds' with Tim Gilbert to discuss and announce player changes for the rest of the matches in that round.
Special Editions
Every four years, the AFL Footy Show runs a special edition of their program in London, England, with editions in 2001 and 2005 being the most recent, usually run during the mid-season break in the AFL season. They also hold a yearly episode at the Burswood Casino in Perth.In June 2006, the Footy Show World Cup Spectacular was aired, which aimed at capitalising on the interest in the World Cup 2006.
Awards
The AFL version has won several Logies over its existence, and is often considered to be one of the most successful Sport shows on Australian television. In a shock however, at the 47th annual awards held on May 1, 2005, the NRL version of the program won the Most Popular Sporting Program award. The NRL Footy Show won the Logie Award once again in 2006 (despite the fact that it is not rating as well).See also
External links
- [The Footy Show website]
- [Google Video featuring Shane Crawford punching Sam Newman on the AFL Footy Show]
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