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Hey, Hey, where did everyone go?

Matt Smith

by Matt Smith

08 Jul 02:24pm

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Filed under: Channel Nine, Darryl Sommers, Hey Hey It S Saturday, Red Symons, Television

87 comments

Were you one of the 637,000 or so people who watched Hey Hey it’s Saturday this week? No? How about one of the 800,100 who watched it the week before?

Hitting the cutting room floor for the second time

If you were, then watch it while you can. It’s a primetime show that is taking up two hours worth of scheduling, and ranking 60th in the week’s rating list. A show can only haemorrhage viewers like that for so long.

It was a different case a year ago, so where did things go wrong? Wasn’t there a huge Facebook campaign with thousands of rabid fans demanding that the show return?

Daryl Somers should have noticed the storm clouds. The first sign that things needed to change was when an act that was hilarious twenty years ago (wearing blackface for a Michael Jackson number) wasn’t as funny as he first thought (Harry Connick Jr look down on you must be a strange low point to be at).

Like many people, I can still remember it being a family ritual: Friday night, Burke’s Backyard, Saturday night, Hey Hey it’s Saturday. There was something nice and predictable about it for a Saturday night; there was no school the next day, Daryl was funny with his bad jumpers and dad jokes, and there were bogans to laugh at in Red Faces.

Nothing has changed. The show is exactly the same, minus the ostrich.

Assoc. Professor Susan Turnbull from La Trobe University put it like this. “It’s no longer the 1980s, and our sense of humour has changed. ‘Hey Hey it’s Saturday’ hasn’t changed with it, so we’re looking elsewhere for our comedy. That’s why shows like ‘Talking Bout Your Generation’ are flourishing – they target our current sense of humour, not our nostalgia.’

Maybe that’s the problem. We’ve grown and matured. We look at where we’ve come from with fondness and have no desire to return. When we want to laugh, we don’t want to wonder if we laughed at the same joke twenty years ago. Sure, the ratings from last year’s special episodes exceeded all expectation (even beating MasterChef) topping two million viewers – but it’s good to be nostalgic for one day, not every week on a Wednesday.

Which brings us to the next issue. By putting the show on a Wednesday night and retaining the name, we feel cheated. Are we to believe it is Saturday? Who are they trying to fool, we have two days of work left! On a Wednesday we’re looking to get the kids to bed for school the next day, not settle in for family viewing!

Enjoy Hey Hey it’s Saturday while you can. Enjoy the pithy remarks of Red Symons as he holds up the score card. Enjoy Plucka Duck humping the female contestants. Enjoy Daryl biting his bottom lip as he dances once the commercial break is over. On July 21, the show has booked a guest appearance by Kylie Minogue. Rather ominously, it’s now been announced to ‘go on an early hiatus’ after that. If it’s numbers continue to tread water below a million, Channel 9 will be reaching for its gong.

Most commented

87 comments

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    • Andy D says:

      03:11pm | 08/07/10

      Australia in the 80s was a country ruled by what I call “bogan culture” but this is the 21st century and Australians aspire to a level of sophistication that does not mesh with bogan classics like Hey Hey.

      The nostalgia for the show was quickly overtaken by the embarrassment factor of remembering a time when we as a nation thought Hey Hey was actually quality TV.

      Watching Hey Hey is like remembering when you were little and still believed in Santa, you excuse yourself because you were so young and didn’t know any better but you are still a little ashamed that you were ever so gullible.

      Reply

    • Simon says:

      12:03am | 09/07/10

      Perfectly put.

    • Freeman says:

      06:37pm | 09/07/10

      “bogan classics like Hey Hey” hahaha
      you nailed it Andy. it is so embarrasing to watch. it might have been less embarrasing if they just showed re runs of the old hey-hey shows instead of trying to re-create the magic (which is using the term magic loosley) shows like the simpsons have raised the bar so high now, and hey-hey was crap to begin with

    • Matt says:

      12:53am | 10/07/10

      I will enjoy Hey Hey far more than reading this pityfull article , thanks for wasting 90 secs of my life . I find Hey Hey far more entertaining than the American dribble we get dished up or reality nonsense .

    • John Blackman says:

      10:02pm | 10/07/10

      Australia’s favourite sport?
      Hey Hey bashing - c’mon gang - it’s not THAT serious!

    • Jack says:

      04:18pm | 11/07/10

      Matt,  you have made a very good point. - unintentionally. The people who watch mindless “drivel” like Hey Hey Its Saturday, like yourself, clearly cannot spell, and cannot seem to comprehend that someone else has a opinion which differs from yours. Thankfully, judging by the “pitiful” ratings, they are in the minority.

    • Becky says:

      03:14pm | 08/07/10

      Is anyone surprised?

      Reply

    • Stevo says:

      03:35pm | 08/07/10

      Dad reckons there is only one thing better than Hey Hey its Saturday, and that’s the best of Hey Hey its Saturday

      Reply

    • TrueOz says:

      07:53am | 09/07/10

      ...and it’s about time it was sent “Straight to the pool room” and placed on the shelf with all those other relics.

    • Kordez says:

      03:45pm | 08/07/10

      It would be a shame to see Hey Hey go again. State of Origin night isn’t a great night to compare ratings.
      One of the shows major problems is the name and day it is programmed. Whoever decided that a show named for a Saturday evening is aired on a Wednesday night should be hung, drawn and quartered. Ozzy Osbourne makes more sense then this.
      Hey Hey it’s Wednesday works too..

      Reply

    • Hermano says:

      10:11am | 09/07/10

      A shame?  You’re kidding, right?

      It was a bad idea from the start.  Channel 9 should cut it’s losses, quit while it’s behind and scamper off with it’s tail between it’s legs.

    • Nathan says:

      03:46pm | 08/07/10

      I think your way off the mark. I still find it entertaining, and so does my 6 year old. But putting it on a Wednesday night is not really a family friendly night. The 6 year old needing to go to bed on a school night, organiseing for the following work day, etc. The show was made for family friendly entertainment and this can not occur during the week. Saturday night 6:30 is the best time for a show like this, Families are home, there is nothing at all on TV, the “more sophisticated” of us are out living life, why not put it back to Saturday?

      Reply

    • Elphaba says:

      03:47pm | 08/07/10

      Shows like this were fine before television recieved a shot in the arm from production companies like HBO, AMC and Showtime.  Now, they’re churning out fantastic drama that is like a mini-movie every week (or afternoon, if you’re watching it on DVD!)  Look at shows like Mad Men.  They blend the nostalgia of the 60s (think fashion, music, food), with the edgy problems people deal with daily (workplace politics, unfaithfulness, etc).  The world is different.  Its ugliness is more exposed.  Our TV reflects that.

      I’m watching ‘Breaking Bad’ right now.  Just outstanding!  Why the hell would I watch Hey Hey?

      I too, remember the Saturday night ritual.  But I haven’t watched a single ep of the rebirth.  It’s a different world, with different tastes.  It’s sad that these shows have to be hauled out again because people yearn for the good old times - because the remake is never as good as the original.  You’ll always be disappointed.  Glamorising the past means that it will always fall short of our expectations - because things are rarely as good the 2nd time around.

      Reply

    • AFR says:

      12:08pm | 09/07/10

      Exactly, add the fact that so many people are just downloading shows like the abovementionbed, and Chuck, the Wire etc. Why would we watch Hey Hey? Tell them they’re dreamin’

    • Daniel says:

      04:22pm | 08/07/10

      Such a shame about this show. I am so disappointed with the network chiefs at nine. They seem to be obsessed with ratings and money instead of providing entertainment for Australians. So what if the show doesn’t rate? Who cares? They need to stop thinking about greed and money and just get on with the job in my view.

      Reply

    • Shifter says:

      05:53pm | 08/07/10

      Wouldn’t the lack of ratings hint towards a lack of entertainment value for Australian audiences?

    • Hermano says:

      10:15am | 09/07/10

      Daniel, your comment shows an incredible lack of understanding of how commercial television works.  See, shows need to rate so the networks can sell advertising time.  That’s why Masterchef is such a money-spinner, cos the supermarkets and food companies etc want millions of people to see their ads.  No-one is going to want to pay big bucks to have their ad seen by an ever-dwindling audience.  Hence, if no-one watches, no-one buys advertising time, Channel 9 gets out the big scissors ready for the cut.

    • NPS says:

      01:38pm | 09/07/10

      Stop blaming network chiefs.  It’s Daryl and the “gang” you should be blaming - they had an opportunity and they stuffed it up incredibly.  Hey Hey in its “Hey” day was great.  Now it’s just embarassing.  I mean, c’mon booking some band from NZ we’ve never heard of - puh-lease!  It’s dull, crap, pathetic sad and old.  I’ll be watching Kylie’s performance in two weeks and turning off for the rest.

      They should have looked to update the show instead of thinking of us a monkeys that would just want to watch the same thing over and over 25 years on

    • A Different Daniel says:

      01:58pm | 09/07/10

      Technically, it’s NOT about ratings. It’s the advertisers’ interest that the network wants. A show could rate very well but if its audience isn’t the kind that the advertisers are interested in, the ratings are inconsequential. 7th Heaven is an example from the U.S. It rated very well, but advertisers saw less potential in its largely Christian audience as customers because they didn’t see them as susceptible to consumerism.

      This all may not have anything to do with Hey Hey, buy I just thought I should point it out.

    • A Different Daniel says:

      02:29pm | 09/07/10

      And @NPS, I don’t know which band you’re talking about but Hey Hey was responsible for helping many unknown acts break into Australia.

    • CSallen says:

      04:27pm | 08/07/10

      When it came back on air I watched it for 5 minutes before it started to make me feel embarrased to be an Australian.
      Out of time and out of place.

      Reply

    • iansand says:

      04:53pm | 08/07/10

      Hey Hey was never something you sat down and watched.  It was something on in the background while you got ready to go out, or prepared dinner, or whatever. You drifted in and out of concentration depending on the segment. Putting it in a timeslot in which people expect to sit down and concentrate from start to finish was never going top work - it just isn’t the sort of programme that can hold that sort of attention.  There is always a good chance that a particular segment will not be popular with a particular viewer who will then channel surf away.

      Reply

    • stephen says:

      06:37pm | 08/07/10

      I’ve just remembered, you’re a lawyer.
      (You’re excused !)

    • David H says:

      05:05pm | 08/07/10

      Hey Hey started out as a kids breakfast show in black and white.  Daryl was a young man telling (I believe) the same jokes then and now.  How it migrated to evening TV is a bit of a mystery to me.  It should have been left dead and buried, not resurrected for something like a fourth go around. 

      Perhaps Daryl never grew up and hasn’t he talent to re-invent himself and the show.  Sad decline of a show out of time and place.

      Reply

    • CW says:

      08:41pm | 10/07/10

      It hasn’t been resurrected for the fourth time. The show ran from 1971 to 1999 uninterrupted, and was then cancelled. This would be it’s first resurrection.

    • Heléna says:

      05:33pm | 08/07/10

      I’d bet that their ratings would improve if they actually screened Hey Hey on a Saturday!

      Reply

    • Patrick says:

      03:22am | 12/07/10

      Um…No…Ratings on saturdays are lower then weekdays. The reason why it is failing is cause of its content, not the night it airs.

    • David says:

      05:46pm | 08/07/10

      Stupid idea to show it on a Wednesday, in fact any day other than a Saturday. It’s made for a Saturday. Try airing it on Saturdays & see what happens.

      Reply

    • Leo Schofield says:

      07:35am | 11/07/10

      They tried that over a decade ago. We all saw what happened.

    • Reg says:

      06:43pm | 08/07/10

      The world has moved on. I used to think Bertie Wooster was funny too until I reread one of his boring escapades, and PG Woodhouse was no slouch in his day. Never go back, it won’t be as you remember and you’ll ruin the memory of good times.

      Reply

    • Sophie says:

      11:44am | 09/07/10

      I respectfully disagree Reg - just like the original Sherlock Holmes stories, PG Wodehouse will *never* date! Yes, they’re a slice of nostalgia but so wonderfully written that makes you feel you’ve been transported back to that time, and I’m quite happy to spend time in that world for a while. Wooster and Jeeves have been enjoyable bedtime reading for me for years (and I’m 26)!

    • Anne71 says:

      12:34pm | 09/07/10

      “It was a silver cow. But when I say “cow”, don’t go running off with the idea of some decent, self-respecting cudster such as you may observe loading grass into itself in the nearest meadow. This was a sinister, sneaking, leering Underworld sort of cow, the sort that would spit out of the side of its mouth for tuppence.”  Sorry, Reg, but if you can no longer enjoy prose like that then you musn’t have a pulse.

    • Reg says:

      11:01am | 11/07/10

      Yowie ... then I shelter from your rotten tomatoes dear ladies. Perhaps Laughing Gas was a poor choice. I shall proceed to the Code of the Woosters now that I have completed reading D-Day. But I still hold to “never go back.” orrite orrite ... enough with the missiles.

      Vainly feeling for a pulse.

    • The Cricket says:

      06:53pm | 08/07/10

      Bringing back Hey Hey was like getting back with a partner after having broken up. It doesn’t take too long until you remember why you ended things the first time.

      Reply

    • Ricky says:

      07:09pm | 08/07/10

      Hey Hey its Saturday is eighties toilet humour at its worst.Its an embarrasment & should be put down permanently.

      Reply

    • Reg says:

      08:21am | 09/07/10

      I don’t remember it as toilet humour Ricky.

      I find, and have always found that most of the Australian film productions are nothing short of embarrassing and forced, with actors who pale into oblivion against some of the best British ones, but Hey Hey, in it’s day gave the impression of spontaneity when all along we were well aware it was nothing of the sort. 

      Sure it was effortless viewing for the times when interest rates soared to 17.5% but that’s when we needed clowns like Darrell to help raise a hearty laugh. It’s not as if we’re trying to cut away all the non-functional attributes like those Harbour Bridge Pylons or Utzon’s Opera-House roof. In fact it’s the opposite. Distract the half-pissed from staring at their reflection in the glass and sticking a flower down the gun-barrel of the seriously non-functional.

    • S.L says:

      07:30pm | 08/07/10

      A show like Hey Hey works on a Saturday night when people are getting ready to go out on the town or families have just finished bathing the kids and are killing time before puting them to bed or when people are looking for a fill in before friends come over for a video night. (yes I know we all use DVDs now but it’s still called a video night!) On a Wednesday everyone has just got home from work and are thinking about the next day, who’s getting kicked off Master Chef or what stuff up the government did today. Whichever overpaid programer at CH9 who thought of puting it on a Wednesday shouldn’t be on the payroll anymore…...........

      Reply

    • loz says:

      08:19pm | 08/07/10

      Hey Hey is in the wrong place and should be on a Saturday night. Most people are too busy to sit down and watch a laid back but entertaining show mid-week. Oh and don’t forget it does clash with Masterchef, so that would account for something.  It would be better to clash with Ironchef on Saturday night.

      Reply

    • Meta says:

      02:32pm | 09/07/10

      Ironchef isn’t on anymore T_T at least not in my state anyway… there is absolutely nothing of interest to watch after 6.30 unless you’re into footy on a Saturday. They should try Hey Hey there. I’d probably watch it if it was on a Saturday, but I haven’t watched it at all on wednesdays.

    • Postmodern Utzon says:

      08:41pm | 08/07/10

      Modernity still rates with a minority today who still love the black and white days of TV. However in today’s context, it simply doesn’t cut the cake. This program belongs to a time that doesn’t exist any more; a time when the Harbour bridge mean’t something to everyone modernistic. Today the postmodern symbol of war on modernity reigns on Sydney Harbour.

      Reply

    • Jason says:

      01:16am | 09/07/10

      Ummm….what?

    • Reg says:

      03:50pm | 11/07/10

      P M Utzon, I must protest at your post-modern attempt to update cutting the mustard to cutting the cake. This will not do!

    • Tim says:

      07:26am | 09/07/10

      Matt, you young pup, it was even better when it was on on Saturday mornings. There was nothing like a bit of adult humour at 7am on a Saturday after just getting home..

      Reply

    • Reg says:

      08:43am | 09/07/10

      Of COURSE, I’d forgotten.

      A quality program in a time that was normally a parched wasteland. It was late Saturday morning in Queensland. Foxtel could do with a bit of this at the moment, now that they’ve devoted all their programming to children for the holidays. Not a ripple of smut or mental challenge to be seen. Not even after 9pm. Bloody cowards. And programs totally ruined by clumsy attempts at invisible censorship.

      I am not convinced that the technical clicks and pops we have devoted so much effort to eliminating, should always happen on a vital word.

    • KH says:

      09:35am | 09/07/10

      Channel 9 is the issue here - it is an outdated television network still living in the 1980s, run by some old men who think that the “humour” on this show and ridiculous nonsense like the ‘footy show’ is funny.  Its embarrassing to all Australians, and its sad.  Of course, this is a network that thinks Shane Warne is a good host for Top Gear - I won’t be watching - Channel 9 has missed the point again - the reason for the popularity (especially amongst non-car head women) is the hosts, and Warne is one of the least attractive men I could even imagine - he is repulsive on every level.  Another disaster in the wings I’m sure. 

      Darryl Somers is exactly the same as 20 years ago, like he was held in cryogenic stasis all this time.  The ‘guests’ are a list of people whose names were dragged from the obituaries.  Then there are those hideously embarrassing ‘interviews’ that the obviously star struck Somers has with so called ‘international celebrities’.  Car crash TV at its worst.
      Like most things in life, going back in time to try and relive something is a doomed adventure.  We’ve all made this mistake - and the resurrection of this show is one of these mistakes for Channel 9.

      Reply

    • Anne71 says:

      12:43pm | 09/07/10

      I agree, KH. I absolutely love Top Gear UK and won’t miss a show, but you couldn’t pay me to watch the Australian version. It is beyond bad. In fact, it takes you into a hitherto unknown dimension of bad.  And as for Hey Hey, I still can’t work out why drivel like that is shown in prime time while a brilliant comedy like 30 Rock is relegated to the 11pm time slot or later.  And the networks wonder why people are downloading instead of watching?

    • julie says:

      12:59pm | 09/07/10

      Totally agree.  Ch9 is the Kevin Rudd of TV stations.  Trying too hard, smacking of desperation.

    • Reg says:

      08:21am | 11/07/10

      KH you’re so devastatingly spot on. The executives are perpetually dredging the bottom to find the lowest common denominator to target.

      It doesn’t seem to have occurred to those executives that the Top Gear program is popular in Australia because of the high quality of its presentation so they look for a drooby Australian substitute to make it look daggy. 

      I guess it must have worked once but even the mythical “average” Aussie seems to have raised his standards above those of the Ch9 and the sporting world is no place to seek a higher standard in anything except repetitive stimulation.

    • IanSB says:

      10:51am | 11/07/10

      You nailed it KH. Nicely put.

      Good riddance.

    • 3blower says:

      10:13am | 09/07/10

      Hey Hey typifies the culture that emanates from 9. The stupid emptiness of Eddie everywhere and the falling ratings generally that the network experiences.
      Ditch it along with the ‘Footy Show’ that is attempting to be macho but fails so dismally.
      TV generally is pathetic but ABC saves the day is some areas. . . .

      Reply

    • Hermano says:

      10:24am | 09/07/10

      Well said.  I can’t think of the last thing that channel 9 showed that I went out of my way to watch.  Maybe I’ve grown up, or maybe they have no idea…

      Reply

    • Harry says:

      10:28am | 09/07/10

      They have nothing new.  Tired old people doing tired old gags.

      may as weell have done reruns and saved the money.

      Reply

    • stevem says:

      11:08am | 09/07/10

      The show rated very well on its return, but it really can’t survive as a weekly program. It couldn’t when it went off the air the first time and it can’t now. What it can do though it rate very well if made for just two or three shows per year. Creating sets etc for that is probably too expensive though.

      Reply

    • Bugalugs says:

      12:51pm | 09/07/10

      For those posts above who have been wondering why the hell channel 9 placed it on a Wednesday night, all the research over the past few years placed Wednesday night as the biggest night of the week for television viewing….. I’m not saying I agree having a variety-based show mid week is the brightest idea (in fact I would think 6:30pm Saturday is the best time if any).... just mentioning the reasons behind the decision

      Reply

    • MoreChurnPlease says:

      12:59pm | 09/07/10

      Hey Hey was just a poor copy of a UK program called TisWas, now that was funny but I wouldn’t want to see it now

      Reply

    • A Different Daniel says:

      02:23pm | 09/07/10

      But Hey Hey was on several years before Tiswas.

    • GlendaSings says:

      04:08pm | 09/07/10

      Ah…no. Hey Hey it’s Saturday started broadcast in October 1971 and ran until 1999. TisWas didn’t start until January 1974 and only made it to 1982. Different sort of format too - it tied together cartoons and other kids shows, and ran in series, not as a regular variety show.

    • Helena says:

      04:34pm | 09/07/10

      Hey Hey first started in 1971, Tiswas began in 1974…

    • stephen says:

      01:06pm | 09/07/10

      Love this show, and i always will. Saw it right after the State of Origin, and by midnight, i was feeling so good, cause it’s a variety show for happy people. There ain’t a bad or in-sincere bone in its body.
      Anyone our there who feels like i, get on the blower to Channel 9, whilst i make another nuisance of meself, and start e-mailing their sponsers.

      PS Don’t put away that geetar yet Red.

      Reply

    • stephen says:

      02:45pm | 09/07/10

      PPs…and i should have added, not only hey Hey sponsors, but ALL their sponsors. Got it, 9 ?

    • Trevil Knieval says:

      08:19pm | 12/07/10

      “There ain’t a bad or in-sincere bone in its body” - Ummmm, blacking up is considered to be pretty bad taste in this day and age. It may not have been intentionally offensive, but it does go to show the out-of-date nature of the program and why it is dying.

      Surely someone, somewhere can think of a better replacement in the same style, but with more up to date styling. Like Rove, but funny.

    • Chappo says:

      01:08pm | 09/07/10

      Your point regarding the huge ratings last week is very valid. John Farnham announces his final tour and everyone goes crazy to ensure they get to see him one last time. He then changes his mind and keeps going and it ain’t such a special occassion anymore.
      This show is just a vehicle for Darryl Somers overblown and out of control ego. How bad was he on Dancing with the Stars?
      I think you should add a new phrase to the world of TV to go alongside “When Fonzie jumped the shark” and include “When Darryl Somers starts singing”. A sure sign things are going downhill fast

      Reply

    • kramiam says:

      01:09pm | 09/07/10

      The problem with channel 9 is they haven’t done anything original for years. When they do get something that rates well they then proceed to do it to death. How many times a week do we need to see repeats of top gear, two & a half men or CSI.

      Reply

    • GC says:

      02:32pm | 09/07/10

      Hey Hey, it was crap then and it is crap now. the jokes are so lame you feel sorry for the clowns, speaking of clowns , what’s up with calling a show Hey Hey it’s Sat when it has a regular slot on Wed night…
      Get it off…

      Reply

    • Sanchez says:

      04:25pm | 09/07/10

      As a one-off it was fine - like a trip to the museum.

      But on a week to week basis it feels and looks tired.

      There would be better ways for Ch.9 to invest in local production than reviving a corpse.

      Don’t they call a temporary spike in statistics a dead-cat bounce? I think that’s what the return of Hey Hey enjoyed. Briefly.

      Reply

    • John says:

      04:34pm | 09/07/10

      Who was the thinker in residence who put Hey Hey its SATURDAY on a Wednesday?  Sorry, that doesn’t compute.

      Reply

    • Steve says:

      04:59pm | 09/07/10

      Why is Hey Hey NOT on Saturday?

      Reply

    • Julie says:

      05:12pm | 09/07/10

      We said SATURDAY!!!!! We missed it on SATURDAY!!!

      Reply

    • Mel says:

      08:11pm | 09/07/10

      Well, if stupid Channel 9 chose to run it last Wednesday at
      10.30 pm in NSW & QLD because of the State or Origin it’s no bloody wonder it losing ratings!! I certainly did not stay up that late to watch it when normally I would have.
      As all the networks seem to worry about is those precious ratings, I suppose it’s only a matter of time when Hey Hey will be given the chop and we will be offered up more depressing crime shows. Time to dig out the DVD’s again!!

      Reply

    • Ian says:

      10:06pm | 09/07/10

      Two words best describe the reason for the imminent demise of hey hey, Daryl Somers.

      Reply

    • Dave says:

      10:47pm | 09/07/10

      Hey Hey’s daggy but there are mitigating factors: There really isn’t any other way that Daryl Somers would return to Nine without Hey Hey - they can’t put him into a ‘20 to 1’ show like they did with Bert. If this goes, so does Daryl. Perhaps that’s for the best.

      Reply

    • Pavlo says:

      09:24am | 10/07/10

      mmm… MAYBE I would watch it if it was on a SATURDAY not a Wednesday! If you (i.e. Ch 9) are going to tap into a vein of nostalgia you need to recreate all the conditions for that nostalgia to bloom - and that means Saturday night. Dummies!

      I dunno, is it just me or are they trying a little too hard to resurrect something that died a long time ago? It comes off as lame and try hard.

      Reply

    • Dave T says:

      11:48am | 10/07/10

      Note to self:
      Next time you try to revive a series do a background check on potentially racist material

      Reply

    • TDJ says:

      04:31pm | 10/07/10

      For starters Nine in their usual grossly incompetent way stuffed up Hey Hey last week, as they did with Top Gear the week before, so don’t blame the program for the networks incompetence. The fact is that Hey Hey is the only true piece of entertainment on television at the moment. It actually has “VARIETY”, which is sadly missing elsewhere. If people can’t see that then their is no hope for the deluded morons. How can you not like something that has humour, good singing acts and guests and a fun atmosphere. People need to have a good hard look at themselves. To complain about this program is to vote for more of the boring mindless crap that permeates the television.

      Reply

    • Michael Garcia says:

      11:18pm | 10/07/10

      here here i agree with TDJ i am sick of the Reality crap shown on TV. there are bloody bogans on the Reality TV aswell, i hate it when people go off crying and the back stabbing BS that shows such as Master chef, Big Brother, dancing with the stars, singing for the stars and idol promote rubbish. reality tv likers must’n have a life they have to follow someone elses life, nothing good has come from Reality tv all the winners are a bunch of bogans. don’t get me started on the police crime drama tv rubbish CSI this and CSI that absolute garbage and done to death. at least with Hey Hey its variety, a happy family atmosphere its not Eddie and his stupid million dollar crap game show or some other game of chance game show. i recon Hey Hey should ditch Nine and goto either SBS, ABC or goto Foxtel and stuff Nine and its Kerry Packer attitude of canning everything that gets less than a million. there are reasons why sometimes a show gets under a million “State of Origin in NSW perhaps?” Fifa World Cup?, and who votes for these shows anyway. Free to air channels believe in that AC Nieson survey crap! in the end Australia and their love of TV is crap, compared to the US where they would have assign Hey Hey a proper channel maybe their Comedy channel and not be treated like dirt as Ch9 are doing disgraceful and would be shown on the correct timeslot. lets look at Funniest home video show is a load of nononese and what ever movie they show after it at 7:30 is repeated Family oriented movie crap, its quite clear ch9 having nothing good showing at 6:30-8:30 Saturday night they have to keep alive a video show that is as old as Hey Hey and family movies that are Z grade. i think the culprit is channel 9 here and i think Free to air TV will die with these attitudes that oh no ones watching. i think one day every one will get Foxtel or Austar and Free to Air will be no more I will be dancing on the graves of Ch 7, 9 and 10 as they will no more.

    • Karen says:

      07:13pm | 10/07/10

      Mr Smith, It might have been pertinent to mention that the scheduling of the Hey Hey show this week was over two hours later than the usual scheduled time due to the live State of Origin broadcast, and finished after midnight.  I would have thought this was an obvious reason for the decrease in the ratings on the week before, considering it was a weeknight.  With the omission of this very relevant fact and the comment “minus the ostrich” it makes me wonder whether you have actually watched any of the recent shows at all, and if that’s the case you shouldn’t be negatively commenting on them.  My husband and I enjoyed the shows as kids 20 years ago and enjoy it now, and we don’t consider ourselves “unsophisticated” at all.

      Reply

    • Chris McKay says:

      08:32pm | 10/07/10

      I just wish people commenting on the show’s merits would just shut the hell up. I have to put up with hours and hours of drivel that you all like, so why can’t I have my guilty pleasure? This is the TV equivalent of a pair of well worn tracky dacks. It doesn’t make me a bogan, it just makes me someone who likes to watch 2 hours of variety once a week instead of 1500 hours of American sitcoms, reality TV and sport. Don’t want to watch it? Fine! @#$% off and watch Masterchef. There’s over 1500 hours of programming on free to air each week. Feel free to watch something else. It do think the timeslot is idiotic. Put it on Saturday night where it is supposed to be. All the Gen-Y’ers will be out glassing each other and twittering on their iPhones.

      Reply

    • Pommyman says:

      10:57am | 11/07/10

      Exactly! It really is pleasant to watch some Australian made entertainment. We have got some good shows, Rockwiz, My gen and others and we lost some great ones - Chasers, Collectors, but mostly it’s American rubbish/crime dramas or reality. There is nothing on 9 on Sat so why not put this there? I suspect it has a lot to do with 9 showing Rugby in NSW and 9 wanting the AFL rights back after next year.

    • Reg says:

      01:28pm | 11/07/10

      There there ... just sit quietly now and take slow breaths. Yes, the commercial breaks can be disconcerting.  ROFLMAO….

    • James says:

      01:30pm | 11/07/10

      Did Matt Smith even watch it himself? That last show (on 7 July) was on late at night for most of the country after the State of Origin, so really it wasn’t going to get into the stratospere with ratings anway.

      Then the comment about how it is back, but minus the Ostrich? Ermm.. he is there. Whilst not every episode it seems he is making appearances every two weeks.

      Myself.. love the show. What is the alternative? Quiz, reality, sports or crime shows really. We need shows like Hey Hey. I don’t mind what day it is on, but it seems it could do well back on Saturday as so many seem to say as there is just nothing there on Saturdays apart from filler really.

      Reply

    • Sir Osis says:

      07:16pm | 11/07/10

      A couple of specials, that people watched with nostalgia (well some watched with nostalgia, while the rest cringed) and they thought it could last?
      Sorry. Many things that have been left in the past and are looked on with rose coloured glasses. When brought back time only shows how dated worn out and irrelevant the formula and stars are with no changes. Seinfeld was brought back for a one episode special, and it was wisely decided that it had its day, and while fun to reminice and catch up with old characters, it cannot be sustained without ruining it.

      And sorry Chris Mckay… It makes you a bogan. And for those asking for an alternative to the other programming options? How about read a book?

      Reply

    • James says:

      12:07pm | 12/07/10

      Reading a book doesn’t provide an outlet for local and international artists to perform in prime time.

      Hey Hey is all there is since Rove left.

    • Trevil Knieval says:

      08:10pm | 12/07/10

      @James: What about Rockwiz\Spicks and Specks. Decent artists, and I mean real artists, not B grade celebs frequent that show, and get to be themselves and play a decent sample of music. SBS\ABC has great, smart shows. Channel 9 needs to take note.

    • Luke says:

      01:28am | 12/07/10

      The (second) death of this show is unavoidable, and is a result of a number of factors.

      1) The Passing Nature of Internet Fads
      Unfortunately, for the most part, the attention spans of internet users are measured in nano-seconds. We will embrace something passionately and quickly, but we will also cool from an idea just as quickly. That is not to say that revivals of shows, or products, or the like as a result of internet-based campaigns cannot be profitable, but they are only ever profitable for a very short period and then, as we tire of them, the interest will fall like a lead balloon.

      2) Never As Good As Memory/Nostalgia Would Have Us Believe
      For alot of people, memories of Hey Hey were something connected with a different time, and, as the human mind tends to do, a different time is often thought of as a better time. The family trips you remember from your childhood are always more adventurous, interesting, wonderful in memory than in reality. So, even if the show had been brought back exactly as it had been when it was axed, even more, if it had been adapted for a more modern time, it would still be less engaging and exciting than we would remember the original.

      3) The Questionable Conduct Surrounding The Initial Repeat
      There was also a bit of bad blood related to the with-holding of the first repeat of the initial show after being revived. Whatever the reason for the delay in the repeat, alot of people who had taken part in the movement to revive the show, and, as such, felt they had a personal stake in the show, felt cheated and abused. And, for a show which was dragged from the depths of obscurity, biting the hands which fed it was a foolish mistake.

      I never bothered to watch the revived Hey Hey It’s (Satur)Wednesday, and I do not believe that I missed out on much for having done so. And, it’s inevitable disappearance from the current TV lineup will not be something to adversely affect me, or many people I know.

      Reply

    • Frank says:

      01:49am | 12/07/10

      Hey Hey was actually a memorable learning experience for me. When we were young we didnt get Hey Hey. I’m from the country where we required special equipment to receive “Adelaide stations”. I would go to school on mondays and hear many of the other kids talking about Hey Hey and would get excited about one day see this amazing show. “Hey Hey” and “Its a Knockout”. Then I saw them. That was when I learnt that the people talking about those shows were morons.

      Reply

    • Jay says:

      07:58am | 12/07/10

      Hey Hey belongs on Saturday night where it built up its following. People enjoy having an option other than football and second rate programs.How about it 9, put it where it belongs.

      Reply

    • Trevil Knieval says:

      08:23pm | 12/07/10

      Its because of TV programmers thinking that shows like this are still popular that I always max out 70gig download quota each month downloading decent TV shows. 30 rock anybody.

      Reply
 
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