Ten Upfronts: New Shows & Digital Plans Revealed, Plus An Aussie-first ‘Pilot Week’

Network Ten has announced its content strategy for 2018, including new and returning local programs and international series, and further expansion of its digital platforms.

New domestic content includes the highly anticipated Bachelor In Paradise, scripted series Street Smart, Hughesy We Have a Problem, Russell Coight’s All Aussie Adventures and How To Stay Married, and new local drama series Playing For Keeps.

Network Ten’s new content also includes fly-on-the-wall series The Secret Life Of Four Year Olds and a contemporary version of the iconic dating show Blind Date, hosted by Julia Morris.

In mid-2018, Ten will introduce a special ‘pilot week’. For the first time on Australian TV, several pilots of domestic shows across a number of content genres will go to air in one week. Full details of ‘pilot week’ will be announced in 2018.

Returning content on Network Ten next year includes the 10th season MasterChef Australia, the KFC Big Bash League and the Rebel Women’s Big Bash League, The Bachelor Australia, The Bachelorette Australia, I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! and Australian Survivor – Champions v Contenders.

Also coming back in 2018 are Gogglebox Australia, Have You Been Paying Attention?, The Project, Family Feud, The Living Room, Shark Tank, CRAM, Todd Sampson’s Body Hack 2.0, Neighbours, Bondi Rescue, Studio 10 and many more.

From overseas, Ten has new shows from the US including the upcoming crime series Instinct starring Alan Cumming, SEAL Team starring David Boreanaz and 9JKL, plus Wisdom Of The Crowd, NCIS, NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS: Los Angeles, Bull starring Michael Weatherly, and Madam Secretary.

Adding to the overseas line-up are The Graham Norton Show and a new series from British food genius Jamie Oliver.

Ten’s digital presence will grow dramatically early next year with the arrival of ten daily, a standalone, mobile-optimised website that will be rich in short-form video content and will offer premium and exclusive entertainment, lifestyle, opinion news and sport content.

Many of Ten’s on-air stars and presenters will be part of ten daily, giving consumers and advertisers a new way to connect with the broadcaster’s content.

Ten CEO Paul Anderson said: “We are now in the final stages of being acquired by CBS Corporation. This is a game-changer for Ten and we believe a significant positive for the Australian media industry.

“CBS is a global entertainment giant, a mass media company that is the most-watched television network in the US, with one of the world’s largest libraries of entertainment content.

“Making and acquiring great content is their mission, and it is our mission as well.

“Broadcasting that great content across multiple platforms with leading edge technology in an ever-changing environment is crucial, and what better way for us to take on that challenge than by being part of the global media powerhouse that is CBS.”

Ten’s chief content officer, Beverley McGarvey, said: “This year we have had significant successes across a range of genres, and we will expand on that in 2018 for an even better year of wonderful, powerful and engaging shows that connect with people across all screens.

“We remain absolutely focused on giving Australians brand-safe, family-friendly entertainment for all screens, and will build on the brand and content success we have had in recent years with MasterChef Australia, I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here!, Have You Been Paying Attention?, The Project, The Bachelor Australia, The Bachelorette Australia, Gogglebox Australia, Australian Survivor and many others.”

Read on below for more info (in Ten’s words) on all the shows that will be gracing the broadcaster’s screens next year.

NEW LOCAL CONTENT

Bachelor In Paradise

Set in a romantic tropical overseas destination overseas, this exciting new event series features former fan favourites and stand-out characters from previous seasons of The Bachelor Australia and The Bachelorette Australia – including Keira McGuire, Laurina Fleure, Tara Pavlovic, Apollo Jackson, Michael Turnbull and Davey Lloyd – returning for another chance at romance and love. With Osher Gunsberg presiding, Bachelor In Paradise will be one of the most talked about new shows of 2018 as it follows the contestants as they build new relationships, fall in love or face heartbreak, again. Bachelor In Paradise is produced by Warner Bros International Television Production Australia.

Blind Date

Fresh, funny and full of surprises, Blind Date – the original and most enduring, endearing and entertaining dating format – is a show for the whole family to enjoy. With comedy superstar Julia Morris at the helm, would-be suiters searching for their ideal partners, comedy and compatibility will go hand-in-hand. Each week, one single person will ask three hidden potential suiters three questions to determine which person is very right, or horribly wrong, for them. Expect sparks to fly and love to blossom, as Australia’s singles use sharp conversation and witty banter to find the right date for them. Blind Date is produced by Playmaker.

Street Smart

Street Smart features a gang of astonishingly inept criminals. While they fancy themselves as the next Ocean’s Eleven, their bumbling antics align the group more accurately with the World’s Dumbest Criminals. Starring Tahir Bilgic (Pizza, Swift and Shift Couriers) as gang leader Steve and Rob Shehadie (Housos) as his nemesis Joe the parking officer, Street Smart offers a hilarious and unpredictable trip into the world of disorganised crime in the Australian suburbs. Street Smart is produced by CJZ and has received principal production investment from Screen Australia in association with Create NSW.

Russell Coight’s All Aussie Adventures

Looks like it is finally time to hit the road again with Russell Coight’s All Aussie Adventures returning to Network Ten in 2018. Yes, 16 years since he first set fire to a national park, Australia’s most accident-prone outdoorsman is pulling on the khaki shorts once again. According to Russell it was always a question of timing.

“I’ve got some free time now that my croc park has been closed, Ten made a decent offer and the court order banning me from coming within 10 metres of a marsupial has finally been lifted,” he said.

“So strap yourself in for another sun-drenched series of outback adventures – all-Aussie style.”

Russell Coight’s All Aussie Adventures is produced by Working Dog Productions.

Hughesy, We Have A Problem

Dave Hughes’ brand new show, Hughesy, We Have a Problem, brings together the biggest names in comedy and entertainment for a truly noble cause: to help the people of Australia get over life’s infuriating problems. Hughesy will take the problems experienced by everyday Australians and turn them into working solutions. From how to handle infidelity to solving who gets to hold the television remote, there is no problem too big, small, funny or difficult for Hughesy and his team of comedians to tackle. Hughesy, We Have a Problem is produced by Screentime.

The Secret Life Of Four Year Olds

This hugely engaging and fascinating fly-on-the-wall documentary series follows a group of four-year-olds as they meet at pre-school, in the most pivotal year so far in their young lives. Exploring how children make and break friendships, share, stand up for themselves and find their place in a social group, The Secret Life Of Four Year Olds has been embraced by viewers overseas. Funny, cheeky, blissfully innocent and overwhelmingly honest, the world of a four-year-old is full of heart and a joy to behold. The Secret Life Of Four Year Olds is produced by Screentime.

Playing For Keeps

From the production company behind The Secret Daughter and Underbelly, Playing For Keeps is an exciting new series about the women behind the men we barrack for on the footy field. As the series unfolds there will be affairs, business opportunities, fashion footnotes, faux pas, mounting credit card bills, groupies, harassment, racism, sexism, the ever-present paparazzi and an absurd amount of fun. It’s a world we’ve read about. Now we’re allowed inside. Playing For Keeps is produced by Screentime.

How To Stay Married

Starring Pete Helliar and Lisa McCune, How To Stay Married goes behind the closed doors of a two-point four family who are stuck in a rut. Greg (Helliar) and Em (McCune) have been married for 12 years, but their relationship is lacking any spark. Life gets complicated when Em goes back to work for the first time since the kids were born, just as Greg is made redundant. And the situation complicates further when Greg’s man-child brother, Brad, moves in. How To Stay Married is a Princess Pictures and Pablo Pictures co-production, which has received major production funding from Screen Australia.

RETURNING LOCAL CONTENT

MasterChef Australia, the show that changed Australians’ television viewing and cooking habits, returns for a spectacular and inspirational 10th season. George Calombaris, Gary Mehigan and Matt Preston are back, along with mentor Shannon Bennett and a line-up of guest chefs that includes Gordon Ramsay and Nigella Lawson. The multi-screen sensation that is MasterChef Australia is set for its biggest and best season yet, a season full of surprises.

The family entertainment hit I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! returns in 2018 for its fourth series, with Julia Morris and Chris Brown presiding over the adventures and antics of another collection of wild and wonderful celebrities in the South African jungle. From unbelievable tucker trials to jaw-dropping challenges, the celebrities face tests they never thought possible. Along the way, friendships develop and walls come down, as the celebrities laugh, cry, scream and amaze all of Australia.

The television, multi-screen, online and social media powerhouses The Bachelor Australia and The Bachelorette Australia return in 2018, with a brand new bachelor and bachelorette embarking on their journeys to find love and romance. This year’s The Bachelorette Australia with Sophie Monk smashed television and online audience records, becoming the most successful series of The Bachelor or The Bachelorette ever seen in Australia. Next year promises to be even bigger, more romantic, funnier and more compelling.

Jonathan LaPaglia will host a new group of castaways for the third season of Australian Survivor. The new season, Champions v Contenders, will see champions from fields such as sport, entertainment and all walks of public life take on everyday Australians in the ultimate game of survival. In 2017, more than 21,000 Australians applied for their chance to outwit, outlast and outplay the rest to win $500,000 and the title of Sole Survivor. Who will reign supreme in 2018?

It was the most talked about television defection of this year, and in its 10th season The Project is set for a massive 2018 with Lisa Wilkinson joining the stellar hosting team of the award-winning show, alongside Peter Helliar and TV Week Gold Logie Award winners Carrie Bickmore and Waleed Aly. Presenting news and entertainment differently from Sunday to Friday, The Project is the smart and fresh destination for news and current affairs.

Network Ten’s hit comedy panel show, Have You Been Paying Attention?, brings together the funniest people with the sharpest wit for an hour of stellar entertainment every week. Tom Gleisner, Ed Kavalee and Sam Pang all return, and with the show continuing to win new fans, the team is set for a bumper 2018.

After posting record audience numbers this year, Gogglebox Australia returns in 2018 with Australia’s most genuine and frank television critics. The country will laugh, cry, think and join in with the Goggleboxers as they react to the television programs of the week.

He pushed his body to the extreme in the ground-breaking first series and now Todd Sampson is ready to go even harder in the brand new season of Todd Sampson’s Body Hack 2.0. In just one of the extraordinary episodes in this new series, Todd is attached to the Iraqi Army Special Forces in the final days of the battle for Mosul, to experience first-hand the impact of frontline conflict on the human body.

Steve Baxter, Janine Allis, Andrew Banks, Naomi Simson and Glen Richards plus host Sarah Harris are returning in 2018 to help a new batch of Aussie entrepreneurs turn their ideas and inventions into successful businesses in the fourth season of Shark Tank. Grant Denyer is also back for a new season of the much-loved game show Family Feud and its hit spin-off, All Star Family Feud.

Amanda Keller, Barry Du Bois, Chris Brown and Miguel Maestre return for the seventh season of the TV Week Logie Award-winning The Living Room. Firm friends on and off-screen, the warmth and humour of these four hosts shines, as they bring their unique blend of entertainment, advice and makeovers to Friday nights.

One of Network Ten’s newest local hits will be back in 2018. The funny and fast-packed game show CRAM will also be on back on our screens, hosted by Peter Helliar with team captains Dilruk Jayasinha and Virginia Gay and a cast of leading comedians, actors and television stars.

The unique combination of the Bondi Rescue lifeguards’ second-to-none life-saving skills and larrikin attitude has captured the attention of millions of viewers worldwide and cemented the series as one of Australia’s most enduring factual shows. In 2018, join the 33 highly trained men and women, custodians of Australia’s most famous beach, for season 13 of Bondi Rescue.

NEW OVERSEAS CONTENT

Instinct

Based on a book by best-selling author James Patterson, Instinct follows former CIA operative Dr Dylan Reinhart, played by Alan Cumming, who has since built a ‘normal’ life as a professor and writer. Dr Reinhart’s peace is disturbed, however, when he is lured into the drama of his former life by tenacious NYPD detective Lizzie Needham, who engages his expertise to help catch a dangerous serial killer. The much-anticipated US drama also stars Naveen Andrews and Australian actor Bojana Novakovic.

SEAL Team

The former star of Bones, David Boreanaz, stars as Jason Hayes, leader of the most elite Navy SEAL team the United States has to offer, as he and his team train, plan and execute high-stake missions across the globe. The noble cause of serving one’s country comes with a cost, as it places strains on the SEALs and their families. SEAL Team also stars Max Thieriot and Jessica Paré.

9JKL

Mark Feuerstein stars in a family comedy inspired by his own life, playing actor Josh Roberts, a new divorcee forced to move home to New York in order to regroup. The only problem is, his new apartment is sandwiched between his doting but meddlesome parents on one side and his overachieving brother, his wife and their baby on the other. 9JKL also stars David Walton, Elliott Gould and Linda Lavin.

RETURNING OVERSEAS CONTENT

Network Ten’s 2018 line-up includes the best content from overseas, including one of the most-watched television series in the world – NCIS – plus NCIS: Los Angeles, NCIS: New Orleans, Madam Secretary, Bull and Wisdom Of The Crowd.

From the UK comes The Graham Norton Show and new series and specials from Sir David Attenborough and Jamie Oliver.

SPORT

There is just over one month to go until the highly anticipated return of the KFC Big Bash League with every match broadcast live, free and exclusive on Network Ten. Returning on 19 December, an incredible schedule will see 43 matches played in 48 days, including six double-headers. All matches in the extended season will broadcast in prime time on Ten or ONE, so fans will not miss a minute of the action.

British cricket legends Michael Vaughan OBE and Graeme Swann join Network Ten’s commentary team this summer, alongside Australian cricket legend Andrew Symonds, current Australian cricket team coach Darren Lehmann, former New Zealand cricket captain Brendon McCullum and crowd favourite Kevin Pietersen.

Together with regular expert commentators Adam Gilchrist AM, Ricky Ponting AO, Mark Waugh AM, Damien Fleming, Mel Jones, Lisa Sthalekar, Roz Kelly, Mark Howard and Andy Maher, the newcomers complete an all-star line-up of commentators throughout the season, delivering a first-class television experience for fans of all ages.

Network Ten will also broadcast 12 matches of the Rebel Women’s Big Bash League, including four of the matches that launch the 2017-18 season from Saturday 9 December, live and exclusive on Ten.

Ten of the 12 Rebel Women’s Big Bash League matches will be shown on TEN. Mel Jones and Lisa Sthalekar will be back as commentators, along with Andy Maher.

Cricket is just the start of Network Ten’s sport line-up for 2018. Next year, Ten also delivers for motorsport, the Hyundai A-League and rugby.

Network Ten will broadcast, live and free, the Australian Formula One Grand Prix, all MotoGP races including Phillip Island, the hit magazine show RPM and the biggest Supercars Championship events, including the Supercars Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000.

In 2018, Network Ten will broadcast the Hyundai A-League, with the best game of the week – the Harvey Norman Saturday Night Football Hyundai A-League match – given a consistent timeslot and free-to-air television home on ONE.

Network Ten will also broadcast all of the finals, as well as the Caltex Socceroos friendly matches after the completion of the World Cup Qualifiers.

Rugby fans are in for a massive year in 2018, with Network Ten presenting the three Test matches against the Irish in the June Test Series; all of the Wallabies’ matches in the Rugby Championship; and a third Test match against New Zealand as part of the Bledisloe Cup.

ELEVEN AND ONE

After increasing audience share in its target market of men 25 and older during 2017, ONE will continue to bring viewers strong, factual programming, together with new action and retro movies, more true crime and the best sporting action with the Hyundai A-League and MotoGP.

With brand new Countdown to Murder, Vanity Fair Confidential, Forensics and Homicide: Hours to Kill, ONE is the multi-channel destination for gripping real-life crime stories.

Successful factual series such as Car Crash Global and Rocky Mountain Railroad are back, along with dramas Scorpion, MacGyver and NCIS, plus a host of Sir David Attenborough specials.

ELEVEN enjoyed another successful year in 2017 in its heartland of people aged 16 to 39 and that success will continue in 2018. Australia’s longest-running serial drama, Neighbours, kickstarts ELEVEN’s early evening block, before classic comedy takes over, including the iconic sitcom Will & Grace.

A selection of new and hilarious stand-up comedy shows and a brand new series of Australia’s premier music show, The Loop, are coming to ELEVEN in 2018, along with favourites including Supernatural, Frasier, Rules of Engagement, Everybody Loves Raymond, Sex and the City, contemporary family, comedy and romantic movies, and the show that introduced the social phenomenon of carpool karaoke, The Late Late Show With James Corden.