Historic Aussie TV moment exposed as ‘fake’, 70 years later
Updated . First published
They’re the six words that transformed Aussie TV history: “Good evening and welcome to television”.
But 70 years later and the nation has discovered this monumental moment we were introduced to television was actually a fake.
Bruce Gyngell’s words were heard around the country in September 1956. Nine/Fairfax
The likes of Hamish Blake, Ray Martin, Peter Overton and Tracy Grimshaw, revisited Aussie TV’s most memorable and defining moments during part one of 70 Years of Television on Wednesday night.
And how could they go past the moment it all began ...
‘Good evening, and welcome to television’
In September 1956, presenter Bruce Gyngell fronted a broadcast by TCN-9 Sydney (which grew to become the Nine Network). Those six words would soon become legend.
But what went to air was actually the second take.
Gyngell’s son David appeared in the documentary to reveal: “What you’re seing is actually fake.”
The cameras weren’t actually rolling when Gyngell first uttered those iconic words.
“They didn’t have a record of it so they had to fake it which is the most television story that I have ever heard.”
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Melbourne 1956
Nothing unites us Aussies like sport. So, what better way to launch television than with the biggest sporting event of them all – the Olympic Games.
In November 1956, Victoria’s capital hosted the world for the first-ever Games in the Southern Hemisphere, welcoming 3,314 athletes from 67 countries.
Television executives had struck gold (pun intended). By 1957, more than 200,000 TVs were already in homes across the country – a sign of the explosion to come.
Australia won 13 gold medals at the Melbourne Olympic Games; three of them by Betty Cuthbert. The Age
And then there was colour…
Two decades later, everything changed once again.
From 1974, channels across the country started to test colour.
By March 1975, the tests were deemed a success and colour television was introduced full-time.
Suddenly, the world through a television set no longer had to be black and white and Aussies could see a whole new array of entertainment – now in every colour of the rainbow.
Colour TV was officially introduced in 1975, but the first tests began earlier. Nine
One giant leap
The advent of television allowed us to connect to the world faster than ever before, bringing global news into Australian households with minimal delay.
From the horrors of the Vietnam War, to the global grief in the wake of Princess Diana’s death, to the joy of royal weddings – Australian households now had a front-row seat to the world’s news, from the comfort of the couch.
What television offered that radio or newspapers didn’t was pictures – and each frame told a thousand words.
“That’s one small step for man; one giant leap for mankind.” Supplied
On September 11, 2001, the world watched in horror and disbelief as the attacks on New York City’s World Trade Centre killed nearly 3,000 people, including 10 Australians.
The first attack occurred just before 9am local time (around 11pm AEST). That meant many Australians woke up to the news on their television sets.
News presenter Sandra Sully broke the news here in Australia, staying on air for five hours.
The harrowing images from Manhattan, Arlington and Shanksville that day are etched into the minds of so many television viewers in Australia and around the world.
It was a pivotal event that changed the world as we know it and thanks to television, Australians could stay informed of the latest developments in the hours and days that followed, hearing from reporters live at the scene of the devastation a world away.
The news of the attack on the twin towers broke shortly before 11pm AEST on September 11, 2001. Nine
Your city, your news
Of course, some of the most important news happens in our own backyard.
Whether it’s a local legend or chaos at the courthouse, we all want to know what’s going on in our neck of the woods.
With TVs taking over the nation’s living rooms, suddenly the news was more visual than ever before. Gone were the days of needing to pick up the morning paper to get your news fix.
Now, Australian families could find out what they needed to know from their living room.
The first major event to prompt rolling news coverage in Australia would happen in 1997, with a catastrophic landslide at Thredbo.
News cameras were there as the tragedy’s only survivor, Stuart Diver, was pulled from the debris.
“Rolling coverage was unheard of, and it was extraordinary as this emergency was playing out,” Nine’s Peter Overton said of the broadcast.
The 1997 Thredbo landslide killed 18 people. Nine
“That moment was classic news, live television taking you, as it unfolded in front of your eyes.”
In April 2006, Australia watched with bated breath as two miners were rescued from a collapsed mine in Beaconsfield, after spending nearly two weeks trapped underground.
Two decades and countless extraordinary news stories later, we still turn on the TV for the latest in our neighbourhood – the good, the bad and the downright bizarre.
Using ’umour!
What’s more Aussie than a good laugh?
Starting from the variety shows of the 1960s, comedy has been a driving force in Australian pop culture.
The rise of sketch comedy saw the creation of many characters that would become woven into the great tapestry of our nation’s humour.
Among the most iconic voices in Australian comedy are Jane Turner and Gina Riley, better known as their celebrated characters ‘Kath’ and ‘Kim’ ABC/Seven Network
Arguably the most famous among them, Kath Day-Knight and her daughter Kim. And of course, who could forget Kim’s second-best friend Sharon Strezlecki, played by the incomparable Magda Szubanski?
From Barry Humphries as Dame Edna, to Graham Bond as Aunty Jack threatening to rip your bloody arms off, Aussie comics aren’t afraid to lean into the camp to get a laugh.
All the same, we Aussies also love deadpan satire. Take, for example, Working Dog’s newsroom hit Frontline.
From Ramsay Street to the world
What do Margot Robbie, Kylie Minogue, Guy Pearce, Naomi Watts, Isla Fisher, Chris Hemsworth and Heath Ledger all have in common?
Aussie soap operas, of course!
Scott (Jason Donovan) and Charlene (Kylie Minogue) are among Ramsay Street’s most beloved residents, they married on Neighbours in 1987. National Film & Sound Archive
Whether we’re catching up with the good neighbours of Ramsay Street, or the residents of Home and Away’s Summer Bay, one of the nation’s favourite forms of entertainment is the humble soap.
From following the gritty real-life stories of notorious crime figures in Underbelly, to the nation’s tears when Molly Jones died in A Country Practice, there’s no shortage of dramatic moments on Australian screens.
The rise of reality TV
Sometimes, the most compelling stories are the real ones. Enter reality TV.
Australia’s love affair with reality TV began in 1992, with 12-part series Sylvania Waters, which chronicled the lives of millionaire couple Noeline Baker and Laurie Donaher in the affluent Sydney suburb.
After an infamous episode in 2014, the word ‘croquembouche’ is enough to strike fear into the hearts of home cooks across Australia Network 10
In the early 2000s, the genre’s popularity exploded, with shows like Big Brother, Australian Idol, The Block, and later, Masterchef. Remember the infamous croquembouche?
Then, in 2015, Married At First Sight would explode onto our screens, bringing with it romance and high emotion (and maybe a dinner party screaming match or two).
Sydney 2000
If Melbourne 1956 was the test run, Sydney 2000 was the main event.
There was no shortage of nation-defining moments at the Sydney Olympic Games… Cathy Freeman passing the 400m finish line, cementing herself as one of Australia’s most prolific athletes of all time, or Ian Thorpe’s incredible five-medal domination in the pool.
Cathy Freeman walks a lap of honour, carrying the Australian and Aboriginal Flags, after winning Gold in the Womens 400m Finals in 2000. (AAP) AAP
It would all culminate in an epic closing ceremony Midnight Oil, Kylie Minogue, Savage Garden, Yothu Yindi, and Slim Dusty.
Oh and don’t forget the perennial earworm Strawberry Kisses…
Wide World of Sports
When you think of sport in Australia, there’s one tune that likely comes to mind… you know the one.
The Wide World of Sports cricket theme song is one of the most iconic songs in the history of sports broadcasting.
For over 40 years, it served as the soundtrack to the Australian summer.
Every year the SCG was a sea of white, as the ‘Richies’ honoured the voice of cricket The Richies
Equally important though, was the incomparable commentary from the voice of cricket himself, Richie Benaud.
While cricket unites us, nothing divides us more than a good old-fashioned state versus state rivalry.
Beginning in 1982, the NRL’s State of Origin has become one of the country’s most-watched television events year after year. The annual best-of-three sees some of the game’s most spectacular moments.
Perhaps most memorable of all, was what happened after Australia’s 1983 America's Cup victory, when then Prime Minister Bob Hawke fronted cameras and promptly declared a national holiday:
“Any boss who sacks anyone for not turning up today is a bum.”
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